Posts Tagged ‘college gradautes’

“How to Get Any Job: Life Launch and Relaunch for Everyone Under 30,” by Donald Asher (Ten Speed Press, 2002 & 2009) aims to advise college-aged people on their future careers. He structures workshops for the readers to figure out what they’re all about, throws in some anecdotes to support his workshops, and ties it all together with economic advice.

Asher recommends that we take our time now to figure out what we want, because we have yet to be indoctrinated in the “adult working world.” He says to hold out for an ideal opportunity, instead of taking what you can, and chastises us losers who live in our parent’s basements.

He has some good advice, but he didn’t realize how expensive housing would become (as compared to the book’s first printing in 2002), the growing unemployment rate, and the fact that most of today’s college kids have been in the “adult working world” since they were 14. The economy is changing, and here’s how to confront it:

1. Living as a team is the new recipe for success: Living in your parent’s basement isn’t the travesty it used to be. To save on funds, many grads are opting to live with their parents. You are no longer weird for wanting to save money!

2. Take what you can get: We typically want to start an actual career right out of college. But what do you do when people who have worked in your field for twenty years are suffering massive layoffs? There are also lapses in insurance to think about. You may want to think about having a “day” job with benefits, while you pursue your passion in your off time.

3. Get creative: Perhaps Asher was able to wait around for his career opportunities, but we can’t. If you want a job, sometimes you just have to invent one for yourself.

If you want a career, sometimes you have to invent your own path. Try taking more responsibilities on at your current job. For example, if you’re a future editor working at a minimum wage job, offer to edit the training manual. I know a fellow who works in data entry that just got a raise for using his IT knowledge. Otherwise, you can always contract your skills privately or start your own business

I am a director of a college-level educational service who routinely spends much time hiring new employees. Standards are high and hiring is competitive. Applicants can find very specific application instructions including minimum job requirements and information about our services in many places: on the application itself, our website and brochures, and by simply visiting (and even using) our service in person.

Despite all of this easily available information, my last three interviewees have had 1) little or no idea of what we do and/or 2) spoke incorrectly to the point of insult about our services and the people who use them. They all expected me to then explain to them what it is we do – essentially to do their homework! (They all arrived either 15 minutes early or late, and addressed me by my first name.)

What happened to preparing for an interview? What about learning as much as you can about the job beforehand? Being on time? And while we’re at it, being courteous and adopting an appropriate level of formality?

Dear Readers,

You can see from the above letter that job applicants, especially those who are still in school or who have just graduated, still have to learn the basics when it comes to interviewing for a job. All job applicants need to realize the importance of making a good first impression – and that it starts from the first piece of communication, even if it’s an email.

If you are a teacher or parent, please share the above letter with your students or children. You will be doing them a huge favor.

And Once They’re Hired?

I overheard an employee treating a customer disrespectfully. She’s generally a good employee, but she has gotten very defensive when I have tried to correct her in the past. Any advice?

Dear Readers,

Even the most skilled manager can have difficulty keeping her criticism constructive. But that’s generally the goal. Sound advice can be found in Richard Gallagher’s new book, How to Tell Anyone Anything: Breakthrough Techniques for Handling Difficult Conversations at Work (AMACOM, 2009). Gallagher, a corporate trainer, suggests “starting at a safe place,” which means first asking the employee about her reaction to the customer. He suggests a three-part approach: 1) observation: “I can tell you’re frustrated,” 2) validation: “Lots of people feel that way,” and 3) identification: “I’d be frustrated if that happened to me.”

Gallagher admits that putting that much energy into being supportive of people who are doing something wrong initially “feels like drinking poison to people.” But he claims it is useful because “It makes it clear you understand their view of the world, so they have nothing to argue about.” This sort of understanding gives you power for the next step: engage the other person in solving the problem.

Next comes the step of asking questions about the situation. In this case it would be something like, “What are your expectations for interacting with customers?”  “The goal here,” Gallagher writes, “is to be curious, not furious.” After some back and forth, it is easier to be frank about the problem. You might say something factual about the need to hold onto customers. And explain that keeping customers requires that each customer finish a transaction feeling respected, even if they don’t seem to deserve it.

Finally, you should ask for her help in meeting the company’s goals regarding customers.

Gallagher offers several options that reframe criticism: Instead of telling people they are doing a bad job, tell them what standards they could meet to help them do a good job. Instead of saying what is unacceptable, let them know what will work better. Instead of telling them to change, show them how they will benefit.

In real life, following a several-part approach when you are angry about an employee’s or colleague’s behavior is no easy task. Gallagher suggests stepping away from the situation, if you can, until your emotions calm down.  He also points out that this sort of approach requires much practice.  If you have trouble with it, try again the next time. Even occasional interactions that incorporate empathy and reframed criticism can vastly improve overall relations in a workplace. So don’t give up.

Dear Readers,

This column is dedicated to all the newly minted college graduates who do not yet have a job offer in hand. What’s a newly but highly educated, unemployed person to do?

Try to stay energized and motivated. If you take the too-common approach of combining a defeatist with an escapist attitude – “I’m not going to win at this; what’s going on Friday night?” says Wayne Wallace, director of the University of Florida’s Career Resource Center, “you can get by for awhile, but it’s going to come back and haunt you.”

You are not alone, obviously. The ranks of the unemployed keep swelling, and the number of college students who are as yet uncommitted – without a job offer or acceptance to graduate school – is larger than it’s been in years. Take Derek Jose, who is about to graduate from the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Applied Security analysis. For the past two years, every graduate was employed within a week of receiving his or her degree, but that was not expected to happen this year. As of April 1, eight out of 17 students had offers; the rest, including Jose, were still on the market.

On the bright side, many corporations are still hiring. Even those firms that have laid off employees recently may be beefing up departments where they have an unmet need. Wallace reports that the employers who attended its spring career fair were down a third from a year earlier. But several of the university’s largest recruiters, big names like Lockheed-Martin, Microsoft, Target, and General Electric, have snapped up dozens of graduates from Florida and from other schools, just as they have in years past.

“The game’s not over,” says Wallace. Recent graduates who have the best chance at landing a job going forward are those who “take ownership of the whole process,” he says. Rather than throw your resume at a bunch of online job sites in hopes that something will stick, target your search. Take the time to answer some basic questions: “What is it I have to offer? What do I really want to do?”

Networking with alumni, former employers, and friends is another important step. For one thing, it may be the quickest route to an opening. “We work hard to connect students with our alumni because it’s wonderfully useful,” says Kathy Heinzen, director of Lawrence University’s Career Center in Appleton, Wisc.

Secondly, if you have a fear of interviews meetings with alumni can give you some practice. “Students have become so comfortable with electronic tools, we are seeing a need to help them with face-to-face meetings,” says Heinzen. “Just because you know how to speak it doesn’t mean you know how to interview,” Wallace concurs, noting that . interviews can be quite challenging, especially structured behavioral interviews and interview that test problem solving skills.

That doesn’t mean that a higher grade point average gives you the edge. Having an internship on your resume seems to be the biggest predictor as to who gets hired, says Wallace. The reasons are obvious: you have direct, related experience and have already been proven with a respected employer. “It’s as close to a silver bullet as there is,” says Wallace.

Some students are considering post-graduate internships which seem to be taking the place of being hired full time for a probationary period. “It can be a door opener,” says Wallace. If the internship does not lead to a full time position, it looks better on your resume than being hired and then failing probation. “It looks like a learning experience,” says Wallace. And, no doubt, it was.

Being flexible is another way to expand your options. If you can relocate, the world is your market. Similarly, it is wise to have several possibilities in mind regarding the type of organization, field, and even the jobs you will consider. Beyond that, says Heinzen, “we’re encouraging students to think outside the box, about more non-traditional arrangements like cobbling together a couple of positions.”

One more option, which Heinzen says worked for her when she was a graduate student in Minnesota: signing on with a staffing agency.

Just remember: you may have graduated from school, but at this wonderful stage of your life, everything is still a learning experience. And the rest of us envy you for that.