4 Questions to Ask Yourself When Starting a New Job

By Arnie Fertig

This is prime time for college graduates and families of all types to relocate, often seeking or beginning new jobs in different locations. Whether you are entering the workforce for the first time or beginning a new mid-career job, this can be a summertime cocktail of great opportunity mixed with angst and a twist of risk.

You likely feel great, having passed through the gauntlet of the hiring process. And who doesn't feel enthused when a manager says: "I want you to be on my team"? It is a well-deserved ego boost!

Problems can arise, however, when you let that sense of elation go to your head and overinflate your sense of self-worth into an aura of self-importance.

For example, when you enter a new job convinced you'll show everyone "how it's done" based solely on the way you are accustomed to doing things at your former employer, you are liable to be branded as inflexible rather than as an expert. Efforts to show your value to a new team can be misread, and you run the risk of seeming uninterested in fitting in to your new environment.

It's time to ask yourself a few important questions to help your own onboarding success: