You’ve Landed Your Dream Job, Now What?

Now that you’ve landed your dream job, you can pop your boots on your desk and relax. Or can you? While it’s the iconic picture of success, this posture may not be the best way to celebrate your newfound position. Instead, make the most of your dream job with the tips below:

Soak It All Up

Everything you learn now will guide you toward success in this role and to your next raise or promotion. Don’t let a single learning opportunity pass you by, and take notes on absolutely everything. If you’ve got a private office, it’s fine to dictate your notes using a note taking app like Dragon Dictation, which is available for iOS devices. But in most other environments you should write them down. A classy leather business journal from OfficeMax is just what you need to keep your thoughts organized.

Dive in But Wade Slowly

It’s fine to impress your new boss and your team with your work ethic and your great ideas, but don’t annoy your coworkers by taking too many liberties all at once. If you’ve been offered privileges like telecommuting part-time or flexible start times, make sure that you make wise choices when exercising those privileges. Analyze the corporate culture around you to assess what is appropriate, and act accordingly. Most companies have a hierarchy, and you’ll need to find your place on it.

Don’t Spend It All in One Place

A significant pay raise can make a huge difference to your immediate and future existence. Rather than blowing all of your raise on a single monthly expense, spread it out over several small expenses. For instance, instead of putting your entire raise into a hefty new car payment for your dream car, pick out one of the DriveTime used cars so that you’ll have a cheaper monthly payment. By keeping your expenses close to what they were before you got your raise, you’ll have extra cash to invest or spend on traveling.

Prioritize

You probably want to do everything all at once, but you will need to set priorities to make your efforts successful. Stephen Covey, author of “The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People,” writes that effective people do two things: They strive to do excellent work and they prioritize.

Rely on an app like Asana to help you prioritize and stay on track. Available for free on Android and iOS devices, Asana can be used for individual goal setting or it can be used for group projects. For a monthly fee, you can even use Asana to organize a project with up to 100 or more participants.

Don’t Lose Your Way

This may be your dream job now, but is it where you want to be in 10 or 15 years? Enjoy your new job, but don’t forget to focus on your long-term goals either. MindTools advises on taking the following steps:

1. Identify specific long-term goals such as becoming the leader of your current department or earning a certain amount of money.

2. Write down these goals.

3. Spend a few moments each day reading your list and visualizing your long-term goals.

4. Believe in your ability to achieve these goals.

Hopefully these tips will help you make the most of your new job.