Careers Hub | 5 tips for rocking your first day at a new job

The first day at a new job is not always the most pleasant. Many of us cringe at the thought of having to make an excellent first impression on new colleagues and managers. However, if you know how to tackle the first day, it is a great opportunity to set the tone from day one.

Follow these five tips to turn your first encounter into your advantage!

1. BE CONFIDENT

Confidence is the key to making a good impression, looking people in the eye, and not being afraid to ask questions. Also, be calm and take your time to make your way around the office when meeting new team members. People will sense insecurity in your body language and speech straight away, so set the tone by being confident in yourself and your abilities.

2. DO SOME RESEARCH

Get yourself a head start by looking at the company website and social media pages to gather as much knowledge as you can about its practices, employees and values. This will prevent you from getting an overkill of new information and help you be able to leave a good impression as it shows your interest in the business and willingness to learn.

3. DRESS TO IMPRESS

When Forbes discusses the “oh so important” first impression, this becomes crucial to an employees’ success. When arriving for your first day in a new workplace, colleagues will not have much to judge you on (trust us, they will; good or bad). Therefore, your appearance is your main selling point and the clothes you wear play an integral role in this. Try to dress the part, but don’t forget to be genuine in your own style. If you are not sure what to wear, take a glimpse at the co-workers during your job interview. It goes without saying that different companies, or even different teams or departments within a company, dress differently. Further to this, within a sales recruitment agency, corporate wear may be worn when greeting candidates and clients; however, more casual and comfortable attire may be worn when working within the office.

4. TAKE NOTES

Taking notes may sound old fashioned, but it is actually a great way of showing your interest and will, of course, help you to process and remember the information that you will be getting on your first day. Nothing is more annoying than asking questions for simple things that were explained to you earlier that day. Being able to cite colleagues after meeting them for the first time is a huge plus and will be sure to impress early on.

5. ARRIVE EARLY

The last thing that you want to happen is arriving late on your very first day. Aim to arrive about 10 minutes before the set time to make sure you will be on time. Especially when taking public transportation, figure out how you need to get there and maybe even do a dry run a couple of days before to minimise stress on the first day.

Bonus Tip: Many companies these days now have very flexible policies on the use of mobile phones. On your first day, however, put grandma’s wishes of best luck on hold for now. Please turn it off and keep it in your pocket.

The five tips above will give you an excellent foundation for a solid first day at the office.

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