First day advice. -Reply

[Christine Fedruk <CFED44 -at- CBOT -dot- COM>]

Jonathan,
First of all, congratulations! Great way to start the new year. :-)

There's so much to say, but you did ask for BRIEF advice... so here are
two of my personal favorites:

(1) Accept the fact that you're inexperienced, and be open to new ways
of doing things. While "faking competence" is often necessary, I've
learned so much more by asking for help / direction from those who've
been around the block a few more times. Your supervisors KNOW that
you're a newbie -- and now is one of the few times you're allowed to be
new. Take advantage of this opportunity before it passes!

(2) Curb the urge to reform your new environment -- at least for the first
month or two. I know -- you've probably got all kinds of great ideas from
those Organizational Management classes and can't wait to put your
theories into practice... but I beg you to consider keeping them to yourself
for a little while! :-)

If you keep your eyes and ears open--suspending judgement on your
coworkers's prejudices and habits--you'll find out about office politics...
the reasons behind some seemingly stupid policies... who supports
what... who cooperates and who's a bottleneck... and you'll have a
better idea about where you can make the best impact. To quote one of
my favorite profs: "Before you tear down a fence, you ought to find out
who built it in the first place -- and why." (and the best way to find out,
many times, is to keep your mouth shut.)

I know these aren't techwhirl-specific, but they're a couple of the most
valuable lessons I learned during my first few jobs...

Good luck, and let us know how you're doing.
Christine
Chicago, IL

>>> <jsoukup -at- ESKIMO -dot- TAMU -dot- EDU> 12/31/97 10:17am >>>
I start my first real job straight out of college on Monday. ... Anyone have
any brief advice for a promising new tech writer for his first
day/week/month on the job?


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