It’s that time of year again, when millions of diploma-holding grads will get their first taste of CAREEREALISM. Like having buckets of water dumped on their heads, the reality of job search and career development hits many new grads like a tidal wave…and nobody’s there handing out towels.
I still remember my first dose of CAREEREALISM. A group of what I viewed at the time as ‘seasoned’ professionals (a.k.a. parents, aunts, uncles, etc.) at a graduation party circled around me and asked, “So, what are you going to do for work?” I still remember the panic rushing through me as I tried to come up with a great explanation as to why I wasn’t employed yet and what I was planning to do about it. It only got worse from there.
The first company to actually respond to my resume and application turned out to be a multi-level marketing scam. The second offer I received was a 100% commission advertising sales job for a one-man company working out of his house. It was 1990, at the height of the recession, thus, when a legitimate job offer (i.e. a salary and benefits) finally came along, like the thousands of others who experienced the same reality, I grabbed it. I now affectionately call that, First-Job-That-Comes-Along Syndrome, and it was the beginning of my journey to the Land of Golden Handcuffs, where professional success came at a cost.
Fast forward to today and I’m now a career coach and syndicated advice columnist who helps Americans of all ages find job satisfaction in our changing professional landscape. In fact, helping college students and recent grads has become one of my specialties. I love showing twentysomethings how to connect-the-dots between college and career. Yet, ironically, the process I’ve used to help hundreds of young professionals only succeeds when I’m able to provide a little CAREEREALISM.
Like administering a flu shot, I must start by giving an initial dose of career reality as a form of preventative medicine. My advice stings like the flu shot too. Yet, while I know they don’t like what I have to tell them, it’s the only way I can get them to recognize and seize the opportunity to get their careers in gear. What do I tell them? The following are the ten realities I believe every college student today should know BEFORE they graduate:
REALITY #1: You are the most educated generation to enter the workforce, but you are also viewed as the least prepared. Don’t be blind-sided by your generation’s professional reality.
REALITY #2: The other generations in the workforce don’t have much compassion for your situation. You are being incorrectly perceived as lazy, entitled and arrogant. Don’t validate these beliefs by ignoring their concerns, instead, work to overcome them.
REALITY #3: DON’T road trip, backpack or ‘take a year off’ without thinking about your career first. Those who delay to play, often pay!
REALITY #4: More degrees don’t mean more money! If you aren’t sure what to do next, the LAST thing you should do is stay in school.
REALITY #5: Don’t succumb to Cinderella Syndrome. The sooner you break your addiction to acceptance, praise, grades, rewards and other bribes, the sooner you’ll find personally satisfying work that is professionally rewarding.
REALITY #6: Got a compelling Career Story that you use to market your employability? If not, then plan on a longer, more stressful job search.
REALITY #7: Spray-and-pray job searches (sending out a hundred resumes and hoping for a call) are for people who are willing to settle for what’s available. Get active, create a network, and you’ll get access to the hot jobs nobody else knows about.
REALITY #8: A great mentor is worth a lot more than a good job.
REALITY #9: Want to quantum leap your career? Then learn to deal with the 3 C’s (conflict, criticism and causing disappointment) …now!
REALITY #10: Embrace the equation used by the most professionally satisfied people in the world: EXPERIENCE = LEARN = GROW
Now, if you are a professional reading this who has been in the workforce for at least a year, you are probably thinking, “I already know all those – and so does everyone else,” but try to think back to when you were still in college. If you had simply read those realities in an article, would you have been convinced to take action? Actually, would you have even bothered to read an article on career development in the first place? The truth is we are only open to information when we are made acutely aware that we need it. And for many college students, the career realities above are not something they are ready or willing to acknowledge while still in school, let alone prepare to address them before they graduate. So, how do you get them to pay attention and take advantage of this information?
The secret to getting people to deal with their career realities is to offer workable solutions. In “CAREEREALISM: The Smart Approach to A Satisfying Career” I share with readers the tools and insights needed to deal with the realities above. More importantly, I offer true stories of how individuals successfully applied the techniques to their own careers. I provide information that high school guidance counselors, college advisors, and even parents do not – how to effectively narrow down an overwhelming number of career choices and simplify the job search process so you can take control of your career faster, and with better results. I don’t just give a shot; I offer the antiseptic and apply the bandage too. I wish someone had done that for me years ago, so it feels good each time I help others overcome this.
I hope this information inspires you to help yourself or the grads in your life make the transition successfully from college to career. Why not give them a truly useful graduation gift: your insight with respect to these realities? Sit them down and share with them the ten points above. Then, use examples from your own experiences, or those of your fellow professionals to validate these realities so they’ll be encouraged to face their future and get a head start on their career. I guarantee they’ll be grateful for your gift of wisdom.
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Excellent article!!
I especially liked “Reality” points 1, 4 and 8; those are the most common themes among my circle of friends!
In your experience, if you had to pick the top 3 reality checks, which would you say are most needed?
Hi Ian, great question!
The top three are definitely #6, 7 & 9.
RE 6: There’s a lot of talk about the importance of job seekers creating a strong personal brand, but this is a really hard thing for a student to do right out of school. For starters, no one is teaching them how to assess their skills, interests and values as they relate to careers, nor are they being taught how to translate that self-knowledge into a career story that will impress employers. The result is thousands of college students who come across in interviews as unprepared and unmotivated to hiring managers.
RE 7: In my opinion, the internet should only be used to research jobs, not apply for them. Today, an internet job seeker needs to apply to over 100 jobs to even get a response. The process is really demotivating. Moreover, for many college grads, the job descriptions might as well be written in Greek because without previous work experience, they struggle to understand what the job is all about. That’s why networking is the best way to go. Reaching out to people who are working in industries or jobs you think are interesting is a great start. And, it’s not as hard as people think.
True story: my brother was getting his MBA in St. Louis but wanted to land a summer internship doing financial analysis back in Boston. I bet him his phone bill (which was huge at the time!) that he could land an internship remotely. I made him research firms in Boston that he was really impressed with by reading the paper on-line. He identified 8 companies and the contact info for each one. Then, I told him to set aside a Friday afternoon to make calls to these firms. We developed his career story and then he made the calls. I made him ask the receptionist if he could speak to the CEO or one of the senior staff members. When asked why, he shared his career story. He got put through to 7 executives, had 4 discussions, and landed 3 interviews for when he came home for Spring Break. He got offers from all three. He chose his favorite, had a great internship experience, and they even offered him a full-time position and asked him NOT to go back to school because they found him so valuable. I just can’t stress enough how you’ve got to engage to find a good job.
RE 9: This one bothers a lot of Gen Yers I work with because they feel they are great communicators. I would agree that Gen Y is very sensitive to other’s feeling and are careful in what they say. However, that said, the use of technology as a main tool for communication has put Gen Y at a disadvantage. 93% of effective communication is non-verbal(voice tone, facial expressions, body language). Thus, Gen Y has not has as much experience with dealing effectively in face-to-face communications, especially in situations where conflict, criticism or causing disappointment are involved.
Case-in-point, a client told me today that a twentysomething employee just texted in their resignation and never returned to the job. That kind of behavior is a career killer. I guarantee this ex-employee will regret that move. Especially, when my client refuses to give a reference on their behalf.
Does that help?
Thanks! Yup, I was curious about your opinion on what you come across most!
“the use of technology as a main tool for communication has put Gen Y at a disadvantage.”
You bring up a great point. I’ve never really considered it this way, but I guess your txt message resignation sums it up! I wonder what it said?
“Hi, wont b comin2wrk n e more. Thx4evrythng, l8r! :)”
I guarantee it must have been something like that - thanks Ian for the visual!
Speaking of ‘text’ as a language. Here’s one more on that subject…
An executive called me recently because he had just yelled (yep, yelled)at his 25-year old sales coordinator for sending out e-mails to clients with text abbreviations in them. He was calling me because the discussion went poorly and wanted to know how to fix it. When I asked how he explained to the employee why he didn’t feel text language was appropriate in e-mails, the executive said, “I told him it was rude.” To which the Gen Y employee responded, “How is GL, TY, BRB and YW rude?” and then explained to his boss what each one meant. The excutive was so embarrassed/mad that he just yelled, “I said don’t do it!,” walked away, and called me.
I find it fascinating how technology is actually causing so many new challenges in our ability to understand one another.
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