If you will have to move to take the new job, you may also be sent copies of the local newspaper, real estate magazines, county maps, and other relevant material, including, perhaps, a description of the area prepared by the local chamber of commerce. Some employers even pay for trips to find a suitable place to live. The employer will want to help you learn more about the community and its lifestyle so you can adapt comfortably.
Your First Day
Many executives have told me that during the first day in a new office, they felt myriad emotions unlike those aroused by most other experiences in life. Much of this can be accounted for by how the employer handles your welcome. Some may address the new manager's needs and ensure that the entry is a smooth one. Others may believe it's best to "leave the new manager alone" for the first day or two.
Because welcoming styles vary, new managers' reactions also vary. Some have said there is almost an "awesome sense of having left a part of you behind." Others have said they experienced a "hollow feeling”, a "sense of emptiness," upon seeing their new, vacant office. Still others have reported a sense of welcome from the start. Again, it depends mostly upon the new employee's supervisor.
When You Arrive
Unless you are keenly aware of office protocol before you move in, leave your personal belongings and your nest-building needs at home for a few days. People will be watching, and some will be checking to see whether you do anything out of the ordinary.
For example, some organizations have a distinct hierarchy of office appurtenances, even though their executives have disclaimed any knowledge of it until I pointed it out to them. Take an innocuous example, the stapler. At one level, it may be battleship gray. At the next level, black. At another level, it may have a walnut-grained plastic insert. At yet another level, it may have a solid chip of walnut screwed to the top.
All are symbols of station, regardless of what their users may say or how about a simple pencil holder? Possibilities might include an old cup, a plastic holder, a metal holder, a wood-and-brass holder, or yes, even a gold-filigreed holder matching the rest of the items on the desk.
Anything you move into the office, anything you change, will be noticed by someone. People do indeed attach meanings to such things, just as men and women in the military do to the number of stripes on sleeves or the design and metal used for brass on shoulders.
No Fish, Please an executive who went through one of my seminars reported that he took an aquarium—tropical fish, stand, and all—into his office the first day. Three days later he was moved to another office and had to get special help to move the fish tank. Two weeks later he was moved again, and this time he had to move his own fish. When he was moved again after another month, he took the aquarium home. He stayed in the same office for three years.
He was never told directly to get rid of the fish, and he was still not certain the fish had anything to do with his moves. But he did receive numerous comments and some friendly gibes about his fish each time he had to move them. The message?. It's almost as important to fit enduring that first week as it is to contribute to the tasks for which you were hired.
Typical First Day
Most first days on the job will go something like this: You will arrive at your boss's office at least 10 minutes before the start of business. You will be dressed and groomed appropriately, briefcase in hand, and with whatever tools of the trade you feel might be important to have with you.
You may chat briefly with the secretary and then visit with your new boss. At that time, he or she should outline the day for you. Perhaps you will be briefed in more detail about the job. Perhaps you will need to process forms. You may also be taken to the personnel department for further briefing and orientation. Either before this or afterward you may be given the opportunity to visit with your staff or your superiors.
