My first day at Prudential was interesting. I got up early and was ready around 6:30am. I made the kids their lunches for the day, then I was off to the Hamilton train station. I was hoping to catch the 7:07 train. It was kinda liberating to not have to worry about waiting around like i used to. Since I didn’t have to wait until 8:30am, I can focus on getting to work early. I was amazed to see the large parking garage was seemingly almost full by 7am — I guess a lot of people are up early. The train left just as my tickets were printing out of the ticket machine, so I hung out in the waiting area for the next 7:19am express train. I like the number of express trains to Newark, so I don’t feel a lot of pressure to catch one particular train.
The ride up to Newark was comfortable and uneventful, and I asked a Newark police officer how to find Broad St. I did the walk in about 10 mins, checked in with Security, and waited for my manager to arrive.
So, funny story — because of a miscommunication between myself, HR, and my new group, they thought I was starting next week. I did want another week of downtime, but I was also pretty excited to start with Pru. I told them I was okay with starting right away, if it was okay with them. To their credit, even though they weren’t expecting me, they had most items or processes in progress at this point. My laptop was ready, my cube (with nameplate) was assigned (but just needed cleaning), my access form had been submitted. Even my ID card was ready by 4pm. My first few days at Citi, they didn’t have anything for me. I remember just eating Cheetos and reading hardcopies of process documentation.
I went to lunch with some of the Domestic Life team, and everyone was very friendly and welcoming. In contrast to my old department, there is a healthy mix of men and women, of all age groups, and did I mention they were very friendly?
I caught a 5:16pm train, and I was eventually home by 6:35pm. It was fantastic. I was home and I had my entire evening to myself.
Great first day. I like my new manager, and I like the new team. I’m looking forward to doing great things here.