How to Cope with Work pressure during Festive Season...!

If it is a team project, take responsibility for your set of to do’s and divide the rest of it. Take help and assistance when you need it and return the favor when you can. Completing work for the sake of completion reflects badly on the organizations’ image. If you are already neck deep in two projects, and you have the opportunity to opt out of the third one, why not?

Plates full of meethai and bowls of namkeen! Thoughts wandering to those delicious treats that you are soon going to devour? Your tongue begins to salivate and you heave a sigh of pure bliss. Just then the boss enters and you are reminded that a presentation is due in the next twenty minutes and you have been day dreaming again.

Getting back to work, your mind automatically begins calculating the number of days until celebration time. But then it also strikes you that it means the deadlines will be a bit tricky to execute. Have you made provisions to accommodate that or will you be working from home during a holiday?

Diwali is a time that every individual looks forwards to - preparing delicacies, shopping for new attire, meeting up with friends, spending time with the family, lighting diyas and having some time off from work. However, at the work front, things tend to pile up.

Client too has vacation so you need to finish your work much in advance, or if you happen to be in the middle of a new project, you have to get things arranged before everybody breaks out for a holiday. Too much to do and too less time, maintaining a work life balance becomes a task.

How can one dodge being overburdened? Simple; take preventive measures.

Step 01 – Make a planner.

Not just day wise, but plan the entire month, time and date submission wise. This is only because one festivity tends to impact the functioning of all other commitments. Plus there is always the last minute slot that needs to be adjusted in the already crammed schedule. Making a note of all the deliverables and executions will give you an idea of the work pending and will help in chalking out the plan of action accordingly.

Step 02 – Say yes selectively

Undertake work that you can handle. If you already have a prior social engagement, avoid taking a project that clash. Being unable to do justice to either is unfair. If there is a project that needs to be completed on an urgent basis, but at the same time you have to ensure that all the bills are raised, the cheques paid; make a mental note of how much time each task will take and work towards doing it right.Step 03 – Delegate work

During strenuous times it is advisable to work collaboratively as a team. Do all the ground work and keep a draft ready before you finalize the elements of the project. Lend a helping hand if you see somebody working tirelessly at completing a project.

Work Life Balance can only be achieved when you are focused at completing the tasks at hand without compromising on quality. And this habit will be more rewarding when you mind sub-consciously keeps wandering.

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MY WORK IS NOT JUST MY COMPANY'S WORK.

There has always been a thin line of differentiation between personal and professional work. But more often, the two tend to get entangled. Yet somehow, majority of the times it so happens that we consciously end up picking personal over professional.

Take for instance, it is the fifth anniversary of your organization and at the same time, it is your wedding anniversary too. Wouldn’t you first have a mini celebration at home and then head to the office function to make a guest appearance? Or would you rather skip that all together and claim to be feeling unwell?

We subconsciously tend to prioritize our personal work over the company’s. We give preference to things that give us gain rather than those that act as a value add to the organization, indirectly portraying a much laid back attitude towards work life.

 
Take for example, you are in the midst of a new project and you have to send across a proposal for a pitch by the end of the day. You work hard the entire morning, focused and determined to get this done before the clients’ expectations; and then comes the lunch break!

Three fourths of your proposal is ready, all you need to do is fine tune it a bit and add in the commercials. But after a deliciously heavy lunch the mind begins to become numb and you crave to grab a quick nap. An hour down, two hours before the submission and you receive a call from home about a dinner party you would be attending at night.

You are in a hurry to get home, the focus begins to waver and you somehow put off the proposal completion for yet another hour. In the last slot, you have to attend a meeting to plan a schedule for the next day. In the interim, two more things come up and the proposal takes a back seat, not forgotten but with no sense of urgency either. 

Time’s up and yet again you are more excited about meeting your friends over dinner than sending across the proposal. You decide to take it home and work over it at night. By the time the client receives the proposal in his inbox the next morning, the pitch has already gone to somebody else.

This was an extreme situation. But at times, procrastinating at work and then working from home to meet deadlines, the wheel of work life balance undoubtedly goes for a complete toss. Take a few minutes to reckon, we spend most of our waking hours at work. Isn’t it only fair that we adopt a more professional attitude towards our work life? Adhere to the norms – when at work, the work at hand should be given priority unless an emergency occurs.

Consider the company to be your family, take ownership, show initiative, and be proactive. Live by the philosophy of ‘under commit, over deliver’ and you will notice your work life balance improving as well as your work interestingly becoming more likable.

REALITY CHECK FOR MBA GRADUATES SEEKING JOB OPPORTUNITIES.

Sifting through the newspaper classifieds for a job, is no longer the way to find oneself a suitable job. Technology has changed the way we view the job hunt process. With social media sites like Facebook and LinkedIn advertising jobs, graduates from all streams prefer uploading their profiles to have larger playing field.

Even with such an enormous playing field, why is that, a MBA graduate still faces the crisis of finding a suitable job. What and where do things go wrong?  Are you able to convince the employer of your worthiness? 

‘Jack of all, master of none’ versus ‘Multi-tasking all-rounder’.

Employers prefer candidates having credible knowledge of their products along with being well versed with changing trends and the growth factor of the company.  Being the jack of all may not earn you any brownie points with the employer as compared to a candidate who is well-versed with his subject.

Begin young.

Having a well-rounded personality, is an added advantage. Being focused on the task and the growth if the company is as important as having interests outside the workplace. Being part of team sports, teaches the ropes of team work also helping you build contacts for the future.

Be apt to adapt.

When it comes to facing a challenge and making spontaneous decisions, your certification can only add theoretical value. Interacting, communicating and engaging with individuals, represents your proactive approach and validates your potential of being an asset to the company. Your degree will not be able to sustain your progress unless you have a hands-on experience in the field.

Nurture the right professional attitude.

Be your own critique, ensure that you have conducted a self S.W.O.T. analysis and are constantly working upon how to better yourself. Choose a field of specialization that encourages your aptitude and enhances your personality. Take a calculated decision rather than a hasty one and don’t let the pay scale be your choosing factor. Chose a job that allows you to grow as an individual as well as gain appropriate knowledge of the chosen field.

Every industry has its own set of pros and cons. The decision to make the appropriate moves regarding their profession depends on the perspective of the individual. If your interest lies in marketing but you specialized in HR, it doesn't matter; that shouldn't stop you pursuing your areas of interest. Is it your confidence? Or is it your credentials?

Life after graduation is a rat race where competition takes the lead and participation takes a back seat. Acquiring a job is not a piece of cake. You need to work hard and be determined along with the right qualification to establish a successful career. Not just the degree, but also the institute – its affiliations and accreditations. 

"HOW TO INVITE BEST JOB OPPORTUNITIES BY STAYING ACTIVE ON SOCIAL MEDIA"

Like we spoke last time about "how companies are looking for candidates over social media extensively", hence we thought why don't we share our views how anyone who is looking to attract the employers through social media be more successful.. We would like to know more about your views.. 

Right from promoting the undertaking of a new project to announcing the completion of a certified course, from blogging about a trip to the States, to tweeting about the events attended, interactions with celebrities, reviews and ratings, social awareness, traffic and weather updates; practically every incident, every occasion, every accomplishment is shared online. The world today is going social and not merely in terms of lifestyle but many other professional aspects as well.

What we do not realize is that this plethora of information can actually work to our benefit in terms of yielding a stable flow of income in the future. Social media indirectly acts as our online resume, and a presence across all platforms will only add to our credentials.

Social media and job opportunities.

When a company declares an opening, there are heaps of applications that flow in. Screening through the lot and scheduling for interviews becomes tiresome. Besides, why take so much effort when a glance at the candidate’s profile can resolve half of the issues?

Be your own critique.

Cleaning up and updating your profile before approaching employers is a must. If you have recently acquired a diploma, update it in your profile. If you are aware that being tagged in certain posts on your timeline can prove to be a hindrance for your image while seeking a job, why take a risk?

Display your enthusiasm in the right places.

When a candidate conducts his/her behavior in the virtual world with grace and precaution, it goes to show how they will interact with the clients or maintain the company’s professional stature in the future. An individual whose profile houses indecent photographs, has comments with the use of slang or has even shared inappropriate information, has high chances of being rejected outright.

Do you portray yourself as a meek follower or a strong leader?

The way you communicate, the kind of posts you share, the pictures that you upload, the groups that you follow, the grammatically correct and informative tweets that you generate – your activeness on social media sub-consciously acts as a contributing factor to your personality.

Facebook account - Check! Twitter handle - Check! LinkedIn? What is that required for?

Imagine getting a virtually visible testimonial from the Vice President of your company for your hard work and good managerial skills. Linked In is a medium for professional networking, but online. An opportunity to pave your way into an organization via connecting with the right people, not just for entrepreneurs but also individuals seeking for a change in their jobs.

Be opinionated not self-promotional.

Employers seek for individuals who prefer being a part of the solution rather than being the cause for a problem. Even if the online world doesn't allow for a face-to-face conversation, the way you put forth your views speaks for your confidence levels.

A proactively social approach can open doors to many opportunities that you never even knew existed. Employers love it when the candidate has already liked their page on Facebook, has favorite a few of their tweets and follows their group discussions on Linked In. This shows that the candidate has a keen interest in the company’s happenings and wishes to stay updated, making the decision of whether or not to hire him - much simpler.