“The only thing standing between you and your goal is the bullshit story you keep telling yourself as to why you can't achieve it.” Jordan Belfort
Welcome to The Golden Sense! It's brutal out there. The working world I mean. It is especially tough if you are young and unemployed. Competition is fierce. If you have a job, you might be grateful for just having one. Most people seek advancement and want to excel at their careers. This is where the problem lies with most young adults. There is a difficulty in adapting to the working world from the academic world.
People don't excel for numerous reason. Most reasons are self inflicted. I see the main reason people often remain stagnant professionally is because they don't see the big picture. Learning individual skill sets is usually not the problem. Coming out of college everyone has a nimble mind and is able to learn a skill or pick up on how to use a new computer program. It's natural, and often this ability gives college graduates a bit of cockiness. Yet this can only get them so far. To connect and attain advancement with management and owners of companies you have see the world differently.
There are three insights that I see as invaluable when taking on the working world.
First:
Everything is a business. Remember this. There are no exceptions. This means that everything revolves around making a profit. PERIOD.
Doctors, mechanics, therapists, retail stores, banks, sports events, attorneys, wine tours, gas stations, clothing manufactures, restaurants, etc. It's all a business. No matter what you do or where you work, you have to understand how your job fits into the overall structure of the business. Business is all about making money by providing a product or service. In doing so it rewards its own employees and owners through payment. Business supports everything in the world. Without the function of business, the world would be in complete poverty.
How does knowing this help you advance? So many people get caught up in their daily tasks, office drama, or try to find some injustice in the work place. All this is a waste of time. Each job or role plays a part in making the overall business profitable either directly or indirectly.
It is important to pin point how your role or job contributes to the overall profit of the business. When you find the connection between what you do and how it makes the business more profitable; concentrate on that particular role. Do it well and try to make the process better. This will help the business make money and the owner of the company or management will notice. If they don't, you should point it out to them and explain to them how your contribution has increased the bottom line. Owners and management see people who understand the overall business structure as candidates ripe for advancement.
Second:
Confidence is king. Confidence goes a long way but be prepared to back it up. A lack of confidence will definitely hurt you in the professional world. However, being over confident and not producing quality work makes you look foolish. Unfortunately, most college students fall into this category.
It is important to project confidence in the working world. Confidence is attractive and it builds trust. It's not just about projecting confidence; it's about having the confidence within yourself to take on new roles and tasks. It's the confidence in your own ability to learn. Have confidence that you can at least do research on the Internet to figure out how to master your new task. It's not like your new task is rocket science. Besides, the equations behind rocket science are probably posted on the Internet! It is not about just saying "yes" I can do that. It's about saying" yes" and then producing a plan on how you will you will be able to do that task well. Confidence is king, because it shows that you have the willingness to learn something new and deliver. Whether you want to believe it or not, we are all capable of doing that.
Third:
No one and no entity makes or breaks you in the professional world
What this means is that you are in charge of your own future. Billions of people in the world let life happen to them, rather than take charge of their own lives. Choose to recognize that you are in control of your own advancement. A free man would never consider it sensible to allocate credit or blame for his life to others. It is common for people to get caught up with co-workers or managers who are "out to get them." You need to learn how to work with people and understand that no matter what they say or what the company does it is not the "end all" for your career. This view gives you the confidence to move forward with your career/life no matter who stands in the way.
Sure, you’ve had countless group projects to complete and encountered quite a few different personalities in the process, so what else could you need to prepare for? Believe it or not, even more personalities. You’ll need to learn how to deal with the subtle social aspects of your office culture and the people who make it that way: the receptionist who will appreciate a hello in the morning, the colleague who takes offense to too many questions, and the manager who shoots your ideas down every single time. You won’t just be working with your peers any more, you’ll need to understand how people from all generations and backgrounds operate. By understanding this, you can use it to your advantage.
By living by these three insights you can and will attain advancement. Beyond this, you have to learn skill sets to provide quality work, understand your job, and provide solid back up for any suggestions you might give.
As my friend Mr. Tevis says "you've got to set the tone".
Sincerely,
T. Norman
A survey of 500 hiring managers by recruitment firm Adecco found that a majority—66 percent— believe new college graduates are not prepared for the workforce after leaving college. Fifty-eight percent said they were not planning to hire entry level graduates this year, and among those managers hiring, 69 percent said they plan to bring on only one or two candidates.
"Too many students are graduating with a weak background in science and math," said Mauri Ditzler, president of Monmouth College.
Human resource professionals say they've seen recent college grads text or take calls in interviews, dress inappropriately, use slang or overly casual language, and exhibit other oddball behavior.
"It's behavior that may be completely appropriate outside the interview," says Jaime Fall, vice president of the HR Policy Association. "The interview is still a traditional environment."
The trend reflects a generation of Millennials—ranging in age from 18 to 34—who grew up texting and using smartphones and social media, says Mara Swan, executive vice president of staffing firm Manpower.
"Life has gotten more casual," Swan says. "They don't realize (the interview) is a sales event."
Fall says Millennials have been coddled by parents. "It's (a mindset of) 'You're perfect just the way are,' " he says. " 'Do whatever you're comfortable doing.' "
