New Hire Tips

Fitting in and adjusting to a new environment is both an art and a science. Remember your high school freshman year when you had to muster all your courage just to pass through the halls filled with senior year students? You might feel the same way, but the workplace demands a different approach. Aside from mastering skills required for financial jobs, banking jobs and other positions, you also need to learn how to blend in and start building relationships. Here are some tips:

• Try to talk with your new officemates. Your new co-workers will definitely show some warm welcome to you. Make sure you do your part as well by reaching out to them through conversations about the latest episode of everyone’s favorite comedy, among other things.
• Skip the personal stuff. Nothing is more of a turn-off than a new co-worker asking someone about topics that are too personal. If you want to make your co-worker feel that you want to be friends, let it happen naturally.

• Act friendly at all times. As the new guy, you are prone to first impressions that may or may not turn co-workers off. Even if you’re having a hard time learning all the new stuff you need for work, you still need to keep a smiling face that invites everybody to chat with you and treat you nicely.
• Ask them about where you can have lunch. This is a great conversation starter, plus you might even get an invitation from your new co-workers so you can have new lunch buddies.
• Or, bring lunch from home. Huddle everybody by bringing some tasty goodness from home. It can be as simple as cookies or as deliberate as cooking lunch for everyone.
• Don’t worry about not knowing about the office language. You will hear references from events in the past, such as the holiday party last 2009 or the boss who resigned because of a hurtful exchange with a co-worker. Simply ask them what it’s about and soon enough, you will hear more familiar stories.
• Don’t be too clingy. There’s a thin line between wanting to build a good working relationship and being just plain clingy. Make sure that you blend in naturally lest you be dismissed as plain invasive.
• Avoid inviting them to your personal events. Not yet. It might be awkward for them to say “no” and more awkward for them to stick out like a sore thumb in your mom’s birthday party.
• Also avoid talking about your former workplace. If you say something negative about your workplace, you might be perceived as someone who’s too negative and bitter. On the other hand, if you talk about your former company as having better benefits or being a better workplace, it will easily come off as an arrogant comment.