Most of us work hard. We go above and beyond the regular 40 hour work week because we want to move forward in business, but that extra time invested doesn’t mean results. This happens because we have ideas, we have what-ifs, we have vague inclinations about what success means, but we work aimlessly and tirelessly toward and end that hasn’t been defined. When you dedicate yourself to becoming focused and changing the way you function in your efforts, you don’t have to work harder because you are working smarter.

Write Your Goals Down

This is the first step toward working smarter and seeing the results you desire. On any given day, we could have a thousand goals floating about in our brains, but they don’t truly become tangible until we write them down. When they aren’t tangible, they can’t be reached. Seeing them on paper makes us more accountable for strategies and follow through than if we had simply allowed them to stay in the world of imagination. For any achievement to be accomplished, the vision needs to be known and shared by all.

Once clear goals have been set, it’s time to change the way that you work so all of that hard work doesn’t go to waste.

Change The Way You Work

This is where working smarter comes into play. Now that you have your goals in front of you, you must ask yourself how you will achieve them. You are likely to find that the processes you usually employ aren’t sufficient to achieve the end that you seek. Now is the time to change the way you work.

You will quickly realize that you don’t need to work longer hours foregoing time with family and pushing your other priorities aside to start realizing those goals for your business. Employ the SMART model to change the way you work:

• Specific – Be very specific about what you want to achieve.
• Measurable – Identify ways that you can measure your progress.
• Achievable – Decide who will be in charge of making this vision a reality.
• Results orientated – Be explicit in stating the results that can reasonably be reached.
• Time sensitive – Determine a time frame for accomplishing your goal.

The last one on this list may be the most important at this stage in the game as setting a time frame is essential for staying the course. Otherwise, it’s all too easy to get caught up in other areas of business, letting your goal slip away.

Make It Personal

It’s always necessary to remember how important your personal life is as well—never lose sight of that. Now that you have your priorities set at work and strategies in place for achieving your business goals, it’s time to turn your focus inward. Start setting realistic goals at home. Start small with with things like eating healthier or reading a new book once a week. These kinds of goals are realistic and achievable and can improve your personal well being so you can focus on working smarter when you get back to the office.

Harnessing the power of over-delivering to turbo-charge your career and give you an edge over everyone else.

“Find out what your boss wants and then over-deliver.”

Simple, but spot-on.

Wow is what happens when you deliver more than your customer expects. In today’s competitive environment, you must create wow to succeed.

The same is true in your career. If you want to turbo-charge your career and advance more rapidly, you must consistently over-deliver.

Delivering on what your boss expects will give you job security (maybe), but it won’t get you noticed. And if you don’t get noticed, you won’t get promoted. It’s as simple as that. You have to stand-out.

When I think back over my career and consider the hundreds of people who worked for me, the ones I remember are those who consistently over-delivered. They made an indelible impression on my psyche.

This isn’t a difficult concept to grasp. Yet, it’s surprising that more people aren’t intentional about using it as a fundamental career strategy.

You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room. Or the most creative. Or even the hardest working. All you have to do is be committed to exceeding the boss’s expectations.

Here are some suggestions for harnessing the power of over-delivering to turbo-charge your career and give you an edge over everyone else:

1. Make the decision to over-deliver. Few good things happen by accident. You have to decide you are going to do something differently—or do it at a different level. Just making this decision will set things in motion. It’s amazing how many aren’t willing to do this. They are content to do just enough to get by.

2. Get clear on your boss’s (or client’s) expectations. It’s really not about you—not if you are going to succeed. You have to be committed to making your boss successful. What does he expect from you? This is worth considering overall and on the front-end of each initiative. Start by asking, “What do you expect from me?” His response sets the bar.

3. Identify specific ways you can exceed them. This is where the fun begins. List your boss’s (or client’s) expectations in one column of a sheet of paper or on a spreadsheet. Now, in another column, list what you could do to exceed those expectations. How can you make his jaw drop or at least make him smile with delight? Use your creativity to create a wow experience.

4. Make wow your new standard. Every time you exceed your boss’s expectations, you create a branding impression. You want to develop a reputation for consistently over-delivering. You want to be the first person your boss thinks of when considering a new position or important project. That’s the secret to getting ahead.

Of course, the problem with exceeding expectations is that your performance quickly becomes the new standard. That’s why you have to be committed to never-ending improvement. Every new position, every new project is an opportunity to grow and realize your own potential.

By: Michael Hyatt