Ever wondered why some people simply appear more positive than others? Being positive is not all in the state of mind. It also translates to how you communicate -- your choice of words, your tone of voice and your non-verbal cues. What types of words should you use to make yourself a more confident and positive person? Here are a few tips:

At job interviews

At job interviews, speak clearly and confidently. Do not speak too fast as this could send a message that you are nervous. When describing your job scope and duties, use active words to demonstrate your capabilities, e.g. "initiated", "conceptualised", "designed", "organised", etc. Speak enthusiastically and ask relevant questions about the job - this will demonstrate your interest in the position. Avoid any negativity such as complaining about your current employer or boss, or putting down your ex-colleagues.

While on the job

A positive worker is a morale booster to the company. Everyone likes being around pleasant people at the workplace. When it comes to promotions and rewards, bosses notice people who communicate effectively and confidently.

Make the following tips your workplace habits from now on!

• Know how to present your information. Be tactful when presenting bad news. For example, if there is a problem at work and you need to inform your bosses about this, remember to provide them with possible solutions. Convey the problem to them calmly by stating the facts (no finger-pointing!), then present your possible solutions and seek their advice on which solution would be best.
• Always use positive words. Your choice of words matters. Instead of negative word like "problems", use "challenges". Instead of using the word "complaints" or "criticisms", use the word "feedback".
• Use confident words. Instead of using "I feel" or "I think" when presenting your ideas to your boss or co-workers, use "I believe" or "I'm confident that this will work". Your words should demonstrate conviction and your commitment to the task on hand.
• Practise good manners Always say "thank you" and "please". It is simple manners but many people forget them at the workplace.
• Use Humour. Humour does not mean acting silly, telling malicious jokes about co-workers or being the office clown. Use humour in a way that will make you see the lighter side of things, encouraging others to be able to laugh at themselves and to feel good around you. It is all about being friendly and making others smile with your presence.

In written communication

The same rules apply when communicating via email or memos. In fact, be extra careful with written communication, as the risk of it being misinterpreted is higher. There are no non-verbal cues to support the message, therefore, the recipient assumes the tone of the message and the assumption may be wrong! A joke might be interpreted as sarcasm; an abrupt ending could be read as anger. Therefore, always choose your words carefully - a misunderstood message may cost you your job.

In an increasingly competitive employment market, staying relevant is no longer an option but a necessity. Gone are the days of 'deadwoods' or workers who simply go through the motions of the job. These days, employers need and look for workers who can constantly add value to the organization.

Before entering the job market

If you are an undergraduate, do some soul-searching and identify your areas of interest before embarking on a job hunt. What did they enjoy most while in school? Which subjects and projects were you particularly passionate about? Think about your vacation jobs or internship and pick out specific experiences that you found most inspiring. When you have all this information on hand, you will be better prepared to pick a job that you will enjoy. This should be a job where issues or problems will challenge you instead of get you down.

The initial years

The first few years on the job are important for establishing yourself. Young working adults expose themselves to do as much as possible during these crucial years. This will enable them to decide the areas in which they can truly shine.

Re-evaluate yourself

As you progress in your career, always take an honest look at your performance and quality of work. Are they on track with what the organization expects of you? Evaluate your competence and skills. Are they in line with what is required in the market? If not, determine how you can improve. Use your performance appraisal to direct you. Speak to your boss and regularly ask if what you do and what you know is in sync with the department and company goals.

Continuous learning

Staying relevant involves having up-to-date technical skills. Make sure that you are competent on new skills that are required in your job. Keep abreast of new technology available by reading widely. Make skills upgrading a priority - this means accepting lifelong learning as a principle. Take classes online, pursue your degree or attend seminars or conferences that are relevant to your job or the one that you want. Pick a course that will complement your current qualifications; for example, if you hold an Engineering degree, a post-graduate qualification in Management, Sales or Business will beef up your knowledge base, making you a well-rounded professional.

Toughen up your soft skills

Improving on soft skills or acquiring new ones is essential to stay relevant on the job. In order to move up the organization's value chain, you need to have skills that set you apart from others. Soft skills that are sought after include those in leadership, project management, people management, communication and public-speaking.

Get promoted

A key step towards staying relevant is to get promoted. Clinching a promotion is testimony that the organization recognizes your contribution and potential. Getting a promotion is not easy, though. It requires diligence, relevant knowledge and skills, a firm understanding of the business and strategic positioning of oneself. Consider the following:

• Think of new ways to add value. What else can you do to add depth to your current role? Can you take on greater responsibilities? Can you volunteer for a project that no one else has the courage to take up?
• Create a position for yourself. Think about the role that you want to grow into. At your next appraisal, ask your boss what it would take for you to move up to that position; after which, work hard to mould yourself to fill that role.
• Be the expert whom they can turn to for help. Equip yourself with industry knowledge and a strong understanding of the field that you are in. Build your credibility as the person whom your co-workers and bosses can go to for expert knowledge and insights.

Move on

Stuck in a rut with no room for a promotion? Consider moving to another job but always make a calculated career move. Before deciding to resign, be certain that there is absolutely no room for further growth within your current company. Ensure that your new job offers you greater responsibilities in the area of your interest and that it will add value to your career profile.

Many individuals face the prospect of a career switch at some point in their professional lives. There are various reasons and motivations behind a switch in careers. There are many circumstances that prompt individuals to make a career switch.

Some people feel the need to switch careers as part of their personality and values systems. Such individuals often strive to accomplish a variety of things over a period of time and are driven by change. There are individuals who find themselves in the wrong career and simply had to switch to another in order to find fulfillment. Another common reason for switching careers is redundancy. Some people found themselves to be out of a job suddenly and therefore, need to find a new position fairly quickly. It is important to know where the new jobs are coming from. For some, a career switch may be necessary to remain employed.

No matter what the reason or motivation, making a career switch requires careful consideration and planning.

Are you ready to switch?

Do you remember the saying "Time flies when you are having fun?" Conversely, when you are feeling miserable at work, time crawls to the point of being torturous. One clear sign that you are ready for a career switch is when you start to watch the clock more frequently. If you find yourself leaving the office 'on the dot' or worse, even before the official knock-off time, that could be a sign that it's time to move on.

Other possible indicators:

• Dreading to go to work
• Frequently coming late for work
• Experiencing a drop in performance
• Having difficulty to concentrate and focus
• Participating less in meetings and discussions
• Finding faults and complaining all the time,
• Actively looking for jobs

Planning your move

Switching careers may not be a tedious or painful step. With proper planning and a sound strategy, a meaningful and successful career switch can result.

• Know yourself. Understand what gives you for job satisfaction. Do you know which of your skill set do you still enjoy using? What interests you most at this point in your career? What are your most important values? Are your career demands aligned to these values?
• Know the market place and trends. Research and understand industry trends, the requirements of organizations within these industries or even another department within your current company. What careers are in demand in the marketplace right now? Can you fill that demand? What transferable skills can you bring to these new opportunities?
• Research and network. Talk to people and learn as much as possible about the new career that you are considering.
• Test the feasibility. Determine how much of your skills can be transferable. Are you switching jobs within a similar industry and job role? The further you move away from your experience, the longer the switch will take.
• Consider other factors. Ask yourself: How versatile are you to face these challenges? How fast can you learn? How long can you wait? How long can the company wait before you are productive? How does your family feel about the switch? How can you position yourself correctly to the prospective employer?

Your next steps

Once you have done your research and gone through the thought process described, you are ready to move to the next steps.

• Discuss with your family. Explain the reasons and benefits for the career switch. Family support is important and can be very helpful in times of uncertainty. Determine that you are ready financially should the career switch not work out.
• Identify your transferable skills. First identify a list of skills you have acquired from your past jobs. Then find out what is needed in your targeted jobs and compare the two lists. You will be pleasantly surprised that you do have more transferable skills than you thought you had.
• Revise your resume. Consider your transferable skills and the industry that you are aiming to enter. Prepare a functional resume instead of a chronological one. This highlights the transferable skills and focuses on your achievements based on these functional skills.
• Consider taking half steps. It may be useful to take half a step each time. Focus on similarity. Consider moving within a similar industry or into a similar role first.

Avoiding the pitfalls

One common mistake in switching careers is the failure to plan. When individuals switch careers due to superficial reasons such as boredom or motivated by higher salaries offered in other industries, they are likely to act in haste without any proper planning. Such career switches are likely to fail, as the individuals concerned would not have conducted thorough research on the industries of interest and they would not know how to go about 'selling' their skills to prospective employers. If they do secure a new job, they would soon discover that it is not the right fit and that they are just as unfulfilled and unmotivated as they were in their previous jobs.

Another common mistake is not seeking proper guidance. In ensuring a successful career switch, individuals need to seek out their contacts and identify the people whom they can turn to for industry information and advice. It is highly advisable for individuals to speak to an experienced career coach. This will help ensure that your plan is sound and objective. He or she will also help you ease the pressures of a job search, making sure that you do not jump onto the first opportunity that comes along.

Success is putting your mind to an ambition and achieving it, whether it is to be Prime Minister, a good parent, or to score a goal in your Sunday league game. Success is something personal to each individual.

If someone looks at another person, for example a sprint runner, and says, "He/she is successful" then yes by that person's standards they may be. But to the runner, their ambition may be to get a gold medal at the Olympics, and until they have achieved that they are not as successful as they would like. So success is to achieve happiness by fulfilling your goals - therefore relative.

For most people to be happy they need to work in a pleasant friendly environment get on well with colleagues, to be intellectually stimulated, challenged and rewarded.

You should not accept a job with a company if you think that it cannot offer you these things.

For your part, you have to have the right stuff, in terms of both skills and personality. These will help you find a job in the first place and will set you in good stead throughout your career regardless of the industry sector.

Impressing the boss then steal his job while he is on holiday in the Bahamas

Most people see their career as a ladder of progression, with each step you take on more responsibility and pay. To secure promotion you have to impress your employers, the suits on high, the big wigs, and the fat cats.

To impress you have to fulfill everything that is expected of you and more. You should be competent, achieving the tasks your job entails in good time and to a high standard. You should pace yourself, schedule realistically, and be able to manage your own time.

Organization is the name of the game, it is a very important skill to master if you are to reach the top. You must also be results oriented and be completely dependable and trustworthy.

A good employee should be flexible enough to carry out tasks outside of their job description. The most positive way of making yourself invaluable to the company by either being a jack of all trades, or being an expert at something that no one else knows about.

To get this far, i.e. into employment you probably already possess a fair amount of confidence. But If you are to succeed in your ambitions you need to sell yourself and your talents, you need to put yourself forward and stand out from the pack without coming across as being conceited or arrogant.

Patience is a virtue, blah blah blah, "yeah but I wanna be boss NOW!" - tough, sometimes on the way to the top you are going to have to bide your time before you make further progress. In most companies there are one hundred and one deals and strategies going on in the pipeline, everyone is busy and the only way you are going to get ahead is by making an impact on proceedings through your actions, but this can take time.

It is important to stay abreast of the latest developments and technologies within your sector. If you are aware of market sentiment and you are in a position to do so, you can act upon what you have learnt to achieve results. Alternatively, if you have your ear to the ground you can pass information to people who can act upon it and you will gain recognition in this way.

You also have to be aware of what is going on within your company. No, not gossip like who is secretly the father of the receptionist's love child; you need to know what the company's development strategies are, what is its ten year plan for expansion? If you are hoping to advance your career you have to show that you have the qualities that are needed to succeed in a more responsible, possibly managerial position. This means delegation, negotiation, leadership skills and decision-making - do not hesitate at the drinks machine!

Making allies in the workplace

It pays to have friends at your place of work, not only can they make tea for you, but if you get on well with your colleagues then the office will have a more pleasant atmosphere and you will not dread coming into work every morning.

We spend a hell of a lot of time with our work colleagues, if you work 9-5, 5 days of the week then in the course of a lifetime you probably spend a lot more time with them than you do your loved one. So take the time to be friendly, it helps if you are a positive, outgoing, cheerful, and a likable person. Having a reputation as the office social outcast will get you nowhere.

To, make it to the top you have to be good with people. Your fellow colleagues will also have promotional aspirations, they could be useful contacts in years to come.

Look out for number one

Do not be single-mindedly ambitious, the best employees are team players. However it does no harm to have a goal and to go out of your way to achieve it. Ambition is a healthy quality and one that is picked up upon from the interview onwards, you have to be proactive in making your goals come true.

We all need self-belief, without it we wouldn't get out of bed in the morning. You need to believe that you are capable of being successful, and achieving your ambitions. When you believe it you can set about convincing other people of what you are capable of.

Everyone has the potential to succeed you just need a target to aim for. Making a rough career plan will help you achieve this, ask yourself where you want to be in five or ten years time. Define your ambition and then to go out and make it happen.