The Power of Likeability

You know the person in your office or class that everyone goes to? The one who is willing to help their teammates and does it with a smile? That is who you want to be. Not only does it make you feel good to help people, it can also help your career. The first time I got a fantastic year end rating, my Director told me that the fact that people loved working with me was my biggest asset and backing it up with delivering on my promises made me great.

 

Raise your hand for projects

One way to make people appreciate you is to sign up for those projects at work no one else wants to do. If you say ,”Hey I don’t mind doing it!” then you take a potential task off your teammates. That will make them appreciate you so much! Another positive for you is that you will gain experience and make some new connections. Projects are a great way to network with colleagues who you may not get to work with on a day to day basis.

Become an SME

SME is a Subject Matter Expert and you should try to be this in as many things as you can be. Whether it’s a system you know well or a process, being the person people go to with questions is great for your career. People love to have a go to person they can rely on for the answers, especially if you are nice and don’t make them feel like you are bothering them. Could they figure it out on their own? Yeah probably, but if you know it why not share it with them to help them save time? You become an invaluable resource for people, if you can quickly provide them answers.

Adjust your approach

Truly likable people adjust their approach slightly based on who they are talking to or working with. If you are working with a a manager that is very sociable and likes to talk, let them. They will appreciate you letting them do what they love. If you are dealing with someone who is extremely busy and just wants the facts and to move on, give it to them. When you are communicating with people, it is important to pick up on people’s personality traits and make sure you adjust to work well with them.

Be Flexible

Flexibility is key when working with colleagues. We all show up late to meeting or need to reschedule once in a while. If you are flexible with people and work with them on things like scheduling or offering to do things for them that will help, they will repay you. Maybe the repayment will be in the form of them speaking highly of you to others. You can’t put a value on people singing your praises when you are not even around, it’s amazing what that can do for your profile.

While working hard is a requirement in making the most of your career, you have to be likable as well. I have seen extremely talented and smart people not reach their potential because they are not good with people. Just make a few adjustments in your day to day and you will start to see people coming to you for more tasks and questions, which will ultimately help you in your career.

Increasing Your Likeability

For some great ideas on people skills, you might want to take a look at  The Art of People: 11 Simple People Skills That Will Get You Everything You Want.  Some people think that in today’s hyper-competitive world, it’s the tough, take-no-prisoners type who comes out on top. But in reality, argues New York Times bestselling author Dave Kerpen, it’s actually those with the best people skills who win the day.

Images:

Main adapted from KayBay_H

Gumby Jim McGlone