5 Lessons I learned that will put you ahead in your first job

It was 10 months ago. I was excited, I was nervous - to step out in the open and start a career, while living independently and doing my own chores.... Clearly, I was terrified!

But, I said to myself I could do this.

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And now that I'm here, I wanted to share the lessons I've learnt in the process.

1. It's the people that matter

The people you'd be working with make all the difference. My company has amazingly nice people and everyone from a fresher to the director are very polite and friendly and very accessible. This was especially surprising because I've been interviewed by really rude and condescending senior managers of other companies previously. Luckily, this was different. My manager made it very clear - I am on my own, free to do my work as I see fit and responsible for the outcome of it.

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This gave me a sense of ownership and joy, It made me feel like I'm valued and really laid the foundation for my career. Everybody is a different "type", so I would strongly suggest future job seekers to take time and learn about the team you'd want to join - no matter how small or big the company is, I personally believe, the team will make a lot of difference if not all the difference. The virtues you'll learn from them will stick with you for a long time.

2. Time management

A lot of people tend to start chasing behind the latest technologies as and when they turn hot in the industry. While this isn't a bad thing by any means, I personally think it would be really useful to revisit fundamental CS subjects and try to look at them with a different lens, now that you've started working. A balanced utilisation of time split between new, hot tech and old school, basic fundamentals will take you a long way!

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I would spend time learning from my colleagues and mentors and try and resolve bugs one by one. And, in my free time, I'd read some standard books on fundamental CS subjects. There were so many things I overlooked or failed to dig deeper during college! Now, I have a deeper understanding and a greater appreciation for these fields even if I'm not specialising in all of them. I think this will keep your student spirit alive and actually help you understand newer technologies better!

3. Puzzles !!!

In whatever little time I had at home, I made it a habit to spend some time coding what I've read or try to solve some puzzles and other brain stimulating problems. Only a few of them were fancy - like machine learning, blockchain etc., Many were simple, plain problems on algorithms and data structures.

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This kind of learning and keeping the knowledge of fundamentals fresh, started making me feel more confident and silently helped me debug codes faster and better. Everybody is going to join a company that has it's own specific product line. Having this habit will ensure that you do well not only in your specific job, but also improve your over all coding and analytical skills.

4. It's okay not to know everything

Freshers soon realise that they don't necessarily know everything beforehand. There's absolutely no problem if you do. But, given the wide scope of the industry and the pace at which new technologies pop up, It's quite natural sometimes to not know about something. This was overwhelming to me in the initial few weeks, I would lose my mind and be scared, like I was lost in the middle of nowhere.

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But I've learned that it isn't a big deal. A lot of us have formal degrees in computer science and we have a fair amount of knowledge and skill. Now all that matters, is to be willing to learn what is needed as it is needed. Don't be afraid to admit when you don't know something, don't be shy to ask a "trivial" question.

Because, think about it - if the question is so trivial, wouldn't you be better off by just asking and learning what it is, right then and there rather than putting it off and not knowing it forever ?? People will help you, you only need to ask ! Apart from that there are various sources on the internet that will help you in your pursuit of knowledge. So, stay strong, you!

5. Stay hungry, Stay foolish

I know you've come across this a gazillion times, but it's not for no reason that people use it so often. If I were asked to give the single most important advice to anybody starting their careers, this would be it.

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This burger sure looks delicious, but that is not what I'm talking about!

Once you start your first job, it becomes all too easy to only just do your job (only your work at office ) and try and relax at all other times. Don't get me wrong, every single person needs to relax and have fun. But, as time passes by the will and the vigour to learn something or do something cool, like we used to be in college withers away.

I personally found that it becomes too tough to return to a state of mind - open, receiving, inquisitive and always hungry for something new. Even things you were once familiar with now take time to come to you, just because you have been away from them for a long time. I agree, you may not have a lot of time after work. But you could spend at least 15-20 minutes everyday learning about something new. Linkedin's learning app provides "daily bytes" for this purpose. You could also explore other sites suiting your interests.

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Like I said, I'm no expert. Nor is this list, an exhaustive one. But, these are the ones I feel are the most important.

Thanks for reading my article. What kind of lessons did you learn in you career? Share them here, so freshers and newbies may reap the benefits !