HOW TO EXCEL AT WORK

Hi friends!

What does excellence at work amount to? Why is it that two people work in the same office, under the same conditions, and one excels at his work while the other does not? Do you know anyone who excels at what he does? What does he do differently from the rest of us?

You see, to excel is to perform above average. In fact, it is to over perform. To excel is to be distinct and to be preferred above others.

What’s The Essence Of Work?
Work was created so we can express and exercise our God-given talents. That is the basic essence of work. Whatever else you get from your work are gratifications, rewards for your talents.

The 5 Secrets Of People Who Excel At Work

i. They Know Their Job
The fundamental secret of those that excel at work is that they fully understand what they are paid to do. They understand the details, purview, and expectations of their job. They don’t assume when they don’t fully understand, they ask questions. They are happy to learn from their supervisor or even their colleagues.

It is only when you know your duty that you can meet expectations of those duties, that you can meet deadlines.

ii. They Are Enthusiastic About Their Job
Another hallmark of people who excel at work is that they are happy doing that job. They look forward to being at their desk every morning.

These people see every new or extra challenge or duty as an opportunity to learn something or to express some of their yet untapped capabilities.

People that excel at work have learnt to be happy with what they do or they would change over to a job that makes them happy.

iii. They Do Continuous Personal Development
You see, people that excel at work have mastered the power of learning. They know that the depth of your learning determines the height of your achievement. So, they never toy with any opportunity to learn something new.

These people keep learning new things about duties apart from theirs e.g. duties at other units, departments or even a higher post. You see them going for higher qualifications e.g. undergraduate programme, graduate, MBA, ACCA, ICAN, etc.

They don’t wait for their organisation to pay for their training. They actually save-up part of their salary to finance it. You find them reading books, attending seminars, evening or weekend classes. They go ahead to learn how to use a computer and how to operate some computer programs related to their profession e.g. Peachtree, or Sage (if an accountant).

They see such learning as investment. They know there will be an opening in their organisation someday or they may even use their new training to change over to a new job.

iv. They Do More Than They Are Paid For
Here now is the ultimate secret of an excellent worker – once he has accepted to do a job, he puts his mind in it. He doesn’t think about how much he is paid for the job (in fact, he often forgets how much he is paid) or tries to do his salary’s worth of the job. Rather, he “plays” his heart out. His motto is: what is worth doing at all is worth doing well.

These set of people don’t just meet deadlines, they beat the deadlines. They don’t mind to sacrifice to see that things work well – even if it means they have to resume early or close late. If there is an error within a work brought to them, they don’t just overlook it - they correct it. You will rarely see these ones complain.

v. They Choose To Excel
Finally, people that excel at work believe that God is their prime enabler and that He wants them to succeed. They believe in their God-given talent and they choose to excel. These people say to themselves, “if anybody can excel, why not me?”

3 Ways To Put These Secrets To Work Immediately

i. Decide in your heart to excel in whatever you do. You know, decision is the first step to any achievement.
ii. Believe that God wants you to excel and that it is indeed your right to excel.
iii. Look forward to avenues to put these secrets to use in your work each day

There you have them – the 5 secrets that lead to success at work. You can now produce the same excellent results that excellent people produce.

You shall succeed!

Top Five Ways To Boost Your Self-Confidence

Hi friends!

Building self-confidence can help you achieve your goals, network in your career and enjoy strong relationships. It will open the door to professional and personal success, too. Though self-confidence does not come naturally to everyone but the good news is that it is possible to gain self-confidence. Here’s what to do.

BE KIND TO YOURSELF
Every communication starts from within you. Some people have low estimation of themselves and that’s why they keep falling short of their targets. When you dwell on negative thoughts, you become weak and unable to take actions that lead to your goals.

Some people dwell too much on what they lack so much so that they don’t even appreciate what they have. Have you noticed that non-contented people mostly lack confidence?

Rather, self-confident people do what is called “positive self-talk.” Here, you replace your negative thoughts with positive ones like – “people love me and are willing to meet with me;” “I am beautiful;” “God loves me and wants me to succeed;” “I shall succeed;” “people will listen to me when I talk,” “the world is waiting for my success.”

For best results, you will say these positive self-talks after your morning prayers.

What other negative thoughts have you noticed? Replace them with positive self-talk today and see what instant change occurs in your mood.

PREPARE
Have you noticed how confident you become about your examination once you have prepared for it? Well, same goes for every other thing. It will surprise you how a little bit of preparation adds so much to your confidence.

Preparation does not have to be elaborate. It entails knowing what to expect and what to do at a particular occasion.

What do you want to do? Give a speech, go for an interview, dance in public, lead the choir, preach in a Christian gathering, etc? Then learn a little bit about it everyday!

TAKE ACTION
You will never learn to swim unless you enter the water. Isn’t that plain common sense? But you’ll be amazed at how many people are just content at being at the poolside and waving to the people that swim when they themselves should have been swimming champions!

Forget about the big steps for mow. Take small steps each day that adds a little more confidence to you. Remember, repetition is the mother of learning. The more action you take, the more confident you become. This is the ultimate secret of champions!

Are you going to give a speech, preach or lead the choir or dance in public? Don’t go to the big stage yet. Practice in front of your mirror or friend then in a small gathering, probably of familiar people. As you gain more confidence, you can now go out and rule the world.

GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK
It’s ok to aim at perfection but it is also ok to make mistakes. Don’t be obsessed about being perfect because nobody is.

Can you imagine a building that is never fully completed? Well, that’s a confident person. He is always under construction. He knows he is not a perfect person. He knows once in a while he is bound to make mistakes but he also sees such mistakes as opportunities to learn something new and grow better.

The truth is people are always thinking about themselves and can’t spare enough time to dwell on your mistake so they mostly forget the mistakes as soon as you make them.

Don’t worry if you make mistakes but be sure to learn from them. Remember, you are under construction.

LET GO OF ALL THAT MAKE YOU STOP
Fear is the most demobilizing force on your path to gaining self-confidence. Everyone has fears but self-confident people have learnt to kill their fears. They learnt to move ahead despite their fears.

The secret is this – what you fear to do is exactly what you should be doing. Action is the antidote to fear. Once you take a little action, you will realize that fear is the easiest thing to scare away because it just disappears.

If you feel less confident about your dressing, improve it. If it’s your hairstyle, make a new one. If it’s you thoughts, change over to positive and empowering ones. If your friend distract from your self-confidence, move way from him.

Fears are reminders of what we should be doing. It lies within your power to move ahead despite them.

BONUS
Didn’t we say 5 ways to boost your self-confidence? Well, here is a bonus. Smile. That’s right. Smile. Smiling has a way of making us relax, boosting our confidence and attracting people to us. So, remember to smile always.

So there you have them – 5 plus 1 ways to boost your confidence. It’s only the knowledge that is acted upon that empowers.

You shall excel!