When you put your heart and soul into your job, it feels excellent when you are appreciated for it. It is not just about drawing a salary. You can draw a good salary for your job and still feel terrible if you don’t feel valued by the organization.
When you are valued at work, you are appreciated for your contributions. This mostly happens when your superiors and senior colleagues show you their appreciation. Still, you will also understand it from the vibes you get from your colleagues.
Noting how your employers interact with you can be crucial to understanding if you are valued. And if you feel you are not, there are several measures you can take to make them notice you.
Of course, some employers and workplaces are toxic and will undermine your efforts no matter what you do. However, not all employers are like that, and once you step up, you are sure to get your share of appreciation.
You will feel valued when you know how your contributions are helping in the growth and success of your organization. Your employers will let you know from time to time, and you will also learn a lot on the job to understand whether you are being valued.
How to Understand If You are Valued at Work?
To understand whether you are valued at work, you must look for certain signs. These will help you analyze if you are valued at work.
1. You Have Positive Interactions
If you put in hard work, your employers will positively interact with you when they talk to you about your work. They will tell you directly that they have noticed you have stayed back extra hours, or they will have more open conversations with you.
Good communication is the foundation for building strong professional relationships. You will notice that when you are valued at work.
2. Your Suggestions are Taken
One of the most positive signs that you are appreciated at work is when your employers take your suggestions and heed your input. You will not feel sidelined when you have an observation. Your boss will try out what you say and appreciate you if it works.
Even if it doesn’t, they will give you constructive criticism and appreciate that you tried and that your intentions were for the best. They will also express their gratitude if your input serves a great purpose.
3. Your Honesty is Valued
Owning up to a mistake is not easy. Most people don’t want to do that in the workplace because they fear being berated and penalized for their mistakes.
However, if you hold yourself accountable for your mistakes, and your employers appreciate you for your honesty. It is a mark that they value your contribution.
Yes, you may have some repercussions, but your employers will notice that you were honest and tried to improve things. This also shows maturity on the part of an employer, which goes a long way in creating a safe working environment for employees.
4. You are Asked to Help
Another sign that your manager or employer values you is when they will ask you for some additional help. Yes, in some toxic workplaces, it could translate to inviting you for additional favors. Still, in good workplaces, your employer will ask you for your help for genuine reasons.
They may ask you to mentor the new trainees or ask you for some help with work allocation. This shows that they trust you enough to hand over these tasks, and it could be that they are trying to gauge if you are suitable for more significant roles later.
Bonus Read: Should You Be Paid More For Training New Employees?
5. Your Initiative is Valued
If you are a proactive employee who always takes the initiative to go out of their way and achieve a task, it would mean a lot if someone noticed your efforts. And this is the case precisely what will happen when you are valued at work.
You will notice small gestures from the management, like an additional line in your work report, when they notice your initiative.
6. You are Given New Projects
Once new and more significant projects start coming your way, you can see this as a sign that you are being valued at work. Your new responsibilities will often be associated with positive feedback. Your managers will make it clear that they entrust you with the new responsibilities because they have faith in your abilities.
This is one of the most prominent signs of being valued at work, and you will also learn many new things on the job. These unique aspects, in turn, will help you take over managerial responsibilities later.
7. Your Skills are Monitored
At first, you may think that your employers are observing your skills and tasks closely because they are not happy with you, but it could be the opposite.
They may monitor you because they have already noticed your hard work and input. And want to check if you can take on bigger and better responsibilities.
Your manager might also ask for your opinion on various tasks you have handled to see how you evaluate yourself. If you are satisfied with positive responses, you are valued at work.
8. Your Teammates Support You
Apart from your employers, it would be best if you were supported by your team members as well. Your team is your family at the office, and you must know they have your back.
Mostly, they will appreciate your work, and all of you will fill in for each other whenever required.
You won’t feel like your team members are trying to get one up against you or pulling you down. You will feel comfortable working and communicating with them.
9. You Get a Promotion
When you receive a promotion at work, it signifies that you are valued. All those hours of hard work you put in will result in a promotion or an award or accolade.
You will also probably get a raise, and there could be a revision in your perks. You might also get some gifts as a token of appreciation from the company. Your employers will also tell you to keep up with the excellent work that you are already doing.
Bonus Read: 2 Effective Ways to Show Your Promotion on a Resume
Signs You Are Not Valued at Work
When you are not valued at work, you will easily notice that as well. It will be the opposite of the points mentioned earlier.
- Your input will be ignored.
- Your boss will not assign you essential tasks or projects.
- Your boss may not acknowledge or greet you.
- You constantly feel that you are left out during important meetings.
- You are always sidelined for promotion.
- You get no words of appreciation even if you work harder and longer.
- Your boss will criticize you for the slightest errors.
- You will feel overlooked by your teammates and feel segregated.
- Your boss will often ignore your requests to handle better projects.
- Your request for a pay increase is repeatedly denied.
Also Read: 9 Signs Your Boss is Threatened By You And Wants You Gone
What to Do if You Work Hard and Still Don’t Get Value?
If you work hard and still feel you are not valued, then it may become difficult after a point. You cannot go on for months and years without any words of appreciation.
You may sometimes feel grateful that you still have a job and make a decent salary. Still, as a diligent worker, you will always have a sense of loss and dissatisfaction.
Hence, if you sense that your workplace is toxic, and no matter what you do, your efforts will never be valued. It would help if you thought of changing organizations and starting afresh.
However, that is a drastic step. It would help if you worked on improving yourself to compensate for any lack of skills by working harder and learning more.
Should You Resign if You are Not Valued?
Whether you should resign or not if you feel you are not valued is a question you should answer with caution. If you have been feeling undervalued and unappreciated for a very long time, and the uneasiness has taken a toll on your productivity, then you should resign. However, before doing that, you must ensure that you have done everything in your power to ensure that you have been a good employee.
If your employer still doesn’t notice you and you feel you cannot get growth in your present organization. In such a case, you should probably resign. You must ensure that you have another job before quitting the present one and that your finances are in order.
It would be best if you also ensured that nothing could prevent you from getting your dues. You wouldn’t want to leave the organization undervalued without compensation for what is rightfully yours.
Tips to Increase Your Value
If you feel undervalued at work, then there are certain ways in which you can increase your value in the eyes of your employers. Here is how.
1. Try Being Flexible
Don’t be too uptight or rigid in your opinions in the workplace. Be flexible and be open to working a little more than usual. Take on any last-minute assignments at times without grudges.
You should also be able to switch tasks at short notice. Flexibility makes your employer see that you are willing to adapt based on the company’s needs, and they will appreciate you more.
2. Try to Grow
Be sure to notice your areas of improvement. If you are not mindful of how you can improve yourself, then no one else will.
Try to see if you are falling behind because you lack some skills. Can learning a new skill and stepping up bring you to par with your teammates?
3. Look at Your Coworkers
Look at how the other colleagues are working. Do they have something that you do not? If you feel they are valued more than you, what are they doing and you are not?
4. Talk to Your Manager
Speak to your supervisor or manager. If you feel they are ignoring or not appreciating you, ask them politely if they would like you to improve in certain areas. Sometimes managers do not say anything to employees who are just average.
Neither do they criticize nor do they appreciate these employees. You can ask for a brief meeting asking your manager if there is anything more you can do. Your proactive attitude will bring you to their notice.
5. Make New Connections
At your office, your coworkers are your biggest strength. Try to connect with them. Do not be the one who sits alone at lunch. Try to be there for your teammates, and they will be there for you when you need them.
You can also ask them for help if you are stuck with something. That will help you create better professional bonds. They will be your biggest cheerleaders when you do something good for the company.
Conclusion
Feeling unappreciated can be detrimental to your mental health. You will experience stagnancy in work and will not be productive, despite your best efforts. However, you can take active measures to address this issue rather than simply wallowing in self-pity so that no one notices you.
After all, there is stiff competition in every industry, and you must step up at times and face the competition head-on if you want to get noticed. When you do so, your employers will notice your contributions and value you more. Ensure you are doing your best, and the rest will soon fall into place.
