How to Ensure Your Voice Is Heard at Work - Career Advice Blog for Millennials

How to Ensure Your Voice Is Heard at Work - Career Advice Blog for Millennials They say no man â€" or woman â€" is an island, and that becomes especially important in a workplace. Businesses, regardless of their size, cant succeed without their teams. In some cases, it might seem like one voice is lost in the crowd, especially when youre dealing with a large team or company. If that voice is yours, the situation can make it hard to get your job done. What should you do if you feel like youre not being heard at work? Here are four steps. Start by Speaking Up If you feel like you arent being heard at work, the first step you should take is to try to speak up. Pick a meeting or a situation and politely speak up for yourself. If youre used to being ignored, this time can be the perfect opportunity to advocate for yourself. The key here is to be polite â€" rudeness wont get you anywhere and might end up getting you disciplined for your behavior. If your ideas or suggestions are being blown off, gently bring the attention of the room back to them â€" ask questions that are directed at the people ignoring your ideas or not listening to you. This strategy might take some practice. It can also take some time to learn what each person responds to â€" some might respond better to questions while others like direct statements that bring their attention back to the subject at hand. If advocating for yourself doesnt have any effect, it might not have anything to do with you as a person â€" it might be how youre communicating. Change Your Communication Strategy When youre presenting an idea, how do you hold your body? Do you make eye contact with your audience, or do you make it a point to avoid meeting anyones eyes? Do you stand with your shoulders back and head up, or do you hunch your shoulders and keep your arms crossed? Your body language can have a lot to do with whether or not people listen to you. Even your voice can determine whether people hear you out. A trick that can help is one that call center agents have used for years â€" just smile. Even if they cant see your face, they can hear the smile in your voice, and that will make them more likely to listen to what you have to say. Be mindful of your body language when youre speaking. The more confident you look, the more likely it is that people will listen to you when you take the time to talk. Take It up the Chain of Command If advocating for yourself isnt enough, it might be time to take it up the chain of command. Again, be polite. Dont go in and act accusatory, like its your supervisors fault that your coworkers arent listening to you. One good way to approach the situation is to ask if theres anything you can do to ensure that your voice is heard. Your company may prefer that ideas are presented in a specific format or that you wait to introduce new ideas until a designated brainstorming session or after a meeting. Its entirely possible that they arent listening to you because you arent complying with how things are done in that particular setting. If youre being ignored, however, speaking to a supervisor can make all the difference. Pack up and Go You deserve to be a valued part of your team, even if they dont agree with or automatically implement every one of your ideas. If speaking up for yourself, changing your communication strategy and speaking to your supervisor hasnt changed anything, you have one good option left â€" start hunting for a new position with a company and a team that will actually appreciate your contributions. It might not be the best option or one that you really want to think about, but if your work is being continuously unappreciated or ignored, it might be time for a change. Make sure you leave your current job on good terms and after youve found a new position. While they might not appreciate your ideas or your work, you dont want to burn those bridges â€" they might give you a glowing letter of recommendation as you transition to your new job, and that can make all the difference. Make sure you give enough notice and wrap up any projects that youre currently working on. Offering to train your replacement, even if your current company declines the offer, can also make you look good both in the eyes of your current boss as well as the new one. Consider connecting with your coworkers too â€" networking is a vital skill. Even if youre no longer working with them, chances are, youll cross paths with them again sometime in the future. Its always good to leave things on good terms. No one likes to feel like their work is being ignored or unappreciated. You have every right to stand up for yourself and have your voice heard. If youre still being ignored no matter what you do, consider that it might be time to move on from your current position. You might be surprised at how much better your career becomes once youre finally being heard at work. For more information on how to get your voice heard in the workplace â€" or if weve missed a crucial piece of advice that youd like to share with us â€" please leave a comment below, or click here to subscribe for more information! Get everything you need to build a career you love by signing up for the newsletter.