Power Tips for your first job

A huge change arrives the moment a student leaves college, and joins an organisation for a job. All templates that worked so wonderfully well till date, no longer exist. The comfort zone evaporates. Routines change.

I am not talking about internships, but full time jobs.

It takes conscious effort to settle in your new life. The corporate or business life. It won't happen automatically. And unless you are mentally prepared for it, the pain may be big.

To land yourself correctly in your first few weeks, months and years, here are my POWER TIPS.

1. GET MENTALLY PREPARED - The time spent at college is usually memorable. We all tend to remember, recall and fondly share moments spent together at our college, all through our lives. As we move from college into the corporate world (or the world of business) it entails a huge shift in our lives. It's like taking birth all over again. Safely ensconced in our mother's womb, we could play brave, knowing well someone is there to protect us always. But once we are born, and the warmth of the cocoon no longer exists, we must first learn to cry. A similar experience awaits all who graduate from an institution/college and move into the corporate world. It's like moving out of the protected, warm and life-giving cocoon into the open world of uncertainties and turbulence. Surprisingly, a large percentage of graduating students (graduating from a UG college or a PG college or from any other institution) do not at all think about the life that's coming up. They assume it will be a linear extension of their present condition. It will not. It will be a step change. Everything that defined your comfort zone today, will evaporate overnight. So, start thinking about it. Prepare your mind to accept the new reality. Start imagining victories in the new life. Think of the happiness that will come to you as you move from "being a student" to "being a professional". And remember, if you behave like a joker, the world will treat you like a joker! So, start preapring mentally for a serious and successful stint ahead.
2. FIND OUT ABOUT YOUR BOSSES - The one person who will largely define your entire existence in your first job (and many jobs later as well) is your immediate Boss. The person who you will report to directly. He/she will control almost everything you do, the work quality, and your immediate happiness. So, start finding out who that person is. What does he/she like and dislike. And start moulding yourself according to those values. It will make your journey very pleasant, and comparatively easier. So, if your boss smokes a lot, develop a tolerance for smoke. You need not start smoking yourself, but stop frowning and making faces when the smell hits your nose. If your boss is a cleanliness freak, keep yourself clean (nails, hair, appearance, clothing, shoes etc.) If your boss works late hours, develop your stamina to match his. There is nothing unethical or manipulative about this approach. Human beings work in team, and the novices have to adjust to the veterans' style of work. The world cannot be changed overnight. Your suggestions will be considered, but first spend some time at least! Recall your early childhood - you did a lot of things that your parents liked, as that fetched you rewards. Also, recall the plight of a newly married lady. As she lands in the new family, her entire schedule is changed, and there is almost zero scope for complaints. This is how corporate life works too. You are the new bride. Your boss is the family. If your boss finds working with you congenial, he/she is likely to want more of it. And you have a winning formula. A caveat - quality of work has no alternative. Do not misconstrue this advice as a recommendation for poor quality of work!

3. LEAVE ADOLESCENCE BEHIND - Make a conscious effort to wean yourself away from the childish enthusiasm of your adolescence. That life is OVER. It's all gone, it's finished. It's a new life now. Your parents were funding you till now. You did not have to worry about the price of the next meal. You could show off in front of all your friends - treat them at a Barista or a CCD, all at your parents' expense. Funny! But now, it's all over. Your parents may still continue to fund you, but that's fairly stupid as a professional. You will not grow from within unless you feel the pressure of earning money for your lifestyle. It is only when we start realising this, that true efforts begin. So consciously drop the earlier skin off, and grow the new one. It will not be easy. But start soon.
4. GRADUATE TO THE NEXT LEVEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA - It's clear that Facebook is as much a part of young people's lives as their mobile handsets. So let's learn to be good at it. Agreed, social media (Facebook, Orkut..) are wonderful tools. But they are dangerous as well. The simple rule is - once you join an organisation, STOP BLABBERING LIKE IDIOTS on social media. Stop posting stuff that's childish, stupid, inane, vacuous, unprofessional or blasphemous. Your employer is watching you. It is not like your college - the Professor had no choice. He could not pull you up, as you could cry and make faces. Here, as a professional in a company, you will get the boot. There is no way you can justify stupid postings on your Facebook walls. So start writing clean English. Stop using funky abbreviations A classic example can be - Lyf wnts mre alwz, why?????????? comfy dyz ovr, lyf suckz. As a professional, my advice is - stop doing this nonsense. Post it like a mature person, not a kid. A better way of posting this sentiment can be - Life demands so much of me. And I am happy to deliver. Success is my destination! A strange thing that you may discover about yourself is that you may be unable to post clean posts! Many people just can't post clean stuff. They are actually UNABLE to do it. Then the price will be quite steep. Remember, your social media presence is your readily-checkable and readable proof of character. As a rule - Always remember that the first person to read your social media posting will be your Boss. I do not intend to sound paranoid on this topic, but I am scared at the mere prospect of how foolish young people can actually be, in indulging in acts that leave clear trails behind, to be picked up by someone, anyone, anytime. And who gets hurt? Definitely not the Boss.

5. STAY BACK MORE THAN OTHERS, VOLUNTEER MORE THAN OTHERS - How do you get noticed by your Boss? How do you ensure your presence is felt? Well, by doing so. Report early in the morning. If the official time is 9 am, be at your desk (if you are allotted one) by 8:50 am. Don't just sit there gawking like an idiot. Do something. Anything. Look busy. Get yourself some work. Ask for work. If you are free, and are unable to find any work, chances are your performance has not been liked by many. So ask for work. Volunteer for assignments, howsoever unpleasant. At the start of your career, an assignment that helps you learn is a favour that your boss does. So ask for more favours!
6. ORIENT YOUR FAMILY, CHANGE YOUR FRIENDS - For your parents, you will always be a child. They will alway see their chunnu, bebo, laddoo or pintoo in you, even when you are 40 years of age. But you need to tell them that you are growing up and a lot of things they expected from you may not remain so, any more. You have to tell them to stop worrying if you took your lunch in time or not. They have to stop worrying when you reached home last night. They have to let you run your life now. It's very important. If your company is posting you to a different city, it's you who has to decide, and not your parents. Professional decisions must be made with a certain degree of professional detachment. It's important, else you will miss out on opportunities! My appeal to parents will also be the same - let the kids grow as much as they can, on their own. Chances are, they will do a good job of it. Coming to the topic of friends - do not try to hang onto the same old set of friends as a matter of compulsion. You will meet new people on the workplace, and must develop new relationships of trust and companionship. Who knows, something much better may be in store. Also, practically speaking, as old friends tend to go their own ways, trying to hang onto them may prove to be too much of a burden for them as well! So Chunnu beta, let destiny take its own course. Let the core group of really close friends stay on forever, and let others make way for new ones. This is how a mature process will work.

These power tips should help you cruise smoothly through your first job. I hope your first job lasts really long, and you contribute meaningfully to everyone around you.

I wanted the best from life

And strangely, life was cruel to me

This was till I saw a mirror

And the reality dawned in an instant

As I sow, so shall I reap.

Best wishes!
~
Thanks to my colleagues Prof Varun Gupta CEO Proton Indore and Dr Manas Fuloria for a series of discussions that led to the creation of this blog. Varun was very clear about the challenges young students face, and Dr Manas added his special spice to it.