Part II

I am sure you hear a lot of feedback from employers and employees about their work relationships and come across common mistakes that they both make.

Can you share with our readers some tips and common mistakes to avoid?

Documentation, documentation and documentation.

Employees

Document everything important, as you may need this to refer back to in the future. Documentation is not only to protect yourself but also to support your productivity in the future.

Example: You approach your boss for a raise or promotion and the basis of your request is because you were able to prevent a large deal from falling through or you were instrumental in bringing in a large client you want to have documentation to back this up. When it happens, you won’t feel the need to write it down as it’s fresh in your memory but many months later it will be hard to remember the exact details.

Execution Tip: Keep an ongoing spreadsheet with achievements, goals and accomplishments. In addition to the documentation, this will also keep you motivated to reach the goals you set.

Documentation can also be used to protect yourself.

Example: You delegated a task to a co-worker and the co-worker says they will complete the task successfully. Your boss or manager then approaches you and asks, “Was this task ever completed? You will now have documentation to relieve you from the blame.

Execution Tip: Send a quick email to your co-worker confirming that he/she will be the one doing the task discussed. In some cases, a follow-up email a few days later will also prevent any misunderstandings.

This does not mean you should be busy with this all the time and waste precious work time writing down every little thing you did that isn’t your job. This also does not mean that when you do discuss a raise with your boss you should bring in a spreadsheet full of many little extra tasks you did. But keeping real accomplishments well documented can pay off in the long run even if you won’t have to present the actual document; you have it for your own reference and able to quote details from it.

Employers

Very similar advice can be helpful. For example, you see an employee slacking off or you find out that they made a real mistake. Instead of just getting upset, document it. Keep a spreadsheet and write the time and date and the exact details as you never know when this information will be useful. But the opposite is true too, if you see an employee going out of their way to help the company or find out that they were instrumental in bringing in new business then it pays to document that as well. You might think that you will “just look it up” when you need the information, but it might not be so easy to find when you need it.

Employees

Thoughts whether silent or spoken, such as “I just saved my boss tens of thousands of dollars, and he didn’t give me a dime!” or “I make my company so much money, my boss should offer equity in the business!” has the potential to destroy an individual’s career. Being happy and comfortable in your work environment is the most important thing to ensure longevity in your career. In many cases the owner of your company took a tremendous risk to start and build the business and on a slow month you will go home with a paycheck when he/she may not.

Eli Garfinkel owns Placement Agency and has more than 15 years of experience placing candidates and working with various companies, from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies. Eli is passionate about recruiting and takes time to listen to his clients to ensure employers find the right candidates and candidates find the right job. Eli can be reached at [email protected] or by text/whats app/call at (732) 278-6526.