How to Stand Out as a Millennial

The millennial generation is by far the most educated generation in history, yet we also top the charts when it comes to unemployment. Sadly, the days when  an undergraduate degree next to guaranteed employment are long gone and it is now necessary to possess a certain variable in order to stand out from the rest of the crowd.

I'm by no means an expert or scholar when it comes to offering advice to those hunting for employment. However, I have noticed a few traits that are worth refining and developing as a Millennial looking to catch the eye of potential employers...

Top 3 Skills/Traits to Thrive as a Millennial

1.) Flexibility 

Since it is next to impossible to land the job of your dreams right out of school, it is vital to make the most of the work you find. You may not find yourself doing exactly what you have dreamed of job wise, but work is work and we all have bills to pay. There is no such thing as a pointless job, unless you decide to make what you are doing meaningless. Every job you take on throughout the course of your career helps you prepare for your dream job later on down the road.

2.) Grit

Assuming that you're lucky enough to find a job right out of school, it is vital that you put your nose to the grindstone. Even though this is your first "real" job, your boss is going to watch you intently and look for any reason to correct your methods. Even though things will get a bit bumpy along the way, everything will fall into place with time if you go about your business with an invigorated sense of grit. No matter how exhausted and/or unhappy you are at first, you simply cannot give up or slow down. You have to attack each day and make the most of every experience you encounter...the pleasant and unpleasant alike.

3.) Open Mindedness 

Lastly, it is extremely beneficial to approach everything with an open mind and free of any preconceived notions. Though it may not seem true at the time, even the crummiest of jobs are beneficial to your overall experience base in some way, shape, or form. In short, make the most of what you have at any given moment. Who knows...you might develop your personal life mantra on a saying one of your first bosses said all the time and nobody ever knew what they meant by it.

Closing Thoughts
These are three key traits that separate those recent graduates who catch a break from those who do not. However, there a numerous other traits and characteristics that contribute to the overall "value" of a fresh graduate in the workforce. While it goes without saying that most everyone has a plethora of horror stories to share about their experiences as a recent graduate, every job, no matter how awful it may seem at the time, carries a great value that most tend to overlook.

The simple things that recent graduates pick up throughout the course of the jobs they take on between graduation and attaining their dream job are priceless for all intents and purposes. Take the current sales position I currently hold now, even though I'm more than a year out of school. While I may not have any direct experience in terms of nurturing my skills as an educator, I am more than confident that the array of small learning moments have gone well beyond anything I could have absorbed in a classroom, whether as a student or as an educator.