- Crushing It -
succeeding in your Early Stage Professional role
by fergus mellon
While getting an Early Stage Professional (ESP) role can feel like a huge accomplishment (and trust me it is!), this is the just the beginning of your 45+ year career journey.
"45 or more years in the workplace. Are you kidding me?" I hear you ask. And I hear you! When you step back and think about what the likely retirement age of anyone who is under 30 today, a career will span at least 45 years and quite possibly even 50 (the presumed retirement age for all of us keeps moving up towards 70) then you can start thinking about a career being a journey of a decent size. This could depress you at first thought. "Oh no I will be working for 45+ years". However I would recommend you do not get depressed at the thought of how long you (and I) will be working and instead take solace from it. Instead of viewing a career as one in which you will have to sprint to the finish line and wear yourself out in the first 5 or so years, think of it as a marathon that you will have to pace yourself for. In addition to pacing yourself, also allow this to take some of the pressure off you of having to get a promotion every 18 months or so (this is likely a far too aggressive goal). Instead you will be able to think about growing into your career. In the same way that you could not have got high grades on your degree course if you had missed High School and gone straight onto College, it is the same in a career. As an Early Stage Professional view yourself as being in the beginning of a journey towards greatness and allow yourself the time to grow as a professional "in the making". This really means look at what new skills you need to acquire and set out to acquire them but if you make errors and need to spend time building new skills that is ok. You have the time and..... you will succeed, you will crush it! In this section I will set out the basic behaviors and actions that you will need to conquer in your first 3-6 months (and then likely continue throughout your career) to get you started. Then if you like what is contained in the Crushing It sections, think about buying "Early Stage Professional: starting off right" as it will help you master more of the skills that you will need as both an ESP but also throughout your career. Good Luck! Crushing the "First 6 Months" Actions The Hours: What Time Should I Start? What If I am Running Late? Taking Vacation, Sick Days, Working Outside Office Hours Professional Skills: How to prepare for One/Ones, Making Meetings on Time, Business Presentations, Social Media, Personal Email and Hanging Out on the Web Keeping a Level Head: Give it Six to Nine Months to Feel @Home, Be Your-professional-self, Staying Positive, Next Section: What Time Should I Start? 
In the first 5 or so years of your career? Want actionable career advice? Buy Early Stage Professional: starting off right, the no nonsense professional skills book designed so that everyone can succeed in the workplace!
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