IMO, kids are also a heck of a lot more intelligent these days due to technology. They have unlimited information and data at the tips of their fingers that wasn't available before.

 

That doesn't make them more intelligent, just more informed, or at least they should be. However after working with middle schoolers this past year coaching, I'm not sure they are either one. :lol2:

The increased knowledge and "intelligence" comes with a cost. While they may have the information at their hands, I would say basic principles such as one-on-one communication is lacking.

Edited June 8, 20179 yr by bugatti

The increased knowledge and "intelligence" comes with a cost. While they may the information at their hands, I would say basic principles such as one-on-one communication is lacking.

 

I agree with this, having a conference call would give me anxiety when I first started.

My oldest just started her first job last month. She is 14 and is working at Holiday World. I wish they were giving her more hours so far only about 8 to 12 per week, but it is a start and she probably couldn't get hired anywhere else around here at that age.

 

I started mowing lawns in the summer at some point in middle school don't remember what year exactly. Since that time I have had continuous summer employment. Towards the end of my sophomore year I got an afterschool job that was between 15 to 20 hours a week. I've been employed ever since that time, with the one exception being my freshman year in college, except for a minimal work study position.

 

I do see a difference in the work ethic of a lot of the younger generation. My wife has a niece and nephew that are twins and are now about 25 years old. The niece got her first job around 23 years old. The next paycheck the nephew earns will be his first. The niece got married about a year ago, and is expecting a child in October. Her husband also in his 20's just got his first job about a month ago working part time at Wal-mart. I guess to be fair he did get a job at a Porter Paint store about 1 1/2 ago. He called her to come get him before lunch on his first day because he quit.

 

Just about all of my co-workers in my unit are 35+. We did hire a guy about 2 years ago who was in his mid 20's. Smart guy had an MBA. But he wasn't willing to put any extra effort to go above the minimum requirements of his job. He couldn't understand why working 40 hours a week, wasn't putting him on the fast track to senior management. He and the company parted ways a little over 6 months ago. With a little extra effort he could have been successful with us I think.

 

I understand that not all younger people are this way, but it sure seems like quite a bit more of them are nowadays than when I was that age.

For the record, the few kids I know that could fit the lazy and entitled stereotype are pretry much encouraged by their parents to be so. Most kids want to be more independent and want to work.

 

This can't be ignored. When you hear about the "downfall of the civilization because of the younger generation," remember who these kid's parents are. We are all products of what we come from.

 

I think a large decrease is due to parents not wanting their kids to work. With traveling teams and other extra-curricular commitments which at one time didn't exist, it does not leave much time for teens to work; parents want their kids to have some time to enjoy their youth.

My oldest just started her first job last month. She is 14 and is working at Holiday World. I wish they were giving her more hours so far only about 8 to 12 per week, but it is a start and she probably couldn't get hired anywhere else around here at that age.

 

I started mowing lawns in the summer at some point in middle school don't remember what year exactly. Since that time I have had continuous summer employment. Towards the end of my sophomore year I got an afterschool job that was between 15 to 20 hours a week. I've been employed ever since that time, with the one exception being my freshman year in college, except for a minimal work study position.

 

I do see a difference in the work ethic of a lot of the younger generation. My wife has a niece and nephew that are twins and are now about 25 years old. The niece got her first job around 23 years old. The next paycheck the nephew earns will be his first. The niece got married about a year ago, and is expecting a child in October. Her husband also in his 20's just got his first job about a month ago working part time at Wal-mart. I guess to be fair he did get a job at a Porter Paint store about 1 1/2 ago. He called her to come get him before lunch on his first day because he quit.

 

Just about all of my co-workers in my unit are 35+. We did hire a guy about 2 years ago who was in his mid 20's. Smart guy had an MBA. But he wasn't willing to put any extra effort to go above the minimum requirements of his job. He couldn't understand why working 40 hours a week, wasn't putting him on the fast track to senior management. He and the company parted ways a little over 6 months ago. With a little extra effort he could have been successful with us I think.

 

I understand that not all younger people are this way, but it sure seems like quite a bit more of them are nowadays than when I was that age.

 

In reality unless you are an hourly employee, the 40 hr work week doesn't exist anymore. I would say the only place that honors a 40 hr work week are the new progressive type employers, otherwise in your typical jobs most upper management are old schooled in their ways and expect more.

Our oldest doesn't work. But she practices all year long with two small but mandatory from us breaks after xc and track season.

 

She's tried to find jobs but not many people are looking to hire someone with extremely limited hours.

 

Call it what you want but she's received multiple college offers due to her running and she's very dedicated. I'd rather her not work and focus on her college ticket.

 

She does pick up money from two families by picking their kids up and dropping them off after practice.

I had my first real job at 16 at the local grocery store. I worked around 25 hours a week during the school year except during baseball season when it was about 1 day a week, and then just under 40 hours a week during the summer. My kids' school and extracurricular activities will determine if they work during the school year.

 

As for this generation of kids, talk to any HR person around that has years of experience. They will tell you this generation is "special" as I just had this conversation not too long ago with a couple people with years of experience in HR. The kids are either very brash and arrogant thinking they deserve everything, or they're very introverted. They'll receive phone calls from recent graduates telling them when they'll be in for an interview. They'll tell the HR employees what salary and benefits they will receive, many of which are on the same level or exceed current director level salaries. They've even had a few demand a "nap hour" during their work day. On the opposite side of that, they have parents calling in trying to setup interviews for their kids as their kid couldn't call. Or they have kids wanting to communicate via email only, because they cannot verbally communicate in a 1-on-1 situation.

I had my first real job at 16 at the local grocery store. I worked around 25 hours a week during the school year except during baseball season when it was about 1 day a week, and then just under 40 hours a week during the summer. My kids' school and extracurricular activities will determine if they work during the school year.

 

As for this generation of kids, talk to any HR person around that has years of experience. They will tell you this generation is "special" as I just had this conversation not too long ago with a couple people with years of experience in HR. The kids are either very brash and arrogant thinking they deserve everything, or they're very introverted. They'll receive phone calls from recent graduates telling them when they'll be in for an interview. They'll tell the HR employees what salary and benefits they will receive, many of which are on the same level or exceed current director level salaries. They've even had a few demand a "nap hour" during their work day. On the opposite side of that, they have parents calling in trying to setup interviews for their kids as their kid couldn't call. Or they have kids wanting to communicate via email only, because they cannot verbally communicate in a 1-on-1 situation.

 

Our world is screwed when this generation takes over the workforce.

. Or they have kids wanting to communicate via email only, because they cannot verbally communicate in a 1-on-1 situation.

In my experiences the only way to get a hold of any of them is to text. They will not respond/check email, and obviously will not pick up a phone.

Our world is screwed when this generation takes over the workforce.

 

Nah, things will just re-calibrate in how work is completed. Your parents had the same things said about them.

 

The lack of interpersonal communication is troubling. That I agree with.

Something the "younger" generation doesn't understand what took me till I was much older and my dad was an old man for me to understand about him; we, the "older" generation live in the now with you, the "younger" generation. We have the benefit of seeing whats happening because we live in it and see where the future is heading. What the "younger" generation doesn't have the benefit of and can't have, is living in the time we the "older" generation did and what it was like then.

 

One of the most eye opening experiences I had with my dad was a few years before he died, Maybe 7-8 years ago now. I was home visiting, which unfortunately I had not done much of over the years as I had gotten older, and "life" kind of got in the way. Dad was driving through the country where he grew up and I was riding along with him. We drove by grandma's old house and farm. He suddenly started pointing at places where old country stores had been years ago, long rotted away; places they raised hogs and places they would go pick wild berries, cut wood. This was something he had never done with me before in all the times we had spent in the area when I was younger. He talked about (the family) not having money, going and trading hogs for flour/beans, other staples. Talked about picking berries for hours, walking in some cases miles with buckets of berries to trade with the stores for other staples. Maybe trading wood, a hog, whatever with another farmer for grain/hay for the mules. Yep, mules that they used to work the farm with. He shook his head and stated "we had to work our (butts) off every day just to eat".

 

You see, up until that very instant, I really didn't understand just how "lucky" I was, and just how hard both my mom and dad had to work just to hope to make ends meet at one time in their lives (mom grew up the same way in the same area). Yep, I had heard it all before...you don't know what it's like to work...you're so lucky today...kids today just don't know. It went through one ear and out the other...until that day, on that drive through the country, with my dad as an old man, and me a not-so-young man anymore. It suddenly clicked. Dad had always been right...I DIDN'T understand how hard he and mom had worked. I didn't HAVE to work the way they did, just to have food on the plate at night. And I, and most of my generation, would never know what it was like to have to work the way in which they did...not to thrive, but in many case just to get by.

 

And you know what? In a way, I'm probably lessor off NOT experiencing some of what they had to do. And most of today's generation is far removed from what I grew up doing, much less having to do what my parents did. Technology can be a good thing...but it's also a two edged sword. I think kids today would be greatly served to experience what my parents did...just like I would have been greatly served by it as well. We would all be more appreciative of where we are today and what we have and just how blessed we are.

 

Funny, as I typed about my dad and that drive, tears started welling up in my eyes. If you knew me you would know how unusual that is. I don't think I saw my dad again after that until he was diagnosed with cancer and was dying and was just a weak shell of the man he had been. That drive through the country was the last lesson he taught me. I'm glad my ears were open for that one.

I have no idea on situations, but I didn't let my kids work in high school during the school year, only in the summer. Their first job was school and secondary jobs were the two school activities I required them to be involved in.

 

They all graduated college with post secondary degrees and are doing extremely well in their jobs, all making over 50K. There are different ways to approach raising kids and many of those methods work. Kids will meet the priorities parents establish. There is no magic bullet that says the only way to be successful is to work as a teenager.

I worked to help pay for HS. My kids worked thru HS and played hoops. I found when they were in the sport and worked their grades were even better than normal, since they had to stay focused and knew there were so many goals that needed to be accomplished in X amount of time. No time for screwing off.

Our company is going thru tough times right now as we cater to the younger kids. In a company meeting a stat was posted that 65% of kids today will be working in a job or industry that currently does not exist. Technology has and will change that much.

As far as kids and sports...I'm all for kids playing summer sports, just as long as they are giving their all and doing it the "right" way. I missed out on some things sports related because of having to work. You can only experience those things once in your lifetime, so I have no issue with doing that as opposed to having a job.

I've been gainfully employed since I was in 7th Grade. At one point I had 70 grass cutting jobs, as well as, countless landscape jobs. Even while in the lawn and landscape business I held other full time and part time gigs. Been at FedEx 23 years now.

 

I've been paying my own way, cars, insurance, etc....since I was 16.

 

DLG and 2.0 got jobs after sophomore year of HS.