It's also the central theme of a high school textbook co-authored by Harry Smith, professor of curriculum and instruction at Tennessee Technological University. The text stresses skills they need to succeed at school, work and on their own, from issues of personal hygiene to math and computer skills to managing finances and establishing good credit. The book also tackles illegal questions employers sometimes ask in job interviews. The text not only lists categories of questions that are forbidden, it also arms students with tactics to diplomatically rebuff such questions and return discussion to appropriate issues. We try to share with them that employers will pay well for a good job, but they shouldn't automatically expect to start at a high scale.
Employees still have to expect to work up through the ranks to reach salaries at high levels.
And then there are challenges of technology and economics. Far more so than in previous generations, workers must be nimble learners, prepared for new technology and new employers. Having a paycheck today, Smith says, is no guarantee of one tomorrow, yet there are important actions people of all ages can do to make themselves valuable to their employers. Much of it has to do with developing good work habits and projecting positive attitude. They'll often hire a positive attitude over skills in a heartbeat because they can provide skills in-house, and so many skills change so rapidly.