Congratulations! You're starting a new job. It’s an exciting time, sure, but also an uncertain time. There are so many questions: Will my responsibilities match the job description? Will I mesh with the new team? Will they recognize my prior experience? Will I be successful in my new role?
Related:4 Phrases Your Boss LOVES To Hear
These are questions that time and on-the-job experience will answer, right?
Sure... to an extent.
While time and "just jumping in" with the team will ease some of those new-hire insecurities, the key element to beginning a new role is building a solid relationship with your manager. Regardless of the "rockstar" status you possess in your industry or with a previous job, your prestigious degree, or even the years of experience that fill your resume, your manager is the gateway to success in your new role.
Some managers are better than others at nurturing a new employee. Right now, you're probably thinking of a time when you started a new job, and your direct supervisor was, for all intents and purposes, non-existent.
Sidenote: If you are a manager and this describes you, take this bit of tough-love advice: Your employees deserve better than that. They need you. Be the manager you would want to work for. Take a moment to ponder that.
Building a relationship with your new manager isn't complicated. It must be intentional, genuine, and built on a foundation of respect. As a new employee, ideally you should be spending some time with your manager every day for the first couple of weeks, even if only for a brief check-in. These meetings are ideal opportunities to jump-start the dialogue. Here are five simple conversations you need to have with your boss when you start a new role:
1. Why Me?
Naturally, you were the most qualified among the applicants, right? Chances are, more went into the decision than simply your thoughtful interview answers, dazzling wit, and well-tailored suit. The hiring manager saw something in you that s/he felt would add value to the team. Find out why you were chosen, and spend each day proving that value.
2. How Can I learn?
Onboarding does not end with New Employee Orientation. Orientation is an event. Onboarding is a process - a learning process that should embrace a new employee in three ways:
Welcome the new employee to the COMPANY
Acquaint the new employee with the TEAM
Immerse the new employee into the ROLE
Like any new job, there is so much to learn about the company you've just joined, the team you are now a part of, and the role that you will be filling. Your manager should provide guidance, resources, and an opportunity to learn. With your manager, create a learning plan that will integrate you into your new role.
3. What's The Plan?
Chances are your manager had a plan in place prior to your arrival. Spend time with your manager discussing this plan. Seek out opportunities to secure quick wins that will propel your credibility, but also create long-term, measurable goals that will impact the team and company. Ask your manager what your departmental and organizational objectives are, and ensure that your personal goals are clearly aligned.
4. I Need Your Feedback, And You Need Mine
Transparency is a key element to any successful relationship. Asking your manager for feedback and guidance will strengthen your alliance, and help ensure that you are meeting (and hopefully exceeding) expectations. While receiving feedback is important, so is providing feedback to your manager. This transparency breeds trust between an employee and manager. Remember, ask permission to provide feedback to your manager, and keep it respectfuland relevant.
5. Be My Champion, And I'll Be Yours
One of the greatest things an employee can do is to make his/her manager look good. To make that manager's job a bit easier. And, of course, to give that manager something to brag about. What are you doing to support your manager? What are his goals for his own role - or for his future path within the organization? How can you help him be successful? Demonstrating a little selfless benevolence can go a long way to securing your own success.
Five simple conversations. Five opportunities to clarify expectations and build a solid partnership from the beginning. Take the time to get to know your manager, and help him/her affirm his/her decision that you are the right person for the job.
You are, after all.
This post was originally published on an earlier date.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.