Congratulations! You’ve taken the necessary steps towards furthering your career and are in the right position at your new job. You may be feeling anxious about setting the right standard for yourself, maybe nervous about the job’s responsibilities and curious about the working culture. All of these are natural. First and foremost is to be thankful and celebrate yourself for making it happen. 

 

The common adage is that the first impression is the impression that matters the most. In some reality, this is true. Setting yourself up for success means doing the right things with the time that you have, and doing what needs to be done during your first week is key.

 

One of the first things you should do is introduce yourself to people. You shouldn’t wait for people to come to you. Instead, take the time to make your presence known and share a little about yourself with your co-workers and peers. It’s a normal feeling to not want to call attention to yourself. However, you want to let your enthusiasm shine through and show people you have the right attitude to succeed in your position. This may not mean going desk to desk necessarily. You can ask your manager to leave some space for you to introduce yourself at the beginning of a meeting, where you share something about yourself. Keep it brief and light-hearted and let people know that you feel comfortable speaking to other people. 

 

Another key tip is remember people’s names. You can do this easily by saying their name back to them, or even keeping a list of their names jotted down. If you’ve forgotten someone’s name, a little honesty transparency goes a long way. Say something like “I’m sorry, I’ve been taking in a lot of new information these last couple days, could you remind me of your name?”

 

Next is to ask the right questions at the right time. Think about what you want to know and what you need to know and be insightful when you ask. Making sure you’re asking the correct people the right questions is important too to avoid possible frustrations. Prioritize your questions; asking for help accessing the building is a little more important than asking quarterly meeting metrics. Priority is vital. 

 

Once you’ve made traction in the first few days, find a friend or confidant in the office. Ask a new colleague to join you to lunch, could be a fellow newcomer like yourself or someone who sits near you. They can give you insight, pointers and share their story in a way that can be very beneficial.


The final point, and perhaps the most important, is constantly be on the lookout for ways to add value. Ask around, remember what was said during your interview and find ways for you to directly contribute to the bottom line of the organization. 

Big or small, you were hired for a reason. You can find ways to make sure a great week sets the precedent for a fantastic job ahead!