 Some years ago I worked with a small firm that operates a library. I was fresh out of college and seeing that I love to read I decided to work in this firm because I was passionate about books. I enjoyed working there. The firm expanded based on some ideas I had suggested after months of working there and accepted some monthly paycheck that was below how hard I worked. The business owner wouldn't let me go. It hurt to do so, but I had to live. Years later the business has grown and I occasionally consult for the business. Not everyone can become an entrepreneur. This is why we must find out who we are and we stay in our place. Some people have a rebellious spirit and cannot stand being bossed around. So they would really up for a life of entrepreneurship where they have absolute control. Some are docile and do not know how to push the bar. They are suited for jobs. This doesn't make one person better than the other. All that matters is finding your place and staying there. This is where your fulfillment comes from. But in being an employee nothing stops you from achieving some of the greatest results of most successful CEOs. There are real life lessons of employees who work their way to the top. They are as successful as most self-made billionaires are. So being an employee is not a curse, but being an excellent employee who climbs all the way to the top is better. In today's video I will be sharing with you some lessons on how to become a better employee. One who can climb the success ladder through excellence. Subscribe to this channel so you don't miss other interesting videos like this. One, develop your soft skills. More than ever, we are living in a time when skills required to succeed in a digital world are mandatory to learn. But as I have personally discovered, as a young person, technical skills are not all it takes now to succeed in the business world. Although it is great to learn technical skills, you also need to add to your technical skills and soft skills to thrive. According to the World Economic Forum, soft skills will be one of the top-job skills by 2020 because people with high emotional intelligence handle pressure well, know how to cooperate with others and are open to feedback and empathetic. Everyone would love to work with people like that. Besides emotional intelligence, other soft skills like leadership, ability to communicate, being detail-oriented, taking initiative, decision-making, networking, problem-solving skill, etc. are important skills that will increase an employee's chances of rising to the top. A recent international study surveyed more than 500 business leaders and asked them what sets great employees apart. The researchers wanted to know why some people are more successful than others at work. And the answers were surprising. Leaders chose personality as the leading reason. 78% of leaders said personality sets great employees apart. More than cultural fit, 53%. And even employee skills, 39%. Albert Einstein said, We should take care not to make our intellect our god. It has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality. Get technical skills, but soft skills, most importantly. 2. Be willing to do more than you're paid If all you do is all you're paid to do, then you're not better than anybody else. It's often somewhat difficult for lazy employees to accept. But if you want to be an excellent employee, you must be willing to do much more than is within your job description. And do it gladly. I read the story of two young college graduates who were asked to work in the mailroom. Let's name them George and Joe. Each day, George resumed work. He would complain about how he was insulted by being told to work in the mailroom. He would grumble, complain, and do shuddy jobs. Joe, on the other hand, did his job gladly. Every now and then, when he heard footsteps outside the door of the mailroom, he would stick his head out, greet the staff passing by and ask if there was anything he could help with. Guess who got promoted from the mailroom later on? Travis Bradbury, a writer and fast company, wrote, One thing an exceptional employee never says is, That's not in my job description. Exceptional employees work outside the boundaries of job descriptions. They are neither intimidated nor entitled. Instead of expecting recognition or compensation to come first, they forge ahead in their work, confident that they'll be rewarded later, but unconcerned if they're not. 3. Start to take initiative I work with a media company and one of the questions I constantly ask is, What can be done better? An excellent employee never becomes complacent, content with paycheck he receives, and satisfied to go home even if problems exist in the company. A smart employee looks for loopholes, things that are not right in the company, and figures out ways to plug it. Don't wait to be told what to do. Bosses pay attention to employees who have eyes for problems and who take the initiative to solve the problem, rather than being a yes employee. Ask questions about why things are done this way, and ask if you could make suggestions on how things can be done better. I admit, some unwise bosses love to be the one with all the ideas, but if yours is a company where employee suggestions are welcome, don't hold back. Just sticking the initiative to do what's right for the company's growth may not increase your salary, or sometimes it does, but it teaches you the habit of excellence. 4. Read more often I have found that my best ideas often come while I'm reading. How does reading make you a better employee? Well, the major goal of your company is to succeed. If you have a success mindset, one of the things you will be focused on is your personal improvement. Personal improvement increases your chances of success, and nothing more supercharges personal improvement than reading books. Moreover, you don't want to sound like the ignorant employee each time there is a staff meeting and questions are asked. Being able to give the right answers can also show you off as knowledgeable and can equally help you keep your job. 5. Become accountable One of the most annoying things I know bosses hate to hear is it's not my fault. Nobody cares if it's not your fault. Just go ahead and fix it when things go wrong. Excellent employees are not looking for ways to avoid problems. They aren't looking for who to put the blame on. Instead, they see their colleagues in the office as a team. And if something is wrong in the company, even if it wasn't perpetrated directly by them, it's a problem of the company and ought to be fixed. This is how excellent employees become better. They don't play the blame game, but rather proactively take action to solve problems in the office. Travis Bribery wrote, Exceptional employees have unparalleled convictions that things can always be better and they're right. No one is ever done growing and there is no such thing as good enough. When it comes to personal improvement, no matter how well things are going, exceptional employees are driven to improve without forgetting to give themselves a healthy pat on the back. In summary, you don't need to become an entrepreneur to become an excellent employee in life. If you follow the injunction that whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, you will succeed. Excellent employees know that growth in their workplace is going to lead to their own success. They do not just see themselves as contributing to their company's success, but also to their own success. Because in striving to increase your company's growth, you are equally growing in the process. If this video inspired you, like the video. We love you.