Employment experts and human resource managers have recently been critical of too much parental involvement in the job application and interview process, known as "helicopter parenting" by baby boomers. New college graduates should not bring their parents to a job interview; they also need to write their own cover letters. One district manager of a staffing firm first noticed the latter's trend a year ago after a phone interview with a young woman who applied for a staffing coordinator position. He pointed out a misspelling in her cover letter, which led to a confession that surprised him, "Oh my mom must have typed that up wrong."

Helicopter parenting is becoming more commonplace, affecting younger workers known as Millenials or Generation Y, those born in or after 1983. The group consists of around 80 million Americans (including myself). Parents are calling up employers to negotiate salaries and benefits; some are even attending job fairs with their college graduates, according to one source. This type of behavior is said to be natural due to the various communication devices Gen Y uses to contact their parents including cell phones, e-mail, etc. In fact, more contact exists now than in years past, from once a week to three or four times a day. Some of you may remember a time when only one phone line was in a college dorm hall, say 15 years ago.

A May 2007 online article of the Society for Human Resource Management calls today's job applicants "The Tethered Generation." The president and founder of a marketing firm that specializes in generational research says Gen Y is used to regular feedback because their accomplishments have always been recognized and talked about. The district manager I previously referenced says there are no discussions about applications or work history with anyone except the job applicants.

Generation Y: Employment Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths
Techno-savvy- able to quickly digest and sort mass quantities of information.
Good at global and diversity issues- They're used to using online social networking sites, so they feel comfortable reaching out to anyone around the world.
Team-oriented- They're used to making decisions by consensus.
Multitaskers- "As natural as eating," one observer said.

Weaknesses
Lack discretion- This is the down side of revealing too much information on online social networking sites.
Independence- Since they've been overscheduled since childhood, from soccer practice to dance class, they often don't know what to do next.
Realistic expectations- Often think they can change the world on the first day at work.
Work ethic- Sometimes don't have it.
Patience- See above.

Source: HR Magazine, May issue, "The Tethered Generation", Society for Human Resource Management

Posted by William F on June 21, 2007 at 9:48 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

If you want something, go and get it.

Work and get it.

Nothing hurts more than drowning out your dream to make everyone else happy. I've learned a valuable lesson the last 6 weeks and I want to share it with you.

As a restaurant worker, I felt trapped in a world of routine, stunted growth, and agony. Everyday was a day I wish would end before I got to work. This idea of a 'real' job crammed my creativity into a slender hole built for air. My lungs felt congested with fluids of cyanide (not really, but you get the point).

And... I felt like I was dying because I couldn't write.

Now, I am back in full effect in freelance writing and internet marketing. My work is fulfilling, interesting, and I can't believe I let it go for 6 weeks. My colleagues were upset with me and my progress, I was upset with myself, and well... my work suffered from my selfishness. This experiment almost killed my dream of writing great articles for the world.

Do NOT let your job do this to you!

Recent college graduates are victims of this kind of rut when they are in need of money. Truth is... you will need money to survive, but you must stick to your plan. You might suffer dire consequences such as a lack of motivation, creativity, and progress. Your career is on the line when you give up your dreams for money. Financial issues are only a bit of the problem... people depend on you if you make commitments (I ran into this problem the last 6 weeks). I couldn't write and manage my job duties 11 am to 11 pm. People started to hate me. People started to doubt my writing capabilities. And I felt like I gave up on my dreams.

When someone asked if their project was done.. I would say it was in 'progress', but I was TIRED. I couldn't write my own name after 12 hours of work. When someone asked how well my book was... I felt ashamed that I did not write according to plan.

No. No. No.

Never put yourself in a predicament that causes you to lose sight of your dreams.

In a nutshell…. Here are the rules of the game:

1. Be true to yourself… follow your dreams with all of your heart.

2. Learn from your mistakes and never look back.

3. Work smart, hard, and deliver results.

4. Forget about what the world says... listen to your heart.

Posted by Tahjia Chapman on June 19, 2007 at 7:05 PM | Leave a Comment (2)

A few days ago, I sat down and typed a letter of interest to the school district I'm currently working at, as a substitue personal care aide, and I applied for a full-time job starting this fall. I previously hand wrote such a letter, but it was short and to the point. I wanted it to look more professional and I wanted it to state my qualities for the position. I believe that the school should know my abilities, but I wanted to stress them even more for this full-time position. I wanted them to know that I am much more than a substitute.

I have even considered calling one of the school board members and explaining to him about my interest in the position. I don't think that this would hurt my chances. What do you think? And also, when should I do this? School has just let out for the summer. Should I give this member and the school a few more weeks until I call them since the school year just ended and the new school year won't be here until September? I know it's probably not too early, but it's worth trying. I don't want to bother or nag the school district and possibly loose my chance of getting the position.

Also, I had an interview at a tutoring agency in April and was hired, but I still have not started to tutor yet. I have called the agency a few times, but no word from them so far. They needed tutors so why aren't they calling me to work? School is out, but should that matter? I don't want to spend my whole summer waiting for work. I wonder what takes places like this so long to set up tutoring. I have already turned in my clearances and the necessary paperwork back in the beginning of May. I'm just frustrated.

Posted by Jill E on June 15, 2007 at 3:35 PM | Leave a Comment (3)

Before graduation, I used to joke with my friends and say that for the first month after college, all I was going to do was lay on the couch, drink some beers and watch baseball. I never believed that I would actually do that, but guess what I wound up doing for the first month after graduation...I laid on the couch, drank a couple of beers each day and watched my Detroit Tigers turn it on right before the All Star break. I would occasionally get up to check the job boards and see about some interviews, but the majority of my time was spent relaxing.

(For the record, neither myself or anyone at CollegeRecruiter.com is telling you to lay on a couch and mooch off of the parents for a month after graduation...it just so happens that this is what I did.)

Alot of you graduates are probably already wondering how I plan on justifying this. Before I do, let me throw this thought out there: you can't beat preparation. What does preparation have to do with a couch, beer and baseball? Everything.

Step back and look at your college career objectively. You just spent anywhere between 1 and 10 years battling gradebooks, professors, 1.5 mile walks across campus, sleep deprivation and the occasional hangover to get that piece of paper that says you have conquered the college experience. You have the right to be tired. It's like any person who runs a marathon...even the best are exhausted when they cross the line. But after all of this, the lesson you should invoke is that decision making suffers when you are tired.

WIth this is mind, it's a tall task to graduate, move out and try and find a job the next day. If you have expectations, chances are they will go out the window because you just want to find a place to work.

This brings me to the justification point of the couch, beer and baseball: I used that time to recharge my batteries and prepare myself for the next phase of my life. You should do the same. It doesn't have to be a month, or even a week. Maybe you only need a day or two to take a few deep breaths and get yourself relaxed and prepared. Whatever it is, do it. A close friend of mine understood this, but was still in a money crunch. So he went to the local grocery store and got a job as a bagger for the first month. It wasn't the "ideal" job for him, but he used that time to prepare himself for the opportunities he really wanted, all while making some money. He would talk to everyone that checked out and used those casual conversations as preparation for future interviews. After a month of bagging, he bagged an interview, bagged a job and bagged a paycheck working for one of the top marketing firms in the country. He knew that the grocery store wasn't a long term solution, but it gave him the things that he needed to in order to be prepared: time to think, confidence to speak and monetary compensation.

What I didn't tell you is that while I was on that couch, I was making mental lists of jobs that I would like, thinking about areas I would like to live in, assesing my strong and weak points and figuring out how to best present myself to the people who might potentially hire me. Did it look like I was being lazy on the couch? Sure. Was my mom getting tired of me being there? Probably. But I trusted my gut and the fact that I have had 23 years to figure out what I need to give myself the best chance for success and I went with it.

I went to four interviews within the first week and at each one, it was easy to see the candidates that wern't prepared. Sloppy resumes, sweaty palms and poor eye contact were among the things that didn't get them invited back. They needed that job, even if they didn't like it, and it showed. In my case, I was offered a position at all of the interviews and I politely turned them down. Why? Because even though the people were great, those positions didn't fit with that list of jobs I had in mind while laying on my couch.

Lert me wrap it up with this: I know that everyone has different circumstances surrounding their job hunt and needs. I am only offering some guidelines that I think might help you. In the end, trust your gut and make the decision that works best for you. Even if that means sitting on a couch, drinking beer and watching baseball for a month.

"The beginning is the most important part of the work." - Plato

Talk to you soon.

Chris

Posted by Chris Hollis on June 12, 2007 at 8:32 AM | Leave a Comment (0)