For the past year, we have seen many Malaysians losing their jobs, primarily those in the oil and gas, aviation and banking industries. This short article attempts to highlight the traits of a good employee as one strives during this survival mode.

This is the second part; the first part attempts to put into perspective the importance of a career in our life and defines key concepts in employee-employer relationship, thus allowing for realistic expectations to be made when things do go wrong.

“You don’t hire for skills, you hire for attitude. You can always teach skills”

- Simon Sinek

A good employee is someone who is hardworking, independent, reliable, clever, productive, etc. yet he/she is also honest, trustworthy, humble, etc. You do not have to have all these traits but the more you have, the better you are. The good news is that these good traits can be developed over time as we mature and gain work experiences. Remember, a career is a journey, a long one, so these traits can be developed over time.

A good employee is principle-centred so he is clear of what he wants out of his career and how it fits into his life as a whole. To be principle-centered, we have to have a set of beliefs and values. And these come from our faith. Faith is a very powerful tool as it comes from within our hearts. The faithful strive for self-improvement and make life better for the other people.

As we navigate through our career, we would meet and interact with what we would call Machiavellian people who would do whatever it takes to achieve his/her objectives. As we know, for Machiavellians, the ends justify the means including dirty tactics, excessive politicking, etc. Do not be a Machiavellian; rather, do good unto others as you would others do unto you.

At times it is tempting to do bad things to others when they have done bad things to us. Consider our actions very carefully. In many cases, retaliation is not the solution. Fire will not be put out by fire and two wrongs do not make one right. Remember that at the end we want to win the war, not the battle. It is okay to lose in a battle, use it as lessons and preparation to win the war!

A good employee capitalises on his/her own strengths and uses the strengths for his/her own benefits. These strengths include attitude, skills (technical and non-technical), etc. Our personalities, characters and traits shape who we are, and each of us is unique because of all these.

Capitalise on our strengths and work on our weaknesses. Because of these differences, thinking style and working style differ from one to another. Know yourself very well, and then you will know how to uncover your true potential. Seek advice and inputs from select group of people.

As our lives are very inter-dependent with others and as individual there’s little we can achieve on our own, a good employee must make friends with as many people as he can no matter how knowledgeable you are in your discipline or how high your position is as a manager. Build relationships, leverage strengths of our colleagues and always strive to create a win-win situation.

A good employee is also someone who is committed to life-long learning, someone who learns something new every day. There’s a saying that when you stop learning, you stop living.

One easy way to learn is to read, a lot! Read as much as you can on materials related directly or indirectly to your work. Obviously to be able to read, you have to have passion for the subject. If you don’t, then you could well be in the wrong position or industry.

The next natural step in learning is to ask questions (and find answers to those questions!). While there is no such thing as stupid question, asking the smart and right question could well put you in the good books of your managers, while asking stupid or wrong questions could put you in hot water. So think before you ask especially when you have the managers in your proximity! Perception does matter.

Learning by making mistakes

A more expensive way to learn is to make mistakes. When you are relatively new in the job market, it is generally recognised that you are bound to make mistakes but as you move to a more senior position, be extra careful as it can be costly to your career. In short, explore and learn as much as you can while you are still younger and while you are still full of energy and can afford to make mistakes.

A good employee will be in a position where the ball is not in your court most of the time. Do not be a showstopper as a showstopper is bound to be blamed if anything untoward happen.

A good employee says the right things and communicates well to different groups of people. For a given subject, communicating to a higher level management is different from communicating to a colleague.

Being politically correct is important to build good perception as managers evaluate people based on perception, among others. For instance, stating “I am working on it” would leave a different impression instead of just saying “I do not know”. The former demonstrates that you are proactive whereas the latter suggests as though you could not care less and do not take initiative to work on a particular task.

A good employee would take criticisms constructively to improve his self. Do not be let down by negative bosses and colleagues. Words can sometimes be hurtful. Instead of, focus on your own career development. Take charge of your own career so that you will be able to take charge of your own destiny.

It is noted that early career professionals are generally guided by the company through early career development programmes. While this is good, keep your options open so you do not limit yourself to only what is programmed for you by the company. Be brave to explore something different and do not be pressured to conform to certain ‘standards’ for each individual is unique in our own way.

Good employee would be loved by good employer. Be a good employee because we have everything to gain by being a good employee - money, promotion, satisfaction and happiness.

At times good employee would not be rewarded and treated fairly but worry not, you will reap the rewards in the long term. If you are good, you are good and no one can take that away from you. Remember not every company is suitable for everyone so find the one that best suits your needs. Only you know your needs fully, not your boss, not your employer. If you are a good employee, with strategy, many employers would want to hire you, and vice-versa.

And remember, always keep our option open (read: always update your CV) and move at the right time, professionally and respectfully. At times, you would find someone who you once hated could be useful to you, so do not burn any bridges.

There is no such thing as being loyal to one particular company no matter how much you love a company because our relationships with our employer is based on mutual benefits, if any party at any point in time decides he/she no longer benefit from the relationship, he/she can leave the partnership as per the terms and conditions of employment.

Being a good employee, reward yourself from time to time because all work and no play makes Jack a dull guy. But remember; in rewarding yourself, do not burn a hole in your pocket. You would want to be laughing all the way to the banks, not running away from mountains of debts!

MOHAMMAD ABDUL HAMID is head of the Media Secretariat of the Wilayah Persekutuan branch of Pertubuhan Ikram Malaysia.