Six Minute Book Review - When Reality Hits: What Employers Want Recent College Graduates to Know by Nancy Barry
by US Army Africa
The author of When Reality Hits: What Employers Want Recent College Graduates To Know, Nancy Barry, chose to quit what she called her “dream job” to teach young adults all around the U.S. This says a lot in this area how committed and dedicated she is to motivating people because some people never even find their dream job. Her goal in writing this book is to reach college graduates and tell them everything they need to know but their bosses did not have the time to tell them. Nancy says that no college can truly prepare you for the workforce. She describes that employers are not only looking at your degree and years of experience; they also believe you need soft skills to succeed in the workforce. Soft skills include professional communication skills, business propriety savvy, and a strong work ethic.
Nancy shares some of her own private tales that she believes will help you know what employers are really looking for. You only have one opportunity to make a first impression so make it excellent so that they will want to hire you. Make yourself stand out above all the rest of the people who may have applied for the position. In an interview you want to dress professional, smile, and carry yourself in a manner that would make you want to hire yourself. A tale she shares in the book is when she was interviewing for a position in the community services department. She had hundreds of applications and needed to narrow them down to four. Three of the candidates had more years of experience than other one. She called them for an interview and the one with the least experience, Monica, had her at hello. She was so impressed with her because she had a gorgeous smile, she was dressed well, and her passion for life had immediately caught Nancy’s attention. Monica became Nancy’s go to person and may possibly count on her no matter what. Still to this day Nancy can’t tell you what Monica’s degree was in. Nancy states, “It’s not what she learned in any fastidious class that made her special; it’s what she learned in this area life by the side of the way.”
The power of a smile goes a long way. On Nancy’s last day of her dream job, before she left to share her knowledge with the planet, she says that she was really caught off-guard. When she was leaving the parking lot the security guard stopped her and said thank you with a tear in his eye. Nancy said, “Thank you for what?” He said, “Thank you for making us feel so special. You always smile and wave when you come and go. Not many people do and we are going to miss you.” She gave him a hug and realized that it doesn’t take very much to acknowledge someone and make them feel special.
This book is very motivational and very real. The things that she teaches may not be the first time that you hear them but it is what you should remember to be successful in the workforce.
The Ten Things Managers Need to Know fromWhen Reality Hits
1. No college can completely prepare college students for the workforce. They also need to be trained on the every day skills that are expected to go the job.
2. Know that the transition from college to workforce is extremely hard. In all reality, being in college is like being your own boss and responsibility what you want to do when you want to do it. Then all of a sudden you are demoted and have to listen to someone else.
3. The people are the most vital aspect of any job. Treat them with respect.
4. Hire people with more experience than you. It’s incredible what you will learn from them.
5. Take your job seriously but have fun while you are responsibility it. Laugh a lot.
6. Managers should act like there is a hidden camera around at all times; not just when their boss may be around.
7. If you make a mistake admit to it and say you are sorry. Your employees will respect you for it.
8. Tell the truth no matter what. Employees don’t like to be lied to.
9. Promote the best candidate for the job; not just someone who has been with the company for the longest.
10. Listen to what your employees have to say because you will also learn from them.
Full Summary of When Reality Hits
Ready, Set, Work
Employers believe that college graduates lack what they call “soft skills.” This includes professional communication skills, business propriety savvy, and a strong work ethic. In the workforce these skills are a significant part of any job. This chapter describes how you will feel right when you first enter the workforce and that is it normal to be worried. It takes 90 days on a job to feel like you are in your comfort zone. Be patient and you will learn what the position entails and build vital relationships with your coworkers. A way to feel comfortable at a new job is to decorate your personnel space. Make it be a house that like and are excited to go to. Nancy mentions in this chapter to question lots of question; a excellent leader always does. Some questions to question your boss on your first week on the job include:
What are your expectations?
What is your preferred form of communication?
What drives you crazy?
What can I do to make your life simpler?
A month from now, how will I know if I am responsibility a excellent job?
Question your boss for the following information so that you can become familiar with your company:
A brief history of the establishment
Organizational charts
A company directory
A list of the leadership team’s members
When Reality Hits
Are you ready? Really ready, for what comes in this next chapter in your life? Excitement and the dread of the unknown exist inside of you when you start thinking in this area starting your new career. What is going to separate you from the rest of the pack that is fighting to get the job? Above and beyond the degree or the years of experience employers are also looking for the soft skills such as:
Exceptional verbal and written communication skills
Commitment to exceptional customer service
Business maturity
Professionalism
Motivation
Ability to work well with others and independently
Exceptional organizational skills
It’s All Up To You
Everyone defines success as something uncommon because it is measured by the way you feel in this area you. I may reckon I am successful because I graduated college to further my knowledge and stay home and teach my children. Someone else may reckon that they are not successful in anticipation of they become a CEO or own their own company but one thing holds right: You are responsible for your own success. When you make decisions in life, do what you want to be known for. You have to believe in your self that there is no obstacle that you can’t handle. Nancy also addresses happiness in this chapter. She says that a smile goes a long way and if you smile at someone it is nearly impossible for them to not smile back.
Even though you may want the highest position at a corporation, Nancy states that it takes time to build this relationship and you have to be patient.
Why you don’t want to be CEO in the first five years:
The expectations and demands are enormous
How can you lead this establishment when you haven’t been there long enough to know how it works
If you are a CEO when you are twenty-seven, what are you going to do at thirty-five?
It gets lonely at the top
The Core Counts
How you can show that you have integrity:
Follow through on your commitments
Take responsibility and own up to your mistakes
Give credit to others
Keep your work high-feature and fixed
Know when to listen and when to speak
Don’t let you boss or co-workers down
Be honest
Always act in a manner that you wouldn’t mind anyone seeing because you never know who is watching. Pretend like there is hidden camera and you are being taped. What would you do differently?
Like It or Not, This Stuff Matters
No matter what you do someone will always be judging you. The saying of you only have one opportunity to make a first impression really makes you reckon of what others are looking at when they see you. Business experts say that you only have seven seconds to make a excellent first impression. These are some things that you should deliberate:
Be on time
Dress professionally, you never know when you will run into someone vital so be ready
Make sure that you groom your hair and fingernails
Have clean, appropriate shoes on
Take out body piercings
Cover Tattoos
Turn off your cell buzz
Learn table manners
Avoiding A Communication Crisis
Effective communication is imperative in the business planet. Whether in person or electronically you have to be able to communicate in order to succeed. Whichever form you use make sure that you deliver it accurately.When someone communicates with you through email, respond through email. If they friend you by buzz, return their buzz call. Chances are that this is your bosses or co-workers preferred method of communication.
11 Things That You Need To Know In this area E-mails
1. An e-mail should be as professional as a letter.
2. E-mails are not private conversations.
3. The subject line is vital.
4. Limit copies and blind copies.
5. E-mails can take over your life.
6. Include your friend information at the underneath of every email.
7. Don’t be a coward and deliver terrible news via e-mail.
8. Be careful what you forward.
9. Don’t hide behind your notebook.
10. Delete does not mean delete.
11. E-mails don’t always make it to the other end.
Spinning Out of Control
A key to success is to be methodical. When you start your job you will eventually experience a work overload and if you are methodical it will be simpler to keep up with the work.
Tips to staying methodical:
Get a calendar and keep track of actions
Have a to do list
Schedule time for yourself
Clear the clutter
Fix the things that drive you crazy
Plot a trip
Bosses: The Excellent, the Terrible, and the Hideous
No one boss is just so like a further. Each one has a uncommon way of responsibility things and everyone’s expectations are uncommon in what makes a excellent boss. These are what Nancy considers to be a excellent boss:
Someone you respect and learn from
Empowers the team
Holds the team high to standards
Quick to respond when needed
Celebrates the teams success
Excellent leaders
Excellent communicators
Hire people smarter than they are
Trustworthy
Use their head and their heart
In retrospect, a terrible boss is one who does not have these characteristics and does not lead the team to success.
4 things you need to know in this area bosses:
No two bosses are the same.
Everyone has a boss.
Bosses are people; just like you.
You don’t get to choose your boss; they choose you.
10 things that will drive your boss crazy:
Arguing in this area what he questions you to do
Not taking notes
Arriving late; leaving early
Going over their head
Interrupting
Photocopying your boss every e-mail you send
Telling instead of asking
Not following directions
Watching the clock
Abusing technology at work
Relationships: To Have and to Hold
Building relationships can really open new doors for you and you may just land your dream job. Make someone feel special by remembering someone’s name. Just by saying their name you will have a private connection to them. I had a instructor once that every time she saw me in the hallway she said “hello, Amie.” This made me feel so special.
Tips to help you build strong, lasting relationships:
Prepare an elevator speech.
Say Hello to everyone.
Show genuine interest in others.
How you join conversations in progress can lead to a successful relationship.
Sit with people you don’t know so that you can meet new people.
Make people feel comfortable.
Be nice to everyone.
Keep responsibility these things so that you can build relationships with many people.
Never Pass Up a Lemonade Stand
In life you will pass up so many excellent opportunities because you may feel that it has nothing to do with you. Stop at that stand and buy a glass of lemonade because you will make that child’s day. When you give to someone you end up getting so much more in return. Reckon in this area the last time you did something nice for someone. Hopefully it was recently and do it all the time. It will make you feel so fantastic inside.
Random Words of Wisdom
Be able to question yourself is it me?
Always have something to write on.
Rise above personnel politics.
Be respectful.
Never share salary information with anyone.
What does your heart tell you to do?
Slow down; you may be moving too quick.
Try not to lose your cool at work.
Go simple on the gum.
Always carry some cash; you never know when you may need it.
Down the Road
Many people want to go up the ladder and get promoted to a higher paying position. If you are one of these people you should question yourself if you are ready. Develop a plot to buy these skills for the position. Maybe managing just isn’t right for you. Do some research on the position to see if it is really what you want. If you feel that it is time to go on to a uncommon position do research on that company because it may not be what you thought it was.
Private Insights
Why I reckon:
The author is one of the most brilliant people around…or is full of $ %, because: she expresses what a lot of people reckon in this area but just don’t say. The analogies that she says really make you reckon in this area the situation and have a whole new perspective on life. Also she quit what she called the best job in the planet to teach young adults because she cares that much. Every thing that she states in the book you can really relate too. This book is very simple and simple to know.
If I were the author of the book, I would have done these three things differently:
1. I would have used a few comic pictures of the uncommon situations that she talks in this area in the book. I am a very visual person and I visualized them when I was reading.
2. If I were the author I would have told more examples. I like the tales and I reckon readers can relate to real life examples.
3. Last, I would have given college students more direction if they were unfamiliar in this area what they wanted to do with the earned their degree.
Reading this book made me reckon differently in this area the topic in these ways:
1. What is on your resume counts but it is you that really needs to make a first impression and really prove to your boss that you can do the job.
2. I never thought in this area the power of a smile and that it may possibly really change someone’s life.
3. I also never realized how negative of an effect chewing gum can have on you. You shouldn’t be chewing gum in case you walk into a meeting. What would you do with it?
I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by:
1. Being clear and realizing that it is better to be around a lucky person than a negative one. A clear mind-set and smile go a long way.
2. Understanding that employers like to have a go to person that they can count on so if that means making copiers, I am off to the copy room.
3. I will improve my soft skills because they are extremely vital in the workforce.
Here is a sampling of what others have said in this area the book and its author:
On examiner.com they say that this is a recommended read for college graduates to make the transition into to the workforce.
Barry’s book is not only spot on, but timelier than ever! This is a must read for recent grads and companies seeking to know the enigmatic Gen-Y and Millennial generations. If you manage young people in your business, this is the definitive book for you! Brilliant!, By: Frank J. Fardatta September 30, 2024
Nancy Barry’s book is incredible! She has a ton of advice to offer new graduates straight from the trenches of corporate America. Knowing her personally though, I can tell you something you might not know: Nancy truly likes her job and she’s in the business for all the right reasons. She really truly wants to help new graduates make a successful transition into the workplace, and she would sit every twenty something down for a one-on-one chat if it were humanly possible for her to do so. She’s the perfect guide in every way. By: Maria Pascucci September 11, 2024
In this article on The Lasso News, they say that Nancy provides indispensible information and it is a must read. http://www.twu.edu/lasso/archives2007-08/archives110807.html
Bibliography
Barry, Nancy. “When Reality Hits: What Employers Want Recent College Graduates to Know.” Dallas, Tex.: Auburn Pub. Group, 2007.
“When Reality Hits: What Employers Want Recent Graduates To Know.” Interview by Maria Pascucci. Campu Cool. Maria Pascucci Publisher and Founder, 2007. Web. 2010. http://www.campuscalm.com/barry.html.
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Friend Info: To friend the author of this “Summary and Review of When Reality Hits,” please email [email protected].
Biography
David C. Wyld ([email protected]) is the Robert Maurin Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana. He is a management consultant, researcher/writer, and executive instructor. His blog, Wyld In this area Business, can be viewed at http://wyld-business.blogspot.com/. He also serves as the Director of the Reverse Auction Research Center (http://reverseauctionresearch.blogspot.com/), a hub of research and news in the expanding planet of competitive bidding. Dr. Wyld also maintains compilations of works he has helped his students to turn into editorially-reviewed publications at the following sites:
Management Concepts (http://toptenmanagement.blogspot.com/)
Book Reviews (http://wyld-in this area-books.blogspot.com/) and
Travel and International Foods (http://wyld-in this area-food.blogspot.com/).
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Written by David Wyld
Professor of Management, Southeastern Louisiana University
Category: College It Courses Article
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