ExecTec member Tracy Mazur in her blog the Reluctant Genius, recently covered the difference between being a peer and being a peon.

Times are tough and rougher waters are sure to come before things get better. So there is no better time for a self check to see if you are a peer and hence part of the team or a peon and someone who is not contributing or seen for their contribution.

How are you perceived at work?

Are you a valuable member of the team and hence the solution? If your company decided to lay of 20% of their work force which side of the Pareto principal would you end up on.

Perhaps you have slipped into what Tracy coins as a "self-peonization" condition where you allow yourself to be seen as less valuable then others.

We all have something to contribute and we all have stumbled across that person, boss or otherwise, who seeks to step on our efforts in order to make themselves seem better. These oppressors exist to get ahead without respect for the team or even truly the good of the company. They are often the lead sales people or the highly placed executive who seem all that much better by not being among peers but rather by being the best at the expense of others.

As Tracy points out, "There is camaraderie with peers; with peons, there is only power." One great anything is not as good as many strong members of a team.

But lets be clear life is not fair and hence those who fail to not avoid being minimalized are destined to be the first cast off when the going gets rough.

So what should one do to be sure that they are seen for their true worth and are contributing as a valuable member of the team?

Measure your worth: one of the easiest cures for job dissatisfaction is measure your results. How many of us can quantify our performance right now in some measurable way and can say if we are doing better this month then last month? If you do not know your own worth then it is easy to believe others are worth more (even if they are not) and it is impossible to demonstrate your worth to those who count.

Be solution oriented nor problem oriented: We all do it, we focus on the problem and not the cure. It is easier to say that the network is down so we can not deliver the product then to say the network is down so we will have to do this the old fashioned way if we are going to make the deadline.

Take personal responsibility: We all make mistakes and those who don't are full of it. Take responsibility for your actions and your performance. Others will respect you for it and respect as Tracy points out is the key to not being a peon.

Own what you do: Much as taking responsibility for your mistakes, owning it means you treat it like it was your own. If you own the tasks that are yours to complete then you will not have to take responsibility for failure because you will not fail. People who own their tasks go the extra mile, anticipate problems and avoid them ahead of time and generally do a lot better then those who are phoning in their efforts.

Be the real you: Faking it might be working for some but it is a dangerous game that must come to a bad end sooner or later. Be the best at who you are and be appreciated for that. You are a brand onto yourself and if that brand is not real then what you produce will be weak at best. If your company is made up of people who are faking it then worse then rough water is ahead and I hope your swimming skills are good.

So join us next we as we take some time to explore how to not only contribute our best effort, but to be sure others around us see us the way we wish to be seen.

As always, there is no better way to meet and connect with other executives then over dinner and conversation. $21 in advance via PayPal or $25 at the event gets you a full dinner, drink and the best networking around.