If you’re the type of person who would like the boss to think of you whenever they think about who the most valuable member of their team is, you’ve come to the right place. We often say that we’re all about helping the businesses we work with accomplish their goals. The way we see it, the people who work for the business count too… which is why we wanted to share some handy tricks and tips you can use to look good for your employer.
Let’s review how your technology can help you work smarter, not harder, to look good in the office without giving up your work/life balance.
Schedule Emails the Night Before to Start the Day On the Right Foot
Put yourself in the boss’ shoes for a moment. Let’s say you sit down at your desk in the morning and find an email from one of your co-workers, sent half an hour before. That’s impressive—that co-worker is taking the initiative to start the day on the right foot, reporting in and informing you of their plans for the day.
Little do they know you’re actually composing this email at the end of the previous workday, and simply scheduling it to be delivered the next morning… and if they do realize this, you still look good. You’re using the tools at your disposal to send them a message at the optimal time for the message to be received. Take a few moments to write down any non-urgent issues or updates towards the end of the day and schedule the message to be delivered first thing so your boss is most likely to see it.
How to Schedule Emails to Send Later
In Outlook:
- Compose your message, then select the dropdown menu next to Send. Select Schedule send.
- In the window that appears, select a time from the default options or a custom time.
- Click Send, and the message will remain in your Drafts folder until the scheduled time arrives.
In Gmail:
- Create your email, and select the down arrow next to Send.
- Click Schedule send.
- It will remain in your Scheduled folder, where you can Cancel send to turn it into a draft so you may edit it, reschedule it, or cancel it outright.
Send Your Manager a Weekly Progress Report
Your manager has a lot to deal with as it is… why force them to chase after you for a status update when that will only add to their stress and taint your interactions with them? Not only will this antagonize them, you’ll also have to deal with them in this antagonized state.
This isn’t ideal for anyone, so instead of having them hunt you down and follow up, it can help if you make a habit of proactively sending them a weekly check-in. By doing so, you take something off their plate and—over time—reinforce that you’re a reliable and communicative team member.
Add a recurring task to your schedule that fires off in the early afternoon at the end of the workweek (or use the first tip to send it at the end of the weekend) to send this email to your supervisor.
What to Include in This Email
While your mileage may vary, it would most likely be best to keep these emails brief and easy to read for the convenience of the manager receiving them. Therefore, as you draft your message, bullet points will be your friend. Make sure you cover:
- What you accomplished throughout the week
- Everything you have planned and prioritized for the following week
- Any ideas/insights you’ve come up with to improve things
Share Meeting Summaries
Think back to the last meeting you had: how many details can you remember? Chances are, not many. This is why it’s so critical to take notes. If you’re the person who shares these notes with the team, your boss is apt to notice… especially if you do this through your own initiative.
However, this is easier said than done. It can be quite challenging to both take notes and fully participate in a meeting.
Once again, AI comes to the rescue. Many collaboration platforms allow you to access a meeting’s captured transcript after the fact. Take this transcript, skim it over to find the key points that were made, and share a brief list of action items and key takeaways with all participants.
Take the Time to Document Any New Processes or Discoveries
Think about all the neat shortcuts and “hacks” you’ve learned to help speed up your workday and be more productive. How long would your current workload take if you didn’t know these tricks? How long would things take if you weren’t as familiar with the processes you were responsible for?
Just as a rising tide raises all ships, better knowledge can benefit everyone. The concept of the Internet itself was initially a means to share new data and information. You can create something similar for your office at an appropriate scale. Create a shared document and turn it into a master guide for workplace processes and update it with step-by-step instructions. Better yet, ask your boss if something like this exists and see if you can contribute to it. That way, when someone has a question regarding how to do something, they can simply refer to the guide and follow along with it.
Working Smarter Makes It Easier to Work Harder…
…and as a result, to look good for the people in charge.
You may have noticed that all of these tips have a common theme: they’re all about communicating clearly and effectively. If you’re able to do that consistently, your contributions to the office will only be clearer. This is especially helpful when the time comes for a pay raise.
So, remember how we briefly mentioned sharing ideas and insights with your manager? We have one for you to start with: working with Business Solutions & Software Group.
We help businesses in South Florida run smoother by seeing to their technology needs proactively and professionally, boosting everything from efficiency to security. We’re available at (954) 575-3992.
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