A Note to Young People

News reports tell us a large number of young people are losing confidence in having a great future. Today’s labor report says over 300,000 people dropped out of the labor pool. The labor participation rate is the lowest since Jimmy Carter was President. The evening news features numerous union sponsored groups picketing outside McDonald's in favor of a minimum wage increase. According to the Main Street Media young people are doomed by a poor economy, high student loan debt and lack of opportunity.

If you are a young person 18-30, the above paragraph may be the best news you have ever heard. When people are quitting, when people are discouraged and when things look the worst……this is a time of opportunity for those willing to work, commit and move forward.

After recent conversations with several people in your age group, they found at least two jobs from which to choose. There are jobs out there and there is opportunity. You may have to start working for minimum wages, you may have to sweep floors and you may hate the work……here is the up side. You will get several types of experience. First, you will learn to get up and get to work on time…..you laugh…..this is a very important thing to know and understand. Second, you will learn to deal with an employer, an employer who is concerned about his/her business and isn't concerned with your personal problems…..again…..a very important skill. Third, you will learn to work with customers. Customers don’t care anything about you, they care about excellent prices, good service and being treated well. Many young people today do not have the three skill sets listed above. When you have the skill of getting to work on time, dealing with a sometimes difficult employer and are excellent in dealing with the public, you become a valuable item. These skills cannot be taught by your parents, you college professors or you pastor…..these are skills of life learned by doing.

Forget about the pay. Study Kat Cole, the CEO of Cinnabon. This lady was a waitress at Hooters. She was so good at her job she became a trainer, then an executive and eventually started her own company. At age 32 she was the CEO of Cinnabon. She did not start as a waitress because of the high salary. She started working because she needed a job and when she got the job she became indispensable to her company. She gained so much experience, she was soon heading her own company.

The majority of successful business people started at the bottom and rose to the top because they worked harder, smarter and were more focused than other people. Not all became rich, but most became self-sufficient.

Ashton Kutcher was right, opportunity does look a lot like hard work. When you take a job, any job, for any amount of money, you learn the skills of success, you witness the successes and failures of others. An old saying is “the harder I work, the luckier I get.” When you are working you meet people and people lead to opportunity. If you are young and just starting, Congratulations. Do yourself a favor….get a 3x5 card and write how much money you would like to be making in 5 years on the card. Get the card laminated. Carry the card with you at all times. Look at the card first thing every morning, look at the card at lunch and every evening before going to sleep. Keep the card on your person and during the day, frequently physically touch the card. This is a weird request….follow these instructions and you will look back someday and be amazed at what you have done.

You cannot know your journey ahead of time. You cannot wait until the right time to start. You cannot control what the government or what other people are going to do. You can have a plan, you can eventually find a job you love and would do for free, you can have a work ethic and you can enjoy every step of the journey. When you are successful some will call you greedy, some will say you steal from the poor, some will say everything came easy to you……….here is what you will know…..it was about the journey, it was about taking risks, it was about the joy of both success and failure, it was about you. No government program, no employer and no friend can ever replicate the feeling of self sufficiency.