Starting a new job can be a source of great joy and accomplishment. Once you come in on your first day, you may have a lot of expectations you place on yourself and the workplace. As a new hire, you may fall victim to a lot of new hire mistakes. Avoid these common new hire mistakes and you’ll impress your new boss and coworkers.
Do dress the part. It’s true that first impressions are everything, and even before you introduce yourself to your new coworkers and boss they will already be making judgements on you based on what you decided to wear the first day on the job. As one of our HR writers Heather Huhman states in US News, be smart about what you wear. Hopefully you took note of how people were dressed when you did your job interview, because if you come in overdressed or under-dressed it can make a bad impression. Dressing right will make it easier for you to fit in with the office culture at your new job.
Ask the right questions. As a new hire, you may assume that you’ll be guided through each task as you start out, but it may not be that way. You have to be self-sufficient by doing tasks on your own and figuring out how to do them. Of course, your boss will tell you to ask if you have any questions, but that isn’t an open invitation to any question that comes to mind, especially questions that can be answered by doing some simple navigating on the software program you’re using or a Google search.
Asking too many questions can make you look like you are unprepared for the new job role, but there can also be a negative effect on new hires that don’t ask any questions. Not asking any questions can lead to make serious mistakes, so the best plan of action is to ask any question you can’t figure out on your own.
One of the other top new hire mistakes is not being social. It’s your first day on the job, and it’s crucial to show your boss you can work with others by interacting with them on a friendly, social basis. If you’re shy or like to work independently, try making small talk with the person next to you. Being social with others will make a good impression on coworkers and it’ll help to build trust.
Expect to do work that is outside your job description. Many new hires go into a job thinking they’ll be doing exactly as the job description stated, but many times employees are asked to multi-task and delve into work outside their expertise. This isn’t a bad thing! In fact, accepting work that you don’t typically do as a new hire will show that you’re flexible and willing to contribute to the workplace in any way possible which is a characteristic of a valuable employee.
Not adapting to the new office culture is another one of the big new hire mistakes. You may see a coworker doing something differently than how it was done at your previous job and cringe. Don’t correct other people as you start your new job though because every workplace has its own way of doing things. It’s your job as a new hire to learn how things are done around this office instead of the other way around. Nobody will appreciate you telling them that at your old office things were done this way or that way. Keep an open mind and learn as you go to take full advantage of your new job as a new hire.
Have you ever committed one of these new hire mistakes? Do you have some you would like to add to this list? Share with us in the comments section below!
IMAGE: Courtesy of Flickr by Will Merydith
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