Common Challenges
You Don’t Have Enough Work orYou Have Too Much!
- Read organizational literature
- Go through files to acquaint yourself with system, clients, etc.
- Volunteer for menial chores
- Use your powers of observation - learn how your boss works, what makes things run smoothly (or what causes problems), how decisions are made
- Communicate with your boss - ask him or her to help you establish priorities
- Check how many sources are feeding work to you and have them funnel everything through your main supervisor
You Feel Like All You Are Is A "Gofer"
- This is part of any job - expect these types of tasks and use them to prove yourself
- Helping to establish a sense of trust by doing menial tasks well will usually give way to greater responsibility
Credibility Problems & Resentment From Co-Workers
- The greatest risk for this is in new or unstructured programs
- Uncooperative co-workers usually don’t understand your role; therefore, it’s important that you let them know who you are and what you are doing (although, your supervisor should do this)
- Co-workers may resent your flexibility and time and attention from the boss
Pressure & Overtime
- Learn to use good time management, including the setting of priorities
- Remember you are still a student: pitch in when urgent, but avoid the rut of excessive overtime
Feedback
- You still have a big adjustment to make from the classroom to the work-site, because the same amount of feedback may not be out there
- The feedback may be less structured; not written out
Other
- You will probably encounter situations that contradict what you have learned in class
- You will probably run into behavior that violates common sense