Workplace Issues Archives - Color Q Personality Power

Take a quick look at the options below. Choose one from each set of statements. At least 51% of the time, do you tend to be more:

___ tactful and diplomatic

___ apt to avoid conflict where possible

___ empathetic

___ accepting at first

___ apt to take things personally

or ___ direct and frank?

or ___ apt to meet conflict head on?

or ___ analytical?

or ___ skeptical at first?

or ___ objective about criticism?

If you’ve chosen more items from the column on the left, research shows you will probably be underpaid by at least 25% of your true value. This is not because you lack skills or talent, but because you are not asking for your due. The chances are you like the job and the people and when a reasonable number is offered, you accept it rather than create conflict. It is easy to fall into this “funk,” but it does not have to be your ongoing fate!

You need to learn from those who chose more items from the right column. These individuals are typically paid more than the previous group; not because they produce superior work, but because they know their worth and demand to be properly compensated. So if you are in the group on the left, which makes up 50% of the population, and 65% of women, what can you do about it?

1. Research Your Position. Search salary websites, and talk to people who are in similar career professions.

2. Determine Your Priorities. Salary, bonus, vacation, health benefits, technologically advanced equipment, a supportive boss, freedom, and meaningful work are all priorities that are individually sensitive. Perhaps you cannot push on the salary, but you can increase the overall package.

3. Get Organized. Make a list of your skills and achievements. Prepare to present these as well as highlight your past contributions and accomplishments.

4. Rehearse, Rehearse, Rehearse. You know the old saying, “Practice makes perfect.” Find someone with whom to role play. The confidence gained through rehearsal will decrease your anxiety and allow you to remain confident and focused. As a result, you will be less likely to fold early on in the salary negotiation process.

Avoid the costly mistake of starting your career being underpaid. Know your worth and demand to be properly compensated. Your future career and financial success depend on it. Your approach to money is one of many factors covered in Shoya Zichy’s Color Q Model and book, Career Match: Connecting Who You Are With What You’ll Love to Do. Others factors include your work-related strengths, ideal work environment and boss, range of suitable careers, entrepreneurial style and interview and job search style.

Article by Guest Blogger Jeannette Paladino, Writer-in-Chief, Write Speak Sell. jpaladino@writespeaksell.com.

During this economic slump, companies are looking at the most cost effective ways to get out the word about their products and services. They are struggling to control their brand essence and key messages, as the Internet becomes the most important source of information for many consumers. But companies are overlooking their most important communications channel to the outside world – their own employees.

It is employees who are most often the primary interface between the company and its customers. New technologies are transforming the way companies do business. But employees are underutilized as brand advocates. They are not being motivated to rally around the company’s mission and goals. It’s not an overstatement to say that business transformation will only be accomplished by gaining the commitment of employees at all levels to drive growth and performance. The key to ensuring success is consistency of communications to the right people at the right time with the right messages.

But the media is an increasingly intrusive “partner” as reporters pounce on every bad piece of company news – often coming from the mouths of unhappy employees who are left out of the loop about important new company developments. Online chat rooms sponsored by Yahoo and Vault and networking sites like Twitter and Facebook provide public platforms for employees to vent their grievances and the media and customers are tuning in.

So a word of advice to companies about using your employees as your most ardent champions to help drive growth during these tough times:

· Keep up a constant stream of information to employees so they are up to date on everything going on in the company and can funnel important information to customers

· Make sure they hear what’s new before they read about it in online media

· Encourage employees to use social media like Twitter and Facebook to promote the company

· Trust your employees to do the right thing – you are all in this together

Employees want their company to succeed. It’s in their best interests and they want to feel like they are part of the solution and not the problem.

Will You Be Underpaid?: What Your Personality Says About Your Approach To Money & Salary Negotiations

Using Employees to Drive Growth During an Economic Slump