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Most people who've spent even a marginal amount of time in the business world realize that nepotism and paying out/returning favors trump academic credentials. Now, being in one of the worst economies in the past couple decades, "who you know" seems to be playing a much bigger role than ever in who's getting the jobs. So why is it that most people push their kids to do well academically? Shouldn't they instead push them to build skills in social networking and office politics?
This is coming from someone who has always strived to do well in high school and in college, and did exactly that. But after only a few years in the post-college business world, I've come to realize that all my hard work in school was done in vain. A lot of people I work with never went to college. Most of them are just intellectually average, but are doing as well as me or, in some cases, doing better than me. This is not about me tooting my own horn. It is about me realizing that working hard in school seems to have little pay off once you enter the business world.
So why do we all have the delusion that if we push ourselves or our kids to do well in school, it will be rewarded later on in life? This obviously does not seem to be the case for a lot of us these days.
Do well in high school, get into the right college, and then network like heck once you're there. I know a good number of people who got good jobs after college as a result of networking events at the Sigma Chi house on home football Saturdays.
"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.
I agree with you. There are movements against the current academic pressure in schools. I think you are smart to have figured this out. Write a blog for Huffpost and spread the word. It would be infinitely more fun to focus on social skills. I think the world would benefit, greatly. Academics can be left to a few rare geniuses . . .
Most people who've spent even a marginal amount of time in the business world realize that nepotism and paying out/returning favors trump academic credentials. Now, being in one of the worst economies in the past couple decades, "who you know" seems to be playing a much bigger role than ever in who's getting the jobs. So why is it that most people push their kids to do well academically? Shouldn't they instead push them to build skills in social networking and office politics?
This is coming from someone who has always strived to do well in high school and in college, and did exactly that. But after only a few years in the post-college business world, I've come to realize that all my hard work in school was done in vain. A lot of people I work with never went to college. Most of them are just intellectually average, but are doing as well as me or, in some cases, doing better than me. This is not about me tooting my own horn. It is about me realizing that working hard in school seems to have little pay off once you enter the business world.
So why do we all have the delusion that if we push ourselves or our kids to do well in school, it will be rewarded later on in life? This obviously does not seem to be the case for a lot of us these days.
Because, when it comes to getting first jobs, grades count. There were 5 or 6 companies that would only interview the top 5 engineering grads from each major when I gradated (bad economy then but not this bad).
However, I do agree it's who you know but who you know can depend on what you know. I got my co-op positions because of my grades and my job after graduation because of who I met on that job. I do think we need to push social networking more. I didn't think to keep in contact with people who moved on and came to regret it. While my teaching career seems to be working out, I came very close to needing to go back into engineering and I had a very small network to start with.
With facebook and email, there is no reason not to drop people a line every few months or comment on a post just to keep connections open. You never know when you may need them.
As to pushing our kids academically, we should because grades do count but we should also tell them to network. In a contest between who you know and grades, who you know wins. However, in a contest where no one knows anyone, grades win...at least for that first job. After that, no one seems to care.
Maybe your intellectually average co-workers who never went to college bring in more revenue than you do.
First off, it's not a sales job, so we have no easy way of determining how much revenue we bring in, if we bring in any at all. I, OTOH, have brought business to my employer by being offered a job by another third party company that was essentially absorbed by my company when the other company decided they did not want the business. Yes, it's complicated.
Secondly, since I'm based at our client's headquarters, I hear my co-workers get bashed every day because of their screw ups. They are NOT smart, nor do they bring much to the table in terms of reputation. Why have some of them gotten to where they are? By kissing up to our boss. Meanwhile, he spends much of his days defending their screw ups. Our weekly conference calls usually consist of devising a game plan as to how we will respond to this screw up or that screw up. It's sad.
An piece of paper does not entitle a person to a great job.
This is such a stupid generalization. I'm talking about people who worked their butts off to get that piece of paper, not people who just bought a piece of paper. My entire argument is that maybe we shouldn't push our kids so hard to do well specifically because of attitudes like yours. Why bust your butt when you have people such as yourself in charge who say all that hard work doesn't deserve anything?
It's not the piece of paper that has meaning, it is what the paper-holder gives it. Someone who worked hard for that piece of paper and values it, will have confidence, while others won't. It's the confidence that makes the difference, not the paper.
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