When a New Hire Feels Like a Burden
There are few worse outcomes in hiring than bringing in the right person — and then losing them before they ever had a chance.
Original Reddit post (tap to expand)
my new hire quit after 3 weeks. He said we made him feel like a burden.
we are a small team, like 15 people. i am not even a real manager, just the guy who ended up being responsible for new people because no one else wanted to do it lol so we hired this kid, fresh out of school. Smart guy, eager. I was excited.
Day one. I was swamped- meeting after meeting. I told him to grab a seat and shadow someone. I thought that was fine.
Day three. He is just sitting there. No one is talking to him. I forgot to set up his software access. he could not even log into our system.
Week two. I gave him a task, explained it fast, ran to another meeting. He messed it up i got annoyed. Did not yell, but you could tell I was frustrated.
Week three. He sent me a message on Slack and said he appreciated the opportunity but this was not the right fit. then he told a coworker the real reason-we made him feel like a burden every time he asked a question. I felt like shit
we did not have a plan but just assumed he would figure it out, and when he did not, we got annoyed at him for slowing us down. Since then I have been looking at how other companies handle this not the big corporate ones with massive HR teams. Just normal small businesses like us. still do not have it perfect. But now we have a simple checklist. Day one is just getting them set up. No real work
Anyway. If you are a manager or team lead and your new hires keep leaving fast, ask yourself if you are making them feel like a burden because I was.
Good onboarding is an art — and it’s the most important part of the recruiting process.
Imagine crafting the perfect resume and cover letter, sitting through hours of interviews, aptitude tests, and negotiations, only to show up at a job and have everyone ignore you. Treat you like a burden. What a waste of everyone’s time.
I know most of you have been through this, so I won’t labour the point — but it needs to be said. Quality onboarding is the most important part of the recruitment process. The time and money have already been spent. Leaving someone to figure it out on their own is a complete waste.
The good news here is that this team is capable of hiring good people — both the new hire and the person telling the story. They recognized the problem, didn’t blame the company, and didn’t blame the hire. They looked at what happened and learned from it. That matters.
But let’s be honest about what went wrong.
The responsibility for onboarding was handed to someone who wasn’t prepared for what it actually requires. It’s not just about assigning tasks. It’s about building a plan. What does this person need to know? How should they learn it? Who do they need to meet? What does their first week actually look like?
A checklist is a great start — but it’s only the beginning.
There are better questions to ask:
- When someone starts a new job, how do you want them to feel at the end of the day? This person wanted to feel useful. How do you make that happen?
- What impression does the company want to leave? What should new hires be telling their family and friends after their first day?
- What resources are needed to make that experience real? Can you clearly ask for them?
Are you able to clear your schedule? Bring them into meetings? Sit with them while they learn? These are the things that actually shape how someone experiences their first few weeks.
You’ve been entrusted with a big responsibility. Do this well, and every new hire becomes a reflection of your competence. Get it wrong, and you’ll keep losing good people before they ever have a chance to contribute.
I work with managers and business owners to create clearer systems, stronger teams, and better first impressions — so good hires don’t walk out the door early.
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