What Do You Want to Be?

One of the bloggers I read, Sharon Beesley, just landed a pretty sweet gig at Elizabeth Street (congratulations!) and shared her experience getting to this point. Here is a quick snippet of her post:

PS Jordan Ferney took the above picture of me when I was in Paris a few years ago. One night she asked me what I wanted to be. I told her I really wanted to be a writer. Her response was something like, "You want to be a writer? Great! Call yourself a writer when people ask you what you do. Put it as your occupation on Facebook. There. Now you're a writer." She's the best at going after what she wants without making excuses. I love that about her. She's right--calling myself a writer actually turned me into a writer. This theory doesn't exactly fly for someone who wants to be a brain surgeon, but it works for most other things. What do you want to be? A runner? An artist? A baker? Consider yourself one and watch what happens!

This idea got me thinking about what I would call myself. Right now, I would call myself a manicurist and magazine contributor (because that is what I am doing), but is that what I really want to call myself? To be honest, I'm not sure. I feel more content now than I have for months and I am so grateful for the place I am in. I love my internship and I love the personal interaction I get from being in the salon, but I have zero thoughts for the future. 

Will I stay in the salon long term? Will the magazine take off? Who knows! All I know is that I am ok with where life is right now. I'm not anxiously awaiting the next season or frustrated that I haven't moved onto a new phase; I'm happy. I do like Jordan's advice (and I think that it can be very freeing), but I'm ok with not knowing what my title is yet. 

Do you know what do you want to be? 

Entitled Millennials

Yesterday, one of my co-workers posted a really interesting article about the evolving attitude and work ethic of my generation, the Millennials. The author examined the idea that our education system does more to create unrealistic beliefs than it does to impart knowledge and skill to students. She spoke with a small business owner (Ms. Jimenez), who employees mostly Millennial aged employees, and provided commentary on five frustrations the business owner expressed. Here are the two frustrations that really caught my attention:

1. "They are cocky." Ms. Jimenez complains that once elevated to positions like “assistant buyers,” her employees treat bosses, clients, and other employees in a condescending manner.

2.“They don’t want to pay their dues.” Working your way up does not apply to Millennials, who expect to earn high salaries doing glamorous tasks immediately.

I found myself resonating with the author's observations. Throughout my collegiate experience, I continued to hear rhetoric such as, “You deserve to make your dream job your career”, “Follow your passions”, “Be continually inspired and love what you do”. While these sentiments are encouraging, they don’t set students up with a firm grasp of reality. How do we make our dream job our career? What steps do we need to get there? What does it look like to be continually inspired? What makes us think we can jump start from college to leading an organization or team at only 22 years old?

Lucky for me, my parents instilled a strong work ethic that I was able to carry through college and into the work force. Saying that, I will fully admit that I was drawn to that rhetoric and was even a bit disappointed when I hit the real world. Of course the idea of “following my passions” is appealing and it was definitely something that I wanted to pursue, but how do I start that?

Don't get me wrong, I think having interest and/or being passionate about what you do is absolutely critical in an employee's longevity, but I’ve watched friends struggle with the idea of accepting entry-level positions and feel as though they are above them simply because they’ve received a degree. You have to start somewhere and start gaining real working-world experience, but I think that this is hard for young graduates to understand and accept.

One of the readers posted a quote from Paul Graham that I feel captures the sentiment well:

"Many people feel confused and depressed in their early twenties. Life seemed so much more fun in college. Well, of course it was. Don't be fooled by the surface similarities. You've gone from guest to servant. It's possible to have fun in this new world. Among other things, you now get to go behind the doors that say "authorized personnel only." But the change is a shock at first, and all the worse if you're not consciously aware of it."

If you've graduated from college, how did you feel once you were out in the real world? Did you experience any disillusionment? Do you think it's something Millennials will just have to get over?

Read the full article, and the rest of the frustrations, here. 

Content Issue 4.2 Is Here!

Content magazine has struck again! This month we published the Vacation 4.2 issue. It's packed full of ways to enjoy your summer here in San Jose. We highlight restaurants with great outdoor seating (which I LOVE to do during summer), places to find outdoor music, and a few of the amazing innovators that are shaping San Jose's culture.

Want to be a part of the action and up to date on what's going on in this great city? Subscribe today. It's super easy and affordable (it breaks down to $3.50 a month; the same cost as a latte). An added bonus is that you're totally supporting a local business. Not ready to commit? Grab a copy at one of the following locations:

• Zanotto's Family Market
• The Usuals
• The San Pedro Square Gift Shop
• La Lune Sucree
• Satori Tea Company
• St. Claire Newsstand
• Art Boutiki 

If you want to be updated on what we're up to, like us on Facebook, or send a quick email to: editor@content-magazine.com.

p.s. Yes, I realize that this is a total pitch of a post, but we're a small business and need to get the word out. It really is an amazing publication and I am so proud to be a part of it. 

Only 7 Days Left!

With only a week left before we leave, my brain is having a hard time focusing on anything other than my trip. Over the weekend, we spent time preparing by studying up on our destinations. I was able to find my travel journal from our last trip to Europe in 2009, and it was so fun to look back on those memories. Here is an excerpt from our stay in Rome.

Day 3 - July 3, 2009
I've woken up early (5:30am local time!) to the sound of movement. There are cars and trucks alive and well in Rome this morning. The temperature is cool, but I can feel that it is going to get warm. We are going to see the Colosseum today and I am excited. I'll write more when we get back!

For dinner, we found a little restaurant in an alley, down a side street. It was so delicious! They gave us complimentary bruschetta, we ordered mozzarella & prosciutto on baked bread as our appetizer. For dinner, I had the gorgonzola gnocchi and Robbie had the salmon and spinach pasta. The food was great and the setting romantic. We were at a two-person table, eating by candlelight, on a cobblestone road. It was amazing and perfect all at the same time; or it was as though I was living in a movie. This is what I mean by this being surreal. I can hardly believe this is happening to me. I would have never imagined I would be doing this in my lifetime. 

Unfortunately, I placed large expectations on myself to write long, detailed descriptions of each place and ended up losing momentum half way through the trip. I remember trying to play catch and feeling overwhelmed, which is too bad. I'm going to do my best to write down images and memories I don't want to forget, but I don't want to stress myself out over it.

Do you keep a journal while you travel? Does it enhance your trip or way you down?

My Hope

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

My hope is that we can realize our passions and enjoy them to their fullest. Let's not feel pressured by what other's think is best, rather let's find what is right for us and pursue it wholeheartedly. 

(Photo via AWellTraveledWoman)