The Recent Graduate Syndrome is hard to describe, but the symptoms are apparent. It is the feeling that you experience at the end of your senior year when you are wondering what to do what the rest of your life. Do I go to graduate school? Where will I work? Should I travel? You realize that the decision you make now will affect your career later…. so what do you do? I have personally experienced the Recent Graduate Syndrome mixed with the "20's Something Manifesto" (Please check out this book by Christine Hassler).

Here is the thing! Generation Y is experiencing a different world that our parents or grandparents have yet to master. We are trying to cope with student loans debt, society expectations, stereotypes, ever changing technology (which are expected to know right?). With the expectations others have for us and the one we have for ourselves can cause a bad case of Expectations Hangovers. Expectations Hangovers are formed when we confuses expectations with goals. Goals are things that we have strategies to achieve and do not happen over night or sometimes at all (something I call life). It is the uncertainty we feel when choosing a direction when there seems to be an infinite number of career options. It is the Expectation Hangover we experience when we just spent four to eight years training for a position that we dislike. Or maybe it's the feeling we have when start to work for a company to come to realize it is not the right fit for us.

Christine Hassler goes deep into the life of the 20's so that you can see you are not alone helps you figure out what skills are needed to create change and direction during the twenty-something years. The one thing I took away from this book is that you are not alone.

You are not the only graduate who is lost in the job market. You are not the only 20's Something still trying to figure out what you want to do with the rest of your life. You are not the only person who still works a job that doesn't require a degree. Christine Hassler helps you see that it is not the end of the world and she talks strategy to help get to the place you want to be. She also gives great example from her own experiences as a 20's something.

I know the Recent Graduate Syndrome and Expectations hangovers all the well. You know that little thing called “what if scenarios,” where you ask yourself if I could backtrack and picked an alternative where would I be. For me, my whole family thinks this way so it was a bad habit to break. I had to come to the reality that “what if scenarios” are pointless I can’t go back and change my decisions. There is a difference between learning from bad decision making and dreaming about things you can’t control… I had to tell myself to snap out of it…

It is funny how the Internet has changed in the past 10 years. I believe the Internet is one of the strongest marketing tool to date if not the most powerful. The Internet has been integrated into every process we can think of. From work to leisure and everything in between. Today, the Internet is a necessity not just a want. We need it to perform our daily duties and for our professional careers. We pay our bills, shop, watch TV clips, learn, express our opinions and many other things online.

Today, blog writers and Internet user hold a lot of power.  With the sites such as Youtube, Flickr, and MySpace, along with blogs and questions/answer sites, Internets users can change the perception of a brand easily. Brands can be ruin by how they are represented online regardless if information is misrepresented.

The same is very true for those seeking opportunities. You can have a great looking resume and a fabulous cover letter or even brand yourself effectively, but if a web search conducted by a potential employer brings up negative things about you it will ruin your chances of gaining employment. If nothing comes on during a web search think of yourself as a brand…. Do you exist? This is especially important if you are an Executive!

I remember the days where a resume would be the only information employers had about an applicant before hiring him. Employers would call references to validate the story of an applicant.  Today the resume and references are just a piece of the story! Employers are looking for any information that would indicate what type of person you are. Where might you find information on a given individual…? The Internet!!

Soon I think anyone who is serious about the future of their career will have to create a positive online presence. You can do this by writing a blog about your area of interest. Another way is joining a professional networking site like Linkedin. There are many ways you can get your name out there.

 

We know that culture is the core values and actions shared by those in the same group. Which in-a-sense a company culture would then be the core values and actions shared by those at the same company.

Why should we care about company culture? Well the culture of a company I believe will either make or break the enjoyment of your position. If you love your position but dislike the company you are likely to leave. If you love your company and dislike your position there may be opportunities to apply for other positions with the same organization.

Many people face the dilemma of obtaining the perfect job but decided to leave the company because of culture and internal politics.

Company culture is important because it will set the tone for the way all employees interacts with each other daily. If you are someone who loves peace and silent but your company promotes music and interaction between the employees in open space type environment this would be an unfitting culture for you.

I remember my business professors stressing the fact that companies with cultures that are aligned with the goals of the organizations tend to outperform their competitors. Sometimes by more than 150%!

We know that company cultures will change and evolve just like technology over time. That is why it so important to hire employees who are adaptable and flexible because businesses will change as they hiring new employees, grow from to start-up to more established status, federal laws and regulations and other factors.

Applicants have to do their job to determine if they will fit the culture of an organization just as we expect the interviewer to do the same thing. Applicants should keep this in mind while networking and interviewing.  Being ready for informal comments and being observant will help an applicant avoid the wrong situation. Listening for comments and behavior to determine support for growth opportunities, turnover rates, leadership styles, dress code, hours expected to work per day, work/life balance and communication within the workplace is very important. Remembering as the applicant goes through the interview process they are also screening the company for a great fit.

From my time working in a Career Services environment, I have found paying attention to these factors can help you decide whether a company's culture is going to work for you.

 

Turnover

Leadership and their style

Growth Opportunities

Life/work balance

Dress code

Values of organization

Values of employees

Internal Communications  

Length of day

Overall Environment

Perception of the President/CEO

Work Ethics" The definition is ever changing ….

As the workplace and educational institutions continues to change, the needs and wants for employees to perform at the highest level becomes expected. We are all faced with the idea of have a good “work ethic”. Another question should be asked or better yet determine…. Is a good work ethic something that can be taught or is it something this is developed over time.

Being somewhat new to the professional workplace and in my line of work, the concerns of having a good work ethics comes up quite often. Maybe this is due to the fact that I am a recent graduate, or maybe because employees are increasing expected to perform at higher standards over time. But as I think about this topic more and more I remember hearing complaints about older professionals not having a good work ethic because of their development of bad habits from pervious employment. This idea of have a good work ethic is changing just as much as technology in the workplace.

I remember when I was first exposed to the term work ethic. To my knowledge, a good work ethic was determining what acceptable and unacceptable behaviors towards the workplace were. Although this seems like the golden definition, it turns out to be the basis of establishing a foundation for how we perform our duties at work what we call a work ethic.

Now work ethic is reflective to the attitudes, desires and behaviors of today’s workplace. It varies depending on person and their employer. We describe work ethic today as how a person feels after a day of work. Also, work ethic is their motivation and dedication to get their job done. Maybe even the employee’s motivation and willingness to do the best job to prove themselves to be an asset to the company.

Can work ethics be taught?

I believe this is something that individuals can work on and improve in their adult hood. You cannot undo years of experiences and behaviors that that shape the morals of an employee. An employee can see one demonstrate acceptable behaviors and how to recognize proper actions and react to different situations. But teaching work ethic is something I think we have yet to figure out and would have to start in the childhood stages years before one makes it into the workforce.

Social Networking – What can it do for you?

Well according to Wikipedia “a social network is a map of relationships between individuals, indicating the ways in which they are connected through various social familiarities both personal and professional”

I love that Social Networking allows one to brand and market themselves.  One can develop an online identity without having to create a personal website. Social network personal pages are where one can express their own identity. Now this can be either helpful or harmful in terms of progressing one’s career.  One should be careful on how his/her social network personal page portrays their image not only personally but professionally.

The use of a Social Networking site has helped me increase my knowledge in areas that I was unfamiliar with before.  When used properly some sites such as LinkedIn will allow you ask questions to those in a certain industry and great advice can be offered.  One can also tap into their network contacts and foster new relationships by asking for an introduction (another great feature of LinkedIn).

The reason why blogs and other Social Networking methods are becoming increasing popular is simply because people love to be social and share their opinion.  Many professionals love to show their expertise in a given industry or topic.  

Some would argue that social networking is a waste of time and damaging to reputations. I might agree depending on how one decides to use social networking. Just like anything else Social Networking can be misused! I use it to stay in touch with my networks. I meet a fair amount of people between my work, associations, and groups I am currently active and involved with.  LinkedIn is my way of organizing my business and personal contacts I receive otherwise I would be searching through business cards all day!

Some of my concerns with Social Networking include;

·         The degree of security. It was said some time ago a major social network site was being used to collect everyone’s contact information in one spot.

·         The complexity of these sites are becoming more and more difficult

·         Social Networking is in its introductory stage meaning that it will change in terms of its usefulness and security or potentially some sites will go away.

·         The information you find on profiles… Is it true????

·         Some are too busy to update profiles…. So is the information you see up-to-date and accurate?

Although I am a fan of Social Networking, nothing will ever replace face –to-face and person-to-person interaction. It is more meaningful to learn about a person by having them tell you versus reading their profile and not having the opportunity to asked questions to better understand their background.

Making contacts through professional organizations and groups as well as networking with current and former co-workers, friends and neighbors is the best type of networking one can do….

 

Generation Y and Instant Gratification

This is an interesting topic to me not only because I am a member of Generation Y, but because I have experienced and seen the idea of instant gratification with students I work with currently and from social interaction.  This is becoming a huge topic and also a barrier as more and more Generation Y members make their way into the workforce.

There is all this talk about Generation Y wanting instant gratification, but my questions is why?

Most of us know that Generation Y (born 1977 -1994) is one of major targets for marketers, 1) because they make up about 20% of today’s population and 2) they are now entering the job market and earning income  and  3) the younger members of Generation Y still have an influence on their parents’ spending.  They are largest generation since the baby boomers so it is said that they will have a huge social and economic impact.

So my question again is why does Generation Y expect instant gratification?

If we think about it, this population is very unique because they are experiencing more changes in comparison to other generations. They are very independent, adaptability, technologically savvy, multi-taskers and can grasp new concepts like no other.  They are risk takers and not afraid of hard work.  They want to work better and faster then everyone else so being competitive is in their nature.

Generation Y expects instant gratification because it is the idea they know best. They were raised in a world full of technology from PDA phones, internet, email and iPods where everything is at the tip of their fingers and ever-changing. They expect this idea in their careers as well. They want to start at the top or at least be climbing the corporate ladder within the first year.  They know the idea of proving their worth but only want to commit to this for a limited time. Everything in their life is fast pace from working full-time and possible being parents at the same time while still finding time to make it to association meetings and be social. They are queens and kings of doing a million and one thing at once.

Generation Y is also the group of kids whose parents inspired them to make their dreams a reality while reminding them every day that they can do anything they put their mind to. The parents of Generation Y also encourage them to make better and wiser decisions so that they can more success than they once were as a young adult.  This is also the generation who entered the higher education systems with a huge dream, but failed to consider the steps it takes to get to reach that dream.

Could this be the answer to why Generation Y expects instant gratification?

 

 

Personal Branding – What is the big deal?

To be honest I am an avid fan of Personal Branding. For one I am crazy about Marketing and Branding to begin with so Personal  Branding is great in my eyes.

I am a recent graduate from the University of Oregon from the college of business with 500 other graduates. When interviewing I had to find ways to stand out and find my own personal brand.

Corporations and companies today spend billions of dollars on branding themselves.  If a company is successful in this process they can boost the bottom line significantly. Branding can give a new product or service instant credibility and value in the market. Wow I really miss my business classes and professors!

When we think of brands we think of logos, fonts, colors, symbols and sounds. But in the mind of the consumer they will develop their own ideas, values and even a persona for a given brand.

This is important to note because branding has nothing about what a company is conveying but has everything to do with how a consumer sees the brand.  For example, Toyota cars for the most part are perceived to be great for family and older men and women, but not something that young adults are interested in. Toyota came out with the Scion to attract this market and they are working to keep the brands separate.

We can apply the same techniques with Personal Branding, we can have logos and symbols but it is not needed unless you are going into the creative services industry. Personal Branding is more about our individual values, qualities, personality and vision. In today’s job market, it is becoming very important for you as your own business “YOU Incorporated,” to learn to promote and market your personal brand. To gain an advantage over the competition, you need to stand out in a crowd.

Here are some of the techniques I have used and encourage others to consider:

1.       Create a personal marketing plan What is your mission statement? What is your Passion? What do you hope to achieve in your lifetime? Come with short and long term goals and plan your timeline to reach these goals. List the strategies and action steps will you take to get there and be sure to revise as needed.

2.       Works towards the development of your  credibility Learn as much you can! I am still working on this myself but I feel it is a continuous process. You are never done learning right?

3.       Develop and present your “elevator speech”Yes this is something that was new to me and I learned from the director at the school I work at. I do think it is important for sure and very helpfully not only for you but the people you come in contact with. Visit this link for more information on elevator speeches http://www.creativekeys.net/PowerfulPresentations/article1024.html

4.       Contribute your time and talent Get out and get involve! Join Associations that are relevant to what you want to do or something you enjoy to do… Take on a leadership role!    You may or may not agree with me please feel free to respond. I think this is a very interesting subject…