Congratulations! You made it through three interviews, passed the drug and background screenings, had great reference checks, and now you’re ready to report bright and early on Monday morning. After all those months of hunting, you’ve bagged your dream job. During the first 90 days on the job, employees and employers are sizing each other up. “Is this the right person for the job?” “Is this job what I thought it was going to be?” Companies spend a lot of time and money to train and make new hires feel comfortable as members of the team. Here are some things to do and avoid doing in order to be successful from Week One.
1. Listen and Learn – You may have a lot of experience and great skills, but in a new job there is a lot to learn. New employees are often reluctant to ask for help or admit they don’t know something to avoid embarrassment or protect their egos. On the contrary, a healthy self-assessment and the ability to ask for help is a strength. Taking it slowly in areas that are new to you will help you learn things right the first time.
1. Listen and Learn – You may have a lot of experience and great skills, but in a new job there is a lot to learn. New employees are often reluctant to ask for help or admit they don’t know something to avoid embarrassment or protect their egos. On the contrary, a healthy self-assessment and the ability to ask for help is a strength. Taking it slowly in areas that are new to you will help you learn things right the first time.
2. “The way we did it in my last job…” – If everything at your last job was so wonderful, why did you leave? Always talking about how wonderful your last job was makes you sound like a pompous know-it-all, and can turn off your co-workers. You are also putting down your new company and your team. Wait to be asked if you have any suggestions. There will be plenty of opportunity to share your experience in the weeks to come.
3. Bashing Your Last Boss or Company. – No one needs to know your boss drank on the job or the company CEO is being investigated by the FBI. If you are constantly negative about your previous employer or are sharing company secrets, you are casting yourself – not the others – in a negative light. The question on your employer’s mind is not how happy she is that you accepted the job, but how long will it be before you are doing the same about your new company.
4. Taking it TOO Easy – They chose you out of 20 other applicants, so what does it matter if you’re a little late clocking in? Now that the pressure is off, shouldn’t everyone just relax a little? From the first day on the job you are confirming the employer’s choice and building your credibility. Slacking off shows you don’t take the job seriously and are trying to test the limits to your advantage – not admirable traits for a new employee.
5. Demanding Too Much – You need the tools to do the job, a proper computer, comfortable chair, uniforms that fit properly, etc. But demanding the latest flat screen monitor, the $200 safety shoes, office furniture fit for the executive office or the work station next to the break room makes you look greedy and self-absorbed. Tracking down the boss your first week to ask if you can push your review (and rate increase) up a few months is presumptuous and shows you aren’t willing to “pay your dues.” Prove yourself first, and the perks will follow.
6. Whining and Crying -- Not every job is what it seems to be. You may be genuinely disappointed and find that this isn’t the job for you. Instead of complaining to your co-workers and anyone else who will listen, give it some time. If you are still unhappy, talk to your boss and come at your dissatisfaction from your point of view. Don’t blame it on anyone—no one put a gun to your head to take the job. We all make choices, and need to accept responsibility for them. Leaving a job when it’s not right can be the right thing to do. Don’t burn your bridges, but be grateful for the experience and move on.
7. Looking For Your Next Job While On The Job -- You know that you just took this job to get your foot in the door. What you really have your eye on is the salaried position one step up. The best way to move up internally is to do a great job where you are, and that takes commitment and enthusiasm. If you’re always longing for the greener grass on the other side of the fence, you may find instead that you’re out the gate and on the street.
8. Getting Too Personal -- Sharing the details of your messy divorce or gall bladder operation as a part of the “getting to know you” segment in orientation can be shocking and make people uncomfortable. Constantly talking about your partner, spouse, kids (no matter how darling they are) is distracting and tiresome. Sharing too much personal information early on with co-workers can be a burden and make people want to avoid you instead of working with you. Time will tell whether you will develop real friendships on the job, and the best rule of thumb is to find you BFF away from the office. When friendships fracture, it makes for a very difficult work environment and can tear a team apart.
There is a period of adjustment for a new employee and the rest of the work team. Some things will be uncomfortable, some will be great. Reserve judgment, give it time, learn all you can, and be approachable, and that first successful week will be the first in a long and satisfying work experience.
By Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR – MJNH Consulting
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