Simple Guide for Post Graduates
The following are stuff that I have discovered and learnt over the past 4.5 years from working.  These are based on my experience, advice from others and from reading books.  I find them particularly useful as these are considered as ‘soft skills’. 

1) It is a common mistake by graduates where they try to do more, i.e. things not related to their work.  This is not a good idea, just do what the company pays you to do. 

Whilst it may be great to try and be helpful, being too helpful will send signals to people to dump things onto you.  Also, you may be able to do A, B and C perfectly.  However, if you have to do A, B and C simultaneously, can you still do a good job with all three?  Else, if you do a bad job, it may backfire on you. 

2) Learn how to say no.  This sort of relate to Item 1 above as I personally find saying no to be rather difficult at first, especially when people start complaining or have a go at you.  For example, if someone ask you to do something outside your job scope, you can say No and give them a reason such as you are busy or you don’t know.  If you are in a situation where you can only say yes, then make sure the person knows that you are doing them a favour. 

3) If something doesn’t work, don’t just say it doesn’t work.  Always offer alternative solution or idea and always show that you have tried finding out why it doesn’t work. 

4) The glass is half full or half empty.  There are two ways for you to talk to people:

a) No, you cannot do this.  To do this, you will need to do A, B and C.
b) Yes you can do this by doing A, B and C. 

The key point here is to be positive and show a realistic can do attitude.  It doesn’t mean saying yes to everything when you can’t deliver. 

5) If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing.  This is a quote from Mythbusters but one I find applicable to my work.  If you are asked to do something, don’t do a half-hearted job.  Give it your best + extra to try and match + exceed the person’s expectation.  This is how you can get noticed. 

6) Be nice to everyone, and also be nice to the receptionist or admin.  A smile is free, so don’t be afraid of giving them out. 

When someone is behaving unprofessionally towards you, the last thing you want to do is to respond in the same way.  Remember the inverse rule, the more unprofessional someone is, the more professional you should be and the ruder the person is, the more polite you should be. 

7) A wall is there to let you show how much you want something. 

8) Be open to criticism.  People criticise you because they care.  You should be worried when people stop criticising you as this means have given up on you. 

Even when faced with unconstructive criticism or people bent on putting you down, just smile and go away or ignore it if you can.  Don’t engage in a prolonged argument as it is a waste of your time and often, it does not reflect well on you. 

9) Remember please and thank you, they go a long way. 

10) Always carry a mini notebook with you, when people teach you something, write it down. 

11) Avoid making mistakes but understand that mistakes cannot be avoided.  What you need to do is learn and make sure you don’t make the same mistake twice.  This is tough, but when you make a mistake, be sure to own up to it as soon as you can as there might still be ways to contain the damage.  Keeping quiet will help no one. 

12) Don’t be lazy, always do your homework before asking a question.