The best relationship you can build at work is with your boss. Most people come to work and focus their attention on building relationships with their co-workers and with their clients, but they don’t even think about building a strong working relationship with their manager. The irony is… interactions with your boss can make or break the emotional outcome of your entire day.



You can walk into just about any office and in a very short time; you can tell… that’s the “golden child”. Everybody wants to be a part of that club. Here are 13 ways to earn your way into “the circle”…



Come to Work – It’s amazing to me how often some people miss work these days. They come in late… they leave early… it’s always something. Make sure your boss doesn’t have to worry about whether or not you’re coming to work.



Be Respectful – Show respect for those who have been assigned as authority figures in your life.



Follow Directives – When your boss gives you a task or a project. Make it a top priority. No matter how “stupid” you think it is, what’s important to your manager must be important to you.



Drive Initiatives – When new initiatives are rolled out, a lot of people like to sit back with a “wait and see” attitude. You need to be the person who is bought in… right from the start. Lead the way and get things moving at full speed!



Communicate Updates – Always keep your boss in the loop. Let them know when new information is available, and always be prepared to answer questions accurately and effectively.



Positive Influence – Be the teammate that brings everyone up to a higher level of excellence. For example, let’s say someone is complaining during a team meeting. Share an idea or solution that would help overcome that challenge.



Know Your Stuff – Put yourself on a development fast track. You will always have questions and should always be learning, but the questions you ask should match your time on the job. In other words, you don’t want to have too many instances where your boss, or your teammate, is thinking, “they should know that by now.”



Provide Insight – Every team has its challenges. Work on accurately pinpointing the things that need improvement and provide effective solutions that will fix problems quickly and efficiently.



Be Loyal – You gain a lot of points when you work in the best interest of your company, your boss, and your team. Be committed, do the right thing, and when necessary… you don’t want to be a tattle tale, but sometimes it is important to notify your boss of unsettling information or disruptive behavior on the team.



Joint Activities – Invite your boss to spend the day with you. Have them ride along for appointments and welcome them when they want to listen in on your phone calls. Use it as a time to have fun, spend a lot of time laughing, get to know each other, and make big things happen!



Babysitting Not Required – Whether or not your boss is watching. Do your job… it’s that simple.



Crank It! – Work the phones harder than anyone. I have a challenge for you. Come into work around 7:45 AM and get all your stuff up and running. The minute the clock strikes 8:00 AM… start hammering the phones for about two or three hours straight. See if you can make about 30 to 40 calls in that time. By noon, everyone in the office will be talking about you… and your boss will love you! LOL



Promise and Deliver – Make a commitment to meet or exceed your goals. Set the standard for consistently being a top producer who is dependable month after month.