My boss told a new hire to 'just figure it out' and I saw their face fall

I was grabbing coffee yesterday and heard my manager tell a new guy on his second day to 'just figure it out' about our project tracking software. The kid looked totally lost. It made me remember my first week here, feeling the same way. I ended up spending two hours after work just clicking around, which was a waste. I think we really need a simple one page guide for the basics. Has anyone made a quick cheat sheet for new people at their job that actually worked?

3 comments

3 Comments

annaw731mo ago

Ugh, that's the worst. I made a one pager for our expense system with screenshots and the three things people actually need to do. I just keep a PDF in the team drive and drop it for new folks. Cuts down on those lost hours big time.

the_spencer1mo ago

My last boss used to say "figure it out" like it was his job title. The new guy would just stare at his screen for an hour, scared to ask another question. It's crazy how a simple list of login steps and where to find the main forms can save a week of stress. Annaw's PDF idea is spot on, it's not about hand holding, it's about not wasting company time. Why do some managers think confusion is a good training method?

wendy6281mo ago

My old gym manager used to say throwing people in the deep end builds character. That new hire clicking around for two hours? That's how they learn the system for real, not from some paper. A cheat sheet just makes people lazy and they never learn to solve problems on their own. Half the job is being able to dig for answers yourself when no one is around to help.