Do you enjoy your job and would like to stay in it permanently, but unfortunately it’s a time-limited contract? Don’t panic – there are techniques to multiply your chances of impressing your bosses and colleagues and turn your temporary job into a permanent position.
1. Make your intentions known
Think about it – your superiors find you efficient and friendly to the point that they would like you stay on with them longer than planned… But they don’t know that that’s also what you want, so they don’t keep you. Too bad, isn’t it? The main thing is to inform your employer of your wish to remain if an opportunity arises. Depending on your relationships, you could do this formally, by responding to a job offer in the company, for example, or in a more relaxed way by letting it be known during a lunch break.
2. Ask questions
This is the fastest way to understand how the company works and how you can contribute to it. Ask your supervisors and team members about what specifically is expected of you. Don’t be embarrassed about not knowing something – the faster you understand the more effective you will become, and the sooner it will be recognized that you are needed.
3. Take the initiative
Don’t be content with just doing what’s expected of you – go further. If you complete some tasks early, offer to help your colleagues with theirs. Make suggestions for working differently (without seeming to be critical of the way things are done now!). Develop proposals for new prospects or technical improvements. Take part in meetings. You will quickly get the reputation of being someone who is brimming with ideas and could prove to be indispensable to the company’s success in the coming years.
4. Don’t mark your time
You will not be given a chance if you watch the clock like a high school student waiting for the bell at the end of the class and leap out of your seat each evening leaving unfinished work. Your involvement should be obvious. The idea is to not consider your job as temporary even if you are not sure that it will be extended. Act as if you are there to stay.
5. Integrate yourself
Finally, a career in a company is not simply a question of productivity and technical skills. It’s also about creating links with colleagues, participating in organized activities, recognizing yourself in the company’s values and objectives… Don’t stay by yourself in your corner, but take coffee breaks with members of the staff, propose a drink after work, take an interest in the family life of your colleagues, without being intrusive. Become more than “this person who gave us a helping hand for a few weeks on the X order”. An employer will always more easily find a place for someone that everyone appreciates!