New job anxiety

[Manda_j]

I hope someone can give me some advise, reassurance or understands what i am.going through....I've just left my job after 20years and have been lucky enough to start a new job....I have been in my new role for 1 mth (actually 3 weeks...I had my 2nd week off sick!)  In the last week I have started to have an overwhelming amount of anxiety...I feel.i'm not picking thing's up fast enough, I'm not good enough...I have been diagnosed with anxiety and depression (for years) so I am guessing that the anxiety is being heightened.  I am also a perfectionist so I continually struggle thinking i should know how to use new systems etc as it is a big part of my role ..I also think that part of the anxiety I feel is that the HR Leader and HR co-ordinator are both so chaotic and all over the place with their instructions and requests I feel I'm absorbing all this chaos and manicures (they are both are aware they are like this they told me when I first started) I also feel like I'm asking too many questions but I need to as I have had relatively no one to one training (I would say 4 to 5 hrs stretched over the time i have been in the role).  

I know the longer I am in the role the more I will begin to feel comfortable and less anxious..its hard as I try and reflect when I first started in my previous role of the fear and anxiety i felt but I can't remember it.....please help!!  Thank you 💙

[white knight]

Hi, welcome 

Your reactions are perfectly normal. Going sick at the beginning of your new job would make you feel insecure but with Covid employers are more aware than ever that staff attendance is very rubbery.

The other thing is getting to know your colleagues, their stresses and role. Opportunities will arise when you can assist them along with them realising your abilities. These developments evolve and suddenly you'll gain respect and feel more comfortable.

I wrote an àrticle on overcoming anxiety.

Google- beyondblue topic anxiety,  how I eliminated it 

TonyWK 

[Sophie_M]

Hi Manda_j,

Welcome to the forums and thank you for sharing your story here with us today. 

Starting a new job can be very overwhelming for anyone, and for someone who has been in their last job for 20 years, this is a huge transition! Falling sick in your 2nd week was possibly the additional trigger for you (for a few different reasons), and now that you're feeling the anxiety, it's possible that your additional stress/fears around the anxiety, coupled with all the other emotions and newness of the position etc, is causing your anxiety to escalate and thereby you're experiencing a spiral of negative emotions day by day.

As you have a history of anxiety and depression, we'd like you to explore what your previous tools and success might look like so that you can try to draw from those and realise what a strong, amazing and skilled individual you really are!

New jobs are tough! Please hang in there and continue to hang in here as well!

We look forward to hearing how you go over the next few weeks, and also to hearing what gems the community here will bring to the table as well.

Don't forget you can also reach out to our telephone counsellors to have a chat about this as well! Our phone number is 12300 22 4636 (or perhaps you would prefer the online chat version here). We're available 24/7, our counsellors are qualified and it's confidential and non-judgemental. 

We look forward to hearing from you..

Kind regards,

Sophie M

[Manda_j]

Hi Sophie THANK YOU so much for your response....I've been trying to do as much research on new job anxiety over the weekend and have put up positive affirmations at my desk to make me remember I am NOT expected to know everything straight away...it just ao hard to shut down the voices in my head...I also read something called "imposter syndrome" alot of what it explains is how I feel.  Again thank you xox

[Manda_j]

Hi TonyWK thank you so much for replying!  Being sick I actually didn't have any anxiety about my leader had no issues with this all all...its more that I feel overwhelming anxiety when I make errors learning a new systems and both my leader and team member are both very chaotic with their approach to work tasks there is no structure they bounce from one thing to another in such short  time frames I get halfway through something then they want something else done....3 weeks and barely any one to one training is also making my anxiety go through the roof...I'm trying to clean up 6 mths worth of work that hasn't been done....

[Manda_j]

Hi Sophie THANK YOU so much for your response....I've been trying to do as much research on new job anxiety over the weekend and have put up positive affirmations at my desk to make me remember I am NOT expected to know everything straight away...it just ao hard to shut down the voices in my head...I also read something called "imposter syndrome" alot of what it explains is how I feel.  Again thank you xox

[ecomama]

Hi Manda_j, welcome to the forums, we're so glad you're here. 

Lol "imposter sydrome", probably something we ALL feel in a new situation, esp at work. 
That's ok! 
Brene Brown has another term for it and it's on her Podcast, it's FFTs. 

Brene also has brilliant Ted Talks, YT clips and a Netflix special... I wanted to draw your attention especially to her "Gifts of Imperfection" works. 
You see, NO ONE is perfect. No matter how much they think they are or even tell you they are.... no one is. 
It's humanly impossible. 

But we are perfectly human. Imperfect. 

The things you wrote about "chaotic bosses" ewww yeah, been there. So crazy lol! 
Being organised, explicit and scheduled helps a workplace (and household) work "like a wheel oiled machine". That's the phrase I use at home when everyone is working together and with clear regular communication (and using the whiteboard lol). 

Depending upon what's "missing" to help at our workplace, I've used so many strategies over 40y it's astounding. Still using some, not all, some. 

IDK exactly HOW your bosses communicate but it could help to have a "Manda's To Do List for today" for them / you to write down the tasks expected of you. 
Then (possibly in Consultation with them) you can write a Number in front of each task so there's a Priority Order. 

Can you see what will happen? 
Your BOSSES will clearly SEE the huge workload and think ummmm that's a lot lol. 
Whether they stop putting things on this list or not... who knows. 

Stephen Covey also has brilliant work "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People", LOVED reading this 30 odd years ago. It's quite dense to absorb BUT even putting a few things in place that you see you need at work, can only work to support your role. I attribute Covey's works to my many promotions lol. 

Bestest wishes
EM

[Manda_j]

Thank.you EM!  I have set up a standard work that I have at my desk of critical things that must be done either daily weekly monthly and have shown my leader this....I explained that each day a green dot for completed or a red dot for not done is put against each task over the work week...any time.e a red dot appears 3 times triggers a question of what I sthr roadblock for stopping me completing this task and escalate to her if needed - simple visual tool for me and her to see.

She would rather set up email tasks and send them through and as I complete them clock complete this doesn't work because she is only seeing what she sends not what everyone sends.  She doesn't give me time to explain or answer fully but rather talks over the top of me not letting me finish explaining so she understands