new job on monday - excited and terrified

[F.G.]

hey folks,

i know this probably isn't the kind of place that i should vent this kind of anxiety but i thought some people here might have some good advice.

after being unemployed for the last three months i've finally got a job starting on monday. this is my first job as a software developer and it's for a pretty big company, so i really don't want to mess this up.

I've worked in transient, cash in hand type jobs in the States, in South Africa, in China, in Italy and other european countries (predominantly in the UK), doing all kinds of stuff between construction, waitering, pub promotion, farm work, teaching (in Chinese state schools), web-design liaison, office admin, tele-sales, courier (messenger) work, (the list goes on).

now, after a gruelling 3hr interview the company know my limitations, they know what i can do and what i can't and they are happy to train me to their specs. I am actually trained (I have a Masters) as a 'computer scientist'. so in theory it should all be fine.

however i am quite terrified about actually going to a job, particularly one that i do really want. in the past i've got and kept jobs easily because i have not really cared about them, now this is a proper career job. however i've got into the habit of staying up all night, sleeping till midday and being antisocial during the week.

How will i be able to be awake, professionally socially functional, able to actually learn the stuff that they are trying to train me in and actually perform well. I feel that i've been out of this kind of environment forever (as if i've ever actually been in it!). now i'm really terrified that i wont be able to do it. i feel like i should prepare, but i don't know what to prepare.

for those who have noticed my often unresearched an inane posts on ubuntuforums you will be happy to know they will probably be less frequent (subject to change - at least i'll try to make them all a bit more coherent and useful).

i am quite terrified about trying to be normal after being such a rolling stone for so long and about having the stamina to be able to work properly in a 9-5 (and not just want to go home at lunchtime).
thanks for any help or suggestion about this.


ps. separate subject: don't know if anyone heard about this:
http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/38112/?p1=A3&a=f
but i think it's quite interesting (i mean the whole point of FOSS and the creative commons licence is to make free information legal. but if we really should be sharing info, is this kind of illegal activity be a good thing or a bad thing?).

thank you for getting all the way through my post.

[CharlesA]

I know a bit of nervousness and anxiety is completely normal when you start something new. I know I was terrified of screwing up when I got my current job.

Congrats on the job and best of luck!

[lisati]

I know a bit of nervousness and anxiety is completely normal when you start something new. I know I was terrified to screwing up when I got my current job.

Congrats on the job and best of luck!
Agreed. The group I work with did something new to them last week. I think they were all nervous: I know I was.

[hansdown]

Congrats, F.G.!

You'll do fine.

Trying to sleep the night before may be hard, but you'll do o.k.


however i've got into the habit of staying up all night, sleeping till midday and being antisocial during the week.

Love this part. :)

[F.G.]

thanks a lot for all of your support.
i feel like i may be a special case (i'm sure everyone feels that way). then again it may be true.
it's only saturday and i keep going up and down about the whole thing.

i just wonder what i can do to prepare (i could try to learn tcl or javascript or ajax security (all relevant) tomorrow, but i certainly can't learn them all, probably could only learn a bit of one).
thanks again for your replies.

edit -> any thoughts on the ex-reddit boss gone information freedom-fighter stealing all those documents??

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

F.G.,

Relax!

When you get to work the company will probably not have a computer ready for you to work on. They will probably just give you some documents to read while they figure out where you will work and get the computer set up. The company is probably less prepared for your arrival than you are. :)

I have interviewed people for weeks to find the right employee. However; after I made a decision to hire someone, when the person actually arrived at work it took days for me to get them a place to work, a computer, and the accounts/permissions set up for them to actually do any work. It actually makes me feel bad; because, they are so eager to get working on something :)

Oh, and congratulations.

[CryptAck]

Congrats and best of luck!

[F.G.]

thanks alot for you replies and support.

old_grey_wolf you are right that i should relax. i will.

however, regarding how ready they are for me, they are really very ready.
i'm going to be inducted, on an induction course. the place (not the company but the business complex) where they are is amazing as well, a bunch of space age buildings with a park, river, waterfall and bridge in the middle. they have on-site masseuses, dry-cleaning and car valeting, they have a physiotherapist, a games room, a gym, a refectory, everything. it's like something out of star-trek , or rather serenity.

their slogan is 'ENJOY WORK!' and all of the workers of the complex wear bright yellow t-shirts saying that in enormous capitalised letters. i'm not sure if this is a suggestion or an imperative command. eutopia or dystopia? i'll let you all know (for all you thomas moore fans, no, i don't think i'm making the mistake your thinking of).

ps. i'm not joking or exaggerateing in any way about this amazing business complex.

[keithpeter]

Hello F. G.

Good luck and join in that induction course. Try to talk to some of the other new people during breaks &c. It helps to compare notes with other new people over the first few weeks.

[grahammechanical]

Keep telling yourself that by the end of two weeks you will feel like a part of the team. You will know where the toilet is, where the staff catering facilities are, know people's names and they will know your name.

But you already know this. You have learnt this lesson again and again. You are not stupid, are you? Then you can learn.

Just a point from my last employment experience - make sure you know where the emergency exits are and what to do in an emergency. In fact fire, health and safety training should be one of the first things that your new employer gives you.

Regards.

[nonamedotc]

F.G. - All the very best! Congrats on your job!

[forrestcupp]

Congratulations.

Just keep in mind that you've already been through a big part of proving yourself to them. Yeah, there's still more proving, but you've already jumped a big hurdle. And I agree with the one who said that within 2 weeks, you'll have friends and feel like you're a part of the team.

If it's really what you've been wanting, then relax and enjoy it.

[Cookieh]

Congratz on the job.. and You wont screw up as it seems you know what you are talking about:)

[F.G.]

Thanks again for all your comments, i've calmed down a bit now. Of course i have been employed full time before and worked in office environments etc, it's not such a radical shift, i know that i can do it again.

grahammechanical thanks for the soothing post, and the good advice about emergency exits, it's a big office building, that will be important.

forrestcupp, you know, i think that this is actually exactly what i've been looking for, and now i'v relaxed a bit I'm actually really looking forward to starting. Having been stewing for the last three months, endlessly reading the same types of inane job descriptions ('enthusiastic team player with good communication skills' etc etc) i've finally got one, and i think it's a good one.

since this thread is essentially about me, i may as well ramble a bit. if you don't like egocentric tracts, look away now.


You are not stupid, are you?

This has been a subject of some debate over the years.

Certainly in my early education it was assumed by most of my teachers that i was simple, and/or stupid, with a criminal, antisocial bent (actually i was never that anti-social, just had difficulty following rules i didn't really understand the purpose of).
every now and then one of the more academic teachers would take the view that there was more going upstairs with me then people realized, for which i am grateful and which did bolster my confidence (shift my paradigm of self, etc.).

nonetheless in almost all public exams i was often predicted catastrophic failure, however when it came to the actual exams i always performed well, putting me in the top 1% of the country.

In a recent study (an IQ test, done by a professional) i got several IQ indexes ranging of 89 - 150.
actually according to the psychologist i would probably have scored higher than 150 but that was the upper boundry of his test (the WIAS-4 test, which makes no sense to me at all). This psychologist went on to conclude that my natural iq was probably about 150 but my performance in certain skill areas was pushed down as a result of dyslexia and dyspraxia. well, i wonder if that would have been helpful to know at school.

what is quite concerning is that 89 is what i got for my 'Processing Speed Index', which sounds quite important.
i do feel quite guilty that at the time of taking the test i was half drunk, half hung-over, having only slept for a few hours uncomfortably on a sofa after a house-party. i wonder if my scores would have been more coherent had i been clear minded.

am i stupid? i really don't know, i certainly do stupid things, one thing i have learnt is not to trust other peoples opinion on this particular matter.
so, just for the record i don't really believe in the validity of IQ test at all, it is still quite interesting though.

anyhow, egocentric ramble over.

11.5 hours 'till work time. thanks again for all the advice and supportive comments.

[anaconda]

F.G.,

Relax!

When you get to work the company will probably not have a computer ready for you to work on. They will probably just give you some documents to read while they figure out where you will work and get the computer set up. The company is probably less prepared for your arrival than you are. :)

My experience exactly!!

Just be ready to surf the net for the first day.

[BrokenKingpin]

Congratulations on the new job. I am currently as software developer as well, and I was really nervous before starting my first job too. Your first day will most likely be reading documentation while they sort out your workstation, as others have said. I wouldn't get too worked up about it.

Your first week won't be intense work, so that should give you time to sort out your sleeping pattern. You can work through a few days of being tired, just don't be late getting in.

It sounds like they know that you currently don't know all the technologies and languages and will train you, so I wouldn't worry too much about preparing for your first day. It may help to start learning these languages in your spare time to at least get the basics down, but not a big deal (certainly for your first week). If you have a comp sci background, picking up new languages should be pretty easy.

And remember, don't be afraid to ask stupid questions when you are getting the hang of things and learning their code base. The worst thing you can do is act like you know what someone is talking about when you don't. For sure try and figure things out on your own, but don't burn a day trying to figure something out that a co-worker could help you with in 2 minutes lol.

Good luck, and you should be fine... don't over think it.

[F.G.]

it all went pretty well today actually. and i'm excited to start the actual tech training tomorrow. so, thanks again for all the posts except for spammer Wayne 'who likes to blog,' as i really wish you wouldn't.

[sammiev]

Hi F.G. Glad all went well so far and Good Luck. I reported WayneWilson as that is just not right. Best of luck bud! :popcorn: