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&lt;p&gt;So yet another article/listicle/infographic has come out railing against the collective naivete and entitlement of Generation Y. &lt;em&gt;But Wait Why&lt;/em&gt;, via Huffington Post, illustrates in a comic why Generation Y is unhappy (hint: it&#39;s because of all the naivete and entitlement).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;But while the logic is sound (high expectations + tough reality=dissatisfaction), the storyline of the clueless, narcissistic 20-something leaves out some key factors, like cultural changes, marketplace changes, and the basic trappings of youth that all generations before have experienced.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Are we being too hard on Millenials for their social media habits and Great Career Expectations?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Possibly... and here&#39;s why:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;1. &lt;strong&gt;There&#39;s no sure path anymore&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Previous generations may not have been thrilled to follow in their parents&#39; footsteps (or go into &quot;plastics&quot; per the advice of elders in &lt;em&gt;The Graduate&lt;/em&gt;), but at least they knew that was an option.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Gen Y has watched its parents work for 20, 30, 40 years in &quot;sensible&quot; careers and still not have the money to retire or have paid off their mortgages. Doesn&#39;t it make sense for the following generation try to learn from what they&#39;ve seen and make different choices?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;2. …though the &quot;start up&quot; path has gotten a lot of good press&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Thinking outside the box is rewarded with a living—at least that&#39;s the enduring American Myth. Young, special snowflakes with the confidence to create their own brands (and promote them) are the only positive role models Gen Y have had for 20-something success, aside from actors and musicians. Perhaps the &quot;I want to start my own company&quot; bug is less about ego and more about wanting to try something that works.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;3. Self promotion really &lt;em&gt;is&lt;/em&gt; necessary&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Branded &quot;self obsessed&quot; by the rest of the world for using the same social media technology the rest of the world is using (albeit less skillfully) is a little unfair. We live in a transparent world now. In the tough jobs market we&#39;re in, Gen Y is coming up with the least amount of experience and the most precarious financial situations. It doesn&#39;t cost anything to run a blog, and it&#39;s a tool for building a reputation--so if that&#39;s how a 20-year-old can get his name, face, and interests out into the world, let him.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;4. Don&#39;t we all think we&#39;re special?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This is not a new phenomenon. It&#39;s the human condition to feel a little unique, to hope to game the system and make something of ourselves. Singling out Gen Y for having dreams and a little youthful optimism seems remarkable cynical and short sighted of older generations.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;5. We&#39;re helping the big, bad guys undermine them&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Here&#39;s how you keep college tuition astronomical, corporations rich, and internships unpaid: convince young people that their work is worthless.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;For decades young people have been getting job opportunities, paid internships, and apprenticeships. It&#39;s been considered a given that they&#39;re new and need guidance, but they also need to earn a living from their trades and that&#39;s fine. That&#39;s why it seems strange and a little complicit that we suddenly considerate it arrogant of young people to want to make enough to live and pay off student loans. And speaking of student loans…&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;6. Remember: Gen Y values their college educations we told them they were mandatory&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Hiring managers often scoff at Gen Yers for believing in the power of their degrees, but what other messages have we been giving them? &quot;Be cool, stay in school!&quot; &quot;Knowledge is power!&quot; Classrooms are wallpapered with these slogans, teen movies end with the awarding of scholarships, student counselors urge high-schoolers to retake SATs and apply to &quot;safety&quot; schools. And these are just the messages of high school, before the real investments happen: tuition checks, 4 years of exam cramming--and for the promise of a career that makes it all worthwhile.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Our culture promotes that educational tunnel vision, but the &quot;real world&quot; mocks emerging graduates for valuing their educations. It&#39;s a priorities bait-and-switch. And it&#39;s not fair.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;So what can the older and wiser do to help Millennials (and create better, happier workers for the future?):&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;1. Reward good work&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;You&#39;ll get more of what you like from Gen Y&#39;ers if you reward them for stumbling onto it. Use the power of positive reinforcement.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;2. Teach and mentor&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Frustrated that your Millenial coworkers don&#39;t seem to know certain things? Try teaching them.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;3. Give them a chance&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;That&#39;s what they&#39;re asking for, and it&#39;s really not so much.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;--Cathy Vandewater, Vault.com&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Read More: &lt;/strong&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wait-but-why/generation-y-unhappy_b_3930620.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Why Generation Y Yuppies Are Unhappy&lt;/a&gt; (Huffington Post) &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;/blog/workplace-issues/dont-fear-the-phone-7-strategies-to-conquer-calling/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Don&#39;t Fear the Phone: 7 Strategies to Conquer Calling&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;/blog/job-search/sure-you-can-apply-but-can-you-do-a-job-youre-under-qualified-for/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;You Can Apply--Can You Do A Job You&#39;re Underqualified For?&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Cathy Vandewater

Article

Don't Fear the Phone: 7 Strategies to Conquer Calling

You Can Apply--Can You Do A Job You're Underqualified For?

The Library