What I learned in my first week on the job at a SaaS startup.
On Monday, I started my new job as a Lead Development Representative at PandaDoc, a SaaS startup. I’ll be enriching leads for the sales team to qualify and close, which gives me the unique opportunity to watch and learn from salespeople doing what they do best.
This opportunity holds so much room for growth and I’m pumped to be learning by doing.
My first week was spent onboarding, learning the platform, and meeting with coworkers from other departments. I was excited to learn how the company functions, so I booked seven meetings between two workdays to meet and get to know people in other departments.
What Is PandaDoc Anyway?
PandaDoc is a document automation software platform with design, e-signature, workflow management, tracking, and integration functionality. We help sales teams save time on documentation so they can generate more revenue. I’m a huge workflow efficiency nerd and can honestly say I think our product is incredibly cool.
What I Accomplished
Not only did I learn our software and put it to use, but I also got to spend a significant amount of time asking people about themselves. I was curious to know what they do at PandaDoc and how their path in life led them to where they are. This was research on how the company functions.
What’s more, I was delighted that so many people seemed to light up when they spoke about current projects and their personal history. I love watching people sparkle and sharing energy and enthusiasm. At a time when everyone is working from home, it’s nice to have a real conversation that is both productive and fun. It boosts morale.
And, since sales is about building relationships, it was my goal to build real foundations with my new coworkers from Day 1. I wanted to get to know two people in my first week. I made it to seven. And via Zoom, no less!
One Thing I’m Learning At Work
I‘m becoming familiar with PandaDoc’s platform and making my own documents. A salesperson has to intimately know what they’re selling and see the value in it. Lucky for me, this product is crazy cool and a lot of fun to use. Here’s part of a cover page I made for a fake proposal:
One Thing I Learned Outside of Work
I learned how to make flatbread from yogurt, flour, and baking soda. I like cooking because it’s a creative activity that helps me decompress after a workday.
It’s also an opportunity to learn from mistakes and do better next time…
Even though both flatbread attempts this week were burnt (getting used to a new stove), the dough was definitely more pliable the second time around. I even got some air bubbles, Paul Hollywood.
Other ways I’m trying to grow outside of work include:
- Doing daily wrap-ups to get to inbox zero and prioritize next-day tasks
- Exercising five days a week
- Spending at least 20 minutes in sunlight every day
A Lesson Learned
I attended a great workshop this week that taught me about balance at work: it’s important to create boundaries AND put in some elbow grease. I’m here to crush this job, but I can also step away for five minutes when I need to. Because being aware of how I’m working makes me more productive.
I’m a compartmentalizer: I tend to work in long blocks so I can fully step away when I’m off the clock. But I seem to generate a higher quality of work when I step away for short breaks throughout the day. It’s a matter of pacing myself.
Overall, it was a fruitful and positive work week. Excited to be here, and to be ramping up to calling leads on Monday!