Even though there's a saying about needing precisely 21 days to break a bad habit, the following eight habits should be trimmed out of your behavior as soon as possible. Looking for a job is never fun, especially in the current climate.

1. Getting awfully casual with the boss, not showing respect where it's due

Problem: This attitude will not only do harm to the relationship with your boss, it will also damage your reputation as a professional.

Solution: Ask yourself whether anything you might have said or done could have, albeit unknowingly, undermined your boss's authority at work. You might be good friends with your boss in private, but if you think that this entitles you to rise and sit with the man (or woman) as an equal at work, then you've crossed the line. He or she is still your boss at work, and if you start being informal with him/her or openly dispute his/her decisions in front of colleagues, then you're obviously not showing him/her the respect that is due them as an authority figure. Of course, being respectful doesn't mean that you have to shut up and kiss up every time you cross paths at work, you just need to be mindful of what needs to be kept private and what is appropriate attitude for work.

2. Always playing it safe in your work

Problem: Everyone knows how to play it safe; you’re easily replaced if you keep on laying low and playing everything safe.

Solution: If your best efforts aren't getting the recognition they need, then it’s time for a change of strategy; otherwise, the opportunities for you to move up on the career ladder get slimmer and dimmer. Get creative with new strategies, improve on your current system, get more efficient with your work, do anything that will show that you're worth your salary, and more.

3. Absolutely following your job description to the “T”

Problem: It is good that you know how to follow orders, but it is even better if you can get flexible when it’s appropriate.

Solution: Know that your work responsibilities are bound to change over time, and now that companies are faced with the current economic crisis those changes may come be dramatic and abrupt. Yes, you were hired to do a specific job, but maybe now the company wants to tag on an extra responsibility or two, or move you to a new position entirely. Realize that the company no longer needed you in the same field as before, and move on; be flexible as the company changes and keep pace with the new roles and responsibilities.

4. Completely forgetting your responsibilities

Problem: If you don't do what you've been paid to do, then frankly, what good is it to have you on the job?

Solution: If you're doing something that subtracts from your ability to fully concentrate on your work, then you're not putting in your best in your work. Even if the company policy doesn't specifically forbid you from such activities, it is still not wise to chat or private email during work hours.

5. Not following up with the right administration

Problem: You'll embarrass your superior, and make others question whether you're able to follow protocol.

Solution: You've got to follow protocol when addressing your concerns or complaints at work. When you've come across something that you're not able to handle, you should always ask your direct superiors first, and then go up the line. If you address your concerns with the administration higher up on the rungs first, then obviously those administrators are going to question the ability of your direct superior to handle things and you'll have put your superior in a very awkward place as a result.

6. Only following your own schedule

Problem: Everyone else obviously isn't following your schedule, and you're bound to hit a wall sooner or later.

Solution: You have to hand in your work on time and according to formal schedule. Even though deadlines and meeting times are bothersome, the rules are there for a reason. If you come late for a meeting, you're not only affecting yourself, you're also effectively taking up other people's time – and you'll be seen as unreliable and people generally avoid working with someone they see as unprofessional.

7. Talking trash about your colleagues

Problem: You don't know who's going to hear you next door or in the other cubicle.

Solution: If you talk trash about someone at work, it is very likely that they're going to hear about it, and soon. Your boss might even hear of it eventually, and he's not going to appreciate it very much. If you've got steam to vent, do it after work, and outside of the office.

8. Getting cocky about your powerful connections

Problem: You're not going to have that guanxi forever.

Solution: Perhaps, your guanxi doesn't want his or her special connections with yours truly found out – he doesn't want others to judge that he's taking sides or doing favors. And most importantly, if your connection should be transferred to another job, then you're left to fend for yourself and you're going to fall from your favorable place, and hard.

Source: Huanqiu.com

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