Career advice

Some professional pitfalls to watch out for as you transition from school to work

So, you're graduating with a newly minted degree and launching your post-school career. Congratulations on your academic achievement, and welcome to the Real World! People often struggle in their first jobs with the transition from life as a student to the demands and responsibilities placed on them as an employee earning a paycheque.

The cultural shift can be jarring.

Here are a few of the key issues that many young people contend with when they start their first real job after graduating from college or university.

Being on time

Punctuality may sound like a small thing, but in the early days of your career, it can make or break your success. In university, you can miss a class, slip into the back discretely if you're late, or duck out early if you have something else to do. All that really matters is that you ace the exams and hand in your term papers on time. Even then, if you have a sympathetic professor and a decent excuse, you can often get an extension.

When you have a job that pays you for a certain amount of set hours and a schedule, you have to be there. Sauntering in late, slipping out early, or missing deadlines for deliverables are all grounds for termination. Even if this doesn't get you fired, it will certainly stunt your growth.

Your first few jobs are the time when you start to craft your professional reputation and build a network of supporters who will recommend you for bigger and better gigs in the future. You don't want to squander that opportunity by acting like you're still in college, oversleeping the alarm, and saying the dog ate your essay.

Get up early, show up on time, and do your best work until the end of the shift. It will set you apart from all of your coworkers who don't. Plus, no one was ever made happy by being a slacker. Show them what you can do.

Dress code

While many workplaces don't have a formal dress code these days, some still do. Find out from Human Resources or your manager if there is a policy on dressing for the office. Many casual work environments still have rules about shorts in summer or jeans. Even those companies that do not have any formal regulations regarding attire will still have a workplace culture. You will want to try to fit in.

In university, it is a time of self-discovery. You are encouraged to be free-thinking and creative. For many, this includes how they present themselves. Throwing off the more conformist shackles of high school, people often take on a new look. The sky is the limit for a new hair color, piercings and tattoos, and different fashion styles.

In the workplace, however, you will be part of a team that represents the employer's brand. Some will be more particular than others about how their staff presents themselves while at work. This doesn't necessarily mean that you have to dress like everyone else, just that you fit within the range of appearance that is acceptable to the company.

If your appearance is a significant part of your identity and self-expression, then seek out workplaces with more creative and accepting cultures to ensure that you are a good fit with the environment. You won't be happy or prosperous in a workplace culture where you feel oppressed or as though you have to fight to be who you are. Just know that going in, the rules are different at work than they were in school.

See: Red Flags that You Shouldn't Take the Job

Long days

One thing you can say about university life is that you move around a lot. You have classes with changing professors and classmates in different classrooms and auditoriums, often even in different buildings. You run around campus at a schedule corresponding to the courses you selected. (Sometimes artfully chosen to have no classes on a Friday or a Monday. Nice work if you can get it.)

The change to spending eight hours or more in one place for five days a week once you're on the job can take its toll on some people. It may seem like an incredibly long period of time to spend in a single setting with the same people working on the same project. You do get used to it, but it may seem interminable at first.

Plus, some jobs have more variety of locations and activities than others.

This can be part of the learning curve as you build your career after graduation. What kind of workstyle do you want? Will you seek out jobs that have a great deal of social interactions or where you can work in isolation? Do you want your work to include dealing with the public, being a part of a team, travelling? There's usually some trial and error involved in finding the right work environment for you.

Reduced social life

One of the jarring differences you may notice in your first few months on the job is the diminishment of your social life. It seemed like back at school, people thought nothing of hitting the pub on a weeknight, and there were always friends around and social activities to take part in.

Once everyone has a job to go to, with alarms waking them up early, commutes to and from work, and long days at the office, most have a lot less time and energy for getting together with friends. This is particularly true during the week. You may find that your social life transitions from just having your buddies around all the time to pre-planned get-togethers on the weekends. It's a part of growing up that many find lonely at first.

Ideally, you can find a workplace culture where you meet like-minded people you can share a laugh with once in a while. When you work with people whose company you genuinely enjoy, it makes the job better. If you make new friends at work, you could find that your career is expanding rather than contracting your social life. You'll still probably go out a lot less often during the week, though.

Be prepared. The rules are different, the culture is different, and there are many more demands on your time when you start a job. On the bright side, however, you were paying them thousands of dollars for your education at school. At work, they're paying you. It's the start of a new adventure – and financial independence.

Now, start it off right. Here's how to ace the learning curve at your first job. 

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