You never know when you’re going to need some friendly help or support, writes J.T. O’Donnell, career strategist and workplace consultant. She suggests keeping the peace with your co-workers by avoiding these potentially offensive questions:
Networking is critical for building a great career, and there’s no better place to do it than a professional conference. A little preparation will help you get the most out of the experience. Tips from the pros:
Asking questions is more effective than trying to know all the answers, says Andrew Sobel, author of Power Questions: Build Relationships, Win New Business, and Influence Others. The right questions “make people like you, trust you, and want to work with you.”
Start each day with a prioritized to-do list, dividing it into A-B-C tasks … Ditch the half-truths, even the little white lies you tell to make someone feel better … Earn respect of senior management by showing the ROI for whatever you’re proposing.
Remember, any message can be forwarded. Tanya Battel, principal of Elite EAs, warns, “Never use email to complain about someone.”
“A change agent,” write the authors of Who Took My Pen … Again?, “has the courage to see things that are and know they could be better, and to see things that aren’t, and work, dream, plan, and learn about them, in order to bring them into reality.”
You’ve probably heard the one about Gen Y’ers wanting—and expecting—constant feedback. Two things to know about that generational myth: First, it’s not exactly true. Second, if you accept it at face value, it could get in the way of good intergenerational relationships.
“The issues most people struggle with have little to do with our ability to do the work,” says Quint Studer, author of The Great Employee Handbook: Making Work and Life Better. “It’s all the things that happen around the work. … It’s whether we make life easier for our co-workers or more difficult.” He offers these four workplace secrets:
Bosses aren’t the only ones who can provide feedback to employees. Giving negative feedback requires you to counsel and criticize in a way that alerts a co-worker to where the problem lies and what must be done to solve it. Follow this seven-step method:
Opening your email inbox to find a message criticizing your work is bad enough. But it’s even worse when you notice that your boss was cc’d on the message. An administrative professional recently encountered this situation and wrote about it on our online forum.
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