When I started my first job as a kid out of college, I was just that – a kid fresh out of college. I don’t think expectations can be any lower for college graduates. Your employer knows that you just spent the last four years sharpening your drinking game skills and perfecting your school’s fight song, so whatever job you get has the bar set so low that a limbo champ couldn’t even get under it. And as long as you show up on time and don’t burn the place down your first week, you can really only raise that bar. And even though you’re getting paid peanuts, no one expects you to save lives when you’re making less money than a bus driver – you’re under paid, but that keeps you under the radar.
But there comes a time in your life when you’re ready to move on, ready to take on a new challenge. Fear aside, it is MY time to grab the bull by the horns (although I’m REALLY hoping my new job will be more like a rabbit than a bull ... I’d personally rather grab cute, soft bunny ears), take what I’ve learned over the past couple years and dust off the “college kid” title and start fresh as a smart, savvy professional who knows what she’s doing... ha, like I know what I’m doing.
Surprisingly though, moving on has been far more emotional than I ever thought it would be. I never realized until I gave my two weeks notice how personally attached I had become to my office. It’s like waking up at home the morning you are planning to move into the Freshmen dorms and realizing how much you’re going to miss the comfort of your childhood room, your comfy bed that your mom always kept fresh with great smelling sheets and the familiarity of the things you’ve grown accustomed to. Although you’re ready to move on and annoyed with constantly having your parents yell at you for not picking up your clothes from your bedroom floor, you still have thoughts of fear and sadness. Maybe you’re not ready to start college. Maybe you rather have your parents scold you instead of living on your own where yes, there is no one to tell you what to do, but at the same time, there is no one to comfort you either.
Luckily, I’ve already experienced major moves and life changes, so I know that the outcome is generally positive, but those initial feelings of uncertainty never cease to creep up on me.
So as I spend my final days reflecting on the great impact my first job has had on my life, I would like to share what I’ve learned along the way:
- Humor is an important, if not vital, part of maintaining composure and getting through a difficult time. If you lighten up, your stress will go down.
- You shouldn’t hold your breath waiting on someone to change because you’ll most likely pass out. You can’t change the way someone acts, but you can change the way you handle them.
- If a door is locked, check the window, if the window isn’t open, go to the next door neighbor and charm your way into getting the spare key. There is no such thing as a locked door.
- Often times people say “no” because they are not smart enough to say “yes”. All those people who didn’t understand your value just weren’t ready for your forward thinking and talent. Their loss, not yours.
- Never underestimate the power of being nice. You never know who will be your next client, your next boss, your next lifesaver; respect is invaluable.
- Using “per”, “bandwidth” and “in regards to” in your casual, social conversations doesn’t make you a major loser, it makes you a professional badass.
- Everyone loves a good story and everyone has one – let people tell you their story and be open to tell yours. Allowing yourself to get personal enhances all the senses you need to be a professional.
- Anything important can be reduced to three letters, and three letters only - ERP, TBC, PLM, EOM, CAD, RFP, SOW, EOD, WIP, SOS, TBD...
- Always carry a granola bar with you because you never know when your next meal will be and you can’t run on empty while running around in pumps.
- When in doubt, don’t “assume” - If you aren’t sure if someone got a memo, if you don’t remember whether your client wanted that report by today or tomorrow, check.
- It’s important to know just enough to be dangerous, but pretending to know more than you do IS dangerous.
- Being exposed to the best and the brightest is humbling and often times intimidating, but welcome the intimidation, because spending time with talented people only makes YOU better and brighter.
- Your first instinct is almost always right. If you question a decision, remember that your initial response is most likely the right decision for you... new job, here I come!
