Facing the unknown is always scary.  But with proper preparation and the right frame of mind, you can launch your professional career with confidence and a bright outlook on the future.

Making the Proper Exit

As your senior year winds down, it's tempting to focus on the fun stuff associated with graduation.  This includes going-away parties, sports banquets, and other campus socializing.  As important as all of this may be, it's just as needful to take care of business before making your commencement day exit.

For starters, think ahead in terms of gathering information that will enhance your entry into professional life.  In practical terms, it's smart to gather written references from esteemed professors, coaches, campus employers, and career placement officers.

It's so much easier for Professor Smith to write something favorable about your classroom genius while you're a fresh face in her mind -- than it is several years from now, when she has to jog her memory even to recall who you are!

Ditto for other college administrators and academic heavy-weights.  Over the years, they've come into contact with hundreds -- or thousands -- of bright and ambitious collegians.  If you made a positive impression on them, get it in writing.  Whatever they can say favorably about your communication skills, character, academic giftedness, and such can be part of the professional dossier you begin to develop.

Likewise, don't underestimate the importance of securing references from campus employers.  For example, suppose you worked at the campus pizza parlor.  Think of how impressive it would be to have written documentation as to how pleasantly you dealt with customers, motivated others on your work crew, reduced wastage and saved the company money, etc.  These are the positive attributes that employers in big corporate America look for when hiring entry-level employees.

Similarly, it's advisable to stay connected with organizations that can benefit you in terms of future networking.  Obvious examples: Greek fraternities or sororities, alumni associations, academic clubs, sports teams, and so on.

Career success is not just a matter of doing well on the job.  As much as anything else, it's a matter of smart networking when it's time to make a career move.  Most industries or professions are tightly knit.  Thus, it's a small world in terms of who knows who, knows who.   By staying in the right communications' loop, you can keep abreast of opportunities that your peers may be unaware of so easily.

Finally, as you exit the college community, make sure you leave with a clean slate in terms of financial obligations.  The Financial Aid office should not have to track you down for loan repayments.  Nor should the local police department send threatening letters regarding unpaid parking tickets.  Something as simple as that can return to haunt you down the line.

Starting Your New Job Right

Once you receive your diploma and begin actual employment, it's critically important to start off on the right foot, so to speak.  Here are some pointers for launching your career successfully.

1.  Prepare mentally and physically for the transition.  As you begin your new job, you will be on equal footing with every other new hire.  You'll leave behind any campus acclaim for being the all-star sports captain, homecoming queen, hippest dresser, or most popular socializer.

Employers aren't looking for entry-level workers who are cool.   Rather, they seek young professionals who have the kind of ambition, focus and dedication to learn the job and do their best in furthering the interests of the organization.  For that reason, begin to envision yourself as someone who's a quick starter and anxious to perform to the expectations of all concerned.

Physical preparation may involve adjusting your lifestyle and personal habits.  For instance, if you're accustomed to studying and engaging in bull sessions until the wee hours of the morning, you will definitely need to adjust to fit into the 9-to-5 routine.

Similarly, if your socializing has involved going to parties Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, you will certainly need to curtail such activity in order to be alert on the job.  In return for paying a decent salary, your employer expects you to present a well-rested body and keen mind every day you show up for work.

2.  Learn all you can about the company and key personnel.  This actually begins long before you start your job.  During the interview process, get as much information as you can about the organization: public relations material, company brochures, newsletters, and so on.

What the organization says about itself in print provides a good indication of its management philosophy and style.  But, you can learn the real deal by talking to current or former employees.  Obviously, current employees are only going to say positive things about the company -- if they're smart!  However, it's how they say what they say that can clue you into the inner workings of the organization.

Any connections you can make with previous employees will also be beneficial.
Bear in mind, though, that ex-employees may have departed with a chip on their shoulder.  Nonetheless, they can provide--at least somewhat objectively--insight into the workings of the organization that aren't specified in the company PR material.

Along with general company information, it's also helpful to learn as much as possible about your particular department or work team.  This includes your immediate supervisor, co-workers, and others whose jobs will impact your standing in the company.

Ask yourself:  How well do they work together?  Do they enjoy their jobs?  How supportive does the boss appear to be of the other employees?

Answers to these questions will clue you as to how to fit in with the group, yet carve your own niche as an up-and-coming young professional.

3.  Establish a reputation for being a good worker.  Most companies view the first three to six months as a honeymoon period for new employees.  That's the time to get adjusted to the organization and to prove one's worth as a valuable worker.

Companies don't expect perfection from new employees.  However, they do expect them to do their jobs as responsibly as possible, learn from their mistakes, and make an increased contribution to the organization.

To establish a favorable reputation, show yourself to be reliable, dependable and hard working.  This doesn't mean being an apple polisher, but it does mean focusing on the tasks that you were hired to perform.  Demonstrating good work habits--along with showing a positive attitude--will go a long way in building a reputation for quality performance.

4.  Avoid the mistakes that some new employees make.  Some college graduates mistakenly believe that superior academic standing translates into automatic favor on the job.  In actuality, earning an impressive GPA doesn't necessarily put you in a special category as an entry-level employee.  All new hires are basically on equal standing.

What you have achieved in the past is only a prologue to how you can perform in the future.  As your new employer assesses your ongoing progress, your employer will want to know:  What have you done for me lately?   Having a know-all attitude, but not carrying your weight on the team, will not score any points with your boss -- and may lead to a hasty departure from the company.

Another work-related booby trap is being lured into company cliques.  On campus, being socially popular and aligning yourself with the right group may be a necessary means for survival.  In the real workforce, it can be disadvantageous to join any certain group right away.  After all, you may inadvertently link yourself with the wrong clique: the down-and-outers, not the up-and-comers.  Get to know everybody--and be generally friendly to all--before making any social attachments.

5.  Set goals that benefit the company as well as yourself.  Your new employer has a vested interest in your professional success--to the degree that your goals dovetail with the company's.  Sure, the company has general concern about your professional development.  But, this is always in the context of how you can be of greater service to the organization.

To illustrate: Most major corporations provide financial incentives for their employees to attain specialized training or advanced degrees.  The purpose behind this is not to promote someone's self-actualization, but to enable the employee to be a more effective contributor to the company's success. With this in mind, give some thought to long-term goals that benefit you and your new employer.  Some suggested goals: learning another language, better time management, increased expertise in computer operations, improved public speaking, etc. By becoming a more well-rounded and better-skilled employee, you demonstrate concern to make a greater contribution to the success of the organization.  That will gain you a certain amount of favor in the eyes of those who carefully watch your career development.

6.  Identify a supportive mentor.  On campus, you probably had a favorite professor or advisor who guided you through the maze of academic requirements and protocol.  As a trusted mentor, he or she took personal interest in your success and, no doubt, prodded you to take advantage of opportunities for special achievement.

Mentoring in the workplace is equally beneficial.  It behooves you to bond with someone who can show you the ropes and steer you in a direction that will enhance your long-term career success.

This may or may not be your immediate boss. Your immediate supervisor may be stuck in a dead-end job and lack any significant career aspirations.  If that's the case, he/she won't be able to inspire you to scale to greater heights of success in the work world.

The best candidate for a mentor might be someone in another department who once performed your job and has moved on to bigger and better things.  He/she has intimate knowledge of what it takes to succeed, and how to avoid the career pitfalls that await the unsuspecting.

7.  In a positive way, stand out from the pack.   Doing the minimum required might enable you to keep your job.  But, base-line performance won't lead to company promotion.

No matter what your field or specialized work involves, competition is inevitable.  In order to move up in the company, it's needful to stand out from the crowd as someone who offers something special-not something unique, necessarily; but something that distinguishes you as a rising star in the profession. For instance: receiving professional certification or licensure in your field ahead of your peers, getting something published, receiving an award for special community service, and so forth.  Senior managers always take note of such achievements of aspiring young professionals, and peg them for more challenging work assignments.

Taking Care of Other Business

Making a smooth transition from college to the workforce concerns something else: getting established in a new community.

For starters, plan ahead for the physical relocation move.  Find out what the company provides as a moving allowance.   For entry-level employees, it's probably a minimal amount, but every little bit helps.   If the company has a relocation specialist, work closely with him or her to handle appropriate details of the move.  Then allow yourself plenty of time to make the actual move and get settled before starting work.  Suggestion:  plan at least a week to unpack, become acclimated with the community, identify the best routes for commuting to work, and so on.

There's more to life than just earning a living, of course.  As you plant your roots in the community, find out about opportunities for religious, recreational and social involvement.  Such outlets for personal development and interpersonal interaction can be a good buffer to the normal stress that accompanies starting a new job.  After all, a balanced life outside the workplace goes a long way in fostering overall job satisfaction.

Something else must be said.  Being involved in the community can benefit you, directly or indirectly, in terms of career growth.  Specifically, certain professions (law, public accounting, consulting) typically require building up a clientele.  One means to accomplish that is through informal contacts made within one's circle of influence.

Persons you meet at a worship service, gym, or social gathering can turn out to be good buddies, as well as sources of contacts that will benefit your career growth.

Finally, getting established in the community involves participating in worthwhile projects and causes.  Many possibilities come to mind: the Urban League, United Way, NAACP, etc.  Volunteering your time for tutoring young children, mentoring high school students, charitable fund raising, etc., is personally rewarding--and demonstrates that you are a concerned citizen who is willing to make a positive contribution in giving back to the community.

After all, making the transition from collegian to full-time employee goes hand- in-hand with maturing into responsible adulthood.  That is something to anticipate with confidence and personal conviction.  Now that you've earned your degree, take your rightful place in society and make a difference.