Lessons About the Workplace I Would Teach My College-Self
Introduction
On the day this article was released, it has been a year since I started my software engineering degree apprenticeship with PebblePad and the University of Wolverhampton! That year has gone by very quickly! This is the first job I have ever had, so I was feeling a few different emotions on the first day; a cup of nervousness, a teaspoon of sadness about leaving college, and a pint of excitement! Since I had not had a job before the apprenticeship, I didn’t really know what it was like or what to expect! I did do work experience, but that’s for a week. What is it like having a long-term job? In this article, I’ll be sharing the lessons I’ve learnt about being in the world of work which I would share with my college self so she could have an idea of what to expect, and I hope this can benefit students who will be making this leap! I’ve also created a portfolio which showcases my wonderful learning journey and experiences over the last year.
Learning Carries on After Education!
Although I learnt a lot at school and college, the learning did not end there. It’s a matter of fact that your time in education does not teach you everything you need to know. School and college was good to get an understanding of lots of different career pathways, I consider it as almost like numerous tasters as to what you could do in industry, and that also means that there will be things that you will not use. For example, at this point in my life, I’m not using the animation skills I learnt at college, and I don’t have any plans to in the future! In fact, this video shows one of the animations I made, and it will probably demonstrate why I didn’t choose to do down this route… 😅!
There was nothing wrong in gaining that experience though. By having exposure to a range of pathways, I could figure out what I liked and disliked, and I found that I liked the software engineering pathway and pursued it. That could mean that I’d learn about this in more detail in my own time and then in this apprenticeship, whereas that wouldn’t be the same for other people on the course I did; there were people who didn’t like the programming units whatsoever and much preferred other units like the animation and digital graphics ones! Embrace the fact that you’re learning about lots of different areas while you’re in education, even if you don’t enjoy all of it, because you’ll learn even more about what you’re interested in when you go into the workplace, and I find that what I learn really sticks in my mind when I get to apply it!
Soft Skills Are Just as Important As Technical Skills
In the Computing BTEC I did at college, we had a unit called “Comms and Employability”, and at the time I struggled to understand why we were doing it, to be completely honest. It covered things like written and verbal communication, the skills needed in the workplace… things that felt like people just had anyway! As I’ve been in the workplace, I’ve figured out why we did it, and I’m grateful to have had that unit. While everybody usually has some level of these skills, I’ve learnt that there’s a difference between having them and being able to use them effectively, and there’s always room to develop them further. For instance, you may have led a team on multiple occasions, but are you aware of the impact you are having? Do you know what your teammates would say about you? What challenges have you faced? There are scenarios that you have not faced yet that can help you to develop the soft skills even further.
I think it would also be worth noting that having a lower level of a soft skill can hold you back for a long time in your career, probably even more than technical skills. The fun thing with soft skills is that you can’t just learn them after a quick Google or completing a course, they’re skills that you have to put into practice and get out of your comfort zone multiple times until it becomes part of your comfort zone. It can sometimes be hard to act on a soft skill that we are lacking because of the fact that it requires going out of your comfort zone, and the fact that they’re not always easy to acknowledge. Sometimes, we can write off a lower level of a soft skill as just part of our personality, and just live with it. In reality, we can change ourselves and those struggles don’t have to define us. Realising what soft skills you need to improve requires self-reflection and looking at how you feel when you do something. For instance, I realised months ago that I found it tricky to speak up in group settings, and I was able to consider the root cause of that and act on it by putting myself out of my comfort zone and speaking up more. I feel more confident about speaking up in my team now, but I know I could still make improvements in bigger groups and in groups where I don’t know anyone else.
Both of these reasons are why I recommended getting involved in extra-curricular activities and work experience while you’re in school/college in “What Can I Do Before I Apply For A Degree Apprenticeship” so you can practise using these soft skills, finding where your weaknesses are, and be able to demonstrate them to employers.
Leadership Is About Asking The Right Questions To Your Team
Over the last year, I’ve observed the leadership of other people in the company, and I’ve also had the opportunity to lead, such as in meetings. I’ve found that leadership isn’t about telling people what they’re going to do and expecting them to do it, or making decisions on their behalf. I feel that the team I’m in is really well led because we’re asked the right questions in a situation — and what these questions are depend on the scenario — so we can make an informed decision together. I feel that I can actively voice my concerns and ideas with confidence, and they are never brushed over or shutdown by anyone else in the team or our manager, so everyone’s voices are heard. I think this helps us to feel happy as a team and motivated about our work, because we are able to collectively drive our direction and take ownership about what we do.
You Manage Your Time
You know how you’re given a timetable at school and college at the start of the year? Well, in the workplace, I haven’t got a timetable as such. I have a calendar, and there are a few meetings in there, some of which are reoccurring, but nobody says, “okay Christa, from 2 o’clock until 3 o’clock, you need to focus on x”. You have work you need to do, and you are responsible for how long you spend on something and meeting any goals. This is a good example of where time management comes in handy, and this is something I get a lot of satisfaction about! I like being able to be trusted with my time rather than being directed on how to use it!
There Will Be Lots of Teamwork!
At school and college, I felt that there was quite a lot of individual work as you’re aiming to get a good grade for yourself on assignments and exams to help you get to your next stages in life which may be competitive to get into. You’re mainly working towards your own goals, rather than a goal for a group of people? In the workplace, that completely changes. You still have your own goals to work towards to get better at your job, but there is a lot of emphasis on team goals. You will be part of a team and you will need to collectively achieve, and you’ll also be part of a company (which is a team) that needs to keep customers/clients happy and succeed in the market… otherwise nobody would have a job there! Therefore, I feel it’s really important to get any competitiveness out of your head if you have any, and focus on being a good team player rather than being better than anyone else. That will help you to have fun along the way, create a non-toxic environment, and celebrate achievements that have been achieved together!
Learn To Feel Comfortable About Asking for Help
Asking for help is something that I’ve struggled with for a long time, but I’m getting better at it! I never liked asking for help at school and college because I didn’t like to admit I was struggling, and I think this was because I cared about how asking for help looked to other people. I did really well academically; I tended to get high grades and was in the top sets, so the thought of asking for help was a bit daunting because doing well academically surely means being independent and not needing additional help? Now I know that’s not true. When you need help, it’s really important to speak up, don’t expect the solution to suddenly come to you when you’ve been sat there struggling for hours. Don’t feel like you’re pestering people either, because they’re happy to help. When has a good teacher ever moaned about their student asking for help? There are people around you who have more experience, whether that be a teacher at school/college/university or colleagues at work, and you are all there to help each other, so don’t feel guilty about asking for help, coming to a solution is more important than how other people see you. If anything, they’ll see you in a positive light if you ask for help when you’re struggling because it shows you want to make progress and learn, rather than not getting any work done. Also, from my experience, I feel really happy when someone asks me for help, and I just focus on getting to a solution with them. Why wouldn’t other people feel like that too when they’re asked for help?
I know saying “get more comfortable about asking for help” is easier said than done. I’m still working on this myself. To help with this, I recommend getting to know those you are working with. I find it so much easier to ask for help from someone who I know, rather than someone I’ve never met before. Take opportunities, like social events, to grow your “help network” and just get to know people! This helps to make asking for help feel a lot less awkward from my experience (and getting involved in these will be fun) 😊!
You Choose How You Solve a Problem
As part of your training, you’ll learn the skills you can use to solve a problem. When it comes to solving an actual problem, you can deem what would be most appropriate to do. That doesn’t mean you’re expected to complete things independently, you can certainly ask for help and advice from others, but it’s down to you what you do. Since, as a team, we can choose how to go about a problem, this helps us to take ownership of the work we do and get lots of satisfaction from this!
Emotions Are Not Separate From The Workplace
There can be times in life when you’re feeling emotionally challenged, and this can be because of things that are happening in or outside of work. When you do your work, it’s not always easy to switch to a “work” version of yourself which is entirely focused on what you’re doing, emotions can be hanging over you. If you’re interacting with customers or clients, for instance, you obviously have to be careful about how you display your emotions because you are reflecting the place you work and impacting their reputation, and the service that people get should not be poor because you’re not feeling your best that day. When your emotions are hanging over you, it can be a good idea to voice that to those you are working with, like colleagues or your manager, if you feel comfortable to do so, or at least a close family or friend. There have been times over the last year where I’ve had challenging and frustrating problems to solve and I’ve not known the direction I’ve needed to go, and there have also been times where I’ve had imposter syndrome or doubts about my ability. Voicing these to my manager and/or colleagues have been really valuable for me because they can help set you on the right track and listen when you’re expressing how you’re feeling. Sometimes, we just need someone to listen to us.
My team also have a meeting every three weeks where we talk about any struggles that we’ve had and provide feedback to others in the team, and this helps us to feel that we can be vulnerable with the team and they can be aware of problems, so we know how to help as a team. This is something I would recommend implementing in your own teams if you can, as well as taking some time every week to share your successes, struggles, and giving someone a shoutout to let them know that you appreciate their assistance or the work they’ve done! It is a great way to reflect on the work you’ve done and realising how far you’ve come, as well as creating a positive morale in the team so people know they are valued by others!
You *Will* Be Making Valuable Contributions to Where You Work
When entering a workplace for the first time after education, I think it’s quite easy to think that you’re not going to be able to provide much because you don’t have experience, and job openings tend to require a few years of it. However, having little or no experience can be an advantage because you come into the company with a fresh perspective and ideas, and that will be appreciated! The ideas you bring can even impact and inspire other people in the company who may have had years of experience in the industry, so don’t underestimate the impact you have!
You Will Make Mistakes
Just a heads up: nobody expects you to get everything right the first time. You will make mistakes in the workplace. The important thing is that you can admit to mistakes rather than trying to cover them up. If you try to cover your mistakes up to “protect your image”, the problem will be found, and it makes putting trust in you very challenging. People will be able to trust you if you can admit to your mistakes, and your image will not be damaged, it strengthens it. You will also learn a lot from the mistakes you make, and other people will too, so you can grow together! For example, I’ve definitely learnt from the time I lost three hours’ worth of work via a mistake with Git, I aim to commit my work a lot more regularly now and I have not lost any work since!
The people you work with will be making mistakes too, no matter how long they’ve been in the industry or their job title, and there will never be a point where people stop making mistakes. We’re all human, and we’re all still on our learning journeys. Not only can others learn from the mistakes you make, you can learn from the mistakes others make too!
Some Final Notes…
To The Students…
I hope this article has been some use to you if you’re about to take the leap to the workplace, feel free to leave any questions or feedback in the comments! I know how nerve-wracking it can be and it’s completely fine if you feel like this. Remember that you’ve got this, you’re going to smash it in the workplace and make impacts you never knew you could make. People are going to like you (because why wouldn’t they?) and enjoy working with you, and you’ll be making lots of fond memories with others that you’ll remember for years to come. You’ll learn lots and make mistakes along the way, and that’s excellent, because there will be people around you who will help you to fix the mistakes and learn from them.
To Others in The Audience…
Thank you for reading through this article as well! Can you think of any more advice for students who are about to leave school/college/university and enter the workplace for the first time?
Just a reminder: if you’re curious about my learning journey and my experiences over the last year, check out this portfolio, made with the software I work on!
