Getting noticed at work can be difficult, but we've got a few tips to help make that happen—and to make sure it's for the right reasons.

No matter the size of the staff at your workplace, just being good at your job may not be enough to help you move up the ladder. If you work for a large organization, getting noticed can take a good deal of coordinated effort because there are so many employees and the org chart is so broad. But even at a small business, if you want to move up and have the freedom to grow, you’ll need to do more than just show up and get your tasks completed in order to make an impression on those who can guide you to the top.

Here are five of the best ways we found to get noticed in a very positive way at work:

Be Visible

Again, being visible is more than just clocking in on time every day. Being visible in a positive way means speaking up in meetings and sharing relevant and innovative ideas, and then making sure you’re getting credit for those ideas. You should also ask relevant questions in meetings to show you’re engaged, pay attention to details and have a deeper understanding of the topic or issue at hand. Contributing out loud shows management that you care about the business and can be creative and provide solutions.

You can also be visible by sincerely praising colleagues in the presence of management (or with an appropriate copy on an email)—and make an ally at the same time. Another great way to get noticed is to become involved in your company’s community and charitable initiatives. Volunteer for the charity and service events your office is holding. Offer to hold leadership positions on teams coordinating these events. This is a great way to get close to people with high positions in the company or other departments who you may not otherwise have access to.

Network

Networking isn’t just for getting a new job or changing jobs. Networking inside your organization can help you get promoted or move to a different department for a better opportunity. It’s important to build relationships with people around the office. Even the simple act of greeting people and having more face-to-face conversations can help you network in your organization. Make sure you’re networking in your department as well as in other departments. You can do this by joining teams and projects that involve team members from other departments in your company.

Finding someone a little higher up who is willing to mentor you is a great way to get noticed and get some help meeting others at the top. Join company teams or leagues and socialize outside your inner work circle. Attend company events, especially if there’s an opportunity to network with the leadership. Helping colleagues with projects is also a great way to network, utilize talents you have, pick up new skills and experience, as well as make new allies who can help you down the road.

Take On More Responsibility

To get noticed, you need to go beyond the list of job duties you were presented with when you interviewed. You don’t want to overwork yourself or put yourself in a position to drop the ball on your required tasks, but you do need to take on additional responsibilities in order to get noticed, highlight skills you have and pick up new skills. Speak up in a meeting to take on a new role in a project. Volunteer for the projects no one else wants to do, especially any project that utilizes your skill set, gets you working more closely with leadership, or has a visible impact on the bottom line. Being involved in an innovative project can put your name in front of a lot of people in big offices.

If you offer to help alleviate the workload on other projects where you could provide skilled support, you’ll make a positive impression on colleagues and management. Just make sure that while you’re taking on these new responsibilities, you’re exceeding deadlines. People who prove they can work efficiently and provide high-quality results move to the top of the list when it comes to promotions and better opportunities. And showing you don’t mind getting your hands dirty can leave a great impression on higher-ups.

Keep Learning and Be a Specialist

One very sneaky and impressive way to get noticed at work is to pay attention, follow your industry and become a specialist. You were probably hired for your list of general skills, but it’s the specialists who are brought in when a company is growing and can afford to hire. If you can strategically see where the organization is headed, you can put yourself in a position to be ready with the specialized skills they’ll need to get there. Stay updated on your industry or particular job on your team and learn new skills, trends and technologies. Read trade magazines, go to conferences and join professional associations. Become an expert and get known as the “go to” person on that particular subject.

Share your knowledge with your team and management by speaking up in meetings when appropriate or holding lunch-and-learns and webinars. And, while you’re learning new things, keep in mind that people who have soft skills like creative thinking, communication skills, flexibility, emotional intelligence, coaching and resolution skills are more likely to end up in upper-management positions. Learning or improving those skills will get you noticed in a good way.

Document Your Accomplishments

You won’t get noticed at work if you keep all of your accomplishments to yourself. You don’t have to become a braggart, but you should make sure you document project successes and praise you receive. If a client sends you a complimentary email, save it in a file to share at your next review. And if it seems appropriate, forward it to your manager, framing it as an update on a project he or she is interested in. Watermark your work on documents so you get credit for your contributions and ideas. Make sure you can prove where your efforts helped to efficiently add quality and keep a project moving forward. This way, when it’s time for your review, you’ve got solid reasons to ask for a raise or promotion.

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