Starting a New Job in Your 20’s (5-Impactful Tips)

Many of us twenty-somethings are starting new jobs. Whether you’re a recent college graduate or you just landed your next BIG opportunity. We are here to share five (5) big concepts that will help you when starting a new gig.

Let’s dive right into it!

The biggest slogan that I want you to implement into your head from this point forward, is whether you are starting a new job, whether you’re moving to a new city, whether you’re graduating college, or whatever your circumstances are. Side bar: if you haven’t quite landed that opportunity read this >> How To Get Your First Job In Your 20’s (5 Step Process).

The slogan is this. Be comfortable with the uncomfortable.

Now, why is that important?

Well, if you are moving to a new city, if you are starting your first, second, third, fourth, or fifth job, whatever it might be, you have to place yourself in uncomfortable situations so that you become comfortable with those situations in the future. Whether that’s you meeting new friends, moving to a new city where you know absolutely nobody. That is one of the best things that you can do for yourself, personally and professionally when you’re in your twenties.

Let me give you an example of this. Back in 2015, I graduated from Iowa State University in good old Ames, Iowa. From that point on, I decided to make myself comfortable with the uncomfortable. I moved south. I moved down to Dallas, Texas, to work for the Big 12 conference.

After a year there, I went and worked in Gainesville, Florida. This was halfway across the country from a place called the University of Florida. Following that, I came back to Dallas, Texas, where I worked for an agency called LDWW, and then I went up to Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania. After spending four football seasons there, I moved back to Dallas, where I currently work now with J1S.

Now, why do I say all that?

It is because I forced myself to become uncomfortable in those situations that I am now comfortable being in a new city, meeting new people, starting a new job, and overall just living a much better, happier, healthier life because of all those different experiences.

1. Patience

Now, point number one that I want to make is patience. Patience is so freaking difficult, right? You start a new job and you’re sitting there saying, well, I want to be able to do that. I want to be able to do this because I know I’m good enough to be able to do it.

And that’s the reason your company hired you in the first place. Take a breath, you will get there. Exercise that patience muscle. I cannot express to you all enough that you must be patient in your new job. Everybody wants to hit the ground running, I am one of those people but I also realize every new opportunity is different and needs to be treated as such.

So, before you get frustrated that you’re not doing enough, evaluate and remind yourself to exercise that patience muscle.

Read this article: Staying Patient in your 20’s (5 Ways to Promote Patience).

2. Ask Questions

Point number two, ask questions. So many people go into a new job and do not ask the right questions.

You can ask all sorts of questions, but are you asking the right questions?

What do I mean by that? No one knows the company better than you then. Week number one. Nobody knows the company better than you.

I get what you’re thinking, “All right. That makes absolutely no sense. The CEO knows more about the company than I do. The director knows the company better than I do.” Look, you are in a position where you can ask the questions from the ground level of what that company is all about, what that company structure is, and who different people are. And sooner or later, within a week to two weeks, you’re going to know that company better than anybody else. That’s what is happening in my job right now, and I love it because I get to ask those questions and that opens my eyes to everybody within the company.

Again, don’t be afraid to ask the right questions.

3. Fail Forward

Point number three, fail forward.

Fail forward. That’s a phrase that we’ve all heard time and time again, whether it’s in college, whether it’s in your first job, second job, or whatever it is, you have to be willing to fail forward.

Don’t be afraid to fail in your job. Look, if you’re not failing, you’re not succeeding. One of the biggest success metrics in today’s workforce is how quickly can someone grow from their failures. I go through this every single day.

Whether that’s a micro failure, not waking up on time, deciding to hit that snooze button and sleep in an extra 30 minutes. Maybe it’s not making dinner for yourself. When you said, I’m going to eat healthy today and I’m going to eat chicken and some broccoli versus go and get a pizza. Look, we all fail every single day. Don’t be afraid to fail in your job. Don’t be afraid to be that person that says I messed up. I’m going to grow from it. And then you have to be able to apply that.

It’s truly all about how quickly you can grow from those failures that are going to separate you when you start a new job.

4. Confidence

Point number four, is confidence. Carry yourself with confidence. This is one of my favorite points because confidence is such an underrated attribute. Think about the time that you’ve walked into a room and you’ve seen that person that just looks good. They dress well. Their teeth are all white. Their hair looks good. They’ve got confidence. And you’re like, Who? Who is that?

Not because they look good. I mean, sure, they look good, right? But it’s because of the confidence they carry themselves with. Be that person in that room! I understand that you don’t know everything. Nobody knows everything. But be confident when you walk into a new job.

5. Routine

Point number five, routine. You have to develop a routine for yourself when you start a new job, whether that’s waking up in the morning and going for a 30-minute walk, whether that’s you going for a walk during the day at your job, whether that is you coming home and you’re going to go walk your dog. Find that window of time, whether that’s 15 minutes or an hour, where it is your time and nobody can steal that from you.

My example is the alarm clock goes off at about 5:15 am in the morning.

When that alarm clock goes off, it’s boom, wake yourself up. Nobody can steal that time from me from 5:15 a.m. until about 7 a.m. When I’m working out when I’m at the gym when it’s just me, my music, and my mind. Nobody can steal that time for me because it’s a part of my routine.

You’re starting your day before everybody else, so I encourage you to find that routine for yourself. Once again,15 minutes to 60 minutes. Find that time for yourself.

Read for more on buidling a morning stack/routine: Thrive in Your 20’s with this Morning Stack (Routine).

Okay, a quick little recap. Patients, number one. Ask questions. number two. Fail forward and fail often, point number three. Number four, is confidence. Be confident within yourself. When you start a new job, you’re there for a reason. And last but not least, point number five, develop a routine.

Now get up. Go make yourself comfortable with being uncomfortable. And start putting yourself in those situations so that you too can maximize your potential.

Please go check out my podcast, The Mitch Garber Audio Experience, where we talk about all things personal, brand-related. Whether you’re an athlete, whether you’re trying to be an influencer or you’re an everyday Joe Schmo, just like me trying to build their brand. Go check that out. The Mitch Gerber audio experience is available on Apple, Spotify, Google, and wherever the heck that you listen to your podcast. Thank you for having me on today.

Hopefully, these five points helped you out and we’ll see you again soon!