Work It! How To Enroll
First of all, congrats on the new gig! (Or if you landed a job a while back — you're a bit of an expert here. But you'll still find this section valuable.) You have a lot to take in. Remembering the names of your new colleagues (especially your supervisors — all five of them), office etiquette (don't get caught pouring the last cup of coffee), directions to the CEO's office (not so essential) and bathroom (essential) — and of course, the weekly office happy hour. You'll also be bombarded with training sessions on everything from using the fax machine to enrolling in your health benefits plan. We've come up with some tips and advice to help.
Listen To
Brandon
First Job—Brandon, 23
I just got my first full-time job at a local cable company. I graduated last year, did some traveling and made money by doing temp work. I really wanted to find a job with benefits because I've gone without them ever since I was taken off my parents' plan. It took me a few months, but now I finally have health insurance again and a pretty stable job.
Now I'm on my own financially and trying to figure out a budget, pay my bills and learn about my new benefits. It's all pretty confusing. I usually go to my parents with things like this, but they have such a different insurance plan than I do. I'm thinking about meeting with someone at work to learn more but I haven't gotten around to it yet. I need to find out which doctors and specialists I can see and I bet there are programs I can take advantage of that I don't even know about yet.
This profile is based on several real-life accounts. The names and specific details have been changed to protect privacy.
