Progressions

Lessons From a “New” New Professional

This post is part of a series of “Lives of New Professionals” guest posts for Progressions.

Starting a new job as a new professional can seem a little scary. During my first few months as a new professional at Finn Partners, I’ve learned many things – about working in the social/digital space, engaging with consumers, contacting bloggers, writing content for platforms, creating fun videos and more.

Though I’m still a relatively “new” new professional, there is one piece of advice I think is important for students to understand: working full-time as a new professional is very different from being a full-time student, especially if you had a very active role on campus.

As a new professional, you will likely be at the bottom of the totem pole. My own transition was somewhat difficult, as I was a student leader on campus and the PRSSA National President in 2012-2013; I’ve had to learn how to work through the hierarchy of the working world.

The last paragraph in this post from TIME explains how some millennials may think the workplace should be “flat” and everyone should be treated equally with a voice. In reality, it may not always be that way. Fortunately at Finn, I feel very comfortable with my team and my managers to really be myself (while still understanding ranking).

In many ways, a good company culture fit can be even more important than the job description. While you may not always land in your dream job at first, and it may take awhile to climb your way up, it really is worth it to land a job where you feel most comfortable.

Lauren Gray is the 2013-2014 PRSSA Immediate Past President and is a junior associate in Digital at Finn Partners in New York City. You can find her on Twitter @laurenkgray and on LinkedIn.