Situations That'll Always Feel Awkward When You're New At Work | Fusion - WeRIndia

When your are new at work it can be really overwhelming—whether it’s your first one or your 10th.

It is not that much easy to leave one environment you are used to and then make yourself comfortable in another one.

There are loads of unspoken rules you haven’t learned yet, and you have to get to know a whole new group of people, it took time to adjust in a new environment with new people.

But, as time goes on, there are certain situations that’ll become second nature or at least feel a little bit easier.

1. Understanding the Company Culture

Start to figure out your hours—by watching other people. Your manager and the rest of the team arrival time, behaviour. Observe your co-workers and see what is and isn’t acceptable at your new company.

Not just for your hours, but also for the dress code, email turnaround time expectations, meeting etiquette, and more. You won’t know all the ins and outs by day one, so it’s important to pay attention.

2. Saying “No”

“Yes!” “Sure!” “Absolutely.” “Would love to.” “Happy to help.”

In starting everyone is eager to prove themself as a hard worker and a team player.

But saying yes all the time isn’t necessarily a good thing. It can cause tasks to fall through the cracks, decrease the quality of your work, and end up leaving you majorly burnt out.

Saying no can be hard. But once you learn more about your roles and responsibilities and have a good rapport with your colleagues, it gets a heck of a lot easier. You’ll be able to discern what you have the capacity for and if you’re the right person to do it, and you’ll trust that the person you’re saying no to will respect your response.

3. Asking for Help

Being vulnerable doesn’t always feel good & admitting that you aren’t able to do something all by yourself can make you feel as if you aren’t making a good impression.

That’s not true, though. Because what’s worse: Trying to power through on your own and completely missing the mark, or requesting advice and knocking things out of the park? Answer: Missing the mark. So, ask away.

It’s tough at the beginning because, as mentioned above, you want to prove yourself. And how can you do that if you appear incompetent so early on? But, if you consistently work hard, you’ll build a good reputation around the office. And those few times you need guidance or someone to take something off your plate won’t feel all that bad.

4. Advocating for Yourself

Whether it’s asking for a raise, inquiring as to why your boss took you off a project, or defending yourself when someone throws you under the bus, sticking up for yourself is crucial–at work and in the rest of your life.

When you confidently put your needs and views forward, people will listen. No matter what happens because of that difficult conversation, you’ll know you’ve made your best effort to resolve a difficult and frustrating situation, and you’ll have a much clearer idea of how to move forward.

This seems intimidating at first. But as you start to find your place and become more confident in the work you do and the employee you are, you’ll feel more empowered to speak your mind.

Can you see the trend here? As you begin to feel more like an insider at your new job and less like an outsider, those situations that seemed awkward or even a little frightening will become no big deal.

Unfortunately, there’s no exact equation to when you’ll feel at ease with each one. But I can guarantee you that they’re all worth the time and initial discomfort.

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