It’s not easy being the new guy at work—especially during the first few months when the environment is new and the products are unfamiliar.
So how do you make the best of your integration time? Before you think about building a 90 day plan and getting to work, there are three things you should consider mastering.
To succeed in a new job, you need to be curious, open, and passionate.
Why? The way you approach a new job sets the tone for the rest of your time there. If you were excited about getting the job, then have the right mindset to keep it!
I recently spent some time with Erin and Yuri, two new employees who started at Rustici Software a couple of months ago. Erin does everything—HR, Jenafits, scheduling, accounting, and marketing. Yuri works his magic on the development and support side of one of our biggest products.
Erin and Yuri are already irreplaceable parts of our team. They’ve carved their spots by being curious, open, and passionate (not to mention, hilarious).
Why are these three qualities important? Well, here’s why Yuri and Erin have been successful:
1. Be Curious —You won’t make it unless you ask questions.
Yuri: “It’s sometimes hard to realize the vast amount of information, tools, and flavors that make up a company when you’re new. There are lot of things I don’t know yet. So I spend my time learning—a lot. Each day I go to different people and ask them how to do stuff. Other days I challenge myself to discover things on my own. At the end of each day, I’ve learned something.”
2. Be open — open to suggestions, open to new challenges, open to new ways of thinking.
Erin: “I’m lucky that I have my hands in everything right now, it helps me to learn as much as I can about what we’re doing as a company and how I can be a part of that. I’m someone who really likes to multitask, so I welcome the challenge of working with new people—especially when they are willing to share feedback. In a lot of corporate cultures people don’t make the time to help each other like they do here. ”
3. Be Passionate — approach your role with enthusiasm, eagerness, and an eye on the future.
Be passionate from the start. Take initiative in situations where you have something to contribute and provide assistance where you are needed, even if it’s “not your job”. A team made up of passionate people is the foundation of a great place to work—isn’t that what we all want?
This all seems simple because it is. Ask questions, take feedback, be ambitious—earn your spot by having the right mindset. That’s how anybody who’s made it at Rustici Software has done it!
