In the third and final part of the series, ‘What it takes to Keep Your Job,’ Bangalore-based HR professional gives us invaluable tips. Read to know more, in the weekly column, exclusively in Different Truths.

Welcome back, last week we looked at the importance of being a team member and staying focussed. In this concluding part, I am looking at certain key elements and practices that will help in cementing your position and getting into the system and creating a platform to grow.

Documentation

Many employees may be extremely good at work but have no visibility in the system. No one knows what each one is doing. Sometimes even we are at loss of words when we are asked what we may have done. This is where documentation helps.

It is a good habit to document every discussion, every plan of action and every instruction. Whatever happens, be the first to document it, and share with the team or whoever is involved in this. It increases your visibility in the system.

It is not only necessary to document discussions but also do follow-up emails like friendly reminders, updates on tasks and accomplishments. This keeps the documentation complete and you become visible and have instances documented which can be quoted during your appraisals.

Trust me, when I say this. “Documented information is the only thing that will hold you in good stead during bad times”.

Documentation is a habit that needs to be developed early in your career, this will help you as you grow in the organisation.

Handling Escalations / Objections

One of the main reason you take a decision to move out of an organisation is that you could not handle an escalation or an objection raised by your manager on some issue. Here is where we start building a bad environment for ourselves. You should remember that as much as the other person is at fault, you are also responsible for getting the situation from bad to worse.

Now, how do you contest a situation where your manager is blaming you for a mistake that was committed? The issue is because your ego gets hurt that you resist and this resistance shows on your face, though you may not utter a word. You need to practice a poker face and then turn it into a smile, which soothes the nerves of the person in front of you.

Whatever the mistake and whoever is at fault, remember that you are part of the team and you need to take ownership of the overall task in hand. Mistakes get committed but correcting it and never repeating the mistake should be the effort you put in. There is nothing wrong in accepting the mistake as a mistake (you are not accepting to have committed the mistake, but just accepting that a mistake has happened) and then positively turn the conversation as to how the issue needs to be resolved and see the difference. This is simple. You just need to understand that the person who is raising the concern or blaming you, is doing it because of the pressure he gets from above his level.

Issues such as this always happen in an organisation, and some key strengths you should develop are, maintaining your composure, be a good listener, only talk positive and provide solutions, have a sense of ownership and getting things done. Simple things which will carry you a long way. Your career will see a complete drift upwards if you become very good at this.

Do not take things personally, these means do not get emotional about something that is said to you because in the heat of the moment even managers tend to miss out on how the team has to be handled.

Ignore Myths

Most people have some principles in life which is based on myths and negative inferences. People who follow them end up becoming unsettled and uncomfortable with whatever they do. I am listing out some of them with no intention of offending the persons who came up with these lines.

I am just putting forward my opinion.

1. First Five Years: If you have spent 5 years in a company, you will end up retiring from there. This is a positive statement probably the person meant to tell people that the first five years are the toughest and if you do well during that time it will give you a good push right until you choose to retire. Unfortunately, youngsters look at it negatively saying that if I spend five years in a company, I may not get another job ever.
2. The Three-year Deadline: Some people believe that if you have given three years in an organisation that is more than sufficient and then you should start looking out for a job. Doing this will help you increase your compensation but in terms of position, you would have gone nowhere. It is now believed and proven that a person will take at least one year to settle down in a Job and two more years is not enough for a person to prove his capabilities or prove his worth in an organisation.
3. Thirty Percent Increment: I get a 30 percent increment for every jump. As mentioned earlier, a few years ago, when the IT industry was booming, the only way they could attract talent was by giving a 30 percent increment on current pay without proper rationale as to why that person should deserve it. Nowadays, the trend has changed, industry has matured and organisations will pay for competencies and not for experience. You may attend interviews and expect a fancy pay but remember if you do not have it in you, they will not even make you an offer.

Think of all the positives, your time with the organisation means that the organisation is doing well if you are not fired that means you are doing a great job, and if you are getting promoted means you are being recognised.

 A few things you need to remember to have a great work life and a rewarding career.

Love what you do, or learn to love it, if neither of this happens, look for what you love doing and move on in life.

Set goals, know what it takes to reach there and work on it.

Take failure as a step on the path to success and never give up.

Enjoy what you do, the day you start cribbing understand what is wrong and address it immediately before it is too late.

Have a smile on your face always, it is infectious and smiles will follow you wherever you go.

Some things that successful people have in common are that they love their job, they do physical workouts every day and they socialise with people in real life and not just in the virtual jungle.

All the best and have a wonderful start to your career. You have a very long way to go.

Cheers!

[Concluded]

©Preeyan Abraham

Photos from the internet.

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Preeyan Abraham

Preeyan Abraham is a HR professional. He loves travelling and all the little intricacies that it brings. A foodie, he enjoys cooking for relaxation. A movie buff and music lover, he appreciates simple things in life. He comes from a mix of religious backgrounds that has helped him appreciate all the good things of what all religions have to see. He looks at life as a platform created to perform and give the best.

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