5 Tactics To Work More Efficiently As A Young Professional

Every young professional faces demanding early career days designed to test their?metacognition?(critical thinking) and?willpower?(resilience) above anything else.

These demands are even more severe in the current unprecedented times when nothing is as it used to be. The world of work is trying out many new phases, like massive?digitalisation?adoption?and a?four-day workweek, etcetera.

These phenomena equally affect top managers and executives with years of career experience. But what about young professionals who must climb the fast-paced corporate ladder alongside transformational changes?

I reviewed the career paths of some of the most celebrated managers and executives that are accessible. Based on the management review of the literature from my exposure in business school and personal experience, I summarise viable solutions with five simple daily work ethics to be competent in the challenging and competitive current world of work as a young professional.

I focus on practical, simple steps rather than detailed processes and management jargon to make this article helpful for my readers. The most important aspect of this post is offering help based on my experience and observations.

1 — Write it down

I started with this because, as simple as it is, I encounter many young professionals who do not keep a work journal regularly.

I wonder if this results from being born in a mobile age and time when social media and online platforms enable us to share opinions influence those of distant people and institutions, and question authorities in new ways.

Regardless, keeping a work journal can show orderliness and responsibility for your tasks and role.

With this approach to work, you can date tasks when completed. You can always fall back to give a vivid account of incidents when the occasion calls for them without the pain of scrolling through hundreds of email correspondences.

Furthermore,?recent?research?suggests that writing on physical paper can lead to more brain activity when remembering later.

Remember, ‘The faintest pen is sharper than the soundest mind’ — Anonymous.

2 — Stakeholder analysis

In one of my previous articles, 'Must Do's Within First Month At A New Job,' I pointed out how understanding primary assignments is a way successful young professionals set themselves apart from their peers in the workplace and career within the first month of starting a new role.

Understanding primary assignments can be as simple as knowing the stakeholders involved in your role and analysing how to keep all of them satisfied.

A way to effectively do this is to have a list of all the stakeholders involved in your everyday tasks, starting from the executives if in any way you have direct contact with the person down to the regular customers.

In a tabular form, state each stakeholder's role in completing your daily tasks. Using a high, medium, and low scale, assign this to each stakeholder's interest and influence columns on your tasks.

Then, write a sentence or two of the unique facts about each stakeholder. This will help you know their expectations of you and finally decide how to manage them.

3 — Checklist

Like stakeholder analysis, a checklist is another tool for making work more accessible and completing tasks more efficiently.

This tool is primarily used in quality assurance processes, but I have adopted it to complete personal tasks efficiently.

To do this, I divide tasks into processes with stages that may have level 1 — stage A, etc., until the finish goal.

This way, I can tick off task stages to levels as I go through processes and confidently attest to any tasks I have completed without doubts.

This is handy mainly for professions where mistakes are not pardonable and processes of tasks are fast-paced.

4 — Self-timing

Another point I raised in this article,?‘Must Do’s Within First Month At A New Job As A Young Professional,’ is encouraging young professionals to Split some seconds — mean what you say.

Splitting some seconds is a way to intentionally provide due times or dates to complete a task when directed to do something initially.

You will find that even your superiors will want to attend to your questions promptly and ensure that answers arrive on time.

I have used this to create an impression that makes supervisors assume I conduct all my tasks and every area of my life the same way.

But with or without surveillance from superiors, self-timing makes you work effectively, with high focus and accuracy.

Managers love it when younger professionals are timely and orderly.

5 — Be open to more feedback

Being intentional about knowing what you can improve on and your performance at the workplace can be a quick step forward to professional efficiency.

Don’t wait for this to be randomly given to you or for the organisation’s appraisal period. Always seek to know how you are performing at the workplace.

You can do this by a direct email asking specifically about a project you recently handled and requesting feedback. Alternatively, you can rephrase your inquiry to be situational and ask for opinions from your colleagues on what could be done.

Or, during a casual meeting, you can ask direct, honest questions and request feedback.

The goal is to ensure that you know how others perceive your contributions to the organisation and to create an impression that you are a young professional who strives for career and personal development.

Furthermore, if you are confused about how to approach this feedback, first understand whether your supervisor is a listener or a reader. If they are readers, write to them; if they are listeners, engage them in conversations.

Many thanks for reading my perspective and giving feedback.

My fervent wish is for the personal growth of everyone and the success of all young professionals who put their hearts and souls into finding their purpose in life.

Copyright ? Ekene Moses, 2024. All Rights Reserved.

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