THE ‘REAL’WORLD OF FULL-TIMEWORK
One day, after an uncertain few months of applications and interviews, your search for a graduate job will finally be over. However, be warned: the transition from student to employee is rarely smooth and you won’t be able to get away with acting the same way you used to. To prepare yourself, now is as good a time as any to start thinking about cutting out some of those bad student habits.
QUIT THE FACEBOOK ADDICTION
Funnily enough, your new boss won’t be paying you to spend the whole day on social media. The same goes for mobile phone use. Appreciate when you are in work you are on someone else’s time and act accordingly.
STOP LIVING IN THE LIBRARY
Throughout your university education, the library (or Wikipedia) always had the answer whenever you were stuck. In the real world though that’s just not true. In the same way you can’t read a book to learn how to ride a bike, there’s no Work For Dummies guide to teach you how to do your job. Instead you’ll be learning as you go. If it seems unnerving, don’t worry; chances are the people you work with will still be learning things too. Don’t forget that it’s ok to ask if you don’t know how to do something.
BECOME A TEAM PLAYER
Use your social skills to your advantage and transfer them into working well as part of a team and communicating effectively with workmates.
MANAGE YOUR TIME
You may have had an abundance of free time at uni but full-time work is a different matter. Chances are you’ll need to adjust to early mornings, shorter lunch breaks and overtime.
SAVE THE PARTYING FOR THE WEEKEND
There’s nothing wrong with working hard and playing harder but the demands of a five-day working week mean it’s better to confine your late-night antics to the weekend. It may mean leaving your favourite mid-week club nights behind you but you’ll have 48 hours at the weekend to make up for lost time. Just make sure you’re fit for work on Monday