What you need to do when starting a new role
Mark Wager is an international leadership expert who regularly runs programmes in Fiji. Mark can be contacted at Mark@ Leadership.com.fj
There’s going to be a lot of change coming up which will mean a lot of people are going to be in new jobs whether it’s due to an internal promotion or an opportunity with a new employer.
This transition can be very stressful for people. In this week’s article I want to share some practical tips on how to handle moving into a new role.
Tip one: It’s natural to have selfdoubt
It’s common to have doubts when facing a new challenge and when this happens you can start to feel like you are the only person in the world feeling this way yet you are not alone.
I’ve coached many successful people who are generally considered to be amongst the best within their chosen field and everyone of them without exception have to deal with self-doubt.
It’s the people who don’t have any doubts that end up getting into trouble.
Self-doubt is a self-defence mechanism.
Whenever a person is faced with uncertainty the mind defaults to negative thoughts such as “I’m not sure I’m the right person for this” “I don’t know if I can do this job.” “They have made a mistake in selecting me.”
These negative thoughts are designed to keep us away from uncertainty but the mind is not perfect. These thoughts are not as a result of you having a lack of skills but they exist because you don’t have the necessary information in order to predict what is going to happen.
Tip two: Define success
When you are starting a new role the first thing you need to do is to have a chat with your immediate supervisor or Manager.
With a new role comes a whole new set of expectations and different people have different expectations so it’s important to make sure that everyone shares the same understanding.
You need to ask what success looks like. If in six months time you are doing a great job in your new role then what would that look like.
This brief conversation will save you and your Boss much more time in the future when you are avoiding misunderstandings.
Tip three: Establish your needs
You can’t do a good job unless you have the tools to do so.
This may be in the form of having the necessary equipment, the appropriate staffing levels or even having realistic targets and now is the right time to discuss this.
If you say nothing and then six months later you use a lack of resources as a reason for not reaching your targets then it puts you in a weak position because your objections have been realised so late. I understand there may be some hesitancy about having this conversation in the middle of all the excitement of a new role but remember you have been hired because of your expertise and knowledge so why would you withhold that expertise if you genuinely believe you need more resources. Have the conversation and the worst scenario is that you have to make do with what you have which is the same outcome of not having a conversation.
Tip four: Clarify how your Boss works
In the same theme of establishing expectations in order to avoid future misunderstandings you also need to ask your immediate Manager or Supervisor how they work. Everyone needs to be managed in different ways.
I remember training a Manager who always liked giving her team space in order for them to do their job.
When I spoke to her team one member said how much they appreciated the truth and faith the Manager had in them to do their job, the fact that she rarely touched base with them was a good thing but another team member felt that the lack of contact was a sign that the Manager didn’t care.
Neither employee was right or wrong it’s just that everyone likes to be managed in different ways. Take time to find out how your Boss works and how that lines up with what you are used to.
I’m not saying you can change your Boss but you can better understand them and that will make your work life a lot easier.
Tip five: Ask how you can help your Boss
The people who progress fastest through an organisation are the individuals who are consistently adding value, but you can’t add value unless you know what value to add. Remember the words of U.S. President John F Kennedy who said “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,” and apply the same thinking to your new role. What can you do to add value to your new organisation beyond your new `role and with your Manager specifically ask what do they need from you in order for them to have full confidence that you are doing a great job.