# Being more "valuable" at work



## shyguy07 (Mar 22, 2015)

Does anyone have any ideas on this? When I started working at my job, there were a lot fewer people than there are now, and I understand that during the last recession they had to lay off a lot of people. And I came in just as things were improving economically.

I've tried to be a more "valuable" employee so in case they have to do that again (hopefully not) that I get more likely to stay. I try to do a great job with no mistakes, and I come in about 15-30 minutes early and stay at least that late each day. And also if they have extra work for me to do out of hours I try to do that too, at least most of the times they ask me to.

Since I figure if I do these things, maybe they'll be more likely to keep me on. But the thing that concerns me sometimes, is several of the other employees in my position are family or related to the owners. Plus some of the stuff I just am not qualified or comfortable doing. So I sometimes think I'd likely be one of the first to go.

But some of the longer term employees have also left over the last two years or so, so IDK? I've been there 7.5 years now though.

Plus my goal is to buy a house, and I don't know if I'd be able to go somewhere else and afford it if I got laid off. So I want to make sure I don't lose my job if I can.


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## Whatswhat (Jan 28, 2018)

“You can be likable or you can be valuable” is a quote I heard once.


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## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

Is That All There Is? The Burnout Generation Wants Some Answers


What comes after being thoroughly disillusioned with your job?




www.refinery29.com







> In the story of our lives, we might be the main character, but work is the dominating theme, our constant motivation. It's the central thing we do as adults, the primary focus of our mental function for most hours of the day, most days of the week. The types of jobs we have influence who we know, where we live, how much society respects us. Being jobless, then, isn't only difficult because of the financial instability — it's also a kind of social death. As such, the fate of the jobless — the attendant derision or pity is often used as a cautionary tale. And the warning works: Most of us are terrified of losing our livelihoods.
> 
> The so-called Great Resignation has been making headline after headline for months now, as people have been quitting their jobs in droves. There were predictions that when federal pandemic benefits expired just after Labor Day, industries facing a labor shortage would find an influx of job seekers. And yet, snatching away benefits hasn't worked that way. So far, there hasn't been a dramatic increase in applicants. It's not just a perplexing economic problem. People rejecting available jobs runs counter to what we've been taught since childhood — that work isn’t just how we live our lives, it’s why we live our lives.
> 
> It's a sign of the times — and of how fed up people are with the conditions of work — that people are now rejecting this worldview, and doing so to such a degree that it’s become a movement. If the movement has a motto, it would be the word that’s been on everyone’s lips over the past 18 months: burnout. According to an Insider survey of over 1,000 American workers, 61% said they were currently "at least somewhat burned out." An Indeed report from March found that the majority of respondents said their burnout had worsened during the pandemic, with 52% overall saying they were currently burned out. You've probably heard — or said yourself — the following things repeated ad nauseum: "I'm so tired. I'm so exhausted. I can't believe we have to keep going_._"


I realised while reading the opening paragraph of this article I found recently, that it's freeing in a sense to be very close to the bottom. Though I don't have the best self esteem and that fluctuates, in terms of status I have no further to fall realistically so the most damage socially that's going to happen has happened for me. 

You can't control their nepotism so probably not worth thinking about that, you can only do your job as well as you can and hope for the best. I don't think the best workers (from the pov of employers,) are really the ones who do the best though it really depends on what your job is. In a lot of jobs you don't necessarily have to be good, you have to be the most psychopathic.


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## RSxo (Apr 19, 2018)

I think there's ways to be more valuable - if you work hard for a senior, they can stand up for you when they decide who to drop. But that only goes so far - when cash-strapped companies restructure, they can cut entire teams. Do your best to work hard so that the team and seniors value you, but if the worst happens and you get fired, you'll simply have to deal with it at that point x


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## Futures (Aug 27, 2005)

The first time I got laid off, job performance seemed to have nothing to do with it. But rather, they played favorites. The bossman had his favorite people, and I was always at the bottom of that list. With SA, I just couldn't connect with him the same way others were able to.


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## RichieRichR (Oct 23, 2021)

All I can tell you is that you need to become more active. Try all sorts of creative approaches to your work. If I were you, I would do some research on your product and how you can develop and help it. Prepare a good presentation of your research, make it more or less colourful. There are plenty of online services for this.I personally often use Loveslides for such purposes. Show your ambition and no relative of your boss will beat you to it.


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