Recognition in the workplace is one of the motivating factors that drives people to perform better. Workplace recognition boosts morale and shapes how confident employees feel at work. Acknowledging them helps to further improve how they approach their work.
But at the rudimentary level, let’s try to understand what really earns this recognition? Take it from Priyanka Chopra, who shared a simple yet powerful perspective on what it takes to stand out at work.
What did Priyanka Chopra say?
In a public event, the actor said, “People who actually do the work don’t talk about it. You just put your head down and do your job, and then everyone around you will notice because you will be excellent at it. Getting noticed at work for doing a good job comes without being extra keen, without showing other people how hard you are working, and without being the loudest one in the room. But if you are the one that your boss or whoever you are working with can depend on, if you are consistent, if you are someone who comes prepared always, if you are someone who everyone wants to work with, if you just know your job and are good at it, and you are not wasting anybody’s time, you immediately see people around that you can ask for advice. You immediately see people around you who will want to come closer to you and empower you. But look at how it started. It started with you empowering yourself – how am I going to be indispensable to my workplace without being annoying?”
What did Priyanka Chopra mean?
The actor weighed in on workplace recognition and shared her thoughts on what truly helps to achieve workplace recognition.
At work, the first instinct, after performing a herculean task that you feel deserves applause, may sometimes be to tell your colleagues or seniors how effortlessly you did it. But this route may not work as well. Quiet consistency beats loud noise any day. As Priyanka said, let your work speak for you, let your work speak for you, let your result define your worth. When you announce things loudly, it may come across as performative and less substantial. In fact, loud confidence does not essentially mean credibility.
No, it is not about being invisible either. When your output performs efficiently, the credit will naturally come back to you, earning the much sought-after appreciation. Instead of chasing validation at the workplace or seeking others’ approval, build yourself, and focus on your work ethic, standards, and discpline. When your work is excellent, you naturally become the dependable one, and since your work speaks for you, people start recommending you in rooms you are not even in- here the recognition becomes organic. Being reliable is the real goal, whereas recognition is the byproduct of being reliable.
Announcing things loudly creates a sense of constantly proving yourself, which, in hindsight, leaves no room for introspection. You are loud and imposing yourself on others. But instead, if you focus on doing your work consistently and put it efforts that your output becomes unwavering and efficient, you no longer feel the need to prove yourself, which can also help avoid burnout. Stay away from self-promotion and approach your work strategically, with consistency at the forefront. But in the end, it does not mean you stay invisible, make sure you document your work, and make the results ‘visible.’
