Tips for starting a new job
Feb 20th, 2008 by Nut
Before I even began my new job, I knew that adjusting would be difficult. I constantly looked back at all the jobs I’ve had and how tough it is when you first start. Sometimes it’s easy to forget how hard it was, especially as time goes by and you get more and more comfortable. So before I even changed jobs, I knew I would have to keep certain things in mind. Here are some great tips to help you adjust to a new job:
- Be patient: This is the crux of most of my tips, so I’m mentioning it first. It’s going to take some time and it may not go smoothly, but through it all you need to remember that everyone goes through it and patience will take you a long way. It’s not easy, but it certainly helps.
- Making new friends will take time: The people you work with now know you and you know them. You’re comfortable with them, you know who you can talk to (and who you shouldn’t talk to), go for advice, etc. This all happened gradually, as time went by. Your first few weeks at a new job might make you feel like you have no friends and nobody likes you—which may turn out to be true, but it isn’t just yet. Give yourself time to settle in and give others a chance to get to know you.
- You are NOT on the verge of getting fired: I felt this way for a while when I started at my old job. The main reason was that I felt I wasn’t contributing. Again, this is perfectly normal. You can’t contribute as much as people who know the software, the way things work, or whatever is particular to this new job. Give yourself a few months. Look back to people who recently started working with you and listen to the advice you give them, “Don’t worry, this takes time. I was awful at it when I started.”
- Be social: This is how people get to know you. If you don’t like being social, that’s OK. But don’t start off by being “the antisocial person.” If there is a book club or an after-work activity, hang out and let people see you and hear you. You may not like it but it’s one way you’ll start overcoming all these barriers and—best of all—it’s how you’ll start making really good friends. The best friendship I made at my old job didn’t happen until they moved him from a different floor to a desk right next to mine—over a year after I started working there. If I had been more social we would’ve started creating havoc earlier.
- Push, push, push: Work as hard as you can and go above and beyond the call of duty as much as you can possibly handle early on. First impressions are impossible to shake, which bodes well for you if you are seen as person eager to work hard. The opposite is also true, so don’t be lazy or talk to your buddies on the phone when you start out. If you have an opinion or want to make a recommendation on how to improve something, make it. You are the new person, you have that excuse if people start to wonder why you are making all these suggestions. Just make sure you know what you’re talking about. No one likes a suck up.
In the end, it’s all about being patient and working hard, which sounds simple but is easy to forget. You can’t rush things, but these tips should help accelerate the time it takes for you to get comfortable with your new coworkers (and vice versa) so that you can start to contribute and make a difference at your new job. Once you’ve done that, you’re on your own!
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