>> How to succeed in your first year

Finally landed that new job you love? Congratulations! Once you’ve celebrated, we have some advice to start looking into the future.

Maybe it’s a bit early but everyone starts a new job with the mindset that this is going to be the place for the coming years. Pearson & Partners believes that you already have to start thinking about your first year on your first day. This helps you succeed within the company and start targeting the  goals you set out for yourself.

How to plan your future? Here are some tips (not in a particular order)

Start by setting up a list of goals and edit them along the way, you must know what your goals are if you want to achieve them. Examples: which problems do you want to solve? What do you want to learn? What do you want to achieve? Etcetera. This way you know you’re on the right track, discuss this with your manager so you can start achieving together.

If you started to get familiar with your colleagues, company culture and the role. Start looking for problems you can fix and make a roadmap for them. You can always edit them along the way.

Make sure you have periodic updates with your manager. Your manager is probably in that position because he has been where you are, keep periodic updates with him so he knows where you stand, want to go and keep track of your progress together. A good manager can advise you what you need to do to keep hitting those goals.

Keep editing and updating, a philosopher once said Its okay to aim high and miss but I’m going to have a real problem if you aim low and hit. Challenge yourself and try to set out realistic goals that cost effort. You don’t know if your goals are high or low when you plan them, but time will tell. So you keep reviewing your goals.

Salary raise or contract extension, don’t wait till the last day or last month of your contract to discuss this. If you periodically check in with your manage, make sure you discuss this as well, plan a date couple months or weeks in advance where you’re going to discuss this issue. He then knows where you are going to talk about, and you can both come into the meeting prepared. Don’t be scared to talk about this, if you believe in yourself and you know you’re more skilled that your first day asking for a reward is not something you should feel ashamed about.

Believe in your capabilities and know that you need time to master something. You’re not going to be the best on the workplace in the first 6-12 months. You don’t know the matter, the company etc. you’re just getting started so be gentle and know that overtime you’ll crush this.

I hope some of these pointers help you getting started and know what to do the coming year. We at Pearson & Partners hope you’re going to crush this new job!