If you’re interested in making more money, getting that promotion, or just getting a handle on a bit more job security, you’ll be interested in becoming more valuable to your employer. But how exactly should you go about this? And what strategies are going to make you uniquely indispensable to your employer?
Education and Certification
One of the most straightforward ways to become more valuable to your employer is to develop yourself by becoming more educated or formally certified in some skill that is valuable to your employer. These are actions that develop both your knowledge and your abilities, allowing you to tackle new responsibilities or handle your existing responsibilities in a superior way. No matter how you look at it, this allows you to contribute more to the organization, which in turn makes you more valuable.
For example, you could become forklift certified. Becoming forklift certified is relatively easy, and can be handled online in an hour or less in some cases. By the end of this experience, you’ll have formal recognition that you can operate a forklift safely. This is valuable for employers who want to be confident that their employees can handle this heavy machinery safely and according to OSHA standards.
If you have more time on your hands, you can pursue a more formal education. Sometimes, earning an advanced degree can entitle you to a higher salary or a more important role within the company.
New Responsibilities and Tasks
Aside from education and certification, you can become more valuable to your employer by taking on new responsibilities and tasks. Granted, this is going to increase your workload, but depending on your existing workload, that may be a totally acceptable drawback. Work closely with your immediate supervisors, mentors, and leaders to see what new responsibilities could fit with your existing skills and desires. Or, if you work more independently, consider starting an entirely new initiative of your own.
Cross Training and Development
Another way that employees can make themselves more valuable and beneficial to employers is through cross training and development. Instead of seeking out formal education or becoming certified in a specific skill, you’ll work with colleagues in another department or with complementary skill sets so you can develop your own abilities. Cross training is very valuable in organizations that want to remain agile and flexible, as well as relatively small organizations with limited staff.
Social Connections and Networking
Through the power of networking, you can develop your network of social connections and potentially leverage that value for your employer. Depending on the nature of your role, that could mean tapping into a network for new hires, potential clients, partners, vendors, and even investors. If your social network is powerful enough, it could function as an independent reason for keeping you around.
Mentorships
You may also be able to increase your value within an organization by offering to mentor new hires and other employees. This is especially powerful if you have many years on the job and are looking for a way to give back. New people often need considerable education, guidance, and support to reach their full potential, and you could be integral in helping them do it.
Soft Skill Development
Also, you can improve your value to any employer by developing soft skills. These are things like:
- Honesty. Honesty isn’t really a skill, but it is something that some people have to consciously develop. Often in formal settings, people resort to saying what other people want to hear, rather than what they truly believe. Alternatively, they keep their thoughts to themselves almost exclusively. But there is significant value in voicing your honest opinion consistently, even if it deviates from the norm.
- Active listening. Active listening is indispensable across virtually all roles in virtually every industry. Active listening is essentially listening in a way that provides positive feedback to the speaker, encouraging them to express themselves fully and enabling a better, more engaging conversation overall. You can practice active listening in almost any type of conversation, but it takes a lot of time to perfect.
- Positivity. Positivity isn’t going to magically increase your productivity, but it can have a drastic effect on the people around you. Employers want to hire and retain positive people, so if you want to become more valuable to your employer, try to adopt a sunnier, brighter disposition.
- Organization. Your organizational skills are also valuable to employers. Find a way to show off your ability to organize complicated sets of data or better organize your thoughts and communications.
Developing yourself is both time intensive and effort intensive, but it’s worth it – not just to your current employer, but also your future employers and yourself. With even a handful of deliberate, focused improvements, you can fetch a higher salary and carry yourself with more confidence.
