Tips on Surviving the First Day on the Job

You finally get the call. After 3 intense interviews, you’ve been hired. You’re excited, but the feeling soon wears off because it’s replaced with first day jitters. Fear not, because your first day checklist will provide tips on surviving the first day on the job.

Assuming that you start on Monday, you will go to your local Walmart on Saturday. Pick up a new steno pad and a pack of pens. This will not only provide the illusion that you are a prepared employee, but you will be jotting down some notes on the second page of the steno pad that will get you through the day. Make sure that they are on the second page. You may forget that they are there, and you do not want your nosey neighbor knowing that you wrote “fake it till you make it” on the top line. That’s correct. Write this in bold letters. When you walk through that door, you are clueless, and that’s ok. You need to be reminded that you will get through everything, but until then, you will carry yourself, like you know everything.

All the while, you will soak up any information that will contribute to you getting through that first day of employment. First impressions last. Write this beneath your first mantra. You have already walked through the door between 12 and 14 minutes early (hint). If you’re too early, you may annoy the receptionist. She will be starting her day, and nothing is worse than multiple clueless employees already waiting at your desk on a Monday morning. Never tick off the gate keeper. Of course you will not be late. If you are late on your first day, you become that person. It’s very hard to shake that association, once it is implanted in someone’s head. By the way, until notified differently, you are dressed as if this is another interview. Your attire shows the level of how much you care.

Please care. This is your livelihood. Your third bullet point will be one word. “Smile.” This simple act, provides a comfortability to those around us. Until we truly get to know each other, this not only breaks the ice, but provides a comfort level to the people that we meet. How you finish is just as important as how you start. Thank your trainer before you leave. It shows an appreciation that is valued in work culture.

Consistently check your second page throughout your first day, as a reminder of your first day conduct. In the meantime, you will take notes and readily adapt to any changes in your expectations. After all, tomorrow is another day!