12 outdates features of web

What Are the Most Valuable Lessons to Learn From a First Job?

Image: Getty Creative, Thomas Barwick

What were the best things you learned in your first job?
Answer by Michael Chen, director of media, social and tech investing at Participant Media.
My first job was at a management consulting firm. Though I did not particularly enjoy the two years [I spent there], I learned a lot of things that have been helpful as my career has progressed. Below are a few of the main points.

• Early on, attitude matters as much or more than actual output. No one likes working with a [jerk], even if they are good at the job. If you are truly extraordinary, you can get away with it — but most of us aren't that good at any one thing.
• Unless you are the CEO, regardless of your job title or job description, your actual job is to make your boss/supervisor's life easier. The sooner you realize it's about them and not you, the smoother things will be.
• Take performance reviews with a grain of salt; they will never be perfectly accurate. As with all things, human bias and irrationality is built into the system. You are typically not as good or as bad as whatever your review explicitly says. Use whatever you get as feedback that you can process, and choose whether or not you want to make those changes.
• Attention to detail matters a lot, so learn to be detail-oriented, even if that's not your normal mode of operation. In the workplace, it's all about building trust. Check everything twice, and be really on top of your game — this is the easiest way to build trust over time.

• Be a net 'adder' of energy to a room, not a net remover of energy. It almost always pays to be positive, even when disagreeing.

  Be a net 'adder' of energy to a room, not a net remover of energy. It almost always pays to be positive, even when disagreeing.
• No amount of money is worth being bored. If you aren't engaged with what you do, switch it up (unless there are extreme extenuating circumstances, such as family obligations).
• When you start off, your work may mostly consist of tasks you don't necessarily want to do. As you become more senior and earn more trust, you earn the right to take on work/jobs that consist of a higher percentage of tasks you enjoy.
• Culture fit/match is a big deal; you can be a total stud in one setting, and a total dud in another, even while acting exactly the same. Be honest with yourself when looking for a culture in which you enjoy working — and for those of you that are [averse to] doing things anyone else's way, start something yourself.
• If you don't tell your coworkers or boss what you want, they have no way of knowing. By just accepting the status quo, you are implicitly saying you are okay with the way things are. When making your goals and wishes known, be respectful and thoughtful, not entitled or greedy.
• You won't figure out what you want to do for the rest of your life from your first job. (Some people do, but it's rare.) Instead, focus on A/B testing in your own life — try to absorb all the things you experience and figure out what you enjoy, what you don't enjoy, what type of people you like working with, etc. Use the first job to gain exposure to as many variations as possible, so you can make better choices going forward.

Answer by Jon Mixon, seasoned job seeker.
Below are a few thoughts on the most valuable lessons to take away from a first job:

• You can't avoid office politics. It doesn't matter if you are a janitor or a CEO of your own business: There are always office politics.
• You'll never have a job that you "can't" quit.
  

  If you are being mistreated, exploited or under-appreciated, leave.

  If you are being mistreated, exploited or under-appreciated, leave. You'll eventually find another job (although there are no promises it will be a better).
• You learn by listening, not talking. You'll learn more by listening rather than talking in almost every professional setting.
• Always keep an eye out for other opportunities. When hunting, you don't load your weapon as soon as you see an animal; you do it before you go into the woods. Why wait until you need to look for a job to look for a job?
• Don't tell your co-workers about your personal business. Unless you want (or need) your personal affairs to become fodder for office gossip, leave them out of your job.
• If you are genuinely sick, don't come to work. Regardless of whatever you hear, stay home and get well. Your co-workers don't want (or need) to get your illness.
• Always say "please" and "thank you" when it is appropriate to do so. Nobody likes rude or uncouth co-workers, and manners go a long way.
• Think before you speak. If it doesn't sound "good" in your head, it will sound even worse from your mouth.
• Avoid people with bad attitudes. They'll just bring you down or make you cynical.
• Remember that a job is an inanimate object. Never love it, because it will never love you. If you have to "love" something, love the work that you do, not where you do it.