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More pay, anyone? Who will say NO to that? There is a way to get more pay. Find out how, right here…
Whatever we do for work, we’re probably not being paid as much as you’d like, right? Well the thing is, there is a way to get paid more. But it isn’t a scheme, or a trick, so don’t read on thinking I’m going to tell you where there is a magic-wand up for grabs.
So what do we have to do to get a fatter wallet?
Especially in this economic climate, we all have to prove our worth. Employers expect a pound of flesh for every dollar paid, and there’s no getting away from it. So the essential thing is to work hard, and work smart. I’d be surprised if I was the first to tell you that. I won’t be the last. But I may have an important reminder for you…
Every minute of every day has to create value for your employer.
We are all in a value-chain (see my e-book The 10 Habits of Highly Effective Professionals) and creating value results in profit, happy customers, and ecstatic stakeholders.
When we’re not creating value, we’re creating nothing but CO2. Working hard is about doing the highest-value activities for your employer. Not chit-chatting. Not checking the results of last-nights America’s Got Talent.
And guess what? When we create value for our employer, we create value for yourselves (pay and promotion, that is).
OK (I hear ya) – it’s easy for me to say it. If it was that easy, we’d all be doing it, right? Well, it might not be that easy, but I know it’s that simple.
We all have a choice when we’re sat in our cube whether to do activity A, or activity B. Sometimes, we choose to do activity B (that’s the value-less activity) if it’s easier, takes less time, or it’s less painful. This is called procrastination. We even justify it to ourselves that ‘oh yeah I really must do activity B so I can give my full attention to activity A’… but we find so many ‘activity Bs’ to do, and then it’s time to go home. Without any activity A done.
My point is, working hard and working smart is about putting in the graft on the things that matter. Real hard graft gets noticed. Real value speaks for itself. Employers, in turn, sit up and notice. This is when we hit pay-dirt.
What about the Work-Life Balance I go on about?
Sure – I talk about not working yourself to the bone. And I am not suggesting that we do. But putting the hours in on high-value work is a choice, and it’s yours to make. A few extra hours can make all the difference.
“The top 10 percent of money-earners in America work 50 hours or more per week. The highest-paid 1 percent of Americans work an average of 56 hours per week. And more importantly, they work all the time they work. They do not waste time. They arrive at work early and they immediately start on their most important tasks. They work steadily throughout the day. They are friendly, but they do not spend the day making small talk or engaging in idle chitchat with their co-workers.” – Brian Tracy.
Do This Today
Look at what’s on your to-do list, rank in importance (value) and get the big-ticket items done. No chat. No coffee. Just do it (JFDI). And before you go home, write tomorrow’s list in the same fashion.
And there are more tips like this in this book: Get Paid More and Promoted Faster: 21 Great Ways to Get Ahead in Your Career
