Hi! My name is Harry, and I’m the Onboarding placement here at ProspectSoft. I go to the University of Sussex, and I study Business and Management. In my spare time I play rugby, I play for the University team and during my placement I have been playing for a team in London. I also go to the gym and enjoy running.

I have now been at ProspectSoft for 10 months and have really enjoyed my time here. In previous years there have been two placements in the Onboarding department. However this year I am the only placement in the Onboarding department, so it’s been a bit different. In my first month the two previous placements were a massive help to me, they trained and prepared me for the role excellently along with the help of Izzy, my manager. Everyone was more than happy to help with any questions I had.

Going from university to working life can be a really big change and I have a few helpful tips for you to help manage your workload!

The first tip I have is, never be afraid to ask questions. No one will ever judge you and this is something I have really come to realise this year. The placement is a chance for you to learn and develop new skills. You are definitely much better off asking, even if it is something you think is simple, rather than suffering in silence! During my year so far, I have received so much help from Izzy and the rest of the team and it has really helped me develop my soft and hard skills. 

Another skill that I have developed which has helped me in terms of managing my workload is setting deadlines. The last thing I do every day for 15 minutes is make a plan in my notebook of what I have to do for the next day. This is something that helps me to be as productive as possible. I have my days organised so I don’t waste time during the day working out what needs to be done.

My final tip for managing your workload would be don’t procrastinate. This does not mean don’t take breaks as that is important too. Now, it is easier said than done, but I do have some ideas which really help me out with not procrastinating. The main thing for me is not having your phone near you when you work from home, I never have it within arm’s reach! The other tip to help out with this is to take little breaks. What I do is work for an hour then give yourself 5 minutes to go and relax, with the weather getting nicer I tend to sit outside for a little bit and get some sun! This just helps me to stay switched on so I can be at my best.

Outside of work it is also important to take care of yourself. This has an impact on your quality of work, and at the end of the day it is important for your health, both mental and physical. As I briefly mentioned at the start I have been playing rugby, regularly going to the gym, and often go running. This is something that has really helped me this year as it helps me to stay healthy and happy. I would highly recommend taking up an activity that you enjoy either on placement or when you have a full-time job.

In addition to this, it is also important to socialise. I have been lucky enough this year to live with 3 other people who are on the placement. This is nice when it comes to the end of the day and weekends where we can spend time together, whether that means watching the football or going to the gym. The Access Group have also paid for our work socials, this is something I would always recommend attending as it brings everyone together outside of a work setting, and is always good fun!

I definitely feel I have developed a lot throughout the past 10 months, building on my skillset and I only intend on growing even more from here.