How many articles have you read about how to do up your resume, how to get that interview and how to land the perfect job? The career industry loves it when there is rotation in jobs. The more activity, the more work for recruiters, HR, hiring managers and so on.

Guess what, this article is about the opposite! It’s all about being a good employee and how you can maximize your chances of a promotion and pay hike in your current job.

5 quick tips for being a great employee:

1. Be the best you can be at doing your job

You may think your tasks are menial or even boring, but the job at hand should be carried out with pride and to the best of your ability. It is your duty to learn how to do it properly and you should always jump at any opportunity for training. Getting paid to learn something is one of the greatest benefits of having a job, you develop valuable skills and you can accelerate your career quicker.

2. Act professionally

Never waste valuable company time with sending viral emails, fooling around or having too many coffee breaks. Remember that your company is in the business of making money and you are an important part of it. If you feel that you still have to waste time and play pranks on people, remember that you are paid to work and if it doesn’t suit you, nobody is stopping you from walking out.

3. Cultivate good relationships

Make sure to buddy up with people from outside your department, as these relationships will allow you to achieve your goals quicker and outside the typical lines of communications. Knowing a few IT folks will come in very handy when your computer crashes, being friendly with people in accounts will be useful for your year-end tax return and so on.

4. Have great timekeeping

Don’t just make sure to arrive on time in the morning, be early. Always give yourself enough time to be early for meetings. The employee that is punctual will be seen as trustworthy and ready for more responsibility. If you are in an office where others tend to be late, bring some reading material to the meeting room so you can do work while waiting for the others.

5. Stay positive

It’s easy to fall into the trap of moaning about your boss, your pay or even the product or services of your company. You should rise above the negativity that goes on in any workplace and look at the positives instead. Remember that your positive attitude to your work and colleagues will be a serious consideration for your potential promotion.

Bottom line

That’s 5 ways you can be a better employer today. If you are doing all of these and the job you are in still doesn’t present new opportunities, a change might be on the cards for you after all!