Teen Archives - The Voice of Job Seekers

Your Teen, the High School Graduate, and Jobseeker

I’ve written about my son, “Boy Wonder,” and his adventures in working part-time at a famous retail in Chicago. He will be graduating in two months, earning Silver Honors for most of his high school career, lettering in several sports, and more important, quality character. The high school graduate must prepare for career worthiness. He or she is a job seeker in one form or another, and one time or the other.

I’m a proud dad who can only take partial credit. I will give my wife a little more credit because she gave birth, but “Boy Wonder” has two years of working experience and 18 in May. Boy Wonder accrued more than 100 service hours in the community, and does not blink at doing more in the future. In February, he earned scholarship funds because of his “excellence in academic and community service.” He has become career worthy.

This is a good time to start looking for a summer job for your teen, the job seeker, especially if he or she is 16 years old. A job seeker. Like it or not. Working before high school graduation is a necessity in our texting, Twitter, and Facebook society. The are vulnerable by not getting job experience.

I don’t agree with helicopter parenting when they are 23 and possessing a bachelors’ degree. You should be Air Force One upon eligibility when they can work at 16. Walk with them through every step of the employment process, teach them how to think, drink, and eat responsibility. Teach them how to dress appropriately for an interview, and later they will be sharp to get that first college internship.

Another reason for your teen, the job seeker, must work is their baptism in the fire of working relationships. You can tell them how to work with others in theory alone, and draw them stick figures of how to handle conflict, but until he or she experiences it, your bantering is in vain.

Character is something parents discuss, and experience in part with him or her, but only the teen can embody the lifelong gifts that these changes can bring:

Pride, self-esteem, and independence is appreciated more
Appreciation for your hard work
Emotional and physical maturity begins
Responsibility and accountability is regular
Focus on school work is self-motivated
Mature understanding of professionalism (not perfect, advanced beyond peers)
The respect from other adults for working and doing well in school (I’ve witnessed his display of manhood)

I have a longer list than this. Parents, you miss golden opportunities to train your teen to mature and gain character. Jobs will rarely be plentiful. YOU, are the best career coach available.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

Make Career Defining Choices Like a 17-Year-Old

Adults make career defining decisions often think about benefits, and salary, but rarely happiness. Everyone does things that they don’t want to do in their career. Would you do something that was considered horrible?

My son, “Boy Wonder” is 17 years old, is pretty level-headed for his age. We have lots of conversations about college, his future, and women (although mostly theory at this point). He works at the world’s most famous food chain, and has sustained employment for a year.

To digress momentarily, working teens stimulate the economy, and the household. He has to work because it builds character and responsibility. Most of all, working for “Boy Wonder” provides training opportunities for him that my wife and I offer.

The one lesson that we did not teach him is to make assessments in understanding the breadth of his current job.

He is 17 years old. He still plays jokes on friends and coworkers, wants to spend his money frivolously, and would rather eat candy and oatmeal raisin cookies. The eyes are on the prize, and he understands that the 2016 Escalade will not be paid by his parents.

However, he thinks the way beyond his dream car. He wants to be a nurse.

He understands the sacrifice, and the intensity of the work that is ahead to get into nursing school. However, he is trying to understand how this experience will compare to his experience as a nurse.

Last week, a homeless man vomited in the bathroom, and left a rainbow (use your imagination here). He had to clean it all up. It was awful for him. It was good for him, as it is hard for him to put trash in the garbage can at home.

Character. Responsibility. The irony.

He has to remain temperate no matter how unstable the social culture changes. Customers his age want to challenge authority and be served appropriately.
His bosses rarely gave him the schedule he desired. He had to learn to approach one time to see if it could be change with respect and tact. After that, successful or not, let it go.
Although he has impressed the owner repeatedly, he is still just an employee. No benefits, vacation time, or sick days to reward him for missing one day of work out of a year.
A nurse will make much more money, will always have a job, and retain benefits. However, the transferable issues remain the same. Undesired responsibility is painful no matter how old, or professional you have become.
Jobseekers wait too long to as the question, “What is the worse that could happen to me?” In some way, “Boy Wonder” understands that he will do nasty and dirty tasks, be hot and sweaty, maintain self-control, be patient, and be content with undesirable circumstances. All in the name of saving people’s lives.

As adults, we can ask those questions in interviews, networking situations, or find online information. The average job seeker can research jobs before pressing the apply button.

You can find out, without prior notice, that you are cleaning a rainbow in the bathroom.