The three things employees should never do if they want to make their mark

Afer searching high and low (and for some time), I think we finally have the team right. The foundation of Marketing Eye is rock solid with highly talented individuals who have the ability to take this business to the next level, with or without me. It's a great feeling to be able to do this with people that I not only employ but really like.

As we go through the recruitment process, I find myself delving deeply into our candidates' mindsets. If they have a positive energy it is an immediate  tick. If they say anything derogatory about their previous employer, it's a cross. If they talk about how much they have learned from previous roles, it's another tick. If they say that they were restricted from reaching their potential, it's a cross. And so on.

We each learn from every experience we have. When we don't realise what we have learnt, we often fail to grow to our full potential. When I worked for other people in the 1990s, I remember always respecting my supervisors, the owners of the business and my colleagues. Some of my previous bosses had a dictatorial management style, others were crowd pleasers - but each of them brought something to the table that I respected. In fact, I have had some of the hardest bosses imaginable, yet I worked for them and learned how to adapt my own way of working to theirs, which ultimately led to me being a better marketer. In that time, I never ever had a bad word to say about the companies I worked for and I never saw the 'bad' that perhaps others did. Having said that, through this journey I have reached heights that those who are 'haters' of the same companies never did - and therein lies an important message.

We don't always find the perfect job for our skills or personality and that is more than okay. You don't always need to find the perfect job, you just need to make the situation work for you.

You can find good in every person and situation. You just have to look. Work out if your glass is half full, or half empty? If it is the latter, then work out how you can turn that around. 

Every day of your life is about the impact you make on this world. It is January 2015, and you have an opportunity to change and make your experiences in this world better. You can choose happiness or you can choose to be negative. If negative, you will always be unhappy and unfulfilled. Take the good out of every situation and believe that everything happens for a reason.

If you are an employee looking to make your mark no matter where you are working, here are 3 things that you should never do:

• Say or do anything that is negative to the brand you work for. That means 'bagging' a company to your fellow employees or to the outside world. It means not doing something that you say you are going to do on behalf of the company. And it means always putting your best foot forward when representing the company you work for.
• Believe that you are not replaceable. I am replaceable and I founded the company. So often employees believe that they cannot be replaced when in fact, every person is replaceable and at some point in time will be replaced by someone better suited to a role. 
• Never take the job or opportunity for granted. By taking your job for granted, you will find that you are not making the most out of the situation. You have been blessed with an opportunity to work in a role that is going to help you grow, whether it is opening the mail, or being a CEO of a Fortune 500 company. You can choose to just get by, or you can choose to make the most of it. It is up to you.

Always remember that life is for living. We cannot change the past, but we can change the future. It is up to you how you see your job and how much you want to invest in it. Every job should be a stepping stone to achieving your goals and if you don't know what your goals are, then you should take time out to work them out.

Every job we do is important to who we are. While it doesn't define us, it certainly helps us understand our role in the world.