Is it fair to say that today’s youth are a reflection of their parents and societal influences? If this is true, we need to stop complaining about Generation Y and do something about it.
Floating around the interwebs are valuable pieces of wisdom. Ok, maybe not everything, but if I agree with it, it must be wise and true (ha!) Urban legend attributes Bill Gates for sharing these 11 pearls of wisdom, however, the real credit goes to educator Charles Sykes (because Snopes says so!)
No matter who said it, these 11 points should be shared and not just with our children. We, as parents, need to embrace and live by these rules as well! Are you? (And, let me add, it is a crying shame these kids don’t come with instruction manuals and that parents aren’t required to take psychology or parenting classes!)
Rules Kids Won’t Learn In School
Rule 1: Life is not fair — get used to it!
Rule 2: The world won’t care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won’t be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping — they called it opportunity.
Rule 6: If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault, so don’t whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent’s generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they’ll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.
And…
Similar wisdom still flies around.
The world does not owe any of us anything. It is up to each of us to make a difference. What are you waiting for?
Which rule do you think is most important? Leave a comment and let’s have some discussion!
Hannah Morgan speaks and writes about job search and career strategies. She founded CareerSherpa.net to educate professionals on how to maneuver through today’s job search process. Hannah was nominated as a LinkedIn Top Voice in Job Search and Careers and is a regular contributor to US News & World Report. She has been quoted by media outlets, including Forbes, USA Today, Money Magazine, Huffington Post, as well as many other publications. She is also author of The Infographic Resume and co-author of Social Networking for Business Success.
