Managing Up
If you walk into work at the time you are scheduled, work until end of day, and break for a lunch in between, and that’s all you are doing, you may be preventing yourself from moving up in your career.
It’s often suggested that you do more. It’s very similar to the phrase, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.” In other words, move up by managing up.
The concept of “managing up” is relatively new, but the attitude behind it isn’t. What is “managing up?” In short, it’s the idea that you should “stretch yourself” — do more than your responsibilities by proving yourself as a hardworking individual who is capable of more. This “more” means more responsibilities, more duties, and even, more money.
In addition, you should actively be going above and beyond your own work, as a way of showcasing your individual skills. In fact, as you do so, “you can help others recognize your value within the organization.”
Increasing Your Responsibilities
It’s a fact that everybody loves a self-motivated hard worker. Who will likely receive a promotion at the end of the year — a person who is always does everything asked of him or her or a person who does everything he or she is responsible for, as well as actively takes the initiative of doing more as a way of assisting with the company’s overall goals?
Those who find themselves bored because their work isn’t challenging, or those who are looking for a promotion or a raise, or even those who really want to set themselves apart, will increase their individual responsibilities and position themselves as their own boss.
In doing so, you can ask yourself whether there are abandoned projects or ones that haven’t been explored thus far that you can dive into yourself. In addition, you can think about where you can lend an extra hand. If you can plan them into your own schedule, you will be showing your employer how motivated you are and how you want to do more than your own requirements.
Reporting to the Boss
The role of a boss or manager is providing guidance, as well as offering a sense of organization priorities, which will help make sure you are on the right track. In many cases, however, your boss or manager may be busy and unavailable; when your boss or manager does check in with you later, you don’t want them confused about any progress that you may have made. In this sense, you may want to take it upon yourself to take charge on this front as well. In fact, use your skills of communication with your boss — check in when he or she is available and briefly and efficiently highlight what it is that you are working on. In short, make sure he or she understands that you have everything handled; of course, ask what else they need from you, but by taking the initiative to request a brief meeting, you are showing how well you work individually and how well you can take the initiative. That’s where leaders come from.
Citations:
The Wall Street Journal: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB122511931313072047
Mashable: http://mashable.com/2015/04/10/basics-managing-up/
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