As markets shift, change and turnover at the company level is inevitable.  Watching the cycles over the past 20 years has shown me this.  So I challenge you to ask yourself the following questions:

How valuable are you?  Are you easily replaceable?  As markets shift, and when business slows down, does your company or leader view you as expendable?  Does your manager or supervisor say, “No matter what, I can never let “x” go!”?

Or, are you on the other end of this spectrum, that if business or profits slow, you could be the first to go? Are you consistently mediocre?  Are you high maintenance and low profit to your team or company?  Do you bring energy and a great attitude to the office or are you like Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh?

My advice to everyone is to be invaluable to your team or
company.  Be irreplaceable.  Make your boss say, I need 10 more of you.  This should be your underlying goal…always.

So if you subscribe to this, then the real question becomes, how do you
do this?  Are you pursuing growth regularly?  Do you invest in yourself?  Are you constantly looking for ways to help others in your
office or on your team be better?  Are you bringing new ideas to the
table?  Are you reliable? Do you do what you say you will do?
Do you increase or reduce the stress levels of those around you when you’re at work?

Make it your goal to have those around you say, I am so glad he/she is here! When others see your number on the caller ID, make them want to drop everything to answer the phone rather than sigh and pretend they aren’t there.  If this is your goal, I can confidently guess you are a keeper!  If you are unsure, then you have work to do.  Your business and financial success in 2017 depends on it.