Forget Your Fat Ass...Worry About 3 Resolutions You Need for a Prosperous Career in the New Year!

You Better Have Work Resolutions for the New Year!

If you get crap done better than most of your colleagues, you deserve more than a sh*tty COLA bump!

“New Year’s Resolutions” were once-worthy popular and perennial goals people made to improve their lives in the coming new year. Typically, popular resolutions for the New Year routinely include spending more time with kids, losing weight, and earning more money. However, people proclaiming New Year’s Resolutions have been steadily going out of vogue for years now. Only 37% of Americans now make a goal-setting resolution to improve some aspect of their lives, per The Daytona Beach News Journal.

Reasons for its precipitous decline include people never sticking out previous New Year’s Resolutions, feeling self-satisfied with their current lifestyle, and not wanting to feel shame or disappointment for not following through or achieving a stated goal.

While you may not want to challenge your personal growth via New Year’s Resolutions, you should definitely make 3 New Year’s Resolutions to improve your status, salary, or perks at work.

Plan your next year career goals as meticulously as your wardrobe.

REALITY CHECK #1: If you're not CONSTANTLY improving your status or position at work, you are doing yourself a disservice. Your contributions are not rewarded.

SHEEP ALERT: 3 Things American Workers Should Resolve to Improve for the New Year.

1. Income. I know you are thinking, “No sh*t, Sherlock!”, as EVERYONE wants more money. True that, but most people are too afraid to clearly and definitively ask for it. At your next performance review, realistically determine if you are deserving of a raise. Ask yourself the following questions, but sincerely soul-search before you come to an honest answer. If you deceive yourself into thinking you deserve more than you actually do, you could set yourself up for unnecessary disappointment and strife with your Employer Overlord. Questions to Reflect on Before Determining if You are in Line for a 5% Annual Raise:

• Have you hit ALL (or at least 95%) of the established goals from your previous performance review? If not, save your breath and be happy if you get a COLA raise from your employer. (COLA is the “Cost of Living Adjustment” raise EVERYONE at a company receives to account for annual inflation. Thus, your salary raises commensurate to the rising costs of daily living, so you don’t experience real wage loss.)

• Would you rank yourself in the top quartile or better yet - the Top 10% in your department? Middling employees don’t get big raises or giant perks. Their steady employment is their only reward.

• Has your employer had a workforce reduction, major restructuring, or mass layoffs? Regardless of your stellar year at work, you can’t get money from an empty piggy bank.

2. Opportunity. If you have concluded that you are a “Star Wage Slave” and have documented proof and examples of you contributing mightily to your Employer Overlord’s bottom line, be bold and approach your direct supervisor to inquire about available promotional opportunities or plum projects that can bolster your skill set. Don’t fall victim to “carrot dangling” or “shifting of the goal posts” that many employers bait-and-switch you with to deflect wage increase requests.
   

Remember, if you have done your part and hit an impressive 95% of last year’s performance review goals, you owe it to your future selves (and future spouse & kids if single/unattached) to cash in NOW on your employer’s promises for advancement. Ignore at your peril if your Employer Overlord “can’t” or “won’t” reward a stellar performance! There’s NOTHING positive about your future with this company if you find yourself in this scenario. Consider this: * If they “CAN’T” give you a raise, your employer is likely not doing financially well, as keeping truly premium talent that makes a difference to corporate margins is ALWAYS a top priority. Start a covert job search with competitors to gauge your true market value.

* If they “WON’T” give you a raise, you are not as valued as you think you are to your boss - or you are not the star wage slave you believe you are. Reassess to see where you fell short from your Employer Overlord’s viewpoint, determine where you can improve, and ask specifically where you fit into the “Production Hierarchy” vs. the colleagues in your department - so you can truly see how management perceives your value. Yes, you are competing with your co-workers for limited spoils!

3. Time. If you are given roses and plaudits for a great work year but the company did not grow or their business contracted, you can still be rewarded with a most precious gift - more flexibility - to enjoy your time and more dominion over your schedule - as you see fit!
   

   Companies can be flexible in the following areas as a reward to great workers, even in times of financial belt-tightening, so feel free to ask for the following achievable perks:
   

   • Hybrid Schedule - The ability to work remotely part-time can pay dividends in avoiding thick commuting traffic; saving lunch, gas/carfare, and dry cleaning expenses; or providing more of a work-life balance to not be locked into 11-12 hours of your weekdays tethered to your office - including required travel time to and fro to your workplace.
     

   • 4/10 Schedule - The ability to work a compressed 4-day/10 hours per day schedule gives you one full weekday each week to run errands, save $ on childcare, or treat yourself to a fun-filled restorative day of your favorite hobbies.
     

   • Flextime - The ability to arrive an hour later or leave an hour early can help you gain some more autonomy over your weekday schedule to beat traffic swells, sleep in a bit, hit the gym before the masses, or attend social events with loved ones during the week.
     

   • Half-Day Fridays or Late Start Mondays - Leaving early on a Friday to jump-start your weekend or being allowed to ease into your Monday by a midday start are worthwhile perks to keep you motivated in place of a pay bump.

     

     Time for a Reality Check About Leaving Money on the Table

     Reality Check # 2 - Career Crossroads Require Thoughtful Actions If each year with your employer as a star wage slave does not result in some incremental improvement to your overall standard of living in terms of a salary increase, opportunities gained, or more dominion over a precious resource in more time enjoyed in your personal life, then something is gravely wrong with your career.

     
     

     If you find yourself at this “Career Crossroads”, this is your rudimentary decision tree..

     
     

     * Are you really a STAR worker or just lying to yourself? If you have been overrating your performance, work harder in the coming year to attain the goals management has set forth for you, and try again to improve your lot next year. BUT…

     
     

     * If you are CRUSHING it as a star wage slave…ask yourself this KEY QUESTION…Why are you still working for a company that can’t or won’t reward your hard efforts?

     
     

     More importantly, what are you going to do about it, sheep? Are you going to take the grass your Employer Overlord decrees you are worth? Or, will you bet on yourself and pursue greener pastures?

     

     When are you going to stop eating off the plantation?