Just as your job search took planning, strategies, reflection and follow through, so goes the routine for preparing for your first day on the new job. Here are five key strategies that I think you’ll find useful for positioning yourself for a successful kickoff and journey with your new employer:
1 – What Do You Want To Do Differently?
Usually most job seekers take the time at the beginning of their job search to reflect on their strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes. Reflection and self-awareness can be accomplished through a number of options including thoughtful reflection, consideration of feedback provided by assessment tools such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), or co-creating sessions with a career coach. This is an important element in the job search process, especially if the job seeker wants to avoid targeting a job that doesn’t match the seeker’s talents, skills, abilities or desires.
As you’re preparing for your new roleand responsibilities, it will be important once again to take the time to reflect on all you’ve learned about yourself during your job search journey. These insights may be a result of personal "ah ha’s", or they may have surfaced through networking contacts, exploring new job avenues, or perhaps as a result of taking the time to continue your education and build new skills and capabilities.
"So what have you learned about yourself that you’d like to do differently with this new opportunity?" The question is important because it’s so much easier to change something about yourself as you are beginning relationships, rather than after the relationships have been established. What’s on your list? Often I find clients wanting to change how they approach areas such as:
- work style
- communication style
- image
- assertiveness
- time management
- daily routines
- abilities to be flexible
- interest in continuing to learn and maintain your employability
2 – Start and Stay Organized
When you start your new job, most likely your desk will not be cluttered with papers. Yes, there is the chance, if you are following in the footsteps of a predecessor, there may be some disorganization, but for the most part as you start to gather data and learn the organization, you’ll have the opportunity to start fresh new files and processes to keep yourself organized. This is a great time to demonstrate your abilities and commitment to being disciplined and orderly. Make it a priority to keep your desk and work space looking as neat as the day you started.
Consider starting with good practices related to:
- emails
- electronic files
- paper files
- calendar, commitments and deadlines
- contact lists
3 – Be Curious
Take the approach right from the start that you not only want to learn about what you need to know to do your job, but also to understand how your work interfaces with other parts of the organization. In order to succeed in your job it’s likely you’ll need to understand what happens in the workflow processes before and after the work actually arrives at and leaves your desk.
Practicing a holistic approach to be curious about the organization will help you learn more and aid in the development of work relationships. In addition, it can also provide some insights into ways to improve the workflow through connections not previously considered in the process. Remember, as the "new kid on the block" you’ll have a precious window of time in which you can ask all kinds of questions that might appear silly or out of place coming from a longer-term employee. Don’t miss this chance to inquire, learn and expand your view of the business from many perspectives.
Also, don’t be overly concerned about trying to prove yourself by sharing what you know and what your experiences have been. Take more of an interest in being curious about what your co-workers think is important and what they think is important to share with you.
If you’re managing others, this is your opportunity to take the initiative to meet with your staff to allow for introductions and an overview of your plans for getting to know the organization and its people. Make the time to meet with each employee to get to know them personally, their backgrounds, experiences and career desires. Now’s a great time to be a good listener.
4 – Chart a Path for Success
I love the concept of a 90-day on-boarding program. Michael Watkins’ book The First 90 Days, lays out the design for getting new employees started on the right foot by establishing specific goals for what they should have learned and achieved within the first 30, 60 and 90 days.
If your new boss hasn’t yet had a chance to read this book, don’t let that stop you. Get the book and become familiar with the planning concept for linking learning with metrics. Then sit down with your boss and get clear about what his/her expectations are for your performance. Armed with that information, take the first stab at drafting your own on-boarding plan for his/her review and assistance in finalizing. This document can also serve to ensure that you’re on the right road for performance management as well.
Creating a solid on-boarding process will demonstrate your characteristics of self-motivation, decision making, creativity, and confidence to articulate what you’ll be able to do on your own, and where you’ll need help and guidance from your boss and others as you integrate your experiences with the organizations’ processes, culture and contacts.
If you’re responsible for managing others, this would be a great time to meet with each person to understand their work responsibilities and challenges. Schedule some time to shadow them, and review work processes and outcomes. You don’t need to know how to do each of their jobs, but it will help to understand their workplace realities by observing the work through their everyday routines.
5 – Make a Commitment to Balance and Good Health
It’s very tempting when starting a new job to go overboard trying to do everything. Be mindful to set practical boundaries for the amount of time you’ll spend on "work" vs. family, exercise and time for you. Acknowledge that there will be a lot to learn, but that trying to absorb it too quickly could cause mistakes – you know what they say about haste makes waste.
Demonstrate commitment, drive and dedication to the new organization. But at the same time, recognize your co-workers will need time to get to know you, build trust and gain a good foundation for a solid relationship. Coming on too strong with who you are and what you’re all about can be overwhelming and may send the wrong message.
So take the time to find balance as you work your 90-day plan to introduce yourself to the organization, explore with curiosity what the organization is all about, make new friends and acquaintances, and consider how you might help the organization make improvements.
After you get started in your new job, don’t forget to go back and thank all those folks that helped along the way and sustained you during your job search. They’ll be pleased to know you have landed in a new role. You’ll want to ensure they have your contact information so you can continue to be in touch. You never know when your network will be able to help you again in the future, or when you can repay the favors they extended to you.
Good luck!
As always, I welcome your comments to my posting. Please share your thoughts below. If you’d like to share this article with others, please pass it along and suggest your colleagues subscribe for future articles. Thank you and have a great week.
This article was written by Deborah A. King, SPHR, CEO and Organizational Effectiveness Consultant with Evolution Management, Inc. Debbie and her team are energized about providing the guidance and support job seekers need to navigate the journey to a new opportunity. Our practices meet with tremendous success. If you’re looking for career transition support and guidance contact Debbie for more information: Debbie@evolutionmgt.com or 770.587.9032. EMI is a certified SBA 8(a) business and also holds certification as a woman-owned, small business through WBENC.
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