You got the job! Now what?

Written by Lauren Lind

Congratulations on landing your dream job! All your hard work has paid off. Now what? You should be focused on gaining respect, visibility, and credibility now that you are in the role that you always wanted. This beginning time period of your career will set the path for your long-term success. Here are some ideas for what exactly you should do:

• Call everyone who is important to you and share the fantastic news. Jump up and down and scream! You have to get that out of the way first.

• Next, let other companies that have offered you a position know that you have decided to take a position elsewhere. Be respectful and don’t leave them hanging.

• You must become very clear on what is expected in the role and what your new responsibilities are. It'd be a good idea to set up a meeting with your boss to clarify your duties and ask any questions.

• Be sure to align yourself with your company's business priorities, culture and mission statement. Ask many questions, ask for feedback,  and try to remember new faces.

• Start to form positive relationships with your new coworkers. Remain understanding, clear, and honest. This will aid in building in-house networks. Reach out to everyone including the mail guy, the security guard, the IT guy, and your manager’s executive assistant. You need all the support you can get to enhance your professional career in the future. Be sure to be genuine when you talk with these people or your good intentions might be misread.

• Make it a priority to be on time, keep commitments, and meet deadlines.

• As time goes on, make sure you show your eagerness for advancement within the company through your actions of accepting challenges and completing goals.

• Have fun and do not overwork yourself. Find a balance and although you are enthusiastic about the job, make sure you take “me-time.”

For more information on what to do once you have landed the job, be sure to check out the event “Adapt For a Changing World” on December 4th from 3:00-4:00pm in the Center for Community room S484. This event is part of the CU Buffs Professional Program, which supports you working at your own pace to explore CU-Boulder majors and connect the dots to your career. This program is only open to current CU-Boulder undergraduate students. For more information, call our front desk at 303-492-6541.


Contributors: Ford R Myers with careerpotential.com, Dorothy Tannahill-Moran with makeithappennow.com.