5 Things to Do Differently at Work This Year

5 Things to Do Differently at Work This Year5 Things to Do Differently at Work This Year So you had your annual performance review at work, and it didnt go as well as expected. Maybe your boss had a lot of criticism. Or perhaps its not that you did anything wrong, per se, but rather, you simply didnt push yourself hard enough to achieve results. No matter your circumstances, if you want 2019 to be the year your career really takes off, here are a few items to add to your must-do list.If you work for a large company, its easy to get lost in the shuffle. So if you really want to stand out next year, and thus increase your chances of climbing the corporate ladder, youll need to show your management team that you have the ability to take the lead on major projects and ansturm with it. As the new year kicks off, youre likely to see a host of initiatives come to the table. Grab one. And then do it again, and another time after that. Prove that youre a natural leader, and yo ull likely be rewarded for it.Though modesty is a good quality in theory, there comes a point when its not such a great idea to downplay your successes at work. Next year, make a point of highlighting your personal wins so that your boss not only takes notice, but also takes them into consideration when deciding whether youll get promoted. Of course, this isnt to say you should toot your own horn at every possible opportunity. But if, say, you put together a marketing brochure and get great feedback from your sales team, you shouldnt hesitate to tell your boss how much everyone gushed over your work.Whether youre speaking in front of a couple of people or a much larger crowd, presenting successfully is often a matter of strategy and practice. If your presentations have been average thus far, make 2019 the year you really hone them. Work on making eye contact with your audience, and boost your graphics skills to give the folks youre speaking to something compelling to look at. Lear ning how to really nail presentations will give you the edge you need to get ahead.Nobody wants to be that person who balks at an ambitious request. But if you maintain the habit of agreeing to do things and falling short because those requests are unreasonable in nature, youre only going to end up hurting your career. Next year, pledge to push back when people come to you with impossible demands. If, for example, youre booked solid for the remainder of the week, and youre asked to take on another big assignment, be clear about your predicament, and ask to either bow out gracefully, or have something else taken off your plate. Its natural to want to come off as the resident superhero, but if you take on too much, you risk letting everyone down - not to mention stressing yourself out to an unhealthy degree.Its hard to know what your boss is thinking - and how your performance stacks up - if you hardly ever get a chance to sit down and talk to him or her. Next year, pledge to be more proactive in soliciting manager feedback. Send your boss emails as necessary to gauge his reaction to your work, or ask to set up a recurring one-on-one meeting so that you both have a chance to regularly hash things out. Knowing how your boss feels about you and the work youre doing will help you get ahead of issues that, if left unaddressed, might hold your career back.We all want to be as successful as possible at work. If 2018 didnt go the way you planned, then its time to move on and focus on the future. With any luck, 2019 will be the year you land a promotion, get a nice raise or achieve whatever other goals youve been working toward.This article was originally published on The Motley Fool . It is reprinted with permission.