New Job Stress – How To Relax In A New Environment

5, 6 months ago, my friend Allen (alias used) was trying to look for a new job. After 5 months intensive searching and 20+ interviews, he finally landed on a job he likes. Just when he thought he could take a break, he was facing a whole new set of problems in the new working environment.

“Am I doing a good job?”
“Am I fitting in here?”
“How can I learn all of these new stuff right away?”

I am a consultant. I change job/project/client almost every year. And I am still not too fond of the changes. It’s a very painful process to get used to the new environment, deal with a totally different culture, establish new relationships with the co-workers and learn the new technologies quickly to produce quality results. Although it’s been almost 10 years and I probably have worked for 15+ companies, it still takes me at least a couple of months to really settle in and know what the hell I am doing.

Cambridge University in England has a very interesting article on helping new arriving Freshmen to deal with the new environment. Although the article was aiming at the British college kids, there are a few quite insightful tips we can steal to use in the professional world:

Some common feelings

• a small fish in a large pool; no longer “the best”
• that you aren’t as intelligent as others, or that you won’t understand the work, or you feel like an “imposter”
• burdened by the weight of others’ expectations – for you to be doing well, or having a wonderful time…
• everyone else may seem to be supremely confident, making friends and doing fine, while you may be feeling quite the opposite!

Some general strategies

Make Friends
It takes time to get to know other people, and for them to get to know you. This means that it is unlikely that others will really know how you are feeling or what you are thinking until you start to make some friends. So find time to interact with other people; find time to observe your surroundings; and find time to make friends around.

Confront difficulties
When everything is new, we can waste endless time worrying about things we don’t understand or don’t know. Don’t be afraid to ask; you can save yourself a lot of time and energy by finding out or asking …

Get/stay fit
It is much easier to cope with new challenges when we are fit and healthy, have a good diet and adequate sleep. If you have been a keen sports-person, don’t let the new job and new environment change your good exercise routines and habits. Find a way to keep the same routine. No, don’t take NO for an answer even if your commute has increased by 100%. There is ALWAYS a way to find time. I used to rock climb every Tuesday and Thursday in Denver. Once I started working 65 miles away, I used the long drive as an excuse to skip gyms. I felt quite terrible after stopping climbing briefly so I decided to commute on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The extra 2 hours are quite significant; however, the good feeling after exercising is priceless. Oh, and I made a rule in the office that I don’t work pass 5:30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

No Guilt trap
On the last note, don’t get over burned by your own expectations. It is not reasonable to assume that you can just dive into a new environment and start producing as much as others do. Don’t feel guilty that you need to take some time and learn about your surroundings and new skills. Hey, after all, I am a professional job hopper and I still need a coupe of months or even longer to feel comfortable. So, give yourself a break!