5 Ways to Boost Your Confidence in a New Job

5 Ways to Boost Your Confidence in a New Job5 Ways to Boost Your Confidence in a New JobYou walk through the door on the first day of your new job, and there it is that shrinking fear that tells you that you dont know anyone, you dont know how things are done, you dont know who to talk to, and you dont know how friendly or over-the-top professional you need to be.You dont even know where the good coffee is.And for many of us, thats just the beginning. Starting a new job can stir deep feelings of anxiety, making you feel as though youre on the outside, elend good enough, or smaller than you really are.But, the sooner you can face those fears, the sooner you can dive in and start making an impact. Here are five helpful ways to keep those nerves at bay, ease your fears, and feel more confident at your new job.1. RelaxWalk into a new job with your body full of tension and your fists (even metaphorically) clenched, and youll leid only stress yourself out, youll put everyone else on edge, too. Youll be short or snappish with people because thats how your body is. Youll be less inclined to open up with new colleagues because youre in self-protection mode. And you wont be in a place to do great work because youre so focused on yourself.Your bodys a great mirror for how your mind is, so if your body is tense and anxious, theres a good chance its because thats how youre feeling.So relax. Loosen your shoulders. Breathe naturally. Listen to your body, and when you feel it becoming tense or tightening up, make a deliberate choice to loosen up and relax.2. Remember Why Youre ThereThe scariness of a brand new job in a big new building can easily make you forget what youre doing there in the first place- all that excitement and buzz gets swapped with fear and trepidation.So, its helpful to remember why youre there. Right off the bat, remember that youre at your new workplace because you were selected- among all the dozens of candidates- as the best person for the job. Your emp loyers have faith in you and want you to succeed, and their job is to help you flourish in the role.Secondly, remind yourself why you got excited about landing the job. Whether its because of what you get to do, how you get to grow, the value you get to bring, or the difference you get to make, those are the things to focus on and remember.3. Trust the ProcessIn any new role, theres pressure to perform right from the start, whether that means finding the best solutions, providing the right answers, or impressing the right people.But perhaps the most important thing to remember in any job is that you dont need to have all the answers. In fact, acting as though you do is really just using bluster and hubris to keep people from thinking youre not good enough.Nobody expects you to know everything. And when youre faced with something you dont know about, sometimes the brave thing to do is to tell people youre still figuring things out and that youll get back to them with an answer. Then, trust yourself enough to use everything youve got to navigate through one step at a time.4. See Them as People, TooPart of the fear of a new job is comparing yourself to others and thinking that everyone around you is better in some way that they know more or do more or are capable of more.But, of course, thats just your brain making stuff up. Everyone around you is incomplete and imperfect. Everyone has their own strengths,weaknesses, wins, losses, history, and potential. And comparing yourself to those people and automatically making them better is just a strategy to keep you small and afraid.The truth is, were all people- and weve all been in a new job before. So, the next time you find yourself clamming up with new colleagues because you think theyre better than you, just smile and remember that were all in the same boat.5. Normalize NewSimply put, new is scary. Thats just how it should be.If it wasnt scary, it would mean youve done it all before or are simply following to the letter what someone else has already carved out. And that doesnt sound like much fun at all, right?Your brain lights up like a Christmas tree when youre in a new situation where the outcome is uncertain, so the fear you feel about starting a new job is just your brain doing what its supposed to do. The real problem then, is thinking that the fear and anxiety is a problem. It isnt. Its perfectly normal.When that part of you thats scared of the new starts to scream at you, give yourself room to pause. Reassure yourself that youve come this far, tell yourself that youre not going to die, and press on through that fear. I promise With time, this too shall pass.Tell us How do you deal with the fear and anxiety of a new job?Photo of woman at work courtesy of Shutterstock.