Day 1 - Don't Show Up

Part 1 of the How to Lose a Job series

The fastest way to lose a new job is to not show up for it.

I've seen it happen with in-person employees. I've seen it happen with virtual contractors. And every time, there's a version of the same conversation afterward — confusion, excuses, a slow unraveling — when the reality is there are no excuses for this.

Let's start with what employers owe you, because this isn't entirely one-sided.

The employer's job: remove the guesswork

I'm a strong believer that every organization should have a standard practice for onboarding a new hire. At minimum: an email, a welcome one-pager, something that clearly tells you what your first day looks like, and where you need to be, physically or virtually.

This does NOT go without saying.

I've had it happen where an employer had three offices in the same city and never mentioned which one I was expected to go to. Employers own the responsibility of providing that information. Once an employer has done that work and communicated clearly, the ball is in your court.

The employee's job: show up

Not complicated.

And yet?

Where people find room to be "confused", (I use that word loosely), is often in a hybrid or virtual environment. If your first day of work is remote, you need to know what channel of communication has been set up for you. Are you joining a call? Are you receiving an email? Follow those instructions.

The excuses I've heard most often sound a lot like: "I thought it would be fine because I knew that you would message me if I was supposed to be online," or: "I didn't know that you needed me."

Here's the thing.

The default state for the relationship between a business and a team member is unemployed.

By entering into a contract, both parties changed that. You said yes to each other. That agreement carries an expectation: you deliver on your end by showing up, on the schedule that has been agreed upon.

No employer should have to remind you, after you've committed, to actually honor that commitment. No badgering, no nudging, no feedback sandwich to coax you into actually showing up for the job you accepted.

Just a quick note on ✨ modern technology ✨.

Every collaborative tool in today's workplace, the ones your team uses to share files, leave comments, and coordinate work, timestamps every interaction. When you're in a hybrid environment, whether or not you showed up is not a matter of opinion. It is a matter of record.

Even if your manager isn't actively monitoring your activity on any given day, it is a verifiable fact as to when you did and didn't engage. I once worked with a very early-career professional who thought hybrid meant optional attendance. So consider this your disclaimer: you can't claim ambiguity when the timestamp is right there.
If you agreed to keep a schedule, your employer has every right to hold you to it.

Before you commit: make the call honestly

If you can't do a job, don't commit to it.

If something significant happens between your interview and your start date, make a real judgment call about whether you have the bandwidth for the role. That decision is yours to make before day one, not after.

Because once your start date arrives and you say yes, you are responsible for continuing to show up. Drop that responsibility, and you might find yourself on the receiving end of something like this:

This is now the third day since your start date where I've been left unclear on whether you are receiving my communication and when, or if, I can expect you online. Clear communication and responsiveness are critical in this role, and unfortunately, this isn't going to work.

I'll be removing your access to [company]'s systems today.

Don't show up?

The job isn't going to be there when you do.