The Indispensable Employee

From a good to an irreplaceable employee...

You can find ample articles on how to become a good employee, perhaps one of the best in your company. Most of us do consider ourselves to be good, perhaps excellent employees. We do our job well, we know our stuff, we are loyal to our company and seek to do our very best.

However, how many of us are indispensable, really? An indispensable employee is not just a good employee, who is loyal to the company, knowledgeable, and ambitious: she or he is an employee without whom the company cannot work!

Muovo has found the following article a most fascinating (and an indispensable) read! The following 7 questions can help you determine whether you are, or can be, an irreplaceable employee in your company:

1. Are You Adaptable? Flexible employees can adjust and adapt as the company makes changes. They’re not stale or stuck in their ways; and employers know that they can count on these employees to make the adjustments necessary to keep the company running.

2. Are You Progressive? Do you come up with new ideas, new ways to save time or money, or promote the company so that it’s profitable and steadfast?

3. Are You Willing to Do Whatever Is Necessary? Employers want to know they can count on you to not only do your part and your job but pitch in when necessary, pick up the slack, or stay late if needed.

4. Are You Learning New Skills? Employees who learn new skills and apply them to their job are pretty valuable to the organization. If you’re constantly improving yourself and your performance, then you’re becoming an invaluable asset to the company.

5. Are You Processing New Information and Applying It? Are you applying the new skills you’ve learned or any new information you’ve gleaned about the business? What are you doing with the information that has been given to you by your employer? Some employees just take the information in and never do anything with it. Others are doers; they take what they’ve learned and apply it to make situations, circumstances, and organizations run better.

6. Are You Controlling the Information You Take in? Information can be distracting or empowering. Are you the type of employee who sends 100 e-mails a day but never gets any real work done or never takes action to resolve the problem? Don’t be controlled: use what you know to empower yourself to make changes and make things better.

7. Do You Solve Problems? Employees who solve problems are almost never let go—while employees who create problems are almost always terminated.

Consider these seven questions and take a good, hard look at your work ethic and how you operate within your organization. While not all-inclusive or the end-all, be-all of who gets cut and who stays, these seven steps can help you to make yourself an invaluable and irreplaceable employee.

Courtesy of Great Resumes Fast

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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Think Positive and Find a Job!

"They can because they think they can." 

Positive thinking is more than just a recent trend, and a subject dwelt upon in Emotional Intelligence courses. It is really our gateway to a better life, earned through our way of taking up new opportunities. However, it still is usually underestimated by thousands of individuals out there who feel that the world has forgotten them.

Of course, the world is not easy - but belief is the root of every success. When you go into something with a sense of belief - equipped with the necessary knowledge and preparation - you will almost always certainly be successful. A change can be instigated not just by saying positive things, but by actually having belief in what you say, which is a different matter altogether. If you are negative, you are likely to bring negative emotions and doomed circumstances in your life. 

Believe in yourself and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. While remaining (or becoming) realistic, don't be afraid to follow all the dreams that would have seemed 'impossible' just a little while ago. Don't let any kind of fear hold you back from reaching your dreams. Instead, be the fear that keeps you on track (and perhaps realistic). 

And remember... 

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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Improve Your Productivity At Work

Work Scenario: Timmy's typical morning at work.

8.15 a.m. Timmy enters the office.
8.25 a.m. Timmy switches on his computer (and is staring at it till it uploads).
8.30 a.m. Timmy makes himself a cup of coffee. He meets his colleague, Jane. He asks her about how her daughter's piano exam went the day before.
8.40 a.m.  (The exam was difficult) Jane narrates her daughter's exam to Timmy.
8.45 a.m. Katherine and Jim arrive. Timmy has to ask Katherine about her birthday, which was also the day before. Everyone listens as Katherine starts narrating her birthday, which was lovely...
8.55 a.m. The story goes on...Timmy serves himself a second cup of coffee.
9.05 a.m. The door bangs. The boss is in. Everyone goes to his seat and starts the day.
9.40 a.m. Timmy is smoking less now, but realized that he didn't take one this morning.
9.45 a.m. Time for a cigarette break. He realizes that his cup is empty so he pours himself another one.
9.55 a.m. Timmy goes back to his seat and does some work.
11.00 a.m. Timmy forgot to check whether his new iPod has arrived. So he takes a short break from what he's doing and checks the tracking order.
11.10 a.m. Timmy remembered that it was his best friend's birthday. How could he have forgotten??? He logs onto facebook and wishes his beloved friend a warm happy birthday. Timmy thinks to take a quick look around facebook for a second...and starts roaming about.
11.40 a.m. Telephone rings. Timmy is startled to see that it's 11.40 a.m. already! He needs to hand in a report by 12.15 p.m., before lunch break. Panic breaks lose. Timmy starts sweating....what  a stressful life, he grumbles.

This is a very common work place scenario, where, although the work is done, a lot of time is 'wasted' which can leave you burdened with stacks of files and things-to-do that never seems to end.

Muovo has found the article below from Career Builder, which mentions three important lists that you should set up yourself to ensure that you get your work done efficiently.

1. The not-to-do list
In an eight-hour workday, how long do you spend engaging in water-cooler gossip or surfing the Web to see what Kanye West and Kim Kardashian are doing? Odds are it is longer than needed. Stack suggests creating a not-to-do list which is a 'list of things you simply refuse to do'. It can be anything you waste time on during your day, from playing solitaire to having an in-depth discussion about 'Fifty Shades of Grey'. This list is meant to keep you on-task — to do what is necessary for work and nothing else. And yes, no Facebook!

2. The HIT list
The HIT list is for high-impact tasks that can be completed immediately. It is meant to guide your work every day, so you’re more effective with time management.  You should not include more than 10 items, but it can vary from person to person. A Web designer may have up to 20 tasks but only three that can be worked on that day. A writer may only have one or two articles due that day but gets a head start on research for five others. It is a good idea to take a look at your queue for the next day, so you can reorganize the HIT list according to importance and time needed for completion.

3. The master list
This list includes everything that has to be completed at some point, but not necessarily right away. This list should be a work-in-progress, with items shifting in priority due to deadlines or time needed to finish. Tasks can flow into the HIT lists as they become more urgent. Tasks should also be removed to eliminate ones you’ll never get to (cleaning the microwave in the break room) or are out of date (throwing a birthday for your cube mate when it was last week).

A constant flow between the master list and the HIT list is the best way to keep both lists up-to-date. How do you determine on which list you should have a task? Ask yourself: Does it need to be done today? If the answer is yes, it belongs on the HIT list, and if not, it belongs on your master list.


Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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Making the Big Move

First things first: find your passion.
Finding your passion can show you the direction you should be heading into, and where you want to go in life. Before you decide to embark upon your 'dream', make sure that you know your strengths, weaknesses, likes, dislikes, as well as, what you’re good at and what you need more work on. If you're not sure what your dream job or career is yet, consider doing an internship. An internship may show you whether the field you are currently pursuing is what you are really interested in or whether you should start looking at something else. (Read The Benefits of an Internship, and How an Internship Could Affect Your Career) 

Without a clear idea of what you hope to accomplish and what your passion really is, you could find yourself diving into murky waters.

Taking action

Ask yourself the following questions which could help you in evaluating the job or career you really want:

•     What do you find yourself browsing online or reading in magazines or books moreoften? This could prove an indication of what you like. It's amazing how often people turn their hobbies to their dream jobs!
•      How can you use your current experience and skills to make you a desirable candidate in your dream field? What can you bring to the table?
•      How can you build contacts? Perhaps attending seminars or starting a blog online can help you in getting to know people already in the field who may eventually help you starting up your career.
•      Do any local schools offer courses that can help you gain expertise in your dream field?

A word of advice
Once you have found your dream job, and are eager to become a professional, gain expert knowledge in your field. The more you read, the more seminars you attend, the more knowledgeable and the more indispensable you become.

Good luck!


Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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The Benefits Of An Internship

Why is it so imperative nowadays for students to do an internship? 

The answer really varies from one individual to another, and of course, from one profession or field to another. For several professions, ranging from psychology to social work to pharmacists, nurses, among others, it has become obligatory for candidates to complete at least one placement or internship before they are able to graduate. The common belief is that the placement is, indeed, one of the most important experiences in a student’s life that is likely to have a direct impact on his or her future professional career.

The following article, adapted from Khas University’s blog, lists the essential transitions brought about in internships.

From theory to practice
What is learned at school is usually at the theoretical level, rather than application. The students do research and study on a subject, gaining an insight to the issue but usually they are not really capable to employ such knowledge in the working world. An internship, sometimes known as placement, would enable the students to implement, whenever possible, their theoretical knowledge into practice – while everything is still fresh and vivid in their minds.

From university culture to corporate culture
Juts like any university has its own rules, regulations and particular lifestyle or ‘university culture’, so does every company have a ‘corporate culture’ which defines life in this institution. Without any previous corporate experience, people may get tied up about how to act, what to wear, how to arrange personal relationships with others in such an environment. Students who make themselves acquainted with the ‘real’ working world are at an advantage to others who never had such an experience. Moreover, an internship could show the student whether the future corporate life is what he or she really is seeking for.

From student identity to worker identity
The major responsibilities of a university student are to attend classes, take notes, pass the exams. In this instance, one is responsible only of himself or herself. The working life, on the other hand, is not so self-ruled. An employee is equally responsible to the employer as to himself or herself. The work achieved belongs not only to the self but also to the department, even to his or her company. Therefore, it is necessary to accomplish assigned duties on time, effectively and in coherence with the other workers. This is the core responsibility of the ‘worker identity’.  

From internship to full-time work
An internship is more than just a preparatory step in gaining experience for work. In many cases, it is also the bridge to a good job. Several students who show a notable performance and were diligent in their work often end up gaining work on a full-time basis after they have completed their internship (or placement) successfully.

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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