How to Start a New Job

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average person holds eleven jobs in her lifetime. I’m on my third just since grad school; if you add in the ones after high school (a series of receptionist gigs I sucked at) and during college (more of the same, with a sysadmin graveyard shift in the mix), I’m probably over the 11 mark already. It’s given me plenty of experience not just in doing my jobs, but in starting them as well. Below are tips I’ve learned from my experiences and from others’ that I hope can help you too:

• Come prepared. You want to hit the ground running, so learn a bit on your own before you get there. Look around for books, articles, and blogs on your new employer (or your new industry). Ask your future boss to recommend more.
• First day? Show up on time. Notice I say “on time,” not “early.” You might be inclined to arrive ahead of schedule, but you’ll only throw off the first-day schedule of HR, office tour, and paperwork. Speaking of paperwork, bring everything with you they’ll need to process your employment (ID and social security card), payment (blank check), and ID badge (big smile). Dress a little more nicely than you would for a normal workday. If it’s a casual office, you can break out the patched jeans tomorrow.
• Get a mentor. If your company has an official mentorship program, take advantage of it. If not, make your own: Find someone you can take to lunch and coffee and ask all the dumb and gossipy questions you want, someone who will answer you honestly and discreetly. I recommend you find a mentor outside your department—best to keep the hairy stuff away from the people you work closely with.
• Don’t talk too much. We’ve all been in meetings with that one person who won’t shut up: he talks when he has nothing substantive to add and asks questions to show how smart he is. Don’t be that person. There’s a temptation, when you’re new, to show that you can contribute, but if you’re not actually contributing, keep quiet.
• Be eager, but not too eager. This is a tough one. You want to take on every project that comes your way at first. You don’t have to, and you shouldn’t. If you overextend yourself, you’ll wind up behind and overwhelmed. Better to go smaller at first, set reasonable expectations and then exceed them.

How many jobs have you had? What do you do when you start a new job? Do you have any tips to add?

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