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I'm in the logistics field. I work for a SMALL company (about 25 employees maybe). I started with this company straight out of college a little over two years ago. I accepted the position out of desperation for a job. I never planned on staying with them for very long, but have unfortunately managed to settle into a comfort zone.
I realize I have a lot to learn about the field still, so this is not about me having a big ego. Am I good at what I currently do? Yes, I believe so because I've been praised on numerous occassions. I think this is more or less the company doesn't care until they are forced to care. I've had a couple other job offers since I started, and that got my current employer into high gear as far as rewarding me for my work and retaining my services.
I think with my current employer, it's more about relationships than it is performance. My employer has been servicing our client for 10+ years now, so I think it boils down to complacency for both parties. My company doesn't feel the need to provide superb service and our client does not feel the need to risk finding another vendor to provide the same services we provide. So basically, neither company cares as long as we're getting paid and they're getting sufficient service. It's a crappy situation for someone who has high ambitions and intelligence.
Svatos, I think you should not be disillusioned about your academic work. Your employer sounds like a complacent bunch. They are comfortable servicing their biggest customer and doesn't motivated to get new customers. That would require energy and innovation.
Lots of companies are in a very different situation. They are scratching and clawing for every dollar they can get. They would likely appreciate a young, bright ambitious guy like you.
You are way too young to get comfortable where you are. I suggest you change your outlook, as difficult as it might be, and make up your mind that you will extract the maximum personal value from this company UNTIL YOU FIND ANOTHER JOB. I think the next ten years or so will set the basic course your career will take.
Because academics is really the only thing a young 18-22 year old has full control over. There's no such thing as being lucky on a test when you're fully prepared for it.
Networking etc is highly dependent on luck and timing, although some people are better at it than others. But the thing is, being outgoing or well-liked is not a requirement for advancement. The top law partners in America are not particularly nice or warm people to be around with. What matters most is getting results and letting those in power know about your results. It doesn't take someone with the personality of a homecoming king to do that.
Think about it another way, the popular jocks in your high school were considered sociable people with great networking skills back then. Where are they now? Few were able to leverage those skills beyond a dead-end $45k job in town.
"Doing well" is relative. Being educated is about having options. It's neither a guarantee nor a panacea. Then again, what is the alternative? Not everyone is the beneficiary of nepotism. Qualifications and education matter.
It also depends on geography. Being well educated in New York City is not the same as being well educated in Minneapolis, which is not the same as being well educated in a small town.
What do you mean by this? What does geography have to do with it? Other than some more regionally-focused topics or needs, I think being well-educated means the same thing everywhere. Whether or not people live up to those standards will vary by place and individual.
I suppose one could argue that being well-educated varies by post-high school interests or desires, but I don't think there's a difference between, say, the expectations for a college-bound kid in Minneapolis versus one in NYC.
A degree is no gauantee of success. But the income of college degreed person says it all in earnigngs overall. Those with college degreed persons in the right filed that place in the top ten per cent of their class far out earn any others overall.
As to the OP's question. Those of us who push them harder to excel academically is basically to learn an ethic. An ethic that will teach them to always be prepared. In our household education/homework came first and play came second. In numerous households I saw the opposite. No matter how tired we were we separated one hour out of our day to sit with our son and talk, go over school issues and make sure he did his homework. That being said by the end of ninth grade. We discussed his options upon graduation from HS. He could either go on to college, he can go into the military, or he could go to work. We did not give the option to stay home and hang out. We taught him an education ethic (both my wife and I take some sort of IT certification every year). We also taught him a work ethic and a reality ethic. He new why we worked and sat in on bills night. And we instilled in him that we would stand behind any decision he made, but we had the right to give him feedback on the ramifications of his decision. He had a hobby he enjoyed so he looked into how to work in that field. College wasn't the direction for him, but getting certified was. He now has a well paying career, he takes every certification that comes out related to his field, pays a mortgage, has a wife and lives his life.
So back to the OP's question its there to give them a foundation for their lives.
As to the parents who have kids in their homes who are in their mid 20's who state they can't find a job after graduation are missing an ethic. Sometimes you have to step down to a lower job to get a step up in life. There are numerous jobs out there, they just may not be in your field for now. We as parents have to take away the safety net sooner rather than later. They need to mature. they need to be in real world.
It's about having options. With a good education, you have options open to you that would never exist otherwise.
And, better yet, if you're not connected, it could be your foot in the door.
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