As I communicate with people in my age braket I startleing reality has come to my attention. Poeple have some assinign expectation that once you graduate college with a 4 year degree you will not only be employed, but you will have it within your capacity to find a job, quickly mind you, that pays very well(50K + entry level) Sadly the world is not what it used to be. I would say very plainly that, at least in my experience, public education is such that there isnt even close to a gaurantee that you will be paid well, if even employed once you have that lovely peice of paper.
Why is this? Why do people think that, with a degree, I have no business excepting a position at The Home Depot that pays a mere 12 dollars / hour? Whose idea was it that we should all go off to college where we will find a path to a career?
The answer my freinds is simply the attitude of deservedness. We as a generation beleive that we should not have to work hard for the things we get. We can all agree that college is not really that difficult so long as you have a modicum of intelligence and the slightest amount of work ethic. Yet we beleive that simply by fulfilling requirements and turning in papers on time garners the respect and sellability to obtain that six figure income.
This attitude doesnt stop there. We are taught from a very young age that simply by participating we should be rewarded with trophies and amazing amounts of praise. I say instead, that we should be discouraged from participating in things that we do not wish to excell at. I for example was a little fat kid with the coordination of a condor trying to land. I should never have been rewarded for my lack of talent or determination.
Do not misinterperate readers, i am not against pushing little fat kids to play sports and try hard. They do require encouragement as well. But from a young age we are taught that simply by being a part of something we deserve recognition. Let us instead appreciate the participation but reward true excellence.
This whole issue of worrying about self esteem is a self fulfilling profecy. I put it to you reader to explain to me how the world survived before the idea of self esteem existed. We go through life thinking everything should come easily.
The reality is the adult real world rewards only excellence. this attitude that we deserve praise simply for existance is the root cause of the depression society experiences. We are not great.....people dont really care about us....getting over ourselves is the only true route to success
