Build a foundation for future success
How to Use Your First Job to Build a Career
With that fresh certificate, diploma, or degree in hand you are most likely eager to get to work. Your first job is not only a big deal in terms of your years of education paying off, but it’s also a stepping stone to the rest of your years to come in the industry.
There are some key unwritten rules to take into consideration while starting your first job and ensuring your success within your new company and role.
Your behavior when beginning a new job may hold more weight than you think. Your attitude and personality will determine your acceptance by not only management but the team you will be working alongside. Its your opportunity to build your work ethics and instill a strong foundation of who you are and what you can and are willing to do.
By earning the respect of your peers the more relationships you will build that can help carry you into your future.
Here are a couple tips to help you ensure that you build a strong foundation to help build your career.
Always Be Willing To Grow
In every field, industry, and role there is always something new to learn and the more you learn the better. If you are willing to learn new information and techniques both inside and outside of your current role and take the initiative the more knowledge and transferable skills you’ll obtain.
Management loves when a person is willing to explore outside of their comfort zone to learn new things and will take notice of your drive and curiosity. Just make sure that learning doesn’t take you away from your responsibilities.
Networking is Key
In some cases, it’s not always what you know, but who you know. After firmly establishing yourself within your company you can start to integrate into your professional community.
Whether it be a networking event or tagging along with co-workers from a different department, there is always the opportunity to meet someone new. In this day and age of social media and online networking the more people you know the better as you may be able to fall back on or depend on them for professional advice, or even when job hunting.
Building Your Career
Although both of these factors are common sense you would be surprised how true they are. You may not believe them until you witness it first hand after you’ve further integrated into your role.
Just remember, the things you do today may affect what you do later on in life so make smart judgments and try not to fall into things like office politics as well as other potentially negative situations.
Think of your first job as building a bridge to further and better possibilities for your future, like landing your dream job, and you don’t want to burn that bridge before your year is up.