“Although I’m viewed positively at work, I believe my reserved demeanor is holding me back. I’m not shy, but I have trouble making small talk … Can you suggest some communication strategies for meetings and social situations?” — Not a Talker
It’s become a reality-show catchphrase: “I’m not here to make friends.” The implication is that to win, you can’t afford to treat people generously. Will you go further by being cutthroat or collaborative? Let’s look at the data:
These seven phrases won’t get an admin noticed—at least, not in a good way, says Dave Willmer, the executive director of OfficeTeam. He recently compiled a list of the words your manager doesn’t want to hear:
Proofreading alert! According to search engines Google and Yahoo, the most common misspellings in searches are not due to the difficulty of the word, but rather to sloppiness … Make restaurant reservations in a fraction of the time, now that Yelp.com and OpenTable.com have integrated their web sites … Reduce ink use and save money by changing your default e-mail font to Century Gothic.
You’ve either seen it or done it: You disagree with something during a meeting, but instead of speaking up, you sit there and stew. Maybe that’s because whenever an alternative point of view is raised, it gets batted down. There’s nothing wrong with disagreeing. Here are tips on managing your allies strategically, arguing professionally and making sure you have a safety net in place:
Say you’re an office manager, and you’ve heard from several employees about a problem with the way people use the break rooms. You need to write an e-mail that helps resolve the problem. What’s the most effective way to write it? A few decades ago, a formal tone was proper for memos. Today that same tone sounds cold to most ears.
Nearly half of U.S. workers work for someone younger than they are, according to a recent Career Builders survey. Is it a problem to work for someone younger than you? Only if you happen to be young: Among 25- to 34-year-old workers, 16% said they found it difficult to take direction from a younger boss while 7% of age 45 to 54 workers find it difficult.
Are you in touch with your company’s core values? And what about your team? Have you sat down as a group to talk about what your core values mean? If not, suggest to your boss that it might be time. Here’s the potential payoff for you and your boss:
Is it possible to give feedback to your boss in a way that improves her performance as a leader? Or is it better to keep quiet than put your relationship at risk? The ability to give upward feedback depends on the relationship between you and your boss. Without trust, the feedback will be impossible to receive. Tips for giving upward feedback:
Interviewing for a job? Ask whether this is a new position or whether you are replacing someone … Avoid misunderstandings by asking others to repeat what they heard … Trade in old electronics for cash or discounts … Humanize interoffice communication by relaxing some of the grammar rules you grew up with …
Page 21 of 45«1…1920212223…45»