5 Ways to Succeed at Your Summer Job

1.  Be on time.  Read: show up ten  minutes early.  Try to avoid a perfect record of showing up at 8:50 a.m. for the first two weeks, and then at 9:10 a.m. thereafter.  Also, if you are out late at a work event, you are still expected to be at work on time the next morning.

2.  Dress the part.  Take a look at what your supervisors wear and model your attire after them.  If you work in a Business Casual environment, and your boss wears a suit and tie everyday because s/he meets with clients frequently, then you might want to look to the associates in the office for reference.  If you are a woman and your manager is a woman, you should feel free to model the amount of makeup you wear by the example she sets.

3.  Do not be afraid to ask questions.  If you are not completely sure about an assignment, or get stuck on a part of it, feel free to ask for help.  Do not let the problem get too far away from you; this will make the problem worse.  If you try to figure the problem out yourself, but you are still confused, ask someone for assistance.  This is not a failure to "get it," but rather, a more efficient use of time.

4.  Remember that you are building your network.  You already know that you will need to make a good impression.  More specifically, the people you meet this summer will form or continue to form the basis for your professional network.  You will hopefully have this network for your entire professional career.  You may work on an assignment that you will use as a writing sample for future job applications.  Keep these thoughts in mind every time you hand in an assignment, update your Facebook status, go out for drinks with your colleagues, send an email, reply to an email, etc. Make sure everything you hand in is your very best work.  Make sure to proofread everything -- this includes email.  Double check dates, the spelling of names, and grammar.  

5.  We all love Facebook, but resist the temptation to read it all day.  I had a former boss who used to say to me, "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" when I asked her for more work when my billable hour goal for the month was in jeopardy.  If you are finished with an assignment and have nothing else to do, do not sit on your hands or search Facebook all day.  Go out and ask for more work.  This way, you are taking initiative, accumulating quality assignments and even better work habits.  Hopefully, you will keep these habits with you when the summer comes to an end.