Everyone, veteran and non-veteran alike, is likely eager to impress the boss at their first full-time civilian job. Veterans, in fact, have a reputation for high-quality performances in any role. For those newly separated, their veterans status might even be the reason they were hired for a job over a new college grad. It happens.
While the boss might appreciate a newly hired veteran's zeal for making a good impression, it's far better to be a quiet professional who does good work than to be a mere kiss-up.
Sucking up to the boss harms your relationship with your new coworkers, makes you less productive and is simply exhausting. All of these are good ways to get burnt out early and hurt your overall mental health. So here are a few good ways to make that impression without taking things too far.
1. Show up on time and ready to work.
As an old saying goes, "80% of success is just showing up." No matter what your job function is, if you've arrived on time and ready to go, you're already ahead of the game. This doesn't mean you have to work 12-14 hours a day to be a success. You just have to work when you're supposed to.
If you're an accountant, you've got a full day of number crunching ahead of you. Construction workers need those hours to build things (and they get paid by the hour). Even as a writer, I had to come to my keyboard and start typing to contribute to my company's overall success.
2. Invest in your role.
When you show up, come to do your job. Show that you've prepared for meetings, be knowledgeable in what you do and take a little extra time to learn about the business ecosystem in which you work: the sector, the industry and the company.
If the time comes for someone to ask for your input on something, you won't be surprised and fumble for your thoughts. They will find that asking the new guy or girl in the office was actually a pretty good idea. You will speak confidently and project that you're well-informed. They will come to you for your thoughts again.
3. Be agreeable.
Being agreeable doesn't mean sucking up to the boss or letting coworkers walk all over you. It simply means being someone that they want to work alongside. Having a good attitude and taking the tough assignments in stride will endear you to your coworkers and your boss. It might attract tougher assignments, but being the boss' go-to for the hard jobs is part of making a good impression.
4. Move with a sense of purpose.
In military training, we're taught to move with a sense of urgency. In the civilian world, it doesn't always help to act as if everything you're doing is urgent -- much of your civilian work won't be a life-or-death situation. But if you move like what you're working on is important, keep your informal conversations brief and work diligently, your boss will see the effort.
5. Keep your personal life separate.
Don't bring your personal drama into the workplace. Sure, you can make friends out of coworkers, but if you're looking to impress your boss, compartmentalize those relationships while you're on the clock. Don't make personal calls on the job, put your mobile phone away and stay focused while you're at the office.
6. Show you are a team player.
One of the biggest reasons employers love to hire vets, according to Syracuse University's Institute for Veterans and Military Families, is because military personnel are experienced and adept at working in teams. They are goal-oriented and often known to take an unofficial leadership role in workplace teams.
This might be one of the prime reasons a company has for hiring veterans, so try to be the team player the higher-ups expect you to be. If the time for leadership arises, seize that opportunity too.
7. Bring solutions, not just problems.
There's a good chance most veterans have heard some form of this advice throughout their military career, and it's still good advice for working in the civilian sector. If someone sees a problem in the workplace, it is always best to take some initiative and present it to management with potential solutions attached.
-- Blake Stilwell can be reached at blake.stilwell@military.com. He can also be found on Twitter @blakestilwell or on Facebook.
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