HOW TO BECOME A VERY PROMOTABLE EMPLOYEE (Part 1)
Many people work very hard at work, but not everyone ‘s hard work is appreciated and
rewarded with a big bonus and a promotion. So what is it that gets a person promoted and
others don’t ?
RULE #1 – Know That You Are Being Judged At All Times
Understand this Rule once and for all and be aware of this at every moment of your life !
Yes, people are ALWAYS watching you.; what you do, what you say, how you walk,
how you dress…. You are ALWAYS being judged. The moment you walk into the office,
you have to be at your VERY BEST !
If you want to get promoted, you have to start dressing, talking, doing and behaving like
THE NEXT LEVEL. For example, if you are a Supervisor and want to be promoted to a
Manager, then you have to start walking, talking, thinking, dressing, etc like a manager.
This makes you “manager material” and therefore more promotable than you colleagues
who are still behaving like Supervisors. Understand ?
OK. So if you being judged at all times, that what must you do so that you will be judged
positively ? Practice and apply these rules immediately !
Rule #1.1 – Be Well-Dressed, Well Groomed & Watch Your Posture !
It is a fact that handsome and pretty people get along better with other people. Also,
handsome and pretty people in general do not have to work so hard to get on. But not all
of us are lucky enough to be born handsome or pretty. What to do ? Well, if you can’t be
handsome, you can at least be attractive ! Look around that the people you know.. the
celebrities, the artistes, etc… Julia Roberts, for example, does not quite have the beautiful
face of a Miss Universe, but she is a really attractive woman..
Not everyone cane be pretty or handsome, but everyone can be attractive with a little
extra effort. So start being attractive from TODAY ! Here are the things to pay attention
to :
Be Well-dressed. Dressing is the MOST NOTICABLE part about you. Your dressing is
the first thing that people see of you. Your dressing is the first thing that people judge of
you. Your dressing tells people about the type of person you are and about the type of
person you aspire to be. So for goodness sake, dress well ! Dressing well means dress up.
James Gwee T.H., MBA 1
As I had mentioned earlier, dressing up means wear clothes that are one level above your
present level. Always look classic – nothing fanciful, no jeans, no T-shirts with cute
pictures or slogans, no funky accessories, no leather jackets and chains, no cowboy boots.
Shirts must be well-pressed, no missing buttons, no loose threads. Wear shirts with noncrease
material so that you look neat throughout the day, no matter what weather.
Remember classic & one level up.
Be Well Groomed. This is also part of your exterior that is most noticeable. Make sure
your shoes are shined. No dirty shoes, no muddy shoes. Make sure you are freshly
showered, smell good, trim your hair, make sure your hair is neat, this includes nose hair
& ear hair !! Women, like it or not, powder up. The natural “just woke up” look is not in
and definitely not promotable. Clean teeth, fresh breath, clean hands, cut nails, Smokers
and coffee drinkers – beware. Take extra care to smell fresh. Have mints handy. If you
wear spectacles, make sure they are clean, no green grime, oil and moss on the nose pad.
Make sure your spectacles fit well. No cracked lens and sentoplast repairs !! If you need
to upgrade your lens, please do so. Do not squint ! That’s not promotable material.
Always remember – you are being judged and you need to look professional and one
level up !
Rule #1.2 – SMILE !
This rule is so BASIC that it is embarrassing to have to remind people to do it. Yet, and
amazing number of people in this world have just forgotten (or refuse) to smile. Why ?
Because it’s not cool to smile ? Because of the moody James Dean look ? Hey, James
Dean is dead and gone ! God bless his soul ! Forget James Dean, start smiling !
Smile when you greet your colleagues in the morning. (Yes, you must greet your
colleagues in the morning!)
Smile when you shake hands. And a warm and firm handshake is best. Not bone-crushing
handshake, no elbow-dislocating jerking handshake, no dead fish handshake. Just a
simple warm, firm handshake with a pleasant smile with eye contact. That’s just fine.
Smile when it’s tough. When everyone else is complaining, moaning, bitching, groaning,
you smile. You are the sunshine in a cloudy day, you are the candle in the dark. You will
stand out. You are unshakable. You are strong. You are leadership quality. You are
reliable when people all around you are crumbling. You are definitely promotable
material !
Smile even when it’s hell. It make hell less hellish. OK I admit, this is a little herder to do.
But you only need to raise the two ends of your mouth upwards. Try forcing yourself to
smile when you are unhappy and sad. No need to smile from your heart yet. Just force a
physical smile. Soon, you’ll not feel so gloomy and will feel more light hearted and
cheered up. I works. I’ve used it so many times. Guaranteed !
James Gwee T.H., MBA 2
Yes SMILING is also the most noticeable part of you and remember, you are being
JUDGED !
Rule #1.3 – Exude Confidence & Energy
This is also a very noticeable part of you. How confident you LOOK. Yes, how confident
you LOOK. It doesn’t matter how you feel inside. You may be worried, you may be
nervous, you may be afraid, you make be shaking like a leaf on the tree on the inside. But
on the outside, you are Mr(or Ms) Confidence. How to do that ?
Watch your POSTURE ! Your posture projects an image of confidence, in control, or
worried, stressed, burdened. This is strange, but your posture will actually affect your
frame of mind. So stand upright, walk upright.
Smile. People who are nervous, worried, stressed and burdened don’t smile. People who
smile and laugh don’t seem to have a problem in the world !
Chat With People. People who can take the time to chat with people are seen to be in
control. It’s like “I’ve taken care of everything, everything that must be done has been
done, now I can chat with people”. On the other hand, people who stay in the corner and
avoid people come across as lacking in confidence and too busy doing their work. It’s an
image of “I can’t even finish my work, I can I afford to even chat with you?” People like
this are seen to be struggling even at their current level, how can they ever be considered
for promotion ?
Rule #1.4 – Speak Well
This is the final rule of Rule #1. Speak well. Again, this is also a very noticeable part of
you. It’s important to look well. After you’ve achieved that, sooner or later you’ll have to
open your mouth to speak. When you speak, it could either enhance your already positive
image (because you are well dressed and well groomed) or it could completely wife out
the positive effects of you good dressing and grooming. So improve the way you speak.
Here are some simple points to follow.
Speak Clearly. Open your mouth when you speak. Make sure your voice is audible.
Don’t make it difficult for other people to hear you. When people have to strain their ears
to hear what you are saying, they quickly lose interest.
Speak Brightly. Use positive words. Be upbeat. Use a positive and upbeat tone. Don’t
speak like the whole world’s problems are on your shoulders. People get tired listening to
people who have only negative things to say. People much prefer listening to people with
positive and cheerful things to talk about.
Pleasant. Have a smile on your face when you speak. Say nice things about people.
Pleasant people tend to attract other pleasant people and pleasant opportunities. The
opposite happens to unpleasant people. You tend to attract other similarly unpleasant
James Gwee T.H., MBA 3
people. People don’t give business opportunities to unpleasant people. People prefer not
to promote unpleasant people.
We have covered Rule #1. Rule #1 is pretty basic. But we go to always start from the
basic.
There are 3 more main rules to go. We’ll discuss this in the subsequent articles. So
until then, start practicing Rule #1 RIGHT NOW!
SUCCESS ................
