I started a new job Monday August 25th, 2008 having left Cornerstone Brands for PCMS Datafit. I have been asked to help them find performance problems with their software. It is always tough starting a new job because on the one hand you want to make a good impression. On the other though, people there don’t know you and it is easy to appear too eager or worse, over confident or even arrogant.

At Cornerstone, I spent the last 18 months getting really good at doing what they needed. I understood what each person was interested in, what they cared about, and I was able to be very productive in my position. In a new job though everything is an unknown. As a software developer and architect I find myself focusing probably too much on the tasks at hand. In the mean time I could be creating first impressions that I may have to overcome in the future. I would be interested in hearing your comments on how you handle your first days on the job.