Anyone who’s ever worked a day in their life can attest to moments of boredom.
But rather than letting your moments of downtime evolve into constant social media scanning, fight the urge to surf the web and use this time to better yourself and get the attention of your boss.
Here are six surefire ways to impress your boss and maybe even land you a promotion.
Learn to be a Jack (or Jill) of All Trades
If you’re constantly finding that you finish up your projects early or that you’re running out of things to do, use your downtime to get more involved in other people’s projects. Another great way to improve yourself is by passing your work onto other coworkers to be edited or finalized; ask them how you can make your work stronger to make their job easier.
It’s always okay to be improving your job skills during your downtime when it’s going to help you get your work done quicker and better. Your boss will surely appreciate the new skills you’ll bring to the table.
Expand Your Network
Rather than spending your breaks chatting at the water cooler with the usual colleagues, reach out and chat with the co-workers you haven’t had the chance to connect with outside of your weekly budget meetings. Use this time to network with those in different departments, more senior positions, and even the interns, receptionist, and part-timers. Find out what they’re working on, where they’ve worked, and soon you’ll have vastly expanded your circle – which can definitely come in handy down the road.
Educate Yourself
Most companies have their own personal training manuals and videos. Reach out to your boss or someone in HR and have them show you all of the resources you can access. This will allow you to learn more about the different ways you can increase your skills while challenging yourself to learn something new. If your company doesn’t have any additional training resources, ask your boss if they have personal material you can read.
Offer Your Assistance
Just because you’re finding things easy doesn’t mean everyone else is. Find out if your office has a mentorship program. If it doesn’t, start your own. Reach out to co-workers who appear to be struggling or ask if you can help a co-worker who’s about to take a vacation. This will allow you to learn how different parts of the business work and your boss will definitely notice that you’re making the office a better place for everyone.
De-Clutter
Whether it’s your inbox or your desk, excess can leave you uninspired and distracted. When you reduce the noise of stuff that surrounds you, you can focus on creation and have more time for the things that matter. Sitting at a desk that’s covered in stacks of paper, dirty coffee cups, and unnecessary clutter signals to your boss that you’re lazy and don’t care about your surroundings.
Ask Your Boss for Extra Tasks
Finally, see if your boss needs a hand with any last-minute tasks. Maybe they have a stack of files that need to be alphabetized or a personal errand that you could help them with. Perhaps they have some small, low priority projects you can assist them with. It could be something that’s not in your job description, but your boss will notice the effort that you’re putting in to keep busy.
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