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5 Secrets to Fitting into the Workplace

June 5, 2008

- Article by Marcia Robinson and courtesy of BullsEyeResumes College Blog.

So you have executed a successful job search and landed a new job and you are anxious to get started building your new career in a new company. Once you get over your new employee fears and get oriented to your new space, you will find it takes more than smiles and kind words to fit in.

Here are few things to keep in mind as you make the transition.

Don’t whine. At least not to the people you work with at the office. Talk about any job challenges or work related issues with friends, family or trusted colleagues in other companies, and not with your new coworkers. Avoid complaining about too much work, too many assignments or too long hours at the office. The fact is, no one really cares how much you have to do since everyone else has their own work, their own assignments, and their own long hours to deal with. Avoid becoming too cozy with the established resident whiners in your new company as well.

Make your manager aware of what you are doing and ask for feedback. A colleague once talked to me about a new energetic recruit who showed a lot of initiative on the job. Although this new worker meant really well, as my colleague put it, “She was running a great race, but she was in the wrong stadium completely.” Make sure the work you are doing is relevant and critical to the department’s mission. Additionally, make sure your work is being noticed. It will take a while for you to get into your groove in your new office, and making sure you are not working contrary to the flow is good. Watch also that you are not inheriting assignments from those who want to hand off their jobs.

Show enthusiasm and energy for the job, business or industry you are in now. If you just got hired by the largest plumbing fixture manufacturing supply company, you need to get excited about plumbing fixture manufacturing supplies business. People who enjoy the domains they work in are interested in learning more and will ultimately tend to do better on the job. If you are not prepared to have meaningful conversations about your job or the industry within which your company operates, you will not be happy.

Stay on time. If you have a problem being punctual, work really hard to correct that behavior. Be in the office on time, if not early, be back from lunch on time and do not pack up twenty minutes before your shift or day is supposed to end. Arrive on time for meetings and work harder on your own time if you have to. Of course today’s workforce is more about productivity than time spent in the office, but it is still a good idea for to show others you respect their time. Once you understand the protocols and the routines of the office, schedules can change.

Limit talk about what you did in your old job, company or worse in a class. This one is pretty hard to do, but it is something you will master eventually. It is been my experience that people sometimes don’t want to hear new ideas if they came from your old job, old company or worse from a class. Of course your prior knowledge will show in your work, but limit talking about where your skills come from. Feel free to credit publications, the media or a conference, but not your old job, company or class for new ideas.

Of course none of these tips are cast in cement. In addition to the requisite due diligence to do your new job well, you just need to heed some of these other workplace protocols that could expedite or slow your assimilation in the new environment.

Article by Marcia Robinson and courtesy of BullsEyeResumes College Blog. Robinson coaches, trains, and writes on career, workplace, and education issues for students and career professionals.

Article via Recruiting Blogswap, a service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships.

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Written by bradley · Filed Under Engineering Commentary, Featured Article 

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