Working Effectively

I-How to Get The Raise You Deserve?

No matter how badly we may want (or feel we deserve) a raise, most of us are hesitant when it comes to asking for one. And let's face it, most employers do not increase employees compensation unless they feel they need to. But a proactive approach could help you get the raise you deserve, when you deserve it. Review your contribution to your company, determine your worth and use the following tips to get yourself a raise.

Build your case

1. Review your job description. Have you taken on new responsibilities since your last raise (or since you were hired)? Has your productivity increased over time? Are you doing work that people in positions above you usually do? Keep a record of the projects you work on, and any special achievements. Be ready to quantify your achievements when you speak with your boss, and have plenty of examples to refer to. Be sure to show how your efforts have benefited the company in order to prove that you deserve a raise.

2. Determine your market worth. Knowing your market value is important. Compare your compensation with that of others in your industry and position. If you are not sure how to get this information, try posting an anonymous question on a message board or chat website.

3. Consider your worth to the company. Would you be hard to replace? Review what you, your team, or your department contributes to your company. Is it something that could be easily outsourced? If your company were to downsize, would your team survive the cuts?

4. How do you feel about your job and your company? If you have issues with the benefits, the hours, your boss, and your prospects for the future, you might review whether you really want a raise or a new job altogether. But if your only complaint is the salary, think about other things you would accept if your boss won't offer you more money.

Negotiation tips

1. Timing is everything. Once you've decided to ask for a raise, set up a meeting with your boss at a time that is convenient for him or her. If you can, try to arrange it for a time that your boss will be most receptive. For example, if your boss has stressful meetings every Tuesday, schedule it for another day. Let your boss know what you plan to talk about so he or she will be mentally prepared for the meeting.

2. Put together a written proposal, enumerating your contributions to the company, and how you've improved over time. Point to as many bottom-line achievements as you can. If you have brought in new clients, developed new ideas, or streamlined a process, point it out. Refer to your skills, talents and market value (along with the sources of your information), and give your boss a range of what you feel is fair compensation - realizing that you will probably get something towards the low end.

3. Be reasonable and professional. Check your ego at the door, and try not to tie your self-image to your salary. Even if you're completely dissatisfied by your employer's offer, don't threaten to quit or start sending out resumes. It's a small world - don't earn yourself a bad reputation, and don't burn any bridges.

4. Be patient. Don't expect an answer immediately. And remember the larger the company, the longer it will take. In the meantime, keep up the good work. Remind your boss why you deserve a raise.

5. Be prepared to compromise. If your boss agrees to give you an increase that you don't find acceptable, look for a compromise. Would you give up some cash for equity, fully paid health insurance, or the opportunity to work more reasonable hours?

If, after all the negotiations, you're still dissatisfied, start looking for a new job. If your employer doesn't recognize your talents, someone else probably will. In Vietnam's competitive job market, you're likely to get a raise even if you make a lateral move.

II-Meetings - How To Make Them Work?

The company office visit is an important step in the candidate's interview process. It can be called "the plan trip" or "the site visit". It usually serves to help the company screen the last few candidates that remain for a high-level job after the initial interviews. At this stage, the interviewers already know that all the visitors will have the necessary skills and IQs. Now, they want to know whether their candidates' career goals match the job and whether their energy and willpower to fit in the culture of the company. On the other hand, it gives the candidate the opportunity to get the detailed view of the company, its employees, and its culture.

Several things to prepare for the company visit:

• Learn all you can about the company beforehand that will make you confident when you're at the site, prepare you to ask better questions. Take advantage of company web sites, brochures, and annual reports to gather data. If you have the opportunity to ask for additional information during your initial interview, don't be shy. Recruiters like to see a proactive approach to learning more about their company. Also, talk to company employees and people who have dealt with the company.
   

• Leave the rest of your life behind! On the day of the visit you must prepare a fresh mind. Don't let your personal problems, school deadlines, etc. pull on your brain.
   

• Be on time. It's better to arrive early than late. Arriving early also gives you time to relax and do some last minute preparation.
   

• When asked about salary expectations, give a wide range or sidestep the question. And don't bring it up yourself!
   

• Be aware that you are being watched all the time, even while you are being given a tour of the site. However, react to this thought with energetic alertness, not paranoid nervousness.
   

• Write your interviewers personal letters of thanks after you get home. This might not get you the job, but they will all like you better. This might be very good if you got hired.

III-Things To Remember on Your First Day at Work

Deciding whether to work or stay at home to raise a family is a difficult choice for women. Both, younger moms and established career women must determine what ultimately will work best for themselves and their families. Here are some points to consider as you review your options:

One size can't fit all

Does it seem that everyone you know has become a stay-at-home mom? This must mean you should stay at home with your children too, right? Not necessarily. You know yourself better than anyone else. Will you feel fulfilled if you leave your career behind? Are you prepared to exchange power lunches for daily power struggles?

It's a Family Affair

Your decision affects all family members, so get their input before you cast the final vote. Invite them to a family meeting and briefly discuss the options you are considering. Ask for their opinions. This approach will put you in a much better position to make a decision you can live with, because you can incorporate their needs and desires into your decision.

Don't Look Back

It's a good idea to reevaluate your situation from time to time, because family needs change, but don't keep second-guessing yourself. You will know when the decision you made is no longer right for you and your family, and you can always make changes.

V-How to Impress Your Boss

Everyone wants to do their best at work to assure that they keep moving up the ranks in their company. Most people think that in order to get ahead, they should work overtime, meet all deadlines (even when they might be unreasonable), and complete all assignments. These are not the only things you can do however to impress your boss. There are many other little things that can also help you to achieve your goal:

VI-Four Negotiating Mistakes That Women Often Make

Some women are uncomfortable with the word negotiating though they do it everyday. Negotiating is a skill that has to be learned. Even powerful and successful women have made negotiating mistakes. Jessica Miller, a commercial real-estate executive and author of "A Woman's Guide to Successful Negotiating", wanted to know what they learned from them. She talked with top women executives in a range of industries to discover the most common mistakes women make when bargaining. Four of these missteps, which follow, are relatively easy to correct once you realize that you're making them.

Mistake No. 1. Adopting a negotiating style that doesn't reflect who you are.

Solution: Be yourself, but be the best self you can be. Because many women haven't learned that there are many successful negotiating styles, they avoid negotiating or think they don't have an aptitude for it. To be successful, however, you must employ a negotiating style with which you're comfortable. How you negotiate needs to reflect who you are. You must be authentic or you'll lose all credibility.

Mistake No. 2. Not seeing a situation as an opportunity to negotiate.

Solution: Ask -- almost everything is negotiable if you see it that way. Many women don't recognize that opportunities to negotiate exist in almost every interaction. They look at situations in terms of decisions that have to be made, rather than opportunities to negotiate. So if you assume everything is negotiable, you'll find that it's true. Ordinarily, a situation doesn't preclude you from negotiating. Instead, it dictates how you need to go about trying to get what you want. Successful women recognize that almost everything is negotiable, although you don't want to negotiate everything. You decide what's worth negotiating.

Mistake No. 3: Not being willing to say no.

Solution: Don't be afraid to use the "no" word. Women often have difficulty saying no, particularly when they're dealing with someone they care about. Because women place a high value on relationships, they're more hesitant about saying no. They want to keep everyone happy.

You don't have to say no loudly or aggressively. If, however, an offer is less than you think it should be, you need to point that out politely but firmly. If the other party can't, or won't, improve the offer, you need to be willing to walk away. If you have prepared properly for the negotiations, you'll know the other options you have in case this discussion doesn't work out the way you had envisioned. Knowing your bottom line and being willing to say no to something that doesn't meet your needs often results in the other party finding a way to satisfy your needs, as long as you're flexible and willing to work with them.

Mistake No. 4: Not negotiating well when it's for yourself.

Solution: Negotiate for yourself as if you were negotiating for someone else. Both men and women find it difficult to negotiate for themselves, but women often have an even harder time. Many women were raised to believe that it's selfish to ask for things for themselves.

One helpful technique is to visualize yourself as negotiating for someone else. Think about what you would do if you were advocating on behalf of a person whom you care about. Then approach your personal negotiations similarly. Another technique that can help you negotiate more effectively for yourself is "self talk." Before you begin, give yourself a little pep talk. Go over all the reasons why you deserve what you're requesting. You are your toughest audience. Once you convince yourself, you'll have no trouble convincing everyone else.

Learning to negotiate will empower you. You'll decide what to agree to and what you aren't willing to accept. You'll be able to shape situations to ensure that your needs are satisfied. Negotiating well will help you to get what you want, not only in business but in your personal life as well. Once you master the art of negotiating, you'll soon recognize that the only real limits to what you can achieve are those you place on yourself.

VII-Best Use Of Your Free Time At Work

There are often times in every job where you have nothing to do. For some it's a bonus, a break from the routine. For others it's dull and boring. This article will look at how you can make best use of your free time at work.

Is there anything that should be done right now?

Be honest - do you really have spare time or is there something waiting for you to do?

Motivating yourself to start the task you have been putting off can be difficult, so here are a few tips to get the ball rolling:

• Make a list of what you need to do.
• Break each task down into sub tasks - you may find these more manageable (and less daunting!).
• Just start from the beginning and work your way down the list. Before you know it, your task will be complete!

After all do you really have free time?

OK, you have done all that you need to, so what now? Do you want to progress your career and skills or do you just want to pass the time until the end of your shift?

It is all too easy for you to sit back and do nothing while your own ambitions remain unachieved. You can do two things with your time:

• Work at achieving your ambitions.
• Or not.

Work towards your goals.

You may already be heading along your desired career path or you may be way off it. Either way, you can use you free time to help yourself along the way. Take time to improve your own skills and knowledge.

If you find yourself in the position of not being in a job you like within a company you don't want to work for, then all you can do is look for a better job!

You're not bothered about your career - you just want to pass the time.

Fair enough! Here a few tips:

• Surf the net if you can. Most companies monitor your surfing habits and time spent online, so don't go overboard.
• Discussion forums.
• Read the news. Justify it as research.
• Learn keyboard shortcuts
• Solitaire? Battleships?
• Email your mates.
• Maybe have a think about what you would rather be doing and how you could do that for a living!

Free time is an opportunity to something interesting. Make the most of it!

VIII-Clothes That Work – A Woman’s Guide to Professional Dressing

Getting dressed for the office doesn't mean leaving your personal style behind. Find out which looks give you a polished, professional look and which fashions can be a career killer.

Be Professional, Not Fashionable

Your goal to getting dressed for work is to project a professional image regardless of your employement level or career path.

The styles, colors, lengths and fit of your fashion choices will speak about your ability to do your job. If you are concerned about your career, you'll be more concerned with looking professional than looking cute or trendy.

According to my own experience, in general, the more distracting a piece of clothing or jewelry is, the less appropriate it is for office wear.

Some guidelines to looking polished:

• Color plays a big part in professional image. Traditional colors for business fashion include red (aggressive), navy (trustworthy), gray (conservative) and black (chic). Most of these colors work well in pantsuits, skirts and shoes and mix back with softer feminine colors that are appropriate like ice blue, lilac, soft pink and ivory. Loud colors like hot pink and wild prints are extremely risky in the office, but some creative types can still pull them off.

• Jewelry that jangles is distracting. Choose stud earrings or single bracelets.

• Most of what constitutes a polished image is in the details: manicured nails, run-free hose, scuff-free shoes, neat hair.

• Fit is everything when you are talking about tailored work clothes. Pants should be fitted, but free of visible panty lines. Skirts, especially straight styles like pencil skirts, should be loose enough to sit down in comfortably. Jackets should be able to be buttoned. And blouses shouldn't gap between buttonholes.

• Designer labels are great, but heavily logoed clothing and accessories look cluttered and frivolous in the work place. Choose well-made items that are free from obvious designer labels for the most professional look. 

Career Killers

Unlike a fashion faux pas, a career killer outfit can do your professional image permanent damage.

Looks to avoid in the workplace:

• Too sexy: see-through lace, miniskirts, spaghetti straps, sheer sundresses, strappy stiletto sandals.

• Too casual: jeans, shorts, T-shirts, hats, sneakers.

• Too sloppy: wrinkled clothing, too many layers, baggy-fit clothing.

Try different styles, be creative but serious in mind, you'll have a great work and casual wardrobe that looks professional and well put together

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