How long should it take to get comfortable in a new job? I worked at my last job for almost 15 years (I'm 36) so I've not had a lot of experience changing jobs (I don't like change.) I've been at my new job for a month now and I still don't look forward to coming to work. My old company was fairly large (500+ employees with multiple locations) so I almost always had something to work on. My new one is only 11 employees and I didn't take over someone else's job, so there's no set job activities. I actually went back to work for the lady I worked for right out of school - her business has grown enough that she wanted someone to take the accounting/admin stuff off her so she can focus on selling, but the few tasks she's given me aren't ongoing.
Anyway, will it get better? Sometimes I just want to cut my losses and find something else, but then I'd feel bad because I want to help and she spent money buying me a desk, computer, etc. that she doesn't really have to throw away.
I know most of you said at least six months, but I think after the holidays, I'm going to put my resume out there. As I've gotten more comfortable with a couple of the other employees, I'm hearing things about her as a boss. I don't know if I didn't see it in the couple years I worked for her out of high school or if she's gotten worse. She'll yell at employees and make them feel stupid. Her memory isnt' the greatest, so she'll deny having you do something a certain way. And she rarely gives raises. I think I was so anxious to get out of my old job that I only focused on the positive (no overtime, no crushing deadlines where I couldn't take off), that I didn't think it through enough.
This is what I've always heard & found to be true:
It takes 6 months to feel comfortable in a new job & like it.
3 months & you'll start feeling a little better. 6 months then you'll be
cruising. Hang in there!
It does take about 6 months to get comfortable. I suggest you talk to your boss - tell her you want to be challenged and ask if there's something you can take off her desk, or a new something. Look around and consider if there's soemthing that could be improved or done more efficiently. Ask your boss if it's OK that you look into improving that thing. I always found the toughest thing was to find a firend to have lunch with, talk about the weekend, etc. That takes a little time.
When I made a significant job change a number of years ago it gave me perspective on what my kids deal with every September. It helped me develop a sensitivity to their emotions.
I've been at my current job for 7 1/2 years and I finally feel settled!
I have changed jobs a lot, partly because I work on contracts and partly because that's how you get ahead in my business.
I say it takes at least 6 months to know if you like something and feel comfortable doing it. It takes a year to know if you really do or don't like it.
Spend time learning about the company, getting to know what works and what doesn't work. Do a lot of research. Also, tell your boss you don't feel like you have enough to keep you busy. Obviously she wanted you, so I'm willing to bet she doesn't want to let you go. She can show you the ropes and help you feel more comfortable.
You are looking at the wrong things. It will be what it will be. The true focus should be your responses to what is or isn't going on. You get paid to be there whether you are doing something or doing nothing. If they don't give you assignments, don't sweat it. Since you are just starting, try to get a better handle on exactly what your work function will be. Ask for work but don't be a pest about it. Find other things to do with your mind and your time but be very careful about what you do on the company's computer.
If you are truly not happy, try looking for new work but the way I see it. You are in a win/win. They pay you to do very little. Not bad at all. You just need to figure out what to do with your time if they can't provide you with enough work to keep you busy all day every day. Use your time to figure that all out.
I hope this helps.
If you are the type of person that needs to be busy every minute of your workday, you may want to consider looking for a new work experience.. People who can adapt to change tend to be happier than those who struggle with change. You must learn to bend like a reed in the wind.
A month is a bit early. I have left a job after two months but that was a very special situation- I was hired on for work which never materialized. I was left without a chair at the dance in a manner of speaking. Time was not going to change that fact so everyone involved agreed I needed to move on. In general I find at least six months is a good rule of thumb for really hitting your stride after changing jobs.
I have worked at both big companies and small companies. I think at big companies the work is always there with very little down time. In contrast I find with small companies you need to be more vocal if you need work. Because there are so few people, folks tend to forget while in their own routine/rut or get so snowed under with work, they don't realize others might not be busy. If you ask for more work, they tend to be very receptive to the requests. If you aren't careful, you might get more work than you bargained for in fact. I have also found in small companies you may need to be more of a self starter. I found myself asking what the small company needed and then doing those projects on my own (with the boss's blessing, of course). Overall, I find my jobs at small companies are far more self initiated with an ebb and flow of busy and not busy as compared to the big companies. I used the down time to think about what the small company needed or reading industry literature so my time was an absolute waste. It is a different pace than at a big company, though.
I would suggest you spent so long at your last job, any change is going to be an adjustment so give it more time. While you settle in, think hard about what is bothering you and then think about how you can fix it. Not having enough work seems like an easy fix - ask for it and/or create it. If the problem is personality conflict or not fitting it with the atmosphere, then that can be more difficult to fix and might be cause for another change. Be cautioned; employers look at job hopping with a wary eye. I faced this when I moved after two months. I overcame it but it did make for some difficult conversations during the interview process. Think about how you will spin your short stay at a job during a job interview. Good luck.
Success into a job depends upon varying factors: is it the position of your dreams? The type of boss? Co-workers? Hours? Expectations of the boss? Your expectations? Salary? Travel distance?
What I do when I'm not feeling good with a job is: shower in the morning versus at night because morning showers invigorate me. I dress very well and professionally. That makes my boss seem to give me more respect. I get to work early to settle in before I have to get to business.
Work politics is why I am rushing and sprinting mentally to be 62. I don't care if I only get $1000 a month, I will be out of the work world in 7.4 years!
Give it 6 months to a year.
If she wanted someone to take the accounting/admin tasks off her there should be work to do but she might have a hard time actually handing them off and letting go of them.
Ask to document what she does, when she does it so that it's clear she knows she'll be able to hand the tasks off to someone who knows how she does it and when (weekly/monthly/seasonally/annually, etc).
It's also a good idea to have procedures written out so that you/she can have a back up person trained and ready to step in in the event key people are out sick or take vacation (or are on a business trip), etc.
There will be slack times and there will be crunch times.
Give it some time and before you know it you'll be into a whole new routine.
I had jobs at 3 different companies in my 15-year career, and it generally took me a year at each place to really feel like I had the hang of everything.
Is the main problem that you are bored? Can you ask her for more things to do (could you do research to help her sell?)? If there is nothing more for you to do, can you find things to keep yourself busy? A course you could take online?
I wouldn't give up yet, after only a month. Good luck.
