What have you learned from your years of working?

Hi everyone, I’ve been working for 4 years and have learned quite a bit along the way. I’d love to hear from all of you about your own experiences and lessons from work! What I’ve taken away from my experience so far: 1. If there are already red flags during the interviews and before getting hired. Run, don’t join thinking that they will improve or give them a “chance”. 2. Exposure and opportunities are more important than salary. (Of course salary cannot be below what you need to spend on 🥲) 3. You can make friends with your colleagues, but have boundaries and do not overshare. Do not give them the chance to tell on you to your boss. I’m sure there are plenty of other lessons I haven’t learned yet, so I’d love to hear what experiences or advice you all have picked up over your careers!

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Horrible companies with horrible managers don’t really change. They get to stay horrible because the firm enables them to do so. Always check before jumping into a new firm. This advice has saved enough peers that it should be the gold standard for people entering the working world.

I agree! But how do you do your checks? I only use Glassdoor for now!

LinkedIn and message current or recent former employees. Best is to find friends that have networks in those firms.

50d

Do they reply though? I don’t think they’ll “bad mouth” the company as they would also be afraid that the interviewee will expose them hahaha

If they do reply something and hint, it just means things must be really disastrous behind the scenes. Most people will be diplomatic in their reply, so learn to read between the lines.

You are replaceable, operations still go on whether or not you are present. Take MC or leave when you need to, don't stress yourself out over it

Sounds mundane, but no piece of work / high-stakes meeting is worth skipping lunch for. Even if it's 11am or 2pm, I'll find the time to eat a proper, balanced meal. One of my seniors told me this when I was a month into my first job. I thought she was stating the obvious but in hindsight it was a piece of underrated, invaluable advice. It's so easy to get dragged into the thick of things during busy periods. Skip meals often enough and you'll ruin your health, develop an eating disorder, or end up stress eating at night and gain weight. No amount of gymming or pilates can resolve those issues. Also, lunch is the perfect time to mentally recalibrate.

Colleagues and workplaces come and go. Don't let anything that happens at work get to your sanity and affect your mental health. Your own mind and body are what will stay with you until the end of your life. If the environment is toxic or the work is draining you badly, it's better to leave rather than end up with serious health issues because of it.

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What have you learned from your years of working?