‘What to do from here? I don't want to risk failing probation’: Singaporean worries employer may overlook her skill gaps and expect her to perform immediately
job interview, female applicant
SINGAPORE: Receiving an offer should be a welcome bit of good news, particularly for a fresh graduate just starting out in her career. But one Singaporean woman is struggling to feel at ease about hers, as she cannot shake the worry that she might not have the skills or experience needed to handle the role.
In a post on the r/singaporejobs subreddit, she admitted that she was struggling with her “fear of failure” and was having second thoughts about accepting the offer, despite the company having chosen her for the job.
Her biggest worry was the long list of responsibilities in the job description, which she felt might be too much for her to handle at this stage of her career. While she had some relevant experience, she pointed out that her previous work was done on a “much smaller scale.”
“The JD is packed, and I've had some similar experiences prior, but on a much smaller scale. I told them that the skills they wanted in the JD… I haven't fully mastered or tried yet, but they still decided to choose me. They say the skills that I'm still developing, I can get the team members to teach.”
“But how likely is this? Who wants to go teach the new hire? In the worst-case scenario, they think I'm a great hire and hire me, but then all the things I told them I'm still learning, they ignore, and it actually becomes a problem during confirmation because I never pick up or perform fast enough.”
She further shared that when she inquired about what was expected of her, the most senior person on the panel simply told her not to “mess things up.”
Now feeling stuck, she has turned to fellow Redditors for advice on what to do next.
“What to do from here? I don't want to risk failing probation because I experienced before a company not confirming me as staff because of a mismatch in skill set.”
“I think the company is trying to hire someone faster for this role, so I'm not sure if I can trust that I'm their best candidate that they properly evaluated or if I'm just hired to help meet numbers.”
‘Do your best’
In the discussion thread, several Redditors encouraged the fresh graduate not to overthink things and to give the job a chance.
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One user wrote, “Don’t worry too much about the job. Just take it and get experience first. If you fail, then go to another company.”
Another reminded her not to count herself out before the employer had even given her a chance, saying, “One thing I always advise candidates: Why are you doing the hiring manager or HR job? If you are not the right fit, it is their job to reject you. Not your job to filter yourself out. Be bold. Be brave. You got this!”
A third added, “Do your best and take this chance to learn as much as possible. Don't need to doubt yourself.”/TISG