I think I have a healthy work environment right now, so here are some things I’ve learned that I didn’t learn (and which became nasty sources of anxiety) during my first corporate job or for the first few years of running my business:
-Most, if not all, businesses have process inefficiencies and it’s normal to feel like you’re doing something in an annoying or hacky way.
-Good managers and coworkers will appreciate you bringing these up.
-Good managers and coworkers will be interested in you taking steps to fix these things or at least be able to talk about why it ended up that way in the first place, what kinds of tradeoffs are being made, or why your proposed solutions might make things harder on other people in the company.
-Small businesses mess up their books all the time.
-It is normal to discover that you have been doing something wrong, especially if you are new to the job, the field, or the workforce in general.
-Good managers and coworkers expect things to take longer than ideal and it’s more important to give honest updates on your progress and honest estimates of how long something will take you.
-it will take time to learn how to reliably estimate how long things will take you.
-Good managers and coworkers will make it clear when your performance or output needs to improve, specifically, long before you are at risk of being fired.
-Good managers will work with major health issues, family crises, and even things like circadian rhythm as much as they can, and will have reasons that make sense when they can’t (even when it sucks or is incompatible with you remaining in that position)
-working well in any given work environment is a skill and will take time to develop, and good managers will account for this when they assess your performance.
-you will eventually learn which things can be ignored or delayed, and which things must be prioritized.
-good managers will help you figure this out
-in healthy work environments you will know roughly what is expected of you to retain your job
-it is normal to forget “basic” things and have to ask
-knowledge gaps are normal
-some parts of any job will suck. Minimizing the shitty parts is important and a good work environment will be interested in helping you do this.
About getting used to working, in general:
-you *can* eventually learn how to work with your happiness and energy levels. It’s a skill.
-being “bad” at parts of your job or even working in general isn’t a moral failing. It’s a skill.
-taking more time than you expected to figure out how to work, what kind of job you can thrive in or at least tolerate, and how to perform *well* is not a moral failing. It’s a skill.
-taking longer than your age peers to figure out all of the above is not a moral failing. It’s a skill.
-rest and recreation aren’t luxuries. ambition/burnout cycles will put more wear and tear on you than you think and fuck with your ability to evaluate how much you can tolerate your work environment.
-everything will be harder if you are chronically sleep-deprived.
-you aren’t doing anything wrong by leaving a work environment that “needs” you, even if you feel guilty for leaving. Your employer will prioritize the needs of the company, and you should prioritize yourself. The trick is finding a balance you can both accept.
-not loving your job is not a moral failing.
-noticing things that people really appreciate or rely on is useful, even when the thing feels “trivial” or “easy.” It’s evidence of the specific value you provide. You can use positive feedback to figure out what to talk about when negotiating for a raise, and when interviewing for new positions.
#tag rambles #adventures in University Land #I’ve been doing some research and realised a couple of days ago that #it’s totally plausible that I could have an accounting internship this time next year #(it would only take a couple of fairly small tweaks to my plans over the next year to get into a position) #(where there would be actual internships that I could actually apply for and have a decent chance of getting in) #so it’s good to see some advice from a more experienced accountant #(I suppose a nice thing about a summer internship is that) #(if you find yourself struggling to handle [9 – 5 Mon – Fri and probably an hour+ each way commuting†] long-term) #(*this* time you only have to withstand it for like three months) #(and then afterward you can regroup and plan workarounds‚ coping mechanisms‚ limits‚ etc for next time) #†no driving‚ though
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