I am seeing several disturbing trends in the Millennial Generation workforce. If the Millennials don’t get their heads on straight in this economy, they’ll be living with mommy and daddy for a very long time. Here are a few words of sage advice, which will probably just get Millennials angry. But they should be listened to.
1. It takes more than a few applications to get a job. Recent statistics (supplied courtesy of Entry Level Rebel) show 55% of recent college grads apply to less than five jobs before giving up and moving in with mom and dad (or staying there). My highly experienced clients can apply for 50 jobs or more before landing. Persistence counts. So does patience.
2. Your social life has to take a back seat. One thing I’ve seen with many Millennials is a constant party, with drinking most nights, regardless of which night of the week it might be. Partying is for the times you have a day off the next day and can recover. If you are looking for a job or have a job, all of your brain cells need to be present with you. This is not going to happen after a night of partying.
3. There are jobs out there. They may not be great jobs. But, even if a job pays minimum wage, it is an addition to your resume. Given the unfair and extreme prejudice against the unemployed, it is better to be working than not. Even if the job is flipping burgers, your resume shows, unlike many of your generation, you had the work ethic to do something. Someone flipping burgers will get a decent job long before someone who is sitting at mommy and daddy’s playing video games or “chilling.”
4. When you get a job, do it. I could name, right off the top of my head, two dozen or more cases of Millennial incompetence due to simply not paying attention. Pay attention when you’re at work! Be there and give more than you’re asked. There are ten or more people waiting to take that “lousy” job. Keep yours.
5. Stop arguing. A Millennial was waiting on us a little while ago in an upper-range restaurant. He ignored us. I finally flagged him down, and indicated that he really wasn’t paying much attention to us. He argued and said he was, where the proper response would have been, “I’m sorry, sir. I’ll make sure you get taken care of from now on.” This got him a complaint to the manager and $2 tip on a $60 lunch tab. But I’ve seen a tendency in Millennials to defend everything they do. Rather than a customer service attitude, there seems to be an attitude of “I can do no wrong.” This is not an isolated incident. I’ve seen this take place many times when a Millennial is performing a service for a customer. If criticized, don’t argue or justify yourself. Apologize at once and fix the problem! (And never argue with the boss. You’ll lose.)
6. Stop negotiating! Another Millennial trait I often see is constant negotiation about everything. Listen — in the work world you are not in control. You haven’t paid your dues or earned the right to have any control yet. Our lousy schools and coddling parents have given our younger workers the idea that everything can be negotiated into a better deal. Nope. With today’s economy, most things are “take it or leave it, buddy.” You might well negotiate yourself right out of a job.
7. Listen to your customer. We had an order-taker at Arby’s who just couldn’t get it out of her head, though we repeated it several times, that she had taken our order wrong. After repeating it three times, she simply walked away and we had to repeat our whole order to another (and older) employee. This should not have happened. Listen to what your customer is saying rather than the spooky voices in your head!
I don’t blame the Millennials for being this way. Our school systems and their parents gave these folks an extreme entitlement attitude and few social skills. But if Millennials ever hope to move from their parents’ homes before they’re 50, they will start to change their attitudes about work and life immediately.
Please feel free to invite me on LinkedIn. I accept all invitations from individuals. Also, please join my LinkedIn Group “Getting Employed” for great employment discussions.
John Heckers has over 30 years of successfully helping people with their careers. He has consulted to executives from Fortune 500 companies, five-person companies, and everything in-between.Photo credit: Shutterstock
The leaves are changing, the kids are back in school, and that familiar chill is in the air. You think it's the perfect time to look for a job, and it is! But are your job search fears preventing you from making that leap?
It's not uncommon to feel lost when embarking on your job search journey. After all, school teaches us everything except how to get a job. What should you put on your resume? What questions should you ask in an interview? How can you stand out in the hiring process when there's so much competition?
Are you feeling spooked yet?
Believe it or not, there's no need to be afraid of the job search process! You can land your dream job with the right tools and strategy. You can find a job that won't give you nightmares. Here are three spooky secrets every job seeker should know as they look for a job this fall.
1. An Effective Job Search Starts With An Interview Bucket List
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Despite your fears, you've decided to take the plunge and look for a new job. You might be asking yourself, "Where do I start?" The answer is simple: start by creating an interview bucket list.
An interview bucket list is a list of 10-20 companies you'd love to work for. Are you passionate about a company's products or services? Do you feel connected to its mission? Can you relate to its values and beliefs as an organization? If you answer "yes" to any of these questions, that company probably belongs on your interview bucket list.
Once you create an interview bucket list, you'll be able to conduct a targeted job search, one with direction and a foundation upon which everything else will be built. An interview bucket list helps you focus your job search and networking strategies on the right opportunities, making it easier to get your foot in the door at one of your dream companies.
2. Your Job Application Needs To Disrupt Hiring Managers
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In order to stand out in the hiring process, you need to disrupt recruiters and hiring managers. You accomplish this by doing two things: optimizing your resume and writing a disruptive cover letter.
A well-optimized resume includes keywords from the job description. This ensures your resume gets past the ATS and into the hands of the hiring manager. Once it's in front of the hiring manager, it needs to grab and keep their attention. Quantifying your work experience—adding numbers to your bullet points—will make you stand out from other applicants. Hiring managers will want to know more about you and your accomplishments, and that's how you land a phone interview.
Before that, though, a hiring manager will read your cover letter. To disrupt them, you need to write a disruptive cover letter (obviously!). A disruptive cover letter gives you the opportunity to tell a story about why you feel connected to the company you're applying for. It's that storytelling aspect that will stand out to hiring managers and compel them to pick up the phone and give you a call.
3. Employers Hire You Based On 3 Things
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You can't get hired unless you know what employers are assessing you on in the interview process. While your skills and expertise matter, companies actually hire for three things: personality, aptitude, and experience (in that order).
Most job seekers don't realize how important it is to demonstrate their personality, aptitude, and experience in an interview. You could have the right experience for a job, but if the hiring manager doesn't think your personality is a good fit for the company culture, you probably won't get a job offer.
Make sure you demonstrate your soft skills and learn how to answer behavioral interview questions to prove you're the best candidate for the job you're applying for, not just the most qualified.
Want To Learn More Job Search Secrets?
As you look for a job this fall, it might be helpful to know some more spooky secrets so you can get over your job search fears and finally take control of your career.
We know the job search process can be scary. However, it's important to get clear on what you want to do next and focus on conducting a strategic job search, or what we refer to at Work It DAILY as job shopping. This is the only way to effectively market yourself to employers. If they can't see exactly where and how you add value, then that's going to decrease your chances of landing the job.
The competition is fierce, and there are a lot of factors that are out of your control. But the one factor you can control is your job search strategy, the tools and tactics you use to land a job.
If you want to learn the secrets to conducting a strategic job search, sign up for our Job Search Bootcamp, a two-hour, on-demand video workshop that comes with a free workbook.
In this video workshop, you'll learn:
How to use backchanneling to get directly to hiring managers.
The secret to using a connection story to stand out against the competition.
How social media can be your secret weapon to get job interviews.
The resume format that is getting job seekers more job interviews.
I am seeing several disturbing trends in the Millennial Generation workforce. If the Millennials don’t get their heads on straight in this economy, they’ll be living with mommy and daddy for a very long time. Here are a few words of sage advice, which will probably just get Millennials angry. But they should be listened to.
1. It takes more than a few applications to get a job. Recent statistics (supplied courtesy of Entry Level Rebel) show 55% of recent college grads apply to less than five jobs before giving up and moving in with mom and dad (or staying there). My highly experienced clients can apply for 50 jobs or more before landing. Persistence counts. So does patience.
2. Your social life has to take a back seat. One thing I’ve seen with many Millennials is a constant party, with drinking most nights, regardless of which night of the week it might be. Partying is for the times you have a day off the next day and can recover. If you are looking for a job or have a job, all of your brain cells need to be present with you. This is not going to happen after a night of partying.
3. There are jobs out there. They may not be great jobs. But, even if a job pays minimum wage, it is an addition to your resume. Given the unfair and extreme prejudice against the unemployed, it is better to be working than not. Even if the job is flipping burgers, your resume shows, unlike many of your generation, you had the work ethic to do something. Someone flipping burgers will get a decent job long before someone who is sitting at mommy and daddy’s playing video games or “chilling.”
4. When you get a job, do it. I could name, right off the top of my head, two dozen or more cases of Millennial incompetence due to simply not paying attention. Pay attention when you’re at work! Be there and give more than you’re asked. There are ten or more people waiting to take that “lousy” job. Keep yours.
5. Stop arguing. A Millennial was waiting on us a little while ago in an upper-range restaurant. He ignored us. I finally flagged him down, and indicated that he really wasn’t paying much attention to us. He argued and said he was, where the proper response would have been, “I’m sorry, sir. I’ll make sure you get taken care of from now on.” This got him a complaint to the manager and $2 tip on a $60 lunch tab. But I’ve seen a tendency in Millennials to defend everything they do. Rather than a customer service attitude, there seems to be an attitude of “I can do no wrong.” This is not an isolated incident. I’ve seen this take place many times when a Millennial is performing a service for a customer. If criticized, don’t argue or justify yourself. Apologize at once and fix the problem! (And never argue with the boss. You’ll lose.)
6. Stop negotiating! Another Millennial trait I often see is constant negotiation about everything. Listen — in the work world you are not in control. You haven’t paid your dues or earned the right to have any control yet. Our lousy schools and coddling parents have given our younger workers the idea that everything can be negotiated into a better deal. Nope. With today’s economy, most things are “take it or leave it, buddy.” You might well negotiate yourself right out of a job.
7. Listen to your customer. We had an order-taker at Arby’s who just couldn’t get it out of her head, though we repeated it several times, that she had taken our order wrong. After repeating it three times, she simply walked away and we had to repeat our whole order to another (and older) employee. This should not have happened. Listen to what your customer is saying rather than the spooky voices in your head!
I don’t blame the Millennials for being this way. Our school systems and their parents gave these folks an extreme entitlement attitude and few social skills. But if Millennials ever hope to move from their parents’ homes before they’re 50, they will start to change their attitudes about work and life immediately.
Please feel free to invite me on LinkedIn. I accept all invitations from individuals. Also, please join my LinkedIn Group “Getting Employed” for great employment discussions.
John Heckers has over 30 years of successfully helping people with their careers. He has consulted to executives from Fortune 500 companies, five-person companies, and everything in-between.Photo credit: Shutterstock
