Ensuring New Job Success

Everyone Makes Mistakes

It’s inevitable. You will make a mistake at your new job, and chances are it will occur in your first 30 days.

Instead of waiting around to make a mistake, admit that you don’t understand things as they come up. “If your boss asked you to do something and you make a mistake, it’s OK,” says Mitchell. “Tell your boss and restate the fact that you have the capabilities, but you are learning. Ask him or her to please have patience. It gives people a lot of wiggle room when going through the first stage of a new job.”

And, if you do make a mistake, admit it. After all, no one is perfect and you will get more understanding if you just admit something went wrong instead of trying to hide it, which only makes things worse.

“For the first couple of weeks, I felt overwhelmed. Thankfully there’s a learning curve involved with most jobs,” says John Daley*, a marketing coordinator for an up-and-coming test-preparation company in South Carolina. He recalls being overly stressed out in his first 30 days because he was afraid to make a mistake. To ease the anxiety, John learned as much as he could about the position and marketing in general. “I even practiced Microsoft Office applications in my off time,” John recalls. “If you focus too much on trying to get everything right and remembering everything, you’ll only open yourself up to increased anxiety and possible errors.”

Also, be aware of any slights you might make on your co-workers. “If you realize you didn’t make the impression you wanted, it’s important to acknowledge that,” says Morem. Try to reach out to people and reconnect. Take responsibility for those relationships and first impressions. If they don’t go well, it’s your responsibility to regroup and reconnect.”

Onward and Upward

While the first 30 days on your new job sets the stage for your career with the company, the fun really begins post-30 days when you are given more opportunities to really shine.

“Continue to dive in and immerse yourself,” advises Bates. As you begin to see what success at your company looks like, strive for that. Remember that will differ for each job.

And, don’t forget to have patience as you continue to learn the inner workings of your new employer. “It will take you a year to figure out all the landmines and another year to understand the ins and outs of the corporate culture,” says Mitchell. “You have to live through things and see cycles in an organization. Until you’ve observed and lived through them, you don’t have the knowledge. ”

John admits to feeling he'd gotten in over his head, because he didn’t pace himself. “My advice to someone starting a new job would be to ask a lot questions, be confident and willing to learn,” he says. “And, remember they hired you for the position because they had confidence in you.”

* name changed