Successful business leaders are not just lucky. They work hard and develop character traits that make them dependable employees.

If you are trying to get a raise, promotion, or new job, there are adjustments you can make to your work ethics to achieve your goals. Each of these habits can be started today!

Be on Time

Punctuality is not only courteous but conveys respect. However, there are people who really struggle with it.
You must learn to be on time to be a successful business leader. This means meeting deadlines, and arriving to work and meetings on-time.

Respect Your Employer and Co-Workers

Treating employers and co-workers respectfully seems obvious. After all, you probably spend more time with your co-workers than almost anyone else in your life. Why wouldn’t you be respectful?

However, many employees develop a superiority complex that prevents them from respecting their employers and co-workers.

Lack of respect can permanently prevent your improving your job title. It is important to start acknowledging and appreciating other’s efforts. No one will trust you to take on more work without mutual respect.

Avoid Gossip

Office places always have one or two gossips. Most of the time, these employees are not the managers of the company. Do not get involved with gossip if you want to be successful. You will only get yourself stuck in a trap of “he said, she said” that could send you looking for a new job.

They Speak Up at Meetings

If you want to be successful then you must make your opinion heard. The best method to voice your knowledge is at meetings. Before every meeting, contemplate the problems, issues, and concerns that the company is facing. Develop a few productive ideas that could help the company improve.

If you create a noticeable difference in the company you could be more likely to be considered for the next promotion that becomes available.

They Don’t Over Apologize

The ability to apologize is great but can you ever apologize too much? If you are trying to be successful in business then yes!
The Submissive Guide states that, “while seemingly harmless, stating unnecessary things as apologies tends to result in two effects: you essentially undercut every legitimate moment where an apology is actually needed by constantly apologizing (making your apology less valuable) and the negative phrasing that you use either lowers others’ opinion of you (because you’re constantly associating yourself with a negative exchange of some kind), or insults them because, by apologizing for essentially existing in their presence, you’re indicating that you suspect them to be inconvenienced by everything you do (thereby undermining any positive relationship you have with that person).”

In summary, if you are constantly apologizing then you will paint yourself in a negative light, therefore lowering your co-worker’s opinion of you. Constantly apologizing could also insult your co-worker by conveying that you are constantly inconveniencing them.

Learn to not apologize unless absolutely necessary!

Don’t Say “Yes” to Everything

Saying “yes” to everything can prevent you from doing a great job at anything! You will spread yourself too thin trying to please everyone. Initially, you might think that you will impress everyone by your ability to complete a variety of tasks. However, the quality of your work will probably be inadequate, and you may be viewed as someone that can’t prioritize.
Wouldn’t it be better to produce superior outcomes, even if there are fewer?

Ask for Help

Somehow, we have developed the idea that asking for help is a bad thing. Many people think asking for help is an act of weakness. In reality, most successful leaders will tell you that you cannot do it alone. It can also show you know how to delegate.

Benefits of Asking for Help

• Creates Community
• Achieve Your Vision
• Develop the Skill of Receiving

Own Up to Your Mistakes

Even Bill Gates made a mistake at one point. If you made one… or two… or three… it’s okay! What is not okay is shrugging your shoulders and telling management that you had no idea who did it. Most likely, you will be caught for your mistake AND lying!

Steps If You Made a Mistake at Work

1. Apologize (once)
2. Figure Out How to Fix What Went Wrong
3. Make a Plan for the Mistake Not to Occur Again
4. Tell Your Boss What You Learned From the Mistake

If you feel like your day is getting control of you instead of the other way around, these tips may help.

Seven Techniques to Increase Productivity at Work

While writing this article on work productivity, I went on Facebook, checked the weather, got some coffee, and called a friend. Distractions can be extremely debilitating to your work performance. However, there are techniques that prevent distractions from adding hours to your work day. Learn how to increase productivity for shorter days and greater work results.

Track Your Behavior

The first step to increase productivity is to raise awareness of your work distractions. To do so, you must know how much time each task is taking you.

Use an Excel spreadsheet to track an average work day. Note the task, time, and distraction that occurred. At the end of the day, you may know which tasks are more distracting.

Decorate Your Workspace

You sit at the same spot for the majority of your day. You may get up to go to the bathroom, eat lunch, walk to a meeting but overall, you stay at your desk. A burst of color can make you feel happier and more relaxed.

How-To Decorate Your Workspace

• A plant
• A fun mug
• Family photos
• Decorative bookends
• Your favorite team’s memorabilia

Get Your Most Dreaded Task Out of the Way First

Most of us have a task that we dread the most. Complete your least favorite task first. That way, you are not dwelling throughout the day or putting yourself in a “procrastination” mode, and the other work will not seem as daunting.

Move Your Body

Our mental focus is directly related to our physical routine. In other words, if you are exercising your body, you are exercising your mind. Next time you find yourself staring at the wall or dozing off, take a five-minute walk or perform a set of stretches.

How Exercise Improves Your Work Performance

• Improved Concentration
• Increased Stamina
• Lower Stress
• Enhanced Creativity
• Faster Learning

Write Down Your Daily Goals

Improve your work performance by writing down your daily goals with an attainable timeline. Writing down your daily goals can set you up for success every day.

Productive Methods to Writing Down Your Goals

• Each morning take a pen and a piece of paper and write down your 5 top goals. Don’t look at the day before, just think about what you want to accomplish most and write them down.
• Remember to write them in the positive present tense and remember to set a deadline for each goal. For example,you could set the goal “complete my report by 2:00 today.
• Do this for all 5 goals.

Writing down goals will help you come up with new ideas to improve efficiency and new subjects to test.

Say “No” to Meetings

To save money and valuable time, meetings should only be held when absolutely necessary. Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, runs his famously efficient meetings.

According to Musk, “Meetings are expensive. Assuming the fully-encumbered cost of an engineer can be between $80–$100 per hour, having a 10-person meeting can cost a company around $1000 an hour!

“For $1000 per hour, that meeting better damn well be worth it.

How Musk Runs Efficient Meetings

• Require that everyone be prepared
• Reduce everything to basic facts
• Keep the long-term vision in sight
• Don’t expect more at your meeting than you are doing yourself

Work in 90 Minute Intervals

Science proves that breaks can increase productivity. This phenomenon is due to the Ultradian Rhythm, or ninety-minute sleep cycle.

Nathaniel Kletman, “the father of sleep”, discovered the Ultradian Rhythm. According to the theory, people’s brains are highly active for ninety minutes followed by low activity for twenty minutes. The brain uses more energy than any other organ by 20 percent. After you work really hard, your brain decreases activity which you perceive as fogginess, tiredness, and haze.
Set your timer for ninety minutes. After ninety minutes has passed go on a walk for twenty minutes to return refreshed.

Successful people work productively! Utilize these seven techniques to increase your productivity and build the career of your dreams.

Hiring managers are looking for more than skills and experience to give you the job. The job market is tough and you must make yourself standout. Whether you are looking for a career change or an upgrade to your job, you can improve the likelihood that you will get the position with these seven traits.

Natural Leader

All employers want to see that you have the ability to lead. This proves that you have potential to move up the career ladder. Hiring and training natural leaders can be a long-term investment. Prove that your leadership skills can be developed to make yourself standout in the company interview.

The following are questions and answers that depict leadership. Determine if this interviewee is you and find a creative way to answering the questions.

Leadership Interview Questions

How would you attract someone to listen to you and to follow you?

Having charisma, being a role model, and connecting with others.

Describe a situation when you successfully led someone toward the success of a big goal.

Answer Tip: You should always choose a positive situation. Talk about a moment when person you led achieved the goal they wanted. On the top of that, you should be able to demonstrate your leadership qualities and an added value on the examples.

When have you had a problem with motivation?

Sample Answer: “ I have never had problems with personal motivation. Of course, there are difficult situations in job, especially if one is a leader and carries all the responsibility on their shoulders. But I somehow understand in my head that setbacks are essential steps on the way to final success. This is my personal philosophy.”

Creative

Successful companies rely on innovation to get ahead. If you think outside of the box then it is more likely that you can get the job and increase your position in the company. Recruiters are always looking for a potential employee that can bring something new to the table.

When you are speaking with a potential employer, provide examples of when you have used innovation for company development.

Passionate

Passion almost always trumps high qualifications. Employers are looking for passionate employees who will work the hardest. Even if you do not have the right qualification, make sure that you show your passion in your interview, resume, and cover letter.

How Introverts Can Show Passion During a Job Interview

Use your superior listening skills to find instances where you can talk about your interests in relation to the job. Better yet, you can come up with ways to steer the conversation toward your interests, such as by asking your interviewer questions. You may also want to state your excitement and interest in the position at the end of each interview. Don’t be afraid to show them the passion you have for this opportunity. It may be the thing that puts you first in their mind when deciding who to hire.

Fast Decision Making

Employers look for fast decision makers who create efficiency in the company. According to Forrester, for every hour a product team takes on heads-down work, they spend another 48 minutes waiting for decision makers. That equates to 3.5 hours of “wait time” in an average eight-hour day. If a company cuts wait times in half, it can gain more than $370,000 annually in productive time across a 25-person team.
Faster decision makers can save the company money. Show that you make smart, efficient decisions to get hired.

Commitment

The success of an organization is often determined by the commitment of their employees. A dedicated, persistent and committed employee will improve the performance of a company. Show that you are dedicated to the company’s purpose during your interview.

Key Characteristics of a Committed Employee

• Good Communication
• Well Organized
• Enthusiastic
• Positive

The Will to Win

A great employee consistently improves their work performance. This determination means that they exceed the expectations every day for the company. Employees with the will to win make a lasting impression.

Prepare yourself to make a lasting impression as a committed and responsible employee if you are applying for jobs. Your first impression could determine whether you get the job of your dreams.

Wouldn’t it be great if you weren’t constantly forced to train new employees? A great way to maintain your employees is to build a thriving company culture. Doing so, influences your employees to work cohesively as a team, therefore drive productivity and business success.

Creating a great company culture is not easy. However, the benefits from investing in your team can improve the performance of your company and keep employees with you longer.

Learn from the Past

Your past can be your greatest teacher. If your company struggles with culture, review the mishaps. If they are reoccurring then consider the root of the problem. Was it a lack of communication or management oversight? On the other hand, consider when you had great company culture. What cultivated the success?

Create a Culture that Aligns with Your Core Values

This is your business. It is important to find staff that aligns with your values. The first step is to figuring out what is important to you.

Core Values to Consider

• Teamwork
• Quality
• Innovation
• Customer Service
• Sense of Urgency

Hire Employees Who Complement You

Identify your strengths and weaknesses, and then fill in the gaps. You should hire for what your company needs. The employee will adapt much better to your office when they feel important. Doing so, will create a more well-rounded team.

Communicate With Your Team

Communication is key in relationships – even business relationships! Make sure you are communicating with your employees and they are communicating with each other. Important communication should also be in-person, rather than over email, phone, or text.
If your company is struggling with communication then consider the following tips:

• Hold Weekly Meetings
• Offer a Platform, such as Officevibe, for Anonymous Feedback
• Watch Your Body Language – Remember to smile, maintain eye contact, and keep your arms uncrossed.
• Know When to Listen
• Keep Your Door Open

Carefully Evolve Your Culture

Building a great company culture will not happen overnight. First, make sure that you have a clear vision for what you want. Second, introduce those changes to your employees and seek employees with the same values.

Build Excitement About Your Company

Your employees must believe in your company. To build excitement about your brand, you must show your own excitement!

How-To Build Brand Excitement

• Hold an Event. For example, celebrating the release of a new product or service.
• Individually thank employees for a job well-done.
• Create beautiful marketing material – Videos, Facebook Posts, or Guest Blogs.

If you create a culture where people love coming to work then you can expect to see an improvement in company performance, and most important, an improvement of your happiness and the happiness of your employees.

The foundation of almost every productive team is a strong leader. As a business owner or manager, it is important to establish effective leadership techniques to operate your team well. Your employees will be looking up to you to create boundaries and unify the group.

If you are not acting as a strong leader then it is time that you start! Here are a few leadership techniques to build a great working team.

Stay Consistent

Consistency is key. A consistent leader is more trustworthy and creates clearer expectations for the team to make decisions. To be consistent, you must reward the same behaviors, discourage other behaviors, and treat every team member equally.

Use Thoughtful, Concise, and Accurate Communication

Communication can dictate the success of almost any type of relationship. Make sure that you are using thoughtful, concise, and accurate communication when you relay any type of message with your team. This includes emails, phone calls, and in-person discussions.

Publicly Reward Hard Work

Public acknowledgement reassures employees that their hard work is being noticed. Reward your employee with a bonus, PTO, or gift when they perform superior work. See our article on employee rewards for more ideas.

Be a Good Example

Live by example! I am sure that is a phrase you have heard before. If you want your team to arrive on-time than you must arrive on-time. As a leader or manager, the team is looking at you to set the expectations for the company.

Encourage All Opinions and Ideas

Do not discourage employees from expressing their ideas, concerns, or opinions. Different perspectives can create new ideas that benefit the company.

Establish the Goal of Working as a Team

Setting goals is imperative to evaluate the performance of your team. Your goals should be according to your organization’s needs, such as cut costs, drive skills, or increase revenue. Defining goals can help your team work together toward a common objective.

Use the SMART framework to create achievable goals:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Time-Bound

Create Ground Rules for the Team

When multiple people spend 40+ hours together, there needs to be ground rules. Your ground rules help create unison and clear expectations for your employees.

Examples of Ground Rules at the Office

• Be on time
• Every team member has the right to make a suggestion
• Dress code

Remain as Transparent as Possible

Your employees want a leader that they can trust. If you withhold information or lie you will jeopardize the relationship with your team.

Show You Care

To be viewed as someone who is a leader they want to follow and be loyal to you need to show that you care about them as well. Spend a little time to get to know the people on your team and what drives them. Once they know you care about them, they will care more about helping you achieve your goals as well.

Leadership habits can determine the success of their team. If you are a manager or business owner, evaluate whether you are practicing strong leadership techniques. A few changes may improve the cohesiveness of your team, therefore helping you reach your company goals.

Stress affects everyone. The trick is learning to deal with our stress so it doesn’t hinder your daily life.

If you are facing stress at work then you are not alone. The average business professional has 30 to 100 projects on their plate. Within those projects, we are interrupted seven times per hour and distracted 2.1 hours per day. Fortunately, there are methods to manage your stress to work more productive work days.

Learn how to decrease your stress level with the following tips before stress becomes a serious problem:

Schedule Your Day for Productivity

Working 10 hours per day is not always the most productive method of working. We get tired, frustrated, and distracted. Your day will remain more focused if you take breaks throughout the day. Plan your work activities in 60-90 minute blocks, then take a break. This may sound contradictory but without breaks, your productivity goes down and stress level increases. You can maintain a much lower stress level if you schedule breaks.

• Take walks
• Do a breathing exercise
• Stretch at your desk

Sleep Well

If you are not sleeping well then you will not receive the rejuvenation that relieves stress. The American Psychological Institute reports that the average American receives 6.7 hours of sleep which is less than the recommended 7-9 hours. Also, 42% of adults report their sleep quality is poor to fair and 43% report stress keeping them awake at night.

If you have trouble falling asleep at night, practice a breathing exercise. Inhale as you count to five and exhale as you count back down from five. This exercise can decrease your heart rate to help you relax.

Eat Right

During times of stress, we often seek out “comfort foods”. Ironically, these high-fat foods can make us feel lethargic and less able to handle stress. The best solution is to eat high-fiber, low fat foods that boost our immune systems. These foods can help keep us energized throughout our work day.

Foods to Include:

• High-fiber, carbohydrate-rich foods
• Fruits and Vegetables

Foods to Avoid:

• High-fat foods
• Caffeine
• Sugar

Eliminate Interruptions

When your phone is ringing, mailbox is full, and voicemail light is blinking, it can be easy to get stressed. To eliminate your interruptions, you need to anticipate their occurrence. If you learn how to handle interruptions then you will probably notice an increase in productivity.

Tips to Eliminate Interruptions

• Use an official ticketing/request system
• Retreat to a quieter workspace
• Overestimate the time that you will need
• Tell visitors that you only have a few minutes if they interrupt you with a question
• Write down your daily tasks

Laugh!

Sounds silly? Well sometimes silliness is the best medicine. Laughter lowers blood pressure, reduces stress hormone levels, and triggers the release of endorphins. You can create a more relaxed feeling that shakes away tension.

To build up a chuckle, keep a funny photo, meme, or even favorite YouTube comedy clip on demand. Laughter is a good reminder to not take life so seriously.

Meditation

“Meditation put you on the fast track to being happy” says Ronnie Newman, director of research and health promotion for the Art of Living Foundation. When our bodies are stressed, we experience increased breathing rate, blood pressure, and pulse. Meditation trains our bodies to relax in high stress environments. Achieve this state of relaxation leads to an enhanced mood, lowered blood pressure, improved digestion, and reduction of everyday stress.

Meditation Practice

Sit quietly with good posture and eyes closed for 10-20 minutes, while visualization a relaxing image. You can also incorporate the breathing exercise described in the Sleeping Well section to help you relax. Do this meditation practice before work to prepare yourself for the day.

Stress does not have to control your life! Your work can be much more fun and interesting if you relieve the distress that is making your work suffer.

Meetings are a powerful tool that can increase the productivity of your workplace. However, many managers fail to organize efficient meetings.

If you are a business professional than you probably have experienced a poorly run meeting. After all, the United States holds 11 million formal business meetings per day and $37 billion is wasted in meetings per year. If you are a manager that is organizing meetings, it is important to know how to deliver meetings that benefit your company.

The following tips can help you create more effective meetings in the workplace:

Know the Objective of Your Meeting

A meeting must have a specific goal. Ask yourself these questions:

“What do I intend to accomplish?”
“Are you alerting people to a change in management or a shift in strategy?”
“Are you seeking input from others on a problem facing the company?”
“Are you looking to arrive at a decision on a particular matter?”

Before you arrive at the meeting, know your objective and present it clearly to your employees. If your objective is a status update, consider if it can be sent over email.

Create Written Agenda in Advance

A written agenda is a great method to prevent vague intentions. Provide the written agenda to employees a day in advance. It should include:

• Goal of Meeting
• Topics to be Discussed
• Materials/Documents that Could Give Employees a Better Idea of Meeting Background

Try putting your agenda in a template if you have weekly meetings. Templates can save hours in preparation time.

Stick to a Time Schedule

Time is money. Stick to a time schedule to ensure that you address each topic in a timely manner. Meetings can easily become careless, unfocused, and filled with “small talk” if you do not create a time schedule.

Your timeline should an outline of your agenda with the certain amount of time for each topic. Remember that you are paying your employees for their time so do not waste your own money.

Ban Technology

Engaging your employees will probably be one of the most difficult things to accomplish in your meetings. If people are bringing their smartphones or tablets into meetings then they will not be focused on you. They could be checking their emails, sending texts, and even on Facebook. Eliminate the technology to eliminate the distractions.

Start on Time, End on Time

Time is limited. Your employees will appreciate if you can respect their schedule. Make sure to start and end meetings on time. This way, people will be more respectful of your meetings and make more of an effort to attend.
Tip: Do not schedule meetings longer than an hour. Sixty minutes is generally as long as people can stay engaged on a topic.

Make sure that you are running efficient meetings. Your employees will appreciate it, and you can increase the productivity that a great company requires.

There are many deeply personal reasons to change your employment situation. However, from a purely strategic point of view, there are four good reasons to change jobs within the same (or similar) industry three times during your first ten years of employment:

Reason #1: Changing jobs gives you a broader base of experience: After about three years, you’ve learned most of what you’re going to know about how to do your job. Therefore, over a ten year period, you gain more experience from “3 x 90%” than “1 x 100%.”

Reason #2: A more varied background creates a greater demand for your skills: Depth of experience means you’re more valuable to a larger number of employers. You’re not only familiar with your current company’s product, service, procedures, quality programs, inventory system, and so forth; you bring with you the expertise you’ve gained from multiple companies.

Reason #3: A job change results in an accelerated promotion cycle: Each time you make a change, you bump up a notch on the promotion ladder. You jump, for example, from RA Sr. Specialist to RA Manager; or RA/QA Manager to RA/QA Director.

Reason #4: More responsibility leads to greater earning power: A promotion is usually accompanied by a salary increase. And since you’re being promoted faster, your salary grows at a quicker pace, sort of like compounding the interest you’d earn on a certificate of deposit.

Many people view a job change as a way of promoting themselves to a better position. And in most cases that is true. However, you should always be sure your new job offers you the means to satisfy your values. While there’s no denying the strategic virtues of selective job changing for the purpose of career leverage, you want to make sure the path you take will lead you where you really want to go.

For instance, there’s no reason to change jobs for more money if it’ll make you unhappy to the point of distraction (i.e. longer commute, no new challenges, difficult boss). On the other hand, if a job represents several other aspects that would improve your situation, then taking a job for the same money would be a good move.

The “best” job is one in which the key aspects of the job match up well with what you value in a job; whether that be career growth and advancement, smaller/bigger company environment, shorter commute or more money. Working with a Recruiter that takes the time to learn what’s important to you and matches new opportunities with your criteria in mind can help ensure that your next move is the right move.