Here’s What Millennials Can Do To Improve Their Career Prospects
Many recruiters complain that millennials lack the skills needed to find success in the workplace. The fact that the majority of the workforce falls under the category of millennials makes this something to worry about. On the plus side, millennials are very comfortable using technology. However, this reliance on technology has led to another problem – absence of soft skills. Millennials find it difficult to communicate with other people and lack social and emotional skills. Read on to learn how millennials can improve their career prospects with these tips.
Improve Communication Skills
Millennials should actively work towards improving their soft skills, especially when it comes to communication. Many leading IT companies are investing in coaching programs and having Toastmasters clubs to improve communication and instil leadership skills.
Susan Steinbrecher said in a recent article on the website inc.om:
“It’s important to note that communication is one of the most highly prized soft skills in the workplace, and many Fortune 500 companies echo this concept. Giants such as Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Disney are taking action, providing staff development programs through coaching, and implementing in-house Toastmasters clubs–both touted to be helpful in enhancing workplace communication and leadership skills.”
Practicing active listening is a great way to begin. Understanding the motivations of people and identifying solutions can help you move ahead in your career. The ability to co-ordinate and work well within a team is often critical in some industries, like the oil and gas industry.
Take Steps To Increase Resilience In The Workplace
Millennials need to focus on improving their resilience in the workplace. They should be able to take failures in their stride and treat them as stepping stones to success. Recruiters and employers find that millennials often get discouraged easily when they don’t find success or meet the goals.
Alanna Petroff reports in a recent news article on CNN:
“Brandon Busteed, executive director at Gallup’s education and workforce development division, says students can increase their resilience by:
- Finding a mentor
- Working on a long term project
- Getting some work experience that’s relevant to their coursework
A Gallup survey of 60,000 recent grads found that these three experiences led to improved well-being, workplace engagement and resilience levels in the workplace.”
When millennials identify a mentor who can guide them and advise them, they can improve upon themselves and grow their career prospects. Rather than make goals on paper and expect to follow through on them, students should ideally obtain work experience. This could be done by obtaining internships in the line of work that they find interesting. Working with established names in the industry will go a long way in building your career. Apply for short term courses to improve your knowledge and work on projects that will give you real world experience. This will set your expectations right and help you move forward, identify opportunities and grow your career.
Finding and keeping a job requires certain skills that millennials have found to be lacking. Learn about what millennials can do to improve their career prospects.
