Changing careers is a daunting prospect. Whether you have decided to finally pursue the career of your dreams or life has pushed you in a new direction, knowing how to navigate this new chapter in your life can be difficult. Thankfully, with this difficulty comes excitement as this new chapter brings with it an abundance of opportunities. To ensure that you are successful in your new work environment, we created this guide full of helpful tips.
What is important when starting a new job?
The most important thing when starting a new job is confidence and humility. You need to show your new employer and colleagues that you are eager to learn and that you fit with the corporate culture.
Whilst you are not expected to know everything about this new career path, preparation and research is key to ensure that you can hold your own during the first days on the job. Of course, as you immerse yourself into the work, you will learn and become more efficient and comfortable in your role.
Humility is important as you don’t want to start a new job as a know-it-all. You should be open to speaking to your colleagues and asking them questions to learn everything you possibly can about the new company and job position. No one likes when new employees presume they know how everything should work.
Why use a recruitment agency to find a job?
What to consider when starting a new career
Before you jump into a new professional career, it’s important that you think about the implications of doing so. You want to maximize your chances of career success so thoroughly thinking through this big change is essential.
Here are key things that you should consider when starting a new career:
Prerequisites
Many companies have prerequisites that you need to adhere to before you can even consider applying for a job in a certain field. A lot of jobs which require technical skills, medical skills, teaching skills, etc. demand that job applicants have a certain amount of training and educational or professional experience in the field to consider them for a position.
If there’s a job opening that you are interested in, we highly recommend doing a lot of research into what the job is asking for. Most job ads include the information you need such as:
- Level of education
- Prior training
- Years of experience in the field
- Licenses, certifications, and accreditations
- Languages spoken
- Availability
- Hard and soft skills
- Physical abilities
If you are looking to dive into a new career field but don’t meet the prerequisites yet, look into the options available that will allow you to gain what you need to become eligible for these jobs.
Work life balance
Having an appropriate work-life balance is essential for a lot of people so before you accept a new job offer or start looking into new career paths, it is a good idea to find out if the demands of the job fit with your lifestyle. For example, if you are a young parent who is looking to spend more time with their family, a job with an inflexible work schedule is not going to be ideal.
You might want to consider more flexible career paths with remote work opportunities to be able to spend more quality time at home. On the other hand, if you are a young professional with few social commitments, the rush of a demanding job might be exactly what you need. It’s all about finding a balance that works for you, and some career fields are simply more demanding than others.
Work environment
As much as it’s important to find a career that suits your personal life, it’s also important to be happy and motivated at work. Different companies have different working environments, and some are more suited to certain individuals than others. You therefore need to think about your values and whether they are in line with the corporate culture of the business you are considering.
If you are a social person who loves to collaborate and work with others, you might want to consider working in a startup as you will be able to problem solve in teams and grow alongside the company and your peers. On the other side, if you’re more of a lone wolf, you may want to consider working for a bigger corporation where job responsibilities are clearly defined.
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How to start a new job the right way
Seek the help of an employment agency
In order to start a job the right way, you need to find the right job for you. This is harder than it may seem, which is why many people choose to seek the help of a recruitment agency. An employment or placement agency like Spartanium can help you find the perfect job position based on your qualifications, education and preferences.
Spartanium can assess your CV and help you find a job that suits your skills and personality. Our team can also negotiate your salary on your behalf and give you insider tips so that you can shine during the interview process. You can browse through our available jobs in the fields of accounting, insurance and law.
Get to know your team members
Most careers, whether remote or in person, require that you work with a team. These are the people that you will interact with on a daily basis and eventually become quite close with. It is therefore a good idea to introduce yourself to everyone in a friendly and approachable way. You should take the time to get to know every team member individually. Introducing yourself on the first day should be organic. All you need to do is be yourself and be open to forming new connections and hopefully making some friends along the way.
Discover what is expected of you
Outside of your immediate team, another important person that you need to get to know is your manager. Your manager is the person whom you will report to and who will assess your abilities and performance within your new job position. In order to make sure that you meet the expectations of your manager, you first need to establish what those expectations are.
Discovering what your manager expects you to achieve on a daily, weekly, monthly or even yearly basis will allow you to gauge how to approach this new job. It will also help to ensure that you never fall short in your new role and consistently meet the demands of the job. Your manager may not directly disclose this information to you so maintaining an open line of communication with him/her is important. Don’t be afraid to ask questions!
Create good work habits
Efficiency and productivity are key when starting a new job. To be successful in your new job position, it’s important that you develop healthy working habits.
Here are examples of work habits that drive success:
- Learn to take feedback and seek it when necessary
- Provide solutions instead of problems (critical thinking is key)
- Be dependable (help your teammates, attend meetings prepared, complete tasks on time, etc.)
- Be organized (add all the info you need in a calendar and prioritize tasks)
- Be realistic when it comes to time management
- Ask questions often
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help
- Help others when possible
- Be kind to your coworkers and avoid gossip
- View problems as opportunities to showcase your skills and strengths
- Practice active listening
- Keep your personal problems outside of the workplace
- Avoid procrastinating
Be open to learning
When you start a new job, it is always important to be open. Learning is an inherent part of every job, whether you are new to the career or have been there for 10, 20, or 30 years. Starting a new job with the attitude that you are above learning will hinder you from achieving your full potential. Curiosity is your best ally when starting a new job so don’t be afraid to ask questions!
Find a job
At Spartanium, we understand how daunting finding a job can be. In today’s busy job market, identifying job openings which are right for you can be difficult, which is why we streamline the process for you. We only present you with career options that are compatible with your skill set and requirements. Feel free to send us your CV so that we can help you find a job in accounting, insurance or law.
