If You Want to Get Ahead in Your Career, Do This…

I’ll get right to the point:

Companies are interested in employees that can do one of 3 things for them:

1)     Make money

2)     Save money

3)     Increase efficiency (which saves money!)

So, why is it that the majority of workers rarely think about this? I think it’s because most folks spend more time thinking about what it is that they want than what the employer wants. The ironic thing is that if you can shift your focus from yourself to the employer, you ultimately will get what you want.

This is true for the job seeker as well. If you can demonstrate to a prospective employer how you have done one of the above 3 things in past jobs (and can do so again), you shouldn’t have trouble finding a new position and getting the job.

So, where do you begin? How do you figure out how to make a meaningful financial contribution on the job?

If you’re currently employed, find out the answers to these questions:

·                     How does your company create profits?

·                     How does your job contribute to that process?

·                     How can you modify your job so that more profits are produced as a result of what you do?

Then finally, make sure that your boss knows how much more money you are making for the company.

But let’s say you believe your job responsibilities don’t have anything to do with making money for the company. For example, you have an administrative position and no real opportunity to bring in income for the company; certainly not the same as if you had a position in sales. In that case, I would suggest you focus on increasing efficiency and how your efforts can save money for the organization you work for.

Jan took this approach. She is a Property Manager working for a small real estate management firm in New York City. Her job responsibilities encompassed collecting rent from tenants, handling leases, resolving tenant complaints, and coordinating repairs to the properties as well as other duties. She recognized that her company was losing money on tenants that defaulted on rental payments. She also realized that she could increase her value by becoming more efficient on the job. She came up with solutions to streamline processes and systems at work so that she could get more administrative work done in less time. She looked for and recommended skilled laborers to handle the building maintenance (eliminating wasted expenses due to past worker errors) and she also proposed a plan to her bosses for providing a cash discount incentive to tenants for paying their rent on time.  She then figured out how much money those ideas contributed to the company’s profits. When it was time to ask for a raise, she was able to demonstrate her worth to her employers in dollars and cents – an issue that is near and dear to their hearts.

So, if you want to get ahead, think of ways to help your employer get ahead first.