Introduction

Becoming Indispensable Begins Now

in•dis•pens•able 1: not subject to being set aside or
neglected 2: absolutely necessary : essential
MERRIAM-WEBSTER’S COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY,
ELEVENTH EDITION

“How can I become indispensable—absolutely necessary and essential—to my organization?” “How can I earn my next promotion?” Aren’t those questions that we have all asked? After all, we want to earn more, learn more, and be more secure in our career.

The fact is that the selection process for promoting someone into a new opportunity or deciding who to retain during cutbacks does not begin the day the position becomes available or when cutbacks are needed. No, people are being evaluated for new opportunities long before a new position is even conceived. You see, you are interviewing and competing today and tomorrow and next week too. Whether you know it or not, decisions about your future could be based on how you handle a situation, interact, and represent the organization in your job today. Managers rarely offer greater opportunities to someone and then expect that person to suddenly appear different, more capable, more focused. Most often, managers promote people or retain personnel based on what they already know about those people.

This book is designed to guide you to prepare for your next opportunity—right now—and help you become indispensable to your current employer. It is not for those who believe they are entitled to something or anything. Nor is it for those who are satisfied with the status quo. Tomorrow will not necessarily be better unless you begin your preparation to become indispensable today.

The strategies presented in this book are for those willing to honestly reflect on their circumstances and their daily habits—and make changes. It is for those who want to break through, do things differently, take action, challenge life, and control their own destiny. It is for those who understand that becoming indispensable for the next opportunity is a process of presenting and selling themselves and their abilities.

I have had the opportunity to work with thousands of people who sincerely desired to move up within their organization but did not know how to make it happen. Robert Nix has spent years in successful sales and in sales management. We have collaborated on this book to ensure that it provides a success path for everyone. It offers help to those searching for a career, looking to advance, or desiring to improve. It provides discussion topics and personal growth strategies that can benefit any person within any organization.

Follow the suggestions detailed in this book, and when the right time comes, it will be crystal clear to everyone that you are, indeed, Indispensable!

David Cottrell
Horseshoe Bay, Texas