Are You Aligned? Are You Measured?
The 12th and final self-management strategy is to measure your performance to promote yourself. In an ideal work situation, your boss has “aligned” you to department and company goals. Hopefully, your work or performance is measured on a quarterly basis for an annual employee review or bonus. But what if you’re not being measured? If you’re not measured, how will you results be documented? If your results are not documented, how can you easily demonstrate that you’re promotable? If you are not being measured, then there are a few things you can do.

List Your “Stuff”
List your job functions, responsibilities, and your current assignments. Identify what work is quantifiable. Does everything have a due date? For sales people, it’s easy. They have sales quotas that they must meet quarterly and/or annually. For marketing folks, it could be a product launch, a tradeshow schedule, or product marketing sales tools that have well-defined due dates.

Create Your Work Plan
If your manager hasn’t been “officially measuring your performance” for corporate reasons, then make your own Excel spreadsheet to track your work for a 90-day window of time. It can be by quarter, broken into months. Use the following columns: project name and task, due date, job function, percentage complete, stakeholders (others your work is dependent upon), or any other key information. Update this spreadsheet, using it as a project work plan of your job. Keep a folder of each quarter’s performance measures, deliverables, and results.

Use Status Reports to Report Progress and Reports
Do you meet with your boss on a regular basis? Do you send status reports or update emails to your boss so your progress is visible? If not, then start. Print your spreadsheets so your boss has copies and you have copies in your one-on-one meetings. If your boss manages your meetings, then use your spreadsheets as resources so you can answer any questions. If your boss lets you drive a meeting, then use your spreadsheets as an agenda. Discuss the progress, your percentage complete, and any potential issues you’re anticipating, hoping for your boss’ input.

Use Email and Attach Your Work Plan to Your Boss
Summarize your results, sending a high-level email before or after your meeting. This documents your “results” and progress in an email. It also creates accountability on your part as well as visibility to your boss. Attach a copy of the spreadsheet; however, assume your boss will not have time to open and read the attached spreadsheet.

By sending a summary of your projects or assignments, your boss will be able have that information at his/her finger tips. Remember, measuring yourself is promoting yourself. You may be doing an outstanding job, but if it isn’t tracked and/or not aligned to department or company goals, then it’s easy for bosses and companies to forget or not notice your results.

The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies Summary
With focused, self-managed approach to your work, you can get noticed, possibly setting up your next job or career move by using the 12 self-management strategies, which are:

1. Create your own luck
2. What haunts you in your job?
3. Leave emotion at home, compartmentalize
4. Throw it out or store it
5. Get into the “flow”
6. What things do you like about your job?
7. Master your work tools in your toolkit
8. What are your hidden skills? Unhide them.
9. What are your strategies for success? Share them.
10. Don’t make rushed decisions
11. Know your competition like the back of your hand.
12. Measure yourself to promote yourself

Don’t leave it up to fate, your boss, or your company to demonstrate your ability as a performer. Create your own luck, get closure on the work issues holding you back, don’t get emotional at work by learning how to compartmentalize your work self from your home self. Always be self-aware about the things that put you in a flow state. Demonstrate your mastery of your skills to your boss and peers and share your secrets to success with others who are open to them. Remember to learn how to not make rush decisions. Don’t forget to have the upper hand in knowing everything about your competitors. And please, measure yourself to promote yourself.

Previous Post: The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies

• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #1 - Create Your Own Luck
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #2 - What haunts You in Your Job?
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #3 – Leave Emotions at Home
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #4 – Throw It Out or Store It
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #5 – Get into the “Flow”
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #6 – What Things Do You Not Like about Your Job?
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #7 – Master the Tools in Your Toolkit
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #8 – What are Your Hidden Skills? Unhide them.
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #9 – What are your Strategies for Success?
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #10 – Don’t Make Rushed Decisions.
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #11 – Know Your Competition

Similar Posts:

• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #7 – Master the Tools in Your Toolkit
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #11 – Know Your Competition
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #10 – Don’t Make Rushed Decisions.
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #9 – What are your Strategies for Success?
• The 12 Simple Self-Management Strategies: Simple Self-Management Strategy #8 – What are Your Hidden Skills? Unhide them.