Challenges of Starting a New Job: How to Handle Them?

A blog about those who have just started a job or are going to start working in a new team.

Many people adapt to a new environment with no issues, thanks to their jovial nature, while others overcome huge and difficult hardships with a need of someone to help them out.

In any case, challenges, hardships and difficulties are quite normal when you are starting a new job. The fact how we perceive the situation and issues is another thing.

Today we are going to talk about the main problems that come up when we start a new job as well as their solutions.

Adapt to a team

Problem

When we try to understand the ways of becoming a part of a new job culture, it sometimes ends up to be quite disappointing. The working style and approaches are different. The relationships with team members face a barrier or don’t even move forward.

Even the lunch break may become a problem: You like homemade food and eat it, while the team, for example, likes to order fast food.

Solution

Get to know your colleagues by working on team projects. It contributes to your common interests, creates trust and allies at the workplace. Ask questions if you don’t understand anything. Be friendly and respectful. Your positive treatment, manners and habits will demonstrate that you are a professional. It takes time to gain your colleagues’ trust. In order to match the ideas of both sides, firstly listen and follow, and later on start suggesting changes based on their habits.

Solution by the team members

When a new member joins the team, remember that s/he has 90 days to reach their limits.

Research shows (details below) that 30% of employees quit the job in the first 3 months, which is the important 3-month trial period for the new hires. This means that newcomers have 90 days to reach their collapse. But in this stage the company needs the employee’s support as much as the latter needs the company’s support.

As teammates show some attention, care and patience towards the new employee in order to create good and productive relationships with him/her.

Understand and distribute the information accurately

Problem

One of the hardest sides of starting a new job is that you have to catch up with the rest of the team, especially when you are substituting someone. Although good managers understand and expect that a training period is necessary, the business cannot stop functioning. So it is important to clarify a special period for the employee to grasp the information and use it practically. Hence the employees face enormous amounts of data and appear in clueless situations.

Solution

Discuss everything in detail with the person that is handing in the work to you on the very first day. Ask them to provide you with a document claiming all your duties and methods of doing them. Make notes about which tools you need for this or that function, which teammate you will work with to complete the task. Speak with the team and tell them that you need a 2-week period to perceive, analyze and put into practice the whole information. Ask them not to load you with extra information, as it would be unproductive.

Solution by the team members

When a new member joins the team, it is also difficult for the team itself. Putting aside personal relations, the team might face difficulties in adapting to the newcomer’s work rhythm, as s/he works more slowly than the previous employee due to the lack of information or knowledge on work execution processes.

In these kinds of situations you need to help the teammates to receive, perceive and distribute the information from the right person. Everyone should understand that the new team member cannot do everything at the same time. Gather and transfer the information part by part.

Job workload distribution

Problem

Regardless of the fact that you are an intern or a full-time employee, you are going to have many overpacked as well as free days at the beginning. This can make you misunderstand the work and the time needed to complete it.

Solution

You can use every situation to your advantage. If you don’t have much to do, you may get to know your teammates, ask them some questions and ask them to teach you something in their free time. There will be a time when you will have to do many things briefly and will have to learn many new things fast. This is when you will implement the information you had learnt when you had free time and will start to communicate comfortably with others and do quality work.

Solution by the team members

When you notice that the new teammate is overloaded with work and is unable to do the right distribution of work, support them in the right distribution and management of their work. Bring some examples regarding previous situations and their solutions. Give some advice by approaching the situation with a sense of awareness and listen to the new teammates opinion concerning everything.

These and several other problems arise during the first 90 days of work. During this period it is essential to dedicate yourself fully to the work and not to spare anything, taking into account the work – life balance. Besides the above mentioned 3 problems and their solutions, we have gathered some tips for you, whether you do or don’t have problems while starting a new job.

Clarify your expectations. Create a list of your duties together with your boss and define deadlines for them. Ask for some feedback to make sure you are on the right path.
Find a work model. An experienced team member can provide the newcomer with an insight into the office protocol and performance expectations. Refer to your manager or a more experienced coworker for reporting and communication issues.
Follow, listen and learn. Every organization has its unwritten rules. Follow how an experienced employee tackles the issues and try to copy their behavior.
Have a coffee or lunch together. Get to know your colleagues in non-official environments in order to start closer relationships.
Travel with others. Use some methods to get to know employees of other departments. This way you will get to know the culture, practices and values of the organization.
Ask questions. Not asking enough questions is the main mistake the new employees make when they are starting a new job. When you have a doubt concerning anything, clarify it.
Keep the balance. Act confident but don’t report everything. Take in the whole information before making decisions or presenting offers.