#1: Not Asking for Help
Many entry-level professionals are reluctant to ask a boss or colleague for help because they fear they’ll appear inexperienced; but asking for help is not a sign of incompetence, or inexperience. To the contrary, it is a sign of maturity and will send a signal to your boss that you can be trusted to speak up when you are in trouble. People expect you to need help along the way, and you will do yourself a favor by asking for help when you need it. Ultimately, this will inspire confidence in your abilities and you’ll move up much faster.

#2: Trying to Show Up Your Boss
Younger workers often believe that in order to be a star at work, you must outshine your boss; but constantly trying to show up your boss is one of the biggest mistakes you can make at the beginning of your career. Unless your boss is corrupt in some way (which is rare), you have a lot to learn from this person. Don’t compete with your boss: it is in your best interest to make him or her look good. In addition, your boss can be your champion because he or she is in the best position to recommend you for bonuses, raises, and promotions.

#3: Not Showing Up On Time
Punctuality is not only expected of you at the beginning of each workday, but at every meeting and company event you participate in as well. Showing up on time is especially important for entry-level hires because you need all the “face-time” you can get: your company doesn’t yet know what you’re capabilities are, and you don’t have a track record or work history to point to. Not showing up on time makes a bad first impression, and unfavorable first impressions are hard to shake.

#4: Not Learning From Your Co-Workers
Sometimes the information you need to succeed is only a desk away. Unfortunately, opportunities to learn from co-workers are often overlooked due to competitive work environments or personal insecurities. But, rather than looking at your colleagues as competitors for the next promotion, why not search for ways to build professional relationships with your co-workers, and learn as much from them as you can? In doing so, you’ll get the added bonus of creating a more enjoyable place to work.

#5: Being Afraid to Make Mistakes
Let’s face it: everybody makes mistakes at work. It’s inevitable. If you plan to work for more than a day over the course of your lifetime, you are going to make a mistake at some point. You don’t want to be so scared to make a mistake that you’re paralyzed at work. To make a good impression and have an impact at work, you must show initiative, and that’s impossible to do if you’re too worried about messing up. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. They are a good way to learn something you aren’t likely to forget.

#6: Not Admitting You Made a Mistake
This one can really come back to haunt you, especially if someone else discovers your mistake and outs you before you come clean. The best policy is to admit a mistake right away and offer up a solution to fix it immediately. People make mistakes. Don’t beat yourself up about it. Accept responsibility for your mistake, fix it, and move on.

#7: Not Being Able to Handle Feedback
You must develop the ability to process constructive criticism, or feedback that may be difficult to hear, in a productive way. The worst thing you can do is become defensive or shut down. The person who is trying to help you (most likely your boss) will realize you can’t handle feedback, and he or she will stop giving it to you. People who take the time to offer you constructive criticism do so because they see potential in you and they want to nurture it. If you are getting emotionally overloaded with what you are hearing, simply say, “Thank you. I hear what you’re saying, but I need some time to digest all of this.” You can always go back to the person later and ask some clarifying questions.

#8: Having a Bad Attitude
Aside from making you a miserable person, a bad attitude is going to make you very unpopular with your co-workers. You may not be trying to win a popularity contest, but getting along with co-workers is crucial to your success. Colleagues can help give your ideas and initiatives momentum. They can pick you up on a rough day. If you don’t want to alienate your colleagues, it is vital to have a positive attitude at work.

#9: Engaging in Office Gossip
Too much focus on what others are doing means less time to focus on your own job performance. What others do is not your primary concern. Focus on you and your job. Don’t gossip. Listen if you have to, but don’t repeat anything.

#10: Not Understanding Generational Differences
Today there are four generations working side by side in most companies: Matures, Baby Boomers, Gen X, and Gen Y. And each of these groups has very different ideas about the most effective way to work. It is these generational differences, in addition to misunderstandings about them, that often leads otherwise intelligent people to engage in petty office politics instead of focusing on how to work together to move company initiatives forward. Anytime you are seen as part of the problem instead of the solution you lose credibility. Get off to a smart start early in your career and seek to work with people from all generations in an effective and respectful way.