If you\u2019re reading this article, I\u2019d be willing to bet that you\u2019ve aced your interviews, made a great impression with your hiring managers and landed yourself an exciting new job.<\/p>\n
So, to start off, I\u2019d like to say congratulations!<\/p>\n
But while this is a huge opportunity and hopefully an incredibly exciting time in your career, it\u2019s understandable if you\u2019ve got those all-too-common new-job nerves.<\/p>\n
But don\u2019t worry\u2014I\u2019m here to help. Here are five things you can do to make sure your first day runs as smoothly as possible and make the best first impression with your new colleagues.<\/p>\n
On your first day, you\u2019re going to be taking in and processing lots of new information on your day-to-day role, your key responsibilities and how your company does things\u2014that\u2019s alongside trying to learn the names of all your new colleagues to avoid any embarrassing mix-ups!<\/p>\n
But amidst all the excitement, it can be easy to forget to ask those burning questions you might have about your role and what\u2019s expected of you.<\/p>\n
So, it can often be a good idea to write out your questions ahead of your first day. That way, when the opportunity arises, you\u2019ll have your list of questions already prepared and can rattle through them with the appropriate people.<\/p>\n
Not to mention, it\u2019ll help you make a great first impression, as your new managers and colleagues will take note of your preparedness and diligence.<\/p>\n
Here are some questions you might want to ask:<\/p>\n
Make your first few months a smashing success with tips and advice from our career experts. See our blog here.<\/a><\/strong><\/b><\/em><\/p>\n There\u2019s nothing quite worse than your laptop refusing to turn on five minutes before you\u2019re due to start work or being late for a Zoom meeting because you weren\u2019t quite sure how to join.<\/p>\n It goes without saying that technology is a huge part of the way we work today. So, familiarising yourself with the specific technologies and software that your company uses is one of the most beneficial things you can do before your first day. Not to mention, the more you can pick up ahead of time, the less you\u2019ll have to learn on the job.<\/p>\n “Ask them to list out the specific technologies and software you\u2019ll be working with.”<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n So, shoot your point of contact a quick email ahead of your start date and ask them to list out the specific technologies and software you\u2019ll be working with in your day-to-day role. That way, if there are any you might not be so familiar with, you\u2019ll have enough time to prepare.<\/p>\n For example, if you\u2019re predominantly a Windows user but you\u2019ll be working with a Macbook for your role, you could watch a few YouTube videos on how the macOS operating system works and how to set up and operate the device.<\/p>\n Many software providers also offer free trials or free basic accounts, so you could install software like Slack, Asana, Microsoft Teams or any other software you might not have previously used on your personal device and play around with how it works to familiarise yourself with it.<\/p>\n While you\u2019ve aced your interviews and clearly made a great impression on your hiring team, you still need to win over new colleagues and senior managers who don\u2019t yet know who you are, where you\u2019ve come from and what you\u2019ve accomplished professionally.<\/p>\n So, similarly to what you would\u2019ve prepared for your interview stages, it\u2019s worth putting together an elevator pitch to sell yourself and your experience. This will help you make a great impression on your new colleagues and prevent you from accidentally leaving out any impressive details about yourself and your achievements.<\/p>\n If you haven\u2019t written one before, a great elevator pitch should be brief enough for you to deliver it in the time it takes to ride an elevator\u2014hence its name. So, the ideal elevator pitch should last between 30 seconds to a minute. Be sure to cover:<\/p>\n Make the best first impression with our expert advice and guidance. See our blog here.\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/b><\/em><\/p>\n Whether you\u2019ll be working remotely, on a hybrid basis or in the office full time, it\u2019s worth performing a few test runs ahead of your first day to make sure everything goes smoothly. The last thing you want is to turn up late because you got lost during your commute or you hadn\u2019t set up your laptop.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re a remote worker, your equipment should arrive a week or so ahead of your first day. It\u2019s a good idea to get everything set up a few days in advance and to check everything is running as it should be\u2014you really don\u2019t want to leave this until the morning of your first day in case anything goes wrong.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t forget to also connect and test headphones, microphones, keyboards and any other peripheral devices you might need to use.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ll be working in the office at any point during your role, it\u2019s also worth performing a test run of your commute (whether you plan to drive or take public transport) to map out your route and check that it\u2019s suitable and sustainable. It\u2019s also a good idea to make sure you know exactly where your office is, as you don\u2019t want to waste time searching for the right building on your first morning.<\/p>\n If you plan to drive, also be sure to locate and familiarise yourself with the company car park or find somewhere suitable to park if there isn\u2019t one. You don\u2019t want to turn up on the day and realise your office is in the middle of a busy city centre with no designated parking.<\/p>\n Lastly, relax! And make sure you get a good night\u2019s sleep. This can feel like it\u2019s easier said than done when you have pre-first-day nerves, but turning up feeling stressed and sleep deprived isn\u2019t going to help anyone.<\/p>\n Firstly, if you\u2019re feeling nervous about your ability to do the role, remember that they hired you because you\u2019re the most competent and capable person for the job.<\/p>\n “All you can do is your best\u2014and that\u2019s all that your future colleagues will ask for.”<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n If the role is more senior than the one you\u2019ve just left or has higher levels of responsibility, remind yourself that you\u2019ll need to take some time to learn the ropes and not to expect too much of yourself during your first few weeks. All you can do is your best\u2014and that\u2019s all that your future colleagues will ask for.<\/p>\n To help, we\u2019ve written an article on three of the most common self-doubts you might experience when starting your new job and how to combat them\u2014read it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Secondly, aim to get between 7\u20138 hours of sleep the night before your first day. Countless scientific studies have proven that lack of sleep negatively impacts your concentration levels, alertness, productivity, memory and ability to take in and process new information. Instead, you want to feel energised, motivated and ready to leap into your new role feet first.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ll be needing to wake up a little earlier than you\u2019re used to, a good trick is to adjust your sleep schedule a week or so ahead of time. That way, you\u2019ll already be accustomed to the earlier mornings and reduce the likelihood that you\u2019ll wake up feeling groggy on your first day.<\/p>\n After following our five tips, you\u2019ll be ready to take on whatever your first day throws at you. Remember:\u00a0you can do it. And good luck!<\/p>\n For more expert tips and advice on not only making the best first impression during your first few months at your new job but also how to ahead in your career further down the line,\u00a0take a look at our blog here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Alternatively, if you\u2019re looking to level up your skillsets in advance of your first day, take a look at our new\u00a0Identifi Learning and Development platform<\/a>, which offers more than 200 industry-recognised courses and qualifications for ambitious learners, like you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you\u2019re reading this article, I\u2019d be willing to bet that you\u2019ve aced your interviews, made a great impression with your hiring managers and landed yourself an exciting new job. So, to start off, I\u2019d like to say congratulations! But while this is a huge opportunity and hopefully an incredibly exciting time in your career,… Read More »5 ways to prepare for your first day at your new job<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16224,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career-management"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16050"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16050\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16167,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16050\/revisions\/16167"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/16224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.identifiglobal.com\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}2.\u00a0Familiarise Yourself With Company Software and Technology<\/h2>\n
3. Perfect Your Elevator Pitch<\/h2>\n
\n
4. Test Run Everything<\/h2>\n
5. Relax! And Have a Good Night\u2019s Sleep<\/h2>\n
Make Your First Day a Smashing Success<\/h2>\n