4 Mistakes To Avoid When Starting A New Job
Starting a new job is an exciting and rewarding journey. You meet new people, adapt to a new environment, face new challenges, and explore new opportunities for growth. However, that excitement comes with the fear of making mistakes or leaving a bad impression.
The truth is, you need not know everything right away. Having the right mindset and behavior matters more. In fact, a study by Leadership IQ revealed that 89% of hiring failures are due to poor attitudes, not lack of skills. To help you start strong, here are four mistakes to avoid for a smoother transition into your new role.
One common mindset when starting a new role is, 'It's too early to demand or negotiate. I should just follow along for now.' But that's a big, costly mistake. Yes, you've worked really hard acing every interview, and now that you've finally landed a new job, you might not want to risk anything. However, by delaying things, you're missing out on a lot of money and the opportunity to build credibility early on.
So, don't be afraid to bring up salary, bonuses, performance reviews, and other things to negotiate. For example, if you didn't get your desired salary, you can ask for additional paid time off or a more flexible schedule. Talk about training opportunities, or suggest a more reasonable timeline for performance reviews.
You might not always get what you ask for, but you will gain respect for speaking up. It also reflects your confidence, strong communication skills, and commitment to your role.
When we say onboarding, we often think it's the job of HR or the team to help us learn the ropes. Sure, they will conduct orientations, walk us through tools and programs, and train us on different parts of the job, but it doesn't stop there. A successful onboarding process requires new hires' active participation.
Being a newbie doesn't mean you should just keep quiet and wait to be told what to do. Instead, ask questions, especially when you're unfamiliar or still confused about certain processes. For example, if you're having difficulty using a project management tool, approach any team member. Ask for tips and best practices to help you get the hang of things faster.
By being honest and proactive, you save time for everyone. It also shows your eagerness to learn and contribute to the team. So stay curious and engaged!
While there's a lot to look forward to in a new job, don't forget the less exciting but equally important matters. Take time to understand taxes. Ask about Form W-4 and other documents you need to accomplish.
Review your employment contract thoroughly, including the probationary period, termination and notice provisions, confidentiality clauses, and non-compete agreements, if applicable. These may sound boring and technical, but you should know what you're getting yourself into and your respective rights and responsibilities.
Ask HR for any clarifications regarding leave requests, work hours, health insurance, and other benefits. Staying informed helps prevent unnecessary conflicts and allows you to focus on excelling in your new role.
The first few weeks or months are crucial in making a positive impression at your new job. Your responsibilities will grow, and regular evaluations will show your progress — or the lack of it. So spend your time wisely, and connect with the right people.
For instance, instead of reading all available resources or finding the perfect design for a presentation, talk to your manager and the people you'll be working with. Get involved early on by asking these questions: What are the team's biggest problems right now? What areas do you need help with? How can I contribute to the team's goals? Keeping your efforts aligned with the team's mission and vision helps position yourself as a dependable team member.
Finding a new job is already a big win. But you don't want to waste that opportunity on mistakes that are easily avoidable. So, be more proactive, understand the boring but important aspects of the job, and channel your energy into contributing to the team while growing professionally. Rooting for you!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
3 Dividend Stocks to Hold for the Next 20 Years
Key Points General Mills is offering a historically high yield backed by a powerful and diversified food business. PepsiCo is a Dividend King with a high yield and iconic global brands. Hershey makes an affordable luxury that people will be willing to pay up for. 10 stocks we like better than PepsiCo › Remember one thing when you consider consumer staples makers: You "need" the products they sell. That's particularly true when it comes to food-focused consumer staples companies like General Mills (NYSE: GIS), PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), and Hershey (NYSE: HSY). Here's why each one of these dividend stocks is worth buying and holding for 20 years, or more, right now. 1. General Mills is shifting with the times General Mills makes food products like cereal, snack bars, pet food, and baking products. It owns a collection of brand names that you likely know well, including Blue Buffalo and Cheerios. The brands and products it sells are staples in grocery stores and in consumer cupboards. It's highly unlikely that General Mills will suddenly go out of business anytime soon. That said, right now the company is facing some headwinds. Consumer buying habits are shifting, and some buyers are pulling back on spending. That has left General Mills' financial results weak. Sales and earnings fell year over year in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025. The company's fiscal 2026 outlook was a bit weak, too. But management is doing what it can to adjust, including changing formulations to match current trends, adjusting its brand and product portfolio, and trying to keep a lid on costs. These are the right moves and, in time, they will likely lead to General Mills getting back on track. It always has in the past. While General Mills' stock is out of favor, you can buy it at an attractive 4.8% yield. That's near the highest levels in the company's history. If you like income and think long term, General Mills should probably be on your buy list today. 2. PepsiCo has industry-leading brands General Mills is a good company with industry-leading brands, but PepsiCo's brands stand out even more. It's the No. 2 beverage company and the No. 1 salty snack maker. It also makes packaged food products that compete with companies like General Mills. The problem for PepsiCo is that customer tastes are shifting, and it is out of step with its customers. The company is working on the issue -- it recently bought a Mexican-American food business and a probiotic beverage company. Both are more in line with current trends. Sure, PepsiCo's recent financial results aren't that great, and they lag those of its closest peers. It's OK -- that happens even to well-run businesses. PepsiCo didn't achieve Dividend King status by accident, and it has muddled through hard times before. It's highly likely that it will do so again. In the meantime, you can collect a historically high 3.9% dividend yield. If the dividend history here is any guide, you'll end up a long-term winner if you're willing to step in while the rest of Wall Street is selling. 3. Hershey's cocoa problem makes it hard to love Hershey is the most difficult story to appreciate here for two reasons. First, while it makes food, the most important product it sells is chocolate. That's not a necessity, even though people love the affordable indulgence. Second, the biggest headwind for the business is a shocking rise in the price of cocoa, a key ingredient in chocolate. Cocoa comes from trees, so it could take some time before high prices lead to changes in the industry. That's why investors have sold Hershey stock hard, leading to a historically high 2.9% dividend yield. Just how bad is it? Despite increasing prices and the expectation of sales growth in 2025, Hershey is projecting rising costs to lead to a roughly mid-30% drop in earnings in 2025. And given the nature of cocoa, the pain could linger for a bit. There's a good reason why investors are negative on the stock. But if you can stomach some near-term uncertainty, the long-term picture is likely to be continued and growing demand for the affordable luxuries that Hershey sells. You need and want what they make It is hard to suggest that chocolate, soda, or cereal are life necessities. You can certainly eat and drink other things. But these consumer staples giants have long delivered the food items that people want to buy. That will be just as true in one year as it is in 10 years or 20 years. The headwinds they face today aren't likely to change anything about the nature of these businesses, even if the companies do need to adjust to better align with current trends. The truth is that they've all done that many times before. Given the historically high yields on offer from General Mills, PepsiCo, and Hershey, buying and holding for decades is probably a good call for even the most conservative dividend investors today. Do the experts think PepsiCo is a buy right now? The Motley Fool's expert analyst team, drawing on years of investing experience and deep analysis of thousands of stocks, leverages our proprietary Moneyball AI investing database to uncover top opportunities. They've just revealed their to buy now — did PepsiCo make the list? When our Stock Advisor analyst team has a stock recommendation, it can pay to listen. After all, Stock Advisor's total average return is up 1,036% vs. just 181% for the S&P — that is beating the market by 855.09%!* Imagine if you were a Stock Advisor member when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $625,254!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,090,257!* The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 29, 2025 Reuben Gregg Brewer has positions in General Mills, Hershey, and PepsiCo. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Hershey. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 3 Dividend Stocks to Hold for the Next 20 Years was originally published by The Motley Fool
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
3 Reasons Stablecoins Are Still a Risky Investment Choice
Key Points Stablecoins are gaining a lot of attention as an alternative to U.S. dollars. But a lot of those coins aren't actually backed by U.S. dollars. They're also not designed to beat inflation or the market over the long term. 10 stocks we like better than Tether › Stablecoins are gaining a lot of attention as an alternative to traditional cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. These coins, which are usually pegged to real-world assets like fiat currencies or gold, are designed to generate stable long-term returns. The most popular stablecoins are Tether (CRYPTO: USDT), USD Coin (CRYPTO: USDC), DAI (CRYPTO: DAI), TrueUSD (CRYPTO: TUSD), and PayPal USD (CRYPTO: PYUSD), all of which are pegged to the U.S. dollar. The issuers of these stablecoins back up their coins with their own reserves of cash, cash equivalents, and other assets. These USD-backed stablecoins try to keep their price at $1. They can be held without a bank account, help people protect their savings in countries with currency devaluation issues, and facilitate faster and cheaper cross-border transfers than U.S. dollars. USD stablecoins are also widely used in decentralized finance (DeFi) apps to pay out rewards, establish collateral for loans, and trade assets without a conversion to a fiat currency. They can act as a bridge currency to help crypto traders quickly switch between volatile assets. These stablecoins might initially seem a lot safer than other cryptocurrencies, but they're not risk-free investments. Let's review the three risks for stablecoins you should be aware of. 1. Not all stablecoins are backed by real-world assets Most USD-collateralized stablecoins like Tether and gold-backed stablecoins like Tether Gold (CRYPTO: XAUT) are pegged to physical assets. Tether holds a mix of cash, U.S. Treasuries, precious metals, and other cash equivalents. Tether Gold directly holds gold reserves. But there are two other types of stablecoins that are pegged to much riskier assets: crypto-collateralized coins, which are pegged to other cryptocurrencies; and algorithmic coins, which rely on automated computer programs to control the supply and keep their prices stable. For example, DAI is a crypto-collateralized coin that holds a mix of Ether, Tether, Wrapped Bitcoin, and Lido Staked Ether instead of actual U.S. dollars or Treasuries. By only holding cryptocurrencies, it doesn't rely on any custodian banks to hold fiat currencies. But it's not fully decentralized, since it's still holding a lot of Tether (which is backed by actual U.S. dollars), and a crypto crash could reduce the value of its collateral and weaken its peg to the U.S dollar. Many algorithmic stablecoins, like TerraUSD, crashed when their automated programs couldn't stay pegged to the U.S. dollar. Yet some smaller stablecoins are still trying to stay pegged with their own algorithms. If those opaque algorithms fail, those smaller stablecoins could quickly fizzle out if they're not backed by other assets. Therefore, investors shouldn't assume all stablecoins are "stable" because they've been holding steady at $1. Instead, they should see what these issuers are actually holding as their collateral, and whether they can be trusted to stay firmly pegged to the U.S. dollar. 2. They're exposed to regulatory headwinds Many stablecoins have sprouted up during the past few years, but they could be cut down by much tighter government regulations in the near future. Those regulators could scrutinize their underlying reserves and usage in cross-border remittances. They might even ban the riskier algorithmic stablecoins. Those government regulators could also consider stablecoins to be a threat to central banks, and use tighter licensing, auditing, or reporting requirements to subdue their growth. That oversight would undermine the usefulness of stablecoins as an alternative to U.S. dollars. 3. They aren't designed to beat inflation Most traditional investments, like stocks, are aimed at beating inflation. For example, the S&P 500 has generated an average annual return of 10% since its inception in 1957. In that context, stablecoins aren't good long-term investments because they're designed to merely match the value of the U.S. dollar -- which will inevitably decline over the long term. So for capital preservation, you would be better off parking your cash in a risk-free CD or T-bill that pays a 4% to 5% yield instead. The only way for stablecoins to beat inflation is if they're lent out on other crypto platforms to earn interest. Those platforms still pay double-digit annual percentage yields, but you're taking on a lot of counterparty risk for that yield. Several of those platforms -- including Celsius, Voyager, and BlockFi -- collapsed in 2022 and wiped out their lenders' stablecoins. Should you buy stablecoins right now? Stablecoins might be a viable way to preserve your capital, execute fast and cheap cross-border transfers, and smoothly invest in crypto platforms or apps. But they're not inflation-beating investments and they face a lot of risks that won't affect the U.S. dollar. Investors should clearly evaluate those risks before jumping on the bandwagon. Should you buy stock in Tether right now? Before you buy stock in Tether, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Tether wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $625,254!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,090,257!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,036% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 181% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 29, 2025 Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 3 Reasons Stablecoins Are Still a Risky Investment Choice was originally published by The Motley Fool
Fox News
10 minutes ago
- Fox News
From Washington: Why The White House Believes in Its Tariff Strategy
Many products and produce shipped into the U.S. will face higher tariffs next week, as President Trump meets his self-imposed August 1st deadline to reach new trade deals or implement reciprocal tariffs on U.S. trading partners. While the President secured some major deals before Friday, most nations received letters detailing the tax rates on their imports into the U.S. The White House claims that tariffs will generate trillions and benefit American workers, but some businesses are warning consumers that prices will rise. White House Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai joins the podcast to discuss the President's tariff strategy, the deals they hope to make with major trading partners, and the concerns some Americans have over the policy. Then, FOX Business White House Correspondent Edward Lawrence analyzes the July jobs report and discusses how a slowing labor market, concerns over tariffs, and other factors could influence the Fed's decision to lower interest rates and the White House's economic plans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit
