{"id":18255,"date":"2026-10-19T21:29:30","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T21:29:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=18255"},"modified":"2026-10-19T21:29:30","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T21:29:30","slug":"nfl-veteran-kyle-van-noys-advice-for-starting-a-new-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=18255","title":{"rendered":"NFL Veteran Kyle Van Noy&#8217;s Advice for Starting a New Job"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"tw:font-normal tw:italic tw:text-sm tw:text-slate-600 tw:mb-4\">\n\t\tOpinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"gate-check piano-check\">\n<div class=\"tw:border-b tw:border-slate-200 tw:pb-4\">\n<h2 class=\"tw:mt-0 tw:mb-1 tw:text-2xl tw:font-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"tw:font-normal tw:font-serif tw:text-base tw:marker:text-slate-400\">\n<li>Kyle Van Noy is a linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings and is in his 13th NFL season.<\/li>\n<li>Van Noy is a two-time Super Bowl champion and Pro Bowler, and has played on six different teams. <\/li>\n<li>Subscribe to his free motivational and business insights on Substack at<a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/kylevannoy.com\/\"> kylevannoy.com<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>The first thing a new teammate wants to know is whether you\u2019re there to take their job. They may not say it out loud, but everybody is thinking it.<\/p>\n<p>I know because I\u2019ve been that guy seven times, across six teams. I\u2019m a linebacker in my 13th NFL season, a two-time Super Bowl champion, and a Pro Bowler. This September I joined the Minnesota Vikings. I signed to the practice squad, the team\u2019s developmental roster after training camp had already ended, and after three game-day call-ups, I was added to the active roster. Over the years, I\u2019ve been the rookie, the starter, and the veteran who signs after the season has started. I\u2019ve also watched plenty of new guys walk into the facility. Your workplace may not have a locker room, but you\u2019ve been on one side of this: the new hire sizing up the room, or the veteran sizing up the new hire.<\/p>\n<p><strong>If you\u2019re the new hire:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Take it all in. <\/strong>I came into the Vikings locker room recognizing a few friendly faces, like Andrew Van Ginkel, who was my teammate in Miami. During my first week with the Vikings, I was in listen mode. I didn\u2019t want to come in loud or play the know-it-all, and I definitely didn\u2019t want to step on anyone\u2019s toes. Spend your first week noticing who people go to for answers, and save your opinions until you know the players.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Let your results do the talking.<\/strong> In my first three games with the Vikings, I had 1.5 sacks and four tackles for loss, and the guys started treating me differently. During practice, I always call out everything I\u2019m seeing, down to the formation, and people notice that I\u2019m prepared to do my job. Pick one visible project in your first month and deliver it. If the room starts out lukewarm, don\u2019t take it too personally. Just do your best and let the results do the talking.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Be willing to start at the bottom.<\/strong> In Baltimore, the Ravens organization needed me on the field and treated me as a starter. This season with the Vikings began on the practice squad.\u00a0 That\u2019s just how it works when you change companies. Every organization has its own pecking order, and you don\u2019t get to pick where you land in the one you just joined. I kept making plays because I know the cream always rises to the top, and within a month I was on the active roster. You may take a smaller role than the one you left. Do the job in front of you well, and let people see it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Skip the rah-rah. <\/strong>In Miami, I was 29 and the second-oldest player on the roster, and the expectation was for me to be the rah-rah leader. During COVID, we couldn\u2019t spend quality time together the same way, and I was trying to lead new teammates I barely knew. Now I do things differently. When something needs to be said, I pull a player aside and ask, \u201cHave you ever thought about this?\u201d Then I explain why. If someone asks for my take, I\u2019m happy to give it, but I\u2019m not chirping just to chirp.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Pick up the check. <\/strong>When I got to Minnesota, I took the entire defensive line to dinner. It\u2019s what a veteran is supposed to do. I wanted them to know what I\u2019m about, so I didn\u2019t wait for them to figure it out. Earlier in my career, I\u2019d just walk up and introduce myself. It\u2019s the easiest thing you can do. In your first two weeks, take your new team to dinner or lunch on your dime.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>If you\u2019re bringing someone in:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Welcome the whole person.<\/strong>\u00a0 My locker neighbor in Minnesota is Ryan Van Demark, but everyone calls him Vandy. I used to face him when he played in Buffalo, so we were familiar with each other on the field, at least. He invited my son Trae and me to his house to bass fish our first few weeks in Minnesota. Trae had always wanted to catch a bass, and we caught some. I don\u2019t even like fishing, but seeing how hyped Trae was made it a great day and I\u2019m grateful to Vandy.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Don\u2019t big time the new guy.<\/strong> After I was drafted to the Detroit Lions in the 2nd round, I spent time battling injuries and was quickly labeled a bust. Calvin Johnson, one of the best receivers ever, had no reason to look my way, but he did. He had me over for dinner and teased me about my running form and how I need to pump my arms, a joke we still trade to this day. He made me feel seen. Take time to acknowledge the new hire, no matter how established you are.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Don\u2019t sugarcoat your standards. <\/strong>Someone who joins in the third quarter of the year or once the season has started is already behind, and they know it. Clarity and communication set the whole team up to succeed. Tell them exactly what\u2019s expected, what metrics they need to hit, and what happens if they don\u2019t.\u00a0Then tell them you\u2019ll help them get up to speed, and put a clock on it. Write down what a good first 30 days looks like and hand it over on day one. Nobody should have to guess.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Take care of life outside the office.<\/strong> In the NFL, a new job means finding a place to live, picking schools, sorting out logistics, and settling loved ones into a new city. Sure, adults can figure that out on their own, but the faster you help get someone\u2019s life outside of work in order, the faster they can focus on the job and produce. Give relocating hires a short list: five schools you recommend, mechanics and handymen you trust, your favorite restaurants, and any discounts your company has. In Baltimore, two staff members handled whatever a player needed, from shipping a car to hotels, tickets, and drivers. I\u2019d put one of them in every company.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>If someone is about to start at your company, or you\u2019re about to be the new person, these are things that can shorten the learning curve for everyone. Calvin Johnson made it easier for me in Detroit, and Vandy just did it again in Minnesota. I try to do the same for the next guy, because we win as one. And for the record, I still don\u2019t pump my arms when I run.<\/p>\n<p><em>Kyle Van Noy is a two-time Super Bowl champion and linebacker in his 13th NFL season, now with the Minnesota Vikings. Subscribe to Kyle\u2019s free motivational and business insights on Substack at<\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/kylevannoy.com\/\"><em> <\/em>kylevannoy.com<\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"piano-meter-body tw:hidden\">\n<div class=\"tw:border-b tw:border-slate-200 tw:pb-4\">\n<h2 class=\"tw:mt-0 tw:mb-1 tw:text-2xl tw:font-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"tw:font-normal tw:font-serif tw:text-base tw:marker:text-slate-400\">\n<li>Kyle Van Noy is a linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings and is in his 13th NFL season.<\/li>\n<li>Van Noy is a two-time Super Bowl champion and Pro Bowler, and has played on six different teams. <\/li>\n<li>Subscribe to his free motivational and business insights on Substack at<a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/kylevannoy.com\/\"> kylevannoy.com<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>The first thing a new teammate wants to know is whether you\u2019re there to take their job. They may not say it out loud, but everybody is thinking it.<\/p>\n<p>I know because I\u2019ve been that guy seven times, across six teams. I\u2019m a linebacker in my 13th NFL season, a two-time Super Bowl champion, and a Pro Bowler. This September I joined the Minnesota Vikings. I signed to the practice squad, the team\u2019s developmental roster after training camp had already ended, and after three game-day call-ups, I was added to the active roster. Over the years, I\u2019ve been the rookie, the starter, and the veteran who signs after the season has started. I\u2019ve also watched plenty of new guys walk into the facility. Your workplace may not have a locker room, but you\u2019ve been on one side of this: the new hire sizing up the room, or the veteran sizing up the new hire.<\/p>\n<p><strong>If you\u2019re the new hire:<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/business-news\/im-an-nfl-veteran-who-has-been-the-new-guy-7-times-here-are-my-9-lessons-for-starting-a-new-job\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Key Takeaways Kyle Van Noy is a linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings and is in his 13th NFL season. Van Noy is a two-time Super Bowl champion and Pro Bowler, and has played on six different teams. Subscribe to his free motivational and business insights on Substack<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18256,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-green-brands"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18255\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}