Starting as an apprentice can be a huge mix of emotions… excitement, apprehension, uncertainty and pretty much any other fancy word you can find to describe feelings.
I’m writing this, to give those of you who are yet to start, just starting or in the early stages of your apprenticeship journey, to provide you with my “Top 5 Tips for Apprentices”.
Tip 1 – Ask the question.
Struggling in silence, is a common theme with apprentices. If you’re unsure about something, have no clue or just need some clarification, never be nervous to ask for help… regardless as to whether it’s your 56th question of the day.
Tip 2 – Connections.
Don’t fix yourself to your team, your manager, your role… expand your connections across the organisation and build relationships with different people throughout the business.
In risual, there are a vast array of jobs, roles and services and without speaking and connecting with people across the organisation – you will most likely be oblivious to these.
Expanding your connections around the organisation, may not seem like a worthwhile activity initially, but trust me… you’ll benefit from it at some point on your journey.
Tip 3 – Be on top.
Yes, you need to ensure you’re on top in terms of your performance within your role… but a key and obvious thing to be on top of as well, is your apprenticeship work.
risual provide many different opportunities to gain qualifications and certifications outside of your apprenticeship, so ensure that you’re on the ball with your main course to guarantee yourself the chance at achieving some of these.
Tip 4 – Track your progress.
Another reoccurring challenge with apprenticeships, is being confident in your progress. I for one, during my time as a Support Engineer, struggled to pat myself on the back when it came to progress.
It can be difficult sometimes to feel like you’re succeeding and achieving within your role, simply because there’s so many new, difficult, and testing things to learn. Sometimes you feel like you’re getting nowhere.
I guarantee, that if you give yourself time to take a step back, look at where you started and where you’re at, you’ll be shocked, impressed and feeling a lot more confident about the progress you’ve made
The old saying “Rome wasn’t built in a day” is very applicable in this situation. Be hard on yourself, but don’t get disheartened because you don’t know everything.
Tip 5 – Enjoy.
This is a pretty easy thing to do at risual, with a bunch of helpful, humorous and happy employees. Enjoying your role is key to being successful and by following the tips I’ve outlined above, this should come naturally.
If you’re not doing something you enjoy, you’re not likely to be putting the appropriate effort in. So, if you’ve got any concerns or issues, make them known to the relevant people (HR, your Manager, the friendly Director’s), get them resolved and you’ll be on track in no time.
