Are You Underappreciated At Work?

You’ve just finished a huge project which you worked on for months at the office, and it’s been a success. You’ve made the company money and brought recognition to your team—and yet nobody seems to be thanking you. Nobody’s offering you a pay raise.

Sound familiar?

Feeling underappreciated at work is a common woe, especially in this era of big business. A lot of workplaces have become more impersonal than they once were, especially outside of technical professions. How you can you feel more appreciated in the workplace?

Unfortunately you can’t force yourself to feel appreciated if you really aren’t being appreciated (nor should you), but maybe you can find ways to stand out a little more.

One suggestion is to make it really obvious to others that there was a lot of work put into your work.

People can be very blithe about others’ hard work, usually because they’re swamped in their own.

Try to forgive your coworkers for their negligence, or your clients for theirs. Find ways to explain what went into your work.

Do you have a presentation to give about your project? Then explain not only what your project can bring the company, but the process of its creation and what you had to put into it.

Also take time to appreciate the hard work of others. When’s the last time you complimented your coworkers on their projects, or showed interest in what your boss is doing?

Another idea is to find ways to become more of a social center at work.

This may be easier than you think. Becoming popular in the office may be something as simple as remembering to do nice things for your coworkers.

• Bring in free food sometime; everyone loves free food.
• Be the person who puts up holiday decorations.
• Organize get-togethers for your coworkers.
• Buy your coworkers drinks now and again after long days.

Work can be extremely tedious for many people, and it doesn’t take much at all to put a bright spot in a mundane day. If you’re the one that starts doing that for others, they will probably appreciate everything you do more, including your work.

One more thing to ask yourself is whether you’re undervaluing yourself.

When you present yourself to others, do you do so with confidence? Or are you nervous or do you suffer from low self-esteem?

If you don’t esteem your own accomplishments, you can be sure that others will overlook them as well.

This can be an unconscious process; nobody will even think it through in most cases. But if you are really confident in yourself and your work, sometimes that confidence will be contagious and other people will show confidence in you as well.

On that note, once in a while the reason you’re undervalued at work is truly because you’re in the wrong company.

There is such a thing as spending your professional life in the exact wrong place.

If no matter what you do, your boss and coworkers seem determined to ignore your achievements and sacrifices, it’s time to move on.

If you spend your entire career working for an organization which doesn’t respect you, you will regret it for the rest of your life. Don’t let that happen!