Get ready for a new role (Get Going)
This training plan is all about having a clear plan of how to approach the first 12 weeks in a new role.
It lasts 12 weeks and you’ll be working on different focus areas in 2 week sprints. It’ll take you 30 minutes to get going now, and then 30-40 minutes to create your plan at the start of each 2 week sprint.
Oh, and some effort and commitment to follow your plan during that sprint.
What's happening right now?
You’ve got a new role that you’re starting and you want to be making an impact as soon as you can. You’ve probably got some areas of the role you’re really confident about and there may be other areas you’re less sure of. You’ve got loads to do and you’ve got to show you can get going straight away.
There’s a lot to be getting on with and you want to make sure that the combination you’ve got of being both excited and a little nervous works well for you. You want to make sure you’re not overwhelmed by the challenge and you want to start feeling confident and in control as soon as you can.
Why it’s happening
In any new role there’s lots going on that explain the thoughts and feelings you can experience:
- It feels really important to prove you’ve got what it takes quickly. That puts the pressure on and gets you feeling you can’t show any signs of not being up to it!
- When you get the job, there’s not usually a ‘right’ way of doing everything. So you know where you need to end up, but it’s up to you to decide how to get there.
- It’s a matter of confidence. You know you need to show you’re confident and independent. To make progress you know help is essential, though you don’t want this to be seen as not being capable!
Your choices
You could choose to do nothing. That’ll take no time or effort and the problem might get better on its own.
However, that’s pretty unlikely. So the other option is to do something about it.
That’ll take some time and effort now and through the next 12 weeks, everyday. If you do choose this, you can expect to:
- Build your role confidently, feeling in control and enjoying the challenge
- Connect well with key people who are really important for your success
- Challenge yourself in a helpful way to build a great foundation for success
- Build confidence that future role changes will be done really well too
Performance is a game of choices and now it’s up to you. Do nothing and hope or commit to getting better.
Amjad's story
Amjad was told he was getting his second promotion in the space of 18 months. He’d successfully demonstrated his Project Management skills and was going into a new role which was seen as vital for the future.
Although excited, Amjad was also nervous. He was going to be working with a different set of demands and knew very little about this specific area of the business. As part of his transition, Amjad was given a coach to work with to make sure he hit the ground running. They met several times in the build up to the new role starting and they put a plan together.
The plan gave Amjad a structure for:
- Making sure he led with his existing strengths, skills and knowledge
- Building great performance relationships with his team and leaders
- Acquiring key knowledge about the new area of the business
- Keeping a focus on performing consistently
As part of his relationship building, Amjad shared his plan with key colleagues and kept them updated with his progress. He kept seeking feedback from them about his progress. This all gave Amjad a really solid foundation to build from, his confidence grew steadily every day and after 3 months he was feeling confident and in control of his performance in a very demanding role.
Ready to get going?
If you’re ready to get better, you better get going.
Start off by setting some goals.
1. Get a starting point.
Rate yourself for where you are right now. You’re familiar with the idea of a scale of 1-10 where 1 is total rubbish and 10 is that it’s as good as it can get.
2. Set a target.
Using the same high tech scale, set yourself a target for where you want to be on this. Choose a number that feels like a bit of a stretch and achievable with a bit of hard work in 12 weeks but is still realistic.
3. Think about the people who need to know that you’re using this tool
Tell them what you’re doing. That way they can support you and won’t think you’re just being weird.
Now get cracking!
You’re ready to crack on with your training plan!
You’ll be working in 2 week sprints over the next 12 weeks on stuff that will really make a difference – read How it works if you haven’t already. For this plan, you’ll spend weeks 1 to 10 working on these 5 most effective things to do:
Week 1 – 2: Take aim and connect
Week 3 – 4: Becoming an expert
Week 5 – 6: Solid foundations
Week 7 – 8: Strengths trading
Week 9 – 10: Regular habits for success
It’s important to work through them in this order.
In each 2 week sprint, you learn what to do and how, through an example plan we’ve prepared. For this plan, the example is a Project Manager stepping up into a new, more senior leadership position.
You then create your own plan. Just download, print out and complete the blank plan provided. You can use ideas from the example plan or not – but follow the same principles.
In weeks 11 and 12, you’ll be putting all the good stuff you’ve learned and done in these 5 areas together. You’ll be guided through this when the time comes, so don’t worry about that for now.