Keep the Job: Your First 90 Days
A plan for your first 90 days, a record of completed work, a feedback routine, a list of who can help with problems, and questions to help you settle into a new job.
First Job Starter Kit
Prepare your first shift, track instructions and hours, and check the first payday.
You’ll make: A first-week schedule, role-question list, hours log and take-home-pay budget.
Before you begin
People starting a first or new job, including learners rehearsing a fictional first week.
- Use the fictional job case or a written offer with private details removed.
- Have a calendar and your likely travel route.
- Use employer-verified contact details; keep hiring and payroll documents private.
Practice: prepare and check a fictional first week
- Morgan has a fictional shop job. The practice employer confirms shifts on Monday and Wednesday, each 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and says to report to the shift supervisor. These are example days, not current appointments or a real offer.
- For the Monday shift, Morgan plans to leave at 8:20 a.m. and arrive at 8:40 a.m. A backup bus would arrive at 8:45 a.m. The employer says to call the supervisor through its verified contact route if delayed; no phone number belongs in this public worksheet.
- The employer supplies an apron. Its shoe requirement and any expense reimbursement still need written clarification. The $45 shoes and $10 lunch supplies in the budget below are separate fictional startup inputs, not proof of an actual employer requirement or permission to charge a worker.
- The approved practice task is to match a shelf label with an item label, count the items on that shelf, and report the count to the supervisor. The expected result is the correct item label and count. Morgan should ask for help if the labels do not match; no customer records, climbing or unfamiliar equipment are part of this task.
- The case hours record states four paid hours on Monday and four paid hours on Wednesday, eight paid hours in total. The written practice rate is $15 per paid hour. This stated paid-time input is not a rule about breaks or overtime; actual policies and applicable rules need checking.
- The fictional first statement lists only seven paid hours: $105 gross pay, $16 total deductions and $89 take-home pay. For the exercise, compare those entries with the supplied eight-hour record. The deduction reasons are not supplied, so they must be a payroll question rather than a tax calculation.
- The supervisor’s practice feedback is: the item label was correct; next time, report the count before starting a different shelf. Morgan schedules a check-in after the next shift.
- The separate monthly budget below supplies $2,000 after-deduction income. Do not turn this short first-week statement into a monthly income estimate or subtract deductions from the $2,000 again.
Try this
Write the first-shift arrival and delay plan, the three approved task steps and the point for asking help. Check the hours and pay arithmetic, draft one precise payroll question, then write the next-shift improvement and check-in.
Check the example response
I would arrive at 8:40 a.m., 20 minutes before the 9 a.m. shift; the backup arrival leaves 15 minutes. I would use the verified supervisor route to report a delay. My task steps are match the item and shelf labels, count those items, and report the count. A label mismatch means ask the supervisor. Eight stated paid hours at $15 gives $120 gross; the statement’s seven hours gives $105, a one-hour or $15 gross mismatch. Its own arithmetic is $105 minus $16 = $89 take-home. I would ask, “My case hours record shows eight paid hours across Monday and Wednesday, but the statement lists seven. Can you check the missing hour and explain the deduction entries?” I cannot determine corrected net pay without verified deduction information. My next improvement is to report the count before changing shelves and review that after the next shift. The supplied $2,000 monthly take-home budget remains a separate practice input.
Take it one step at a time
Confirm the first shift
Clear logistics prevent avoidable attendance problems.
- Confirm the date, start/end time, location or approved remote setup and reporting contact through the employer’s verified channel.
- Ask what documents, clothing, equipment or access steps are actually required and who supplies them.
- Plan travel with a realistic arrival buffer and one backup; do not assume the first route always runs.
- Ask how to report a delay or absence before it happens and record the method privately.
Check: You can explain where to go, what to bring and how to communicate a problem.
Learn one task safely
Repeating the instructions back exposes missing details early.
- Ask the supervisor for the task’s purpose, steps, expected result and relevant safety/access requirements.
- Write a short sequence using nonsensitive labels; do not copy customer data or confidential systems into your personal notes.
- Repeat the sequence back and ask which parts require training, permission or supervision.
- Perform only work you are authorized and trained to do; seek help when the instructions or conditions differ.
Check: Your task note includes the expected result and a clear point for asking help.
Track time and check pay
A private record helps you ask a specific question about a mismatch.
- Record actual work dates and start/end times using the employer’s required method; note breaks separately according to that system.
- Confirm the stated rate, pay period, payday and how to view the pay statement.
- Compare the first statement with your hours record and the written terms, distinguishing gross pay, deductions and take-home pay.
- If something differs, identify the date and amount and ask payroll or the appropriate official worker-support route; do not guess why a deduction exists.
Check: You can distinguish gross and take-home pay and describe any discrepancy without exposing a bank account.
Review the first week
A short feedback loop makes improvement concrete.
- Ask for one example of work that met expectations and one priority for the next week.
- Update your task note with the approved clarification.
- Use confirmed take-home pay and job-related costs to revise the monthly budget.
- Set a second check-in and keep the travel/absence backup accessible.
Check: Your next-week plan contains one specific improvement, a revised cost estimate and a check-in date.
Your ready-to-use checklist
Checks are temporary and are not saved to your account. Download your current checklist before leaving or reloading. The kit ZIP contains the original blank checklist.
0 of 10 checked
Your checklist download is a text file with your current checked and unchecked items. You can add notes in your own app. It does not save an account record.
A fictional first-job take-home budget
Morgan uses $2,000 monthly take-home income supplied for this exercise. This is already after deductions; it is not calculated from a gross hourly wage.
Edits are temporary and are not saved to your account. Download your current budget before leaving or reloading. The kit ZIP and supplied-budget link contain the original example.
One-time costs $55.00
Monthly costs $1,680.00
Monthly amount left $320.00
This comparison covers only the listed costs. Add any omitted commitments in your downloaded worksheet.
Supplied example reasoning: Monthly planned costs are $1,680, leaving $320 before unlisted costs. Separate fictional startup purchases total $55. If monthly travel becomes $150, recurring costs are $1,740 and the balance is $260. Do not subtract startup purchases every month. Actual employer requirements, reimbursements, deductions and take-home pay must be confirmed rather than inferred from this example.
One-time costs need separate upfront funds; they are not subtracted from the monthly amount. Use fictional numbers here. Your budget download includes current inputs and separate period totals. CSV totals are a snapshot, with no formulas; recalculate them after editing and add only rows labeled cost, never the allowance or summary rows.
Write your next-step plan
Use the worksheet in the kit, or a notebook. Fictional answers are enough for practice.
- What shift time, reporting route and arrival buffer apply to the practice job?
- Which items are required and who supplies them?
- What are the steps and expected result of one approved task?
- When must you ask for training, permission or help?
- What dates and hours should the first pay period include?
- How do gross pay, deductions and take-home pay appear on the statement?
- What one improvement and next check-in did the supervisor identify?
Keep learning in the Course Library
These courses are for learners ages 14 and older. Open a course to check its preparation and project requirements.
Understand Your Paycheck, Benefits & Workplace Rights
A job-compensation file with an offer review, pay-stub check, hours record, benefit comparison, safety map, and concern-escalation plan.
Plan Transportation, Care, and Attendance
A realistic weekly attendance plan that accounts for travel, care, costs, and backup arrangements.
Build a Budget That Runs Itself
A plan for when money comes in and goes out, a written automatic-transfer plan, and a 20-minute weekly money check.
Sources and scope
This kit does not certify a job offer, determine employment status or state every workplace right. Conditions and applicable rules vary, including for young workers; check official local requirements and the employer’s written instructions. Do not perform unsafe or untrained work. Keep payroll, bank, identity, customer and employer-confidential information out of shared notes.
- U.S. Department of Labor: wage and hours recordkeeping
- CFPB: income, bills and cash-flow planning
- FTC: protect personal information
LifeStarter’s guide and fictional examples are original. External resources keep their publishers’ terms.