What does your job mean to you? For some people, work means money which can be used to support their family, personal lifestyle, or their future. At the same time, for some people, work offers a sense of purpose and is meaningful to them. Regardless of how you define your job, being able to feel secured in your job is important, especially during uncertain time like this given the current economic situation.
To increase your job security, we recommend you the following tips.
1. Being results driven
No matter how challenging your assignment is, if you start with a “can-do” attitude and are able to see that every problem can be solved, despite encountering unexpected things along the way, you will be able to keep going and see it through. Doing so will showcase your patience, commitment, and dedication through having a good attitude and being able to deliver results, which will make you stand out from others.
2. Think outside the box
In addition to delivering results at work, being able to think outside the box is just as important. Try to observe and talk to people who are involved with your work or work closely with you more in order for you to understand the current situation or problems that are happening right now. This way, you can help to come up with creative suggestions to solve those problems.
3. Seek learning opportunities
Try to find time to learn new things that can benefit your job such as language skills or technical knowledge, which you can set a monthly goal to assess which skills or knowledge that you have practiced and used during the month. You can also volunteer to help with projects that are outside of your comfort zone to help you learn faster.
4. Foster relationships with others
Building good relationships with people at work, especially those who work closely with you, be it your team members or supervisor as well as creating a network in your organization can make others perceive you as an important part of the team and organization. You can do so by listening actively, being selective of your words, communicating clearly and regularly with them, including looking for opportunities to contribute whenever possible.
5. Find a coach or a mentor
Gaining different perspectives from a coach or a mentor might help you understand better of which skills to develop, how to behave, or how to work by, which they can help you create a career roadmap and increase your job security. The coach or the mentor can be someone within or outside of your organization who you have extensive experience within your field of work and is able to connect with you.
On the other hand, while you are trying to increase your job security, a sense of job insecurity can also happen, which can be caused by a number of factors that are outside of your control. Once you are focused on your job insecurity, it can affect you mentally, physically, and financially, which is why the following tips are important as they can help you handle your job insecurity.
Mental and physical well-being
1. Find your own balance
How you create balance will depend on the nature of your job. If you have fixed working hours, there will be a clear boundary between your work and personal life. However, if your job is flexible which you can determine your own working hours as long as you deliver results, you might create balance by incorporating your daily routine into your day without having to wait until the end of the day such as exercising, picking up your children, etc.
2. Rest and de-stress
Before work, during the day, or after work, try to find time to do some short activities to prepare yourself for work or to relax such as going out for a short walk, doing a quick meditation or some light stretching. Also, don’t forget to take regular breaks for 5-10 minutes throughout the day to refresh your mind and help you focus better.
Financial well-being
1. Control your expenses
Finance is an important part of job security. Therefore, it is recommended that you allocate your money, one for savings and the other for all the necessary expenses. Take time to list out what your current expenses are and prioritize them in order to eliminate the unnecessary expenses.
2. Create a financial plan
What does the future look like to you? Do you have any financial plan for the future? If not, it is recommended that you start planning for it now. Try calculating your current savings, including your income and expenses in order for you to get a clearer picture of how much money you would need to take care of yourself in the future.
With all the uncertainties happening during this time, there may be some aspects of job security that are outside of our control. What we can do is focus on what we can control, which include the previously mentioned recommendations. All we need is a positive attitude to get through problems and obstacles at work, good luck!
Refernces:
https://www.betterup.com/blog/job-security-stability
https://www.themuse.com/advice/increase-job-security-uncertain-times-coronavirus
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/job-security
