I had always looked forward to the day when I would kickstart my career in a sector I was passionate about. I was excited about the possibilities – meeting new people, learning from colleagues and collaborating together in the office.

It never crossed my mind that the beginning of my career would be kick-started from my childhood home, in the middle of a pandemic. However, onboarding remotely in my new role at Springboard Communications has been one of the most rewarding and challenging experiences that I have had to date.

Working remotely has given me an added level of responsibility which has allowed me to grow. Each day I have learned something new and having experienced the highs and lows of remote working in new surroundings, I have some key takeaways that some of you who are starting a new job remotely may find useful.

Don’t sweat the small stuff

Everyone knows that starting a new job can be both exciting and scary. For both of those reasons I will never forget my first day at Springboard Communications. As many of us know from remote working – our WiFi networks don’t always cooperate. In my first meeting my WiFi crashed and I could not get back into the session. In that moment it felt like it was the end of a very brief career. I was mortified, but I have since learned that these things happen to everyone and more often than I imagined. In other words don’t sweat the small stuff, some things are out of your control and will be old news tomorrow. 

Ask for help

Regardless of location your colleagues are there to help you. Never be afraid to reach out and contact someone if you are unsure about anything. By calling my colleagues and communicating with them through email and team meetings, it has truly made me feel part of Team Springboard.

Don’t put yourself under pressure

Every day you will learn something new. At the beginning it was an accelerated process as I got to grips with how the team worked and how we deal with our clients. Trying to get to grips with everything can be tough at the start – especially when you may be reading information alone. Take each day as it comes and it will get easier over time. 

Hopefully in the not too distant future, we will all return to the office in some capacity or at least get the chance to gather in person as a team. Those who have onboarded remotely will bring a unique outlook to their organisation. These times may test you, but the resilience fostered over this challenging time will stand to you moving forward.

For more tips on how to communicate effectively with your team read our blog here.

Post by Aoiffe Llewellyn