Although it can’t be measured on a performance review, making a difference at the office is personally rewarding — and likely to help you get ahead in your career.
Celebrate Make a Difference Day today by putting a smile on a coworker’s face. Here are six suggestions:
1. Praise good work
Make it a point to praise your peers for a job well done. If you’re a manager, recognize an employee for good work regularly. After all, who doesn’t like being noticed for a superb effort? Hard-working professionals want to feel they are valued by the organization, and managers who offer praise will be helping their own retention efforts.
2. Assist a new coworker
Remember how stressful the first few days, weeks or months were when you were the new employee? You not only had to learn how to do your job but also learn your way around the office, meet new people and figure out the office politics. Make a new colleague’s day by helping him find what he needs and feel welcome.
3. Take a coworker to lunch
It’s easier to develop rapport with a coworker outside the office. Take a coworker to lunch so you can get to know her as a person, not merely as a fellow employee. It’ll help build camaraderie inside the office.
4. Say thank you
Did a coworker help you with a project or even something non-work-related? Be sure to thank him for the kind gesture, and return the kindness in the future.
5. Help keep the office clean
A creative work environment should encourage new ideas and productivity, but that’s difficult to achieve if the office is cluttered or odorous. Show pride in your workplace by taking the initiative to help keep the office clean.
6. Teach a coworker
Help a coworker learn a new skill, whether it’s a simple trick for doing a regular task or a bigger endeavor. She will appreciate your willingness to help her perform her job better, and the kind gesture will prove to your boss that you’re a team player.
