To the few who love their jobs:

You may be a young college student, or you may be experiencing whatever that grey area is after graduation, but one thing is certain: You have a job because, you know, bills. Hopefully, you even have a cool job, a fun job or maybe a job you love. This is where you need to think about who you were before that. Remember the old days when you were one of us? You were one of the millions of students constantly talked about in the media, the ones working in retail, folding shirts, the ones working at the local supermarket, stacking shelves with groceries, the ones burying themselves in mountains of education loans just to graduate and be faced with a ruthlessly competitive job market. Things aren’t looking so bright right now, and we could really use your experience to help us become more educated on what lies ahead. So, as one of these students, I ask just one favor: Please, lift as you climb.

Let me give you an example of what happened when someone lifted me up as they climbed. A friend of mine went to a summer camp as an adolescent, and over the years, she trained to become a counselor, and now, she is the waterfront director. Although it took time and patience, she rose through the ranks and is now a freshman in college, confidently holding a supervisory position. As she earned success for herself, she did the best thing anyone could do. She shared it with others. She and I met during our first year of college and were talking about the outdoors one day when she realized I may be a good match for an open position at this camp and got me in touch with the director. What happened next? I was hired on the spot to become the boating director at that same camp. Now, I will be happily sharing my passion of being on the water with hundreds of overly excited youngsters during what I will still consider a perfect summer vacation. This is just one example, though, and many of us have our own unique stories of how others helped us find a job.

As you chase you own interests, you may often forget the person you were before you started at that exciting and hip new job. You were the one working for minimum wage or working in a dead-end job. These are people who could use your help and advice. You may work as a freelance writer, or maybe you are a tenure-track professor at a prestigious university. If you would please reach out to one of us, any of us, and share your experience, you could change a life forever. You don’t have to offer someone a job, of course, but by taking even just a few minutes out of your busy schedule to inform us about your work background or industry, you could open our eyes to a world we may have never known existed. So, remember, if you have a cool job, a fun job or a job that you love, tell us about it! With that information alone, we can move forward on our own journeys, equipped with your story of an exciting industry that one day we just might want to try out for ourselves.

It’s getting late now, though, and we have to get back to our shift at the local supermarket or retail clothing store, but leave thinking about what we ask. Remember that someone's story may just have been the key that led you to where you are today, and now you could easily open up a door for one of us tomorrow.

Best Wishes,

Students everywhere