Losing your job can be an immensely stressful experience and whilst redundancies are an inevitable part of the ever-shifting corporate landscape, being let go from a company based on performance or poor conduct has grave ramifications for future career prospects.

Luckily, it should be relatively easy to avoid the five key reasons for being fired, according to The Muse which are: stealing company property, lying to a client, bullying or harassment in the workplace, not completing set tasks and consistently arriving at work late. If these five key causes apply to you, it might be time to re-assess your professional conduct and make some key changes before re-entering the corporate world.

However, having truly fair warning that being let go is imminent relies on strong upper management, which may well be lacking in your company. If management is ineffective, there’s a good chance that your key points of critical assessment will go un-actioned, and as such so will your chances to identify your weaknesses and work on them.

In this case, identifying these five key signs that your performance is on the rocks can literally be the difference between having a job and not. So, here are five things to avoid if you feel like you may be close to losing your job.

1. Poor appraisals

Appraisals are an employer’s chance to air any concerns and give the employee a fair chance to improve performance or conduct. If multiple appraisals highlight the same concerns, you simply aren’t doing enough to change your actions. This is the first and most important sign that being let go may be on the cards. If you feel like your boss isn’t giving you enough chance to change, work with them to create a clear actionable plan with set dates and KPIs.

2. Being removed from projects 

Every business has key accounts or projects that all employees are fighting for. Whether it’s a big client with a healthy budget or an exciting new project, your bosses will want to ensure that the most important areas of business go to strong and reliable employees. If you find that you’re consistently passed up for others, this may be a key indicator that your management isn’t thrilled with your performance levels.

3. Workplace stagnation

Whilst most good companies provide the tools to learn and grow in your role, the onus is always on the employee to action this. If you find that you’re passing up chances to grow and challenge yourself, remember that your management is always watching and assessing. If there’s room for employees to move up, they’re going to opt for someone who displays an eagerness to progress. If this isn’t you, you’ll get left behind and potentially let go.

4. Deteriorating relationship with management 

This is a tricky one; whereas good management appreciates being given honest feedback from staff, it is essential that you aren’t pushing back against all decisions. If you and your manager are constantly butting heads, you’re eventually going to be viewed as a problem. Having the ability to toe the line between honesty, reliability and constant dissonance is an essential part of your professional conduct.

5. Cost cutting 

If a company isn’t financially viable, cutting staff is one of the simplest and most effective ways of saving money. Whilst there isn’t much a single employee can do to turn a whole company’s profits around, taking on responsibility when its offered is a good way of ensuring that you aren’t considered a non-essential staff member. Sadly, sometimes being made redundant is simply the next event in your career path and the only lesson to be learned is resilience.