With the short Thanksgiving work week coming up, we have some advice about what to do when you want to take some time off from your a new job. If you have been on the job less than 3 months, you are still getting settled and might not want to ask for any time off, but you might need a little breather–onboarding is stressful. A holiday is a great excuse. Here are our tips for success:
- Ask, don’t tell–Your manager is still getting used to you, too, and you can make a good or bad impression here. Request your time off, don’t demand it or sound like you expect it.
- Research–If your team has a big event or critical project deadline coming up, wait until after it is over to ask for time off. Take a longer view of the work calendar when making your plans.
- Culture–Your new office might be very flexible or keep tightly to a a routine. Keep that in mind when asking for time off. Find out from a colleague what the typical policy is around holidays. Maybe everyone goes home at lunch on Wednesday and you just haven’t heard yet or maybe they have a tradition of working on a particular day.
- Keep it short–Unless it was already booked when you took the job (and you told the hiring manager then), don’t plan an actual vacation until you have been in your new job at least 3 months. Even if your company doesn’t have an official “probationary” period, it’s a good idea to institute one of your own. And if you want to take a vacation in the first 6 months, make an appointment to discuss it with your manager before you make your reservations.
Artisan Creative will be closed on Thursday and Friday for the Thanksgiving holiday. We are thankful that you are here and hope you have a very happy one!
Wendy Stackhouse, Consultant for Artisan Creative