2017 graduates will soon find themselves working at their first jobs, an exciting and intimidating prospect. Rhonesha Byng, founder and CEO of Her Agenda, gives advice to millennials just starting out in their careers. Her recent Forbes article gives suggestions on how you can earn respect, gain responsibility, and establish yourself at your first job. These five tips are our favorites.
- Create trust. Building trust can be as easy as simply doing your job, and doing it well. Instead of looking to advance right away, focus on performing all of your tasks, no matter how small, perfectly. Demonstrating that you’re competent and reliable will help you build trust, respect, and a good reputation.
- Realize that things aren’t beneath you. According to Byng, you can learn lessons from even the smallest tasks. Things that seem mundane can actually demonstrate your value – every small task you take care of frees up other people to do their jobs better.
- Get involved. Go to meetings whenever you can, and take part. Work up the courage to speak up and contribute whenever possible, even if your idea isn’t quite perfect yet. If you don’t, your colleagues might see you as uninterested or disengaged. If you’re nervous, observe what other people do at meetings.
- Add your own value. Sometimes being the youngest employee can be an advantage. When you complete your job tasks, look for ways to go above and beyond that play to your strengths. You can carve out a niche for yourself by doing something unique.
- Connect with people. Develop relationships with coworkers at all levels by shadowing them or volunteering to help them out with something. If any of your coworkers offer to take you out for lunch or coffee, make it happen. Talk with HR about who in your organization you could reach out to.
