Six ways you can destroy your career

If you are just going through the motions of getting up and going to work daily, have you stopped to think that you might be unconsciously sabotaging your career? Are you consciously paying attention to how you conduct yourself on the job? Are you looking for ways to improve your performance? If work is just a pay cheque, chances are you are already skating on thin ice. Here are six ways you could be sabotaging your career and not even know it.{{more}}

1. Creating your own unofficial flextime policy.

We all wish we could just work intensely for a few short hours and then go home; but that is not the reality for many people. Unfortunately, some people have taken it upon themselves to abuse company time by coming in late, leaving early or taking extended lunches and breaks. This is not the way you set yourself up for promotion within a company. Your colleagues are watching; so be fair and stick to the work hours, unless you have made prior arrangements with your supervisor or manager.

2. Daydreaming.

Yes, it’s important to dream big and think big to get your career moving forward, but doing so during work hours might not be in your best interest. Instead of surfing the internet, calling friends or visiting other people at their desks, try to stay focused on work-related tasks and get your job done.

3. Failing to blow your own horn.

There is a difference between boasting and self-promotion. Boasting is unprofessional and crude; self-promotion is simply looking for opportunities to make others aware of your capabilities and skills in a calm, professional manner. If you keep quiet hoping someone else will speak up for you, you will be waiting for quite a while.

4. Using company resources for personal use.

If your company can’t trust you not to go shopping in the supply closet for your children’s back-to-school supplies, how on earth can you expect them to trust you with the company credit card or car?

5. Sticking with cliques.

Do you go to lunch with the same people every day? Are there people in your office you just refuse to associate with? Do you find yourself mostly associating with a select few? If you answered yes to those questions, you are part of a clique and you have basically given your career a death sentence. Take the time to get to know all the people in your office, as you never know who will get promoted internally or who will leave and move up the ladder. It is to your advantage to keep your options open by ensuring that you associate with different people at different levels internally and externally.

6. Refusing to keep your skills current.

New approaches to doing business occur daily. Are you current? Stay abreast of what’s happening in your industry, the latest trends, creative approaches to problem solving, and who the movers and shakers are, not just locally but regionally and internationally. You may still enjoy face-to-face meetings, but if your clients want to do webinars or teleseminars, you’d better adjust quickly.

Karen Hinds is “The Workplace Success Expert.” For a FREE SPECIAL REPORT on Avoiding Career Killers in the Workplace, send an email to info@workplacesuccess.com
Visit online at www.workplacesuccess.com