Free Career and Job Search Advice

[Raya74]

I had the worst day.....the only thing that helped me get through it was knowing that it was the end of the work week. I was excited about this new job- my first real f/t job since graduating this year....but not even a month into it and im already thinking about quitting!! I know this doesn't sound logical to quit something after just starting but by the end of the day I feel overworked, undervalued, and underpaid....Im in an assistant position and I pretty much knew what to anticipate coming into this job and its not that i mind being told what to do as much as the way im being told how to do it.....the woman i am assisting can be very snappy and sometimes plain rude when asking me to do something for her...she's always stressing how everything needs to be done extremly accurately and there's almost no marginal room for errors to occur and thats a lot of pressure for this new girl- so i tend to take longer to do my assigned tasks so that way i make sure there at least being done right- but apparently im not efficient enough and as she told me today- she needs to rev me up to work at 10x the pace im working at now....and for every little assigned task she's going to start giving me a deadline- which is how long she thinks it will take me to complete it!! I don't think I'm cut out for this work because i'd like to think that i deserve better. At the same time i don't wanna be a quitter especially knowing the time and money it will cost them to train someone new and get them prepared for their very busiest time in the fall.....and im not in a financial position currently to be able to take the time to start looking for another job-I am stuck in a rut and don't know what to do- i have a meeting with the assistant director coming up this week and I don't know if i should voice my concerns or just act like everything's ok...i don't want her to think im incompetent or look down on me....the majority of the people I work with are very educated(masters-Phd's) and i really don't wanna burn bridges with them or if i were to leave have everyone talking about it-word spreads quickly in that office!! and anytime someone does leave they make it like a big thing....i feel the longer i stay the more im losing a sense of who i am-should i just suck it up and try harder or cut my losses now???????????

I feel like i have no one to talk to about this....no one understands and im hoping someone who reads this can offer me some much much needed advice....it would be greatly appreciated.

[lexa10881]

You are being burned out and to a point being taken advantage of. You are new and your training period should not be indefinite but should at least be reasonable. I think you are speaking about a reasonable time, and this woman is making things worse by turning you into a nervous wreck. At your talk, do not badmouth her but mention that you feel a lot of pressure from her and are wondering what the usual adjustment period is. This simple question might lead you into the talk you need to have without badmouthing her. After this talk, see if things get a little better. But I wouldn't stick it out much longer. I would try to look for a job also before quitting this one if you decide to do so and can stand it that long.

http://www.cvtips.com/survive_office_politics.html

[Raya74]

The thing is i never really had an actual training period-its ongoing because im learning new things like every day and usually they show me how to do something once and then expect me to remember it exactly as they showed me.....i can't even try to do things as i see fit because according to them their method is the right way and the best way and i just need to accept that and do things as i am showed how to do them and not ask questions....i've started to right everything down but i feel like they are expecting too much from me too soon (i havent even been there for a month yet)-I agree that its good to be efficient and accurate and organized in the work that you do but i feel like no matter how hard i try they'll have something to say about how im doing things.....and its not gonna be positive- I do plan to mention something at the meeting next week but im not sure how without feeling nervous or end up sounding negative and saying something stupid

[lexa10881]

I really do not think that there's anything you can say that would be stupid. In this case, direct your comments after a pleasant intro to the topic. Keep it brief as you are the new person and you do not want to annoy people enough that they don't want to get to know you before they get to know you. Tell them that you are enjoying your work experience so far, and that you would like to welcome any helpful suggestions/feedback they might have on your performance. Let them know that you are still a little uncertain about everything but that you are adjusting and would like to be as good as possible. Translation=don't shove me out here yet, I don't know what I need to do!! Or at least, you know this si what you want to say. But that is the best way I know of to bring up the topic.

Also, I know it is a real pain to learn something someone else's way, especially when you have your own method that can work much faster and is likely better. Learning their methods might help satisfy them initially, since you are trying it their way. But later, gradually start to do it your way, and let them reflect that it accomplishes the same thing [and maybe faster/better!]. The other thing I have learned from doing this is that if I can learn how other people do things, I can help them find errors in their methods when they are trying to fix something, and they can help me just the same. It's called good teamwork, in that situation.

http://www.cvtips.com/effective_communication_skills.html

[Raya74]

Thank You!! Very helpful hints...i will definately keep that in mind....i guess i just need to be more positive as hard as that can be sometimes....