It isn't over, for two reasons.
First, if you're thinking that way, you may find yourself having to look for another job sooner than you anticipated. Beginning a new job throws you into a new challenge, an even bigger one than landing it in the first place.
Second, unless you're a rarity, even if you don't need to look for another job, chances are you will. As mentioned earlier, the market for gold retirement watches has decreased considerably.
The simple fact that you've been chosen over others, and have been hired, is not necessarily synonymous with having a better job for a long period of time. New employees are almost always evaluated on a probationary basis. It may not have been intended that way, but that's the real world. It might be a month, three months, six months; no matter what the length of time, that probationary period does exist, and if your new employers feel you have made a mistake, they won't hesitate to say, "look, sorry, but it just didn't work out." Actually, that's better than being disappointed in you but letting you continue to work there. When that happens, your long term potential is virtually nil, and unless you take the ill by the horns, recognize the situation, and start looking again, you'll stagnate in your new "better job."
This brings up a very important point. Chances are that during your search for a better job, you were interviewed by a number of companies. Even though you chose not to accept a job with them, or were turned down, you should write each of them a personalized letter thanking them, and indicating you hope your paths cross once again (you may need them sooner than you think). And by all means include their names in your ongoing network.
It doesn't matter what level of employment you're at. You're the new kid on the block, the new employee, the unknown quantity, and how you attack those early days will determine, to a great extent, how you fare in the near and distant future.
Every corporation, every company has its own "culture." It's run by individuals who bring to it their own particular style, personality, and views of how this business can best succeed. Of course, the industry in which it functions plays a role. Certain industries have established an "industrial culture," and successful companies within it generally follow suit. That isn't always the case, however. The computer industry was dominated by "Big Blue," IBM, which was known for imposing upon its executives a rather stringent dress code: dark suit, white shirt, muted tie. Then along came the computer hotshots who operated out of garages and wore jeans and sneakers and T-shirts. Apple Computer allowed that style of engagement in its early days and, as we all know, has been incredible success in what was a staid and conservative computer industry.
And, of course, there is the Japanese computer industry, with its own distinct culture bred on the gene Japanese culture itself, whose presence can't be denied.
When you first walk into your new job, have you antennae up to maximum length. Be receptive; let your eyes and ears and other senses take everything in to process. Is it a first-name company, or more former than that? How do people dress in your department and in the company as a whole? Do the executives with who you work drop into each other's open offices for inform chats about business matters, or have you entered memo mill where anything of substance is put in writing and talks with other executives are scheduled through secretaries? Be quick in sizing this up. How quickly and smoothly you adapt to your new corporate culture case make a big difference in how rapidly you'll advance in it.
That doesn't mean having to be "one of the boys" (or one of the "girls"). In fact, I urge new employees to plan; strategy that allows them to fit comfortably into the culture yet places them just a notch above. Fit the mold, only fit it slightly better, with a modicum more old style. Match yourself to those with whom you work directly, but keep an eye on those in higher positions of management. How do they dress? How do they interact? Fit in naturally with your colleagues and peers, but keep your eye on the wider sphere, too.
Politics is an integral part of any corporate culture. We tend to look upon politics in its governmental sense as dirty business, one in which questions are evaded, false charges are made, and a whole array of dirty deeds take ice in the interest of winning. There might be an element of that kind of politics in the corporation in which you've found your better job, but I would urge you to not do all company politics as being that way. After all, polls in its purest sense, is nothing more than getting someone to see your point of view and side with you. Polls in this definition, is a necessary and beneficial part of every aspect of our lives. We practice it in our marriages, with our children, in our social organizations, and, of course, in business.
Be astute enough to size up where the power lies in our department and, perhaps, beyond. Who seems to most often assume a leadership role? Who is the person others turn to for advice? Why has that person achieved that position? Will that person be a survivor in a major shake-up? What traits does he or she possess and demonstrate that have created this "political leader" in the department? Don't be misled by what others say, although don't dismiss their evaluations, either. But make your own judgments based upon what you see and hear, what you perceive. Put it all together-your observations as well as the comments of others-and learn to function smoothly within the prevailing political system.
Speaking of listening to others, be tuned in to whatever grapevine or grapevines are at work in your immediate department and in the company. Like politics, the grapevine has fallen into disrepute, and it doesn't deserve that status. Research indicates that as much as 80 percent of information disseminated to employees comes through the grapevine, and is reasonably accurate. This is especially true when managers are astute enough to recognize that the grapevine is more than a gossip mill. It is a viable and valuable conduit through which important management messages can be transmitted. Pay attention to the grapevine and learn from it. If you're a reasonable person, you'll be able to differentiate between pure gossip that has little basis in fact and information that actually reflects certain situations within the company.
Be nice. Nice people are usually the last to be ft and among the first to be promoted. If niceness comes naturally to you, that gives you a leg up. If a nice personality is not part of your natural makeup, find a way inject more of it into your daily life. Don't be deliberately pleasant with those who can help you in the company and unpleasant to those you feel are not in a position do so. Be nice to everyone. You never know who will be a position to help you, or to give you information that will turn out to be useful in your ongoing career. Pleasant, genuinely nice people turn routine job assignment and pressure-filled ones, into more palatable experience. People who are dealt with pleasantly generally respond in kind and do a better job.
From an even more pragmatic perspective, put yourself in the position of an executive deciding whom to pre mote from within. If two people are generally equal in professional capability, but one is nice and one is not, it simply makes sense to promote the nice person, someone with whom that executive is going to have to work closely on a daily basis.
Up until now I've stressed attitudinal aspects of starting a new and better job. Now let's turn to more labor-intensive matters.
A new job is a time to expend maximum energy. It is not time to arrive late and leave early. The impression you make during your initial weeks on a new job will be lasting ones. No matter what level of employment you function at, be willing to take on those assignments that others who have been there longer wish to avoid. This doesn't mean being a "patsy." What it does mean is demonstrating to those with whom you'll be working a willness to do menial work to make sure a job gets done?
Every new employee must work into organization-and onto the team. A new job is a confusing time, and you need to put in extra hours to make it less so. You're going to have to inform to your new company's style. Your own established work structure, office procedures, filing systems, and other working habits you've developed over the years may have to be modified.
Every new employee has to go slow. In my many years of experience in employing managerial and placement personnel at Robert Half International, those new employees who tried to change things too fast not only suffered individually but tended to disrupt the smooth flow of our business. If every new employee attempted to change tried-and-true methods to suit his or her whims and personal preferences, businesses would quickly be in chaos. In every organization, individual needs must necessarily take a back seat to established company procedures. Don't misunderstand: I, like many employers, have always been open to new ideas, and many of the best have come from my own staff. Once someone has been in a job for a while and has had an opportunity to see firsthand how things work, suggestions for varying certain procedures are welcome. By giving it some time, an employee also has the chance to see why certain procedures are in place and shouldn't be changed. Give yourself several months before suggesting improvements. Not only will your evaluation be more likely to have meaning, it will be more readily accepted by higher-ups.
Devote yourself to getting things done. Every company, every boss understands that a new employee will take a period of time to adjust and become truly functional. The quicker you begin accomplishing things, however, the quicker you will be recognized as the right person to have been hired. Again, those extra hours you put in will be a big difference. Yes, take the time to analyze a project and don't jump in as a know-it-all. But it is better to track a project and make mistakes than to linger an ordinate amount of time, waiting until you have "learn enough" to do things right. Do it! A finished product can be improved; you can't improve on something you haven't even started.
Understand that no boss is interested in hearing something couldn't be done. Sure, there are always situations in which factors outside your control get in the way of completing a job. But unless those are legitimate and understood, keep your excuses to yourself and get with it.
Make sure you effectively use what time you have any given day. Be hard-nosed about it. If you're wasting too much time talking to colleagues, take what steps are necessary to correct it, without offending them. Be realistic in evaluating the time it will take to do projects which you've been assigned. Better to be up front about how long something will take to complete than have to announce on the due date that it isn't done.
Where projects are concerned, get in the habit of keeping your immediate boss informed on progress. This doesn't mean burdening him or her with long, detailed reports at every step of the way. Send an occasional brief note or pass a quick comment during a meeting so that your boss is informed of progress. If you leave the boss in the dark and a major problem develops, he or she is in a tough position with the person to whom he or she reports. It's all part of the concept of teamwork that every successful department, and company, benefits from.
Much of what I've suggested about getting a good start on a new job boils down to being a good listener. Good listeners quickly learn things; bad listeners never earn. It takes effort to be a good listener. Some people are naturally good at it, but most aren't. You have to concentrate on what the other person is saying, not constantly be thinking of what you want to say next. It's the same principle behind having a good memory, remembering the names of people to whom you've been introduced. People who remember names concentrate on them when the introduction is made. They're good listeners. Few things are more important to success than being a good listener.
Approach your new and better job with the right attitude. A surprising number of people find a better job and then go into it with a negative viewpoint. They find something wrong about it almost immediately, and never give themselves a chance to enjoy the thing they worked so hard to achieve-a better job in this crazy world. Now that you've found it, don't lose it.
