The Star Early Edition

How to excel at work

- GUGULETHU SHINGA

STAYING at the top of your career takes effort, hard work and dedication. While it may sometimes feels like you can use all the career advice you could possibly get your hands on, the trick is to figure out what works best for you and then put those strategies into action.

The following tips from Indeed Career Guide can help motivate and inspire you to do your best in your career:

New opportunit­ies

View every person you meet as a door that may lead you to a new opportunit­y. You never know how a person can add to your life, profession­ally or personally, if you don’t give them a chance. Your job may be a “just-for-now” one, but that doesn’t mean that the connection­s you make with the people there won’t have value. It’s best to view each person as valuable and worthy of your time and considerat­ion.

Show up early

Even if you become jaded in your position at your job, do your best to show up early and ready to complete your assigned tasks. Each job you will have is important for building your career and character; and employers will appreciate and notice your efforts.

Value feedback

Search for the value in feedback or criticism – each piece of feedback you receive can be used to help you grow and further develop in your career. Try not to focus on the method of delivery or the person providing you with the feedback. Instead, do your best to use the criticism as a learning opportunit­y by taking the value from of the message and then moving on.

Work harder

Stand out by working harder than those around you. Good work ethic commands respect. This doesn’t necessaril­y suggest that you should be the first one at work in the morning or the last one to leave or log off at night. However, you should cultivate habits that can contribute to your performanc­e, and put in more time and effort than those around you.

Ask for help

There will likely be certain tasks or projects assigned to you that you may not understand. It is best to ask questions to clarify, rather than make unnecessar­y mistakes. This will save you time and effort by ensuring you can complete the task or project successful­ly the first time round.

Embrace failure

Failure can help you figure out ways that don’t work. It can also help you to move forward and learn from your experience­s.

Failure can be just as valuable, if not more valuable, than success. Continue to be willing to start over or move on if something doesn’t work out.

Be a team player

Working with a team and collaborat­ing with other employees is a central part of most jobs. Do your best to work with your team members instead of against them.

Many great things can be accomplish­ed by working well with your teammates, and often it is essential for the success of a business.*

 ?? ?? Great career strides can be made by being a good team-player. | Pexels/Fauxels
Great career strides can be made by being a good team-player. | Pexels/Fauxels

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