New job.

Starting a new job can be daunting.

In only a few days, I will have my first shift at a completely new place of work. Sure, I have spent a few hours there for a trial shift, loosely familiarising myself with the environment and some of the people, but really, it’s still all very new.

I don’t know what the general atmosphere will be like, what the group dynamic will end up being, how sociable (or not) the relationship will be among co-workers, and what pace levels and skillsets I will have to keep up with. And on top of that, I don’t yet know how well I will fit in.

If you ask pretty much anyone, they will tell you that the first few weeks at a new job will always be difficult, perhaps even a little unpleasant.

There is an abundance of new information you have to stay on top of; names, spaces, procedures, and in the case of a kitchen, recipes, techniques, and where everything gets stored. All this knowledge has yet to be automated. While you struggle to keep up with this new input, you also want to do your very best and show your new workplace that they hired the right person. And yet you will likely still find yourself being the slowest in the room, constantly needing to ask questions (multiple times even), and you may feel like you don’t actually provide much value to the place at first.

In addition to this difficulty, you may not immediately have the comfort of social connections to fall back on; after working somewhere for a while, you may have developed strong friendships, or at least a sense of reliability and understanding with your team, so that even when work feels overwhelming on occasion, you can count on being able to bond with the others. I know for myself – and for many others too, I’m sure – it usually takes me a good while to relax in a new social environment and go from having more formal, or surface-level interactions, to having more personal and friendlier engagements.

There is not really an option to skip those first few weeks.

I find it helpful to assess and mentally prepare myself for these difficulties and avoid putting too much pressure on myself: It is going to be hard, and realistically, it may initially not be particularly enjoyable. That’s fine. That is part of it. Because I know that soon enough, without realising it at the moment, I will improve, begin to understand how everything works, and slowly feel myself becoming part of the team. After all, one of the perks of working in the hospitality industry is that there is nothing like a stressful, manic shift to jumpstart a strong team bond or friendship and to get yourself used to a new, challenging environment.

Naturally, there is still no way of predicting how well you will fit into a work environment. But as of now, I am hopeful, and I focus on my enthusiasm and excitement to work and learn at a new restaurant. Worst case scenario, I leave after a few weeks, after having worked at a great restaurant for a little while, having met new people and learned some recipes and techniques on the way.

Which is not too bad of a scenario if you ask me.