ORD lo! Our heartiest congratulations to you, what’s next?
Most of you are probably waiting to begin university, while others are all set to hustle it out in the workforce. Regardless of the group you fall under, you’re about to set foot into the real world of work.
Integrating back into civilian life and stepping into an office may seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. In fact, you’ll be surprised how your National Service (NS) experience can help you survive at work.
Why?
You know the importance of teamwork
The very fundamentals of your NS training is teamwork. This foundation extends across your bunk, your platoon and your company. In NS, every action has its consequence and a single NSF’s mistake gets everyone punished, essentially reducing the efficiency of the entire team. If you’re not going to learn to work as a team, then prepare to suffer as a team.
This is very much like any organisation today, where an employee’s oversight can bring about costly consequences to his team or the firm. Every team member needs to learn to work together, look out for one another, and overcome challenges together, to meet objectives or to progress.
Difficult co-worker? No problem.
In camp, you don’t have the luxury of choosing who you want to work with. Think about that annoying platoon mate who just can’t seem follow instructions. What about that bunkmate who doesn’t cooperate and then gets everyone into trouble?
It’s frustrating to have teammates like that, but we know work still takes priority and needs to get done. In the midst of it all, we’re sure you’ve found ways to deal with it, whether it’s by sitting that bunkmate down or stepping up to take on more responsibility. Either way, you find a middle ground that can keep relations friendly and complete tasks.
Just like NS, you will encounter co-workers you do not enjoy working with. Knowing your priorities, setting aside your personal agenda or feelings, and placing the needs of your team ahead of yours, will help you get through difficult situations like this.
When the going gets tough, the tough gets going
Remember that time you had to dig a shellscrape? You’ve were digging under the scorching heat for hours, and when you got this close to completing it, you find a rock in your way. You now need to secure a new spot and start digging again, or you won’t have a place to rest for the night.
In the workplace, changes happen all the time. Your clients will want a brand new idea or plan, sometimes even out of the blue.
It took you a great deal of effort to put something together for them, and now you’re back to square one. But you didn’t give up on your shellscrape, so why should you give up at work?
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