Starting out at a new company is kind of like driving a car in a foreign country for the first time. Sure, you know how to drive, but what about the road signs? The unspoken driving etiquette? Why aren’t people obeying that stop sign?! Think about it. When you’re starting out at a new company, you have to get adjusted to the company culture, policies, and responsibilities you’re given. Eventually, you start to adjust to the new changes, but it takes time.

I’d like to share five best practices that will help you adjust to your new environment more quickly, and better yet, set you up for long-term success. After onboarding over 200 people at Bluewolf, I’ve gleaned first-hand some powerful principles that will serve you well beyond your first few months:

1. Be Patient
   Everyone who starts a new job is eager to make a good impression and add value to their team. I commend this attitude; however, it’s important to pair it with perspective. The reality is that it often takes time to get your feet settled. If you aren’t progressing as quickly as you anticipated, don’t let it phase you. Instead, make it your goal to get a little better each day. If you do that, you’ll look back after a few weeks and see how far you’ve progressed.
2. Understand the Big Picture First
   You’re going to be inundated with new information during your first few weeks. During this time, I encourage you to picture each piece of new information as a rock. Some pieces of information are large rocks, whereas some pieces are like tiny grains of sand. If you’re putting these rocks in a jar (a.k.a. your brain), you don’t want to dump all the sand in first. Otherwise, you won’t have much room for the rocks. Instead, make sure the rocks are in first, then dump the sand in. The moral of this analogy? Don’t get bogged down on small details without first understanding the big picture. 
3. Be Proactive
   Starting a new job always takes you out of your comfort zone. If at any point during your onboarding you feel unsure of yourself or your environment, don’t hesitate to get help from your colleagues, manager, or onboarding support team. I also encourage you to be resourceful in the way you ask for help. For example, instead of simply saying “I don’t understand this,” try "Do you know of any resources I could review that would help me understand this better?"
4. Connect With Your Colleagues
   On your first day in your new office, I encourage you to walk around to every person at their desk and introduce yourself. If working remotely, schedule time with every person on your team and spend at least 15 minutes with them on the phone (or even better, over video call). By building connections with the people around you, you start to build a support system. Through the highs and lows at your job, you're going to need people with whom you can walk alongside, teammates who will celebrate your wins and provide encouragement through difficulties.
5. Show Appreciation
   It's a simple, yet often overlooked gesture. Over the course of your first 90 days, you'll be spending time with a lot of different people. An easy way to build rapport is to simply thank people for their time. And be genuine about it — nothing builds trust better than an honest show of appreciation.

While important for new hires, these principles can help set up any employee for success in their job. Whether you’re in your first week or a veteran employee at your company, I consider these principles to work and live by. 

Interested in joining a world-class organization? Join us — meet our Pack and see all open positions.