Make yourself indispensable...

There is a sickness that pervades our troubled economy. That sickness is "hope." People sit idly by, wondering if they'll make it through the next round of staff cuts, putting hope before action - a ballsy move. It amazes me how many people report to work each day, do the same routine tasks and projects at a leisurely pace, and then do it all over again the next day - rarely, if ever, making an impact. Not to mention, it's a rather monotonous and dreary existence. They fail to seize opportunities to stand out, and heaven forbid, make themselves indispensable to their employer.

It's time to change that mentality. It's time for YOU to take a proactive role in your work. Pick a niche and tackle it, full speed ahead. Have you ever thought to yourself, "If we just did XYZ, the company could save so much money."? There you have it: you're now the office cost-cutting guru. Have fun with it and give yourself a moniker: "Buzzsaw Pete: Cutting through office costs." Management will love you. Think of all the opportunities to save money across the organization and document them. Present your findings to management and propose forming a monthly committee to brainstorm savings opportunities and implement those plans. It could be something as simple as saving $.02 cents per BIC pen by purchasing from a different vendor. Trust me, every little bit counts and it adds up over time. Imagine if after one year of serving as the Champion on the Cost Cutting Committee, you were able to save the company $30,000? Do you think your employer would see you as a value-add employee? Yup.

Have you made yourself indispensable to your organization yet?