Keeping Up Appearances at Work
I'm going to let you in on a little secret, appearances matter in the workplace and at work related events! In most cases, it's important to not just be productive, you also need to look productive and involved. This is especially important in the world of accounting where there's usually always something that can be worked on. Today, I'm going to share some tips on how to keep up appearances in the workplace.
Why is This Important?
Whether you like it or not, keeping up appearances is a key component of being promoted at work. While it should not be the only thing, you need to understand that Management won't promote those who they cannot remember, and they won't promote people who don't appear to be putting in any effort. In many cases, there's so much stuff going on that management needs to be reminded of your presence and good work. In short, if you want to be promoted, You need to be liked by management and your coworkers. In many modern workplaces, management likes those who appear to be somewhat enthusiastic about work while they are working or at work events.
How Do I Keep Up Appearances?
Show Up on Video - for those in a hybrid or remote work environment, you need to understand that it's easy to forget the faces you don't see. I'm not saying you need to be on video for every 8:00 a.m. meeting, but you need to turn on that camera and make yourself presentable more often than not. Additionally, if it isn't obvious, try to speak up during meetings where it's appropriate to do so.
Stay Online and Available - most workplaces have core office hours where employees are expected to be online and available to fulfill their job responsibilities. Do your best to be present during those hours. People notice when their co-workers are MIA for extended periods of time during the workday. If you have a meeting, be sure to put it on your calendar and mark yourself busy on your chat application. If you don't have any meetings, you can demonstrate your presence by being available on your chat application or at your desk. People notice when you are away on teams for 4 hours during the middle of the day or haven't been at your desk in the last 2 hours.
Keep Phone Usage to a Minimum
When you are at work, you are expected to be working. Most of the time, working does not involve scrolling through your phone. In today's world of endless entertainment via Doom scrolling, most people believe that if you are on your phone, you are not doing anything productive, and it's probably true. This is not only true while you are at your desk in the office, but also at work events. If you are at a happy hour, stay off your phone and be at the happy hour! If you are at a community service event, stay off your phone and participate in the community service event! By being too attached to your phone at the workplace, you were telling your co-workers and your employer that your 30 seconds of extra dopamine activation is more important than building relationships in the workplace.
It's important to remember that taking these steps to keep up appearances will not only help you look productive at work but will probably help increase your actual productivity. Just remember, your job should never turn into an exercise of always looking productive will never actually be being productive. If you find yourself in a situation where there's truly nothing to do and your job responsibilities are to look busy, you should take the time to evaluate if you're in A suitable work environment for your personal goals.