All of us dream about acing that interview in the first go for our dream job. But, the reality is?much different. There are plenty of highs and lows you experience. Add a pandemic to the mix and the process becomes tougher.
'College ke baad mazze hi mazze hain' is a statement that turned out to be a lie, as you'll soon realise. The truth is there are plenty of changes we have to make room for. Class se seedha cubicle is one tough road to navigate, more so during a pandemic.?
So you have the right expectations from the start, we've prepared this list of things that will change if you're going to start your first job soon:
With this whole scenario of working from home now, people seem to have forgotten the difference between office hours and non-working hours. Some managers (not mine) feel that they have the liberty to contact you at any hour of the day, regardless of you being on the clock or not.?
Now, if you want to avoid that, being a first-timer and all, make it very clear to your managers that once work is over, you have other commitments (like your life) to get back to. In order to not come off as someone who does not want to do their job, you can simply express the fact that you have done your work in the stipulated amount of time and any extra work that comes your way after that needs to be scheduled for tomorrow.?
Well, I would have loved to tell you that you can amp up your wardrobe with formal clothes but since we are all attending meetings from the comfort of our bedrooms or workstations at home, there won't be a significant change in the way you dress. However, for the sake of professionalism and a good first impression, how you present yourself during Zoom meetings can go a long way.?
Even if you aren't a coffee drinker, you will be one soon. Once you start working, caffeine becomes your go-to drink because even if you pulled through six classes every day for college, working for eight hours can be tougher. There are no lies when I tell you that without that morning cup of coffee, you won't be able to get through the day. As long it's done in moderation, you should be fine.
Of course, you will make plenty of friends at work. However, the same will be a little more difficult since you will be working from home. But what you need to understand is that you can't talk to your colleagues the way you did with your friends.?
There's a line you don't want to cross because, at the end of the day, you're all professionals working together. If you are someone who is used to getting their way all the time around friends, it might be time to keep that attitude in check and understand that your colleagues don't owe you anything and will most likely not indulge you the way your college friends did.
Yes, going to the office is great because you are surrounded by people but the closest thing to any company you will have while starting your new job from home is G chat or Zoom video calls. There is no chatter of busy bees at home and you will be left with your system and your thoughts for eight hours every day unless you decide to go to a cafe and work from there (not exactly the cheapest thing to do). It gets better with time. Trust me.
When you are at work, you get to eat lunch with your teammates at a proper hour because that's just how it is. However, with the way things have turned out, you will probably be grabbing a bite with one hand and typing with the other. It is not exactly the healthiest way to live so I would advise you to ensure that you take a proper lunch break and grab your meal away from your screen.?
If you think once you have your work laptop in your hands, everything is good to go, you are wrong. From power cuts to WiFi failure, working from home comes with a lot of problems. Now, if you are a seasoned employee like me, you know that you need to be prepared for any sort of trouble. So, in case you forget to charge your laptop or phone the night before, you could be in a fix. No, you might not piss off your manager because no one can help you with all this but you will get behind on your work. So, charge it all before hitting the pillow so that you need end up running here and there looking for solutions.
Is there anything on your mind that you would like to add to this list? Are you a first-time worker suffering through any of these problems? Let us know in the comments section.