Crush Your First 6 Months in a New Job

When I meet new hires at LinkedIn, they often ask for advice on getting off to a good start.  Whether you’re new to a company, or taking a new role at your employer, your first six months in any job are absolutely critical to building your brand.  If you crush it, it’s amazing how much leeway you’ll get when things go wrong, and credit when things go right.  In the past 5 years at LinkedIn, I’ve had 4 different jobs, and this roadmap has helped me get off the right start:

Over-deliver on your core responsibilities:

• Figure out how your performance will be measured... get explicit metrics and numbers.  If you’re in a role where expectations aren’t clear… work with your manager to write them. Uncertainty on what is expected of you is a recipe for disaster.
• Don’t try to learn everything… priority #1 during your onboarding is proving that you are reliable (and eventually excellent) on the few things that matter… the 3-5 core activities.  Interview people around you and observe star performers to figure out what these core activities are and how to be great at them. 
• Over-deliver on your first 3 assignments, and most importantly, over-communicate your progress to your manager as you work through each assignment.  They don’t trust you yet, so keep their anxiety low by keeping them in the loop.  When you have a question, don’t be afraid to ask, but bring recommendations to show how you thought about the problem.  Ask for feedback, and take feedback with a smile.

Build the right network:

• Invest in the relationship with your manager, and figure out how they are measured. By the end of month 6, you should be working with your manager on a project to hit one of their goals that is beyond the stated scope of your job. Remember, their objectives are more important than yours to the long term success of the company, and your career. 
• Get to know the people on your team and your cross-functional partners.  Figure out what matters to them, and find an opportunity to help... perhaps assisting on a project, doing some research for them, or just offering feedback on a report that they’re writing.  If they don’t sit in your office, travel to meet them in person.  Meeting face to face makes a huge difference.  Finally, avoid at all costs office politics or getting involved in personal disputes between coworkers.
• Ask lots of questions.  When you're new, you can meet anyone and ask anything.  Take advantage.  Book time with a wide range of people, including senior executives if possible, and get educated on how the company works. You'll learn a ton and this network can be incredibly helpful to get things done.

Set yourself up for success at home:

• Figure out what is expected on the job (hours, travel, uncertainty of schedule), and put together a plan to make this work at home.  Most importantly, sit down with your spouse and make sure you’re both on the same page about what changes will be required, and what you can each to do mitigate the impact.  The last thing you want is to be crushing it at work while digging a hole for yourself at home.
• Work hard, but don’t stay at the office late.  It’s critical to nail your first six months of assignments, but it’s also critical that you don’t set expectations that you’ll work all the time.  That can’t be seen as your norm.  Rather, if you need to work extra to deliver exceptional results, then do it at home.  The goal is to deliver output, not show input.

Lay the groundwork for the future:

• Be ready for a brief interaction with a senior executive.  Create an elevator pitch on the relevance of your role, what you’re working on, and how it fits into the broader business unit strategy and company mission.  Being able to explain the relevance of your role is often interpreted as a sign of future potential.
• Have the “career goals conversation” with your manager around month six.  Share your feelings about working at the company long term, and how you want to grow professionally.  It’s not a conversation to have in the first month, but it is a conversation you need to have in the first year.  During this conversation, ask your manager what their career goals are and what role you can play in helping them succeed.
• Make sure you like what you’re doing, and you enjoy the people you’re working with.  If you’re not happy, figure out why and think about a path to resolution.  You’re at your best when you’re happy and inspired.  Don’t linger in a job you don’t like.

These tactics continue to work for me.  I'd love comments on what's worked for you, and what you would do to improve this list?