Stories
Telling stories may surpass even sex in intimacy: telling necessitates vulnerability, and listening entails receptivity. The stories you’ll discover in this collection include vignettes about people working, ponderings on the impact of our jobs, and–a recent addition that requires me to step out from the safe background of editing and into exposure–my own personal stories of work and life. Join me…
My Brother & Pablo: a Virtual (WFH) Bromance
Working from home (WFH) surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will only increase moving forward: 74 percent of companies plan to continue the trend, according to The Atlantic. However, remote workers often experience virtuality as “a barrier” to forming...
Work Depression: Do You Have It?
Depressed at work? How do you know if it's your job, or the rest of life, that's causing it? Should you quit? How can you feel better? The Mental Health Pandemic If you feel anxiety or depression, you're in good company: 41 percent of adults, and 56 percent of...
The Future of Entrepreneurship: Global Trends 2022+
Part 2 of my two-part series. Read Part 1, about Skees Foundation's partner Idea4Africa's innovative youth training program, here. What types of companies will be needed, and how will they differ in structure, function, and valuation, from startups in...
The Future of Entrepreneurship: IDEA4Africa
Part 1 of a 2-part series. Join me for Part 2 on global future trends in entrepreneurship next week ... What will entrepreneurship look like, from now into the future?--Not like a white guy from an ivy league school working out of a garage in Silicon Valley....
How To Write a Book Review: 3 Easy Steps
Why write a book review? Love it or hate it; what's your motivation to write a review? For the reader, you'll have fun organizing your vague feelings about a book into a compelling evaluation, wield power and influence over that book's sales, and maybe even earn money...
How To Interview to Get That New Job
Snag the job of your dreams with a little advance preparation and courageous authenticity. See how to do it in my new video series. -- Suzanne Before the Interview https://youtu.be/SNtOxaRahBM During the Interview https://youtu.be/Hmr-9SrAh78...
Job Hacks: Teamwork for Trying Times
From our team to yours: Tips, shortcuts, and best practices we've learned by working together across the U.S. to the U.A.E. this summer. Scroll down to enjoy short videos with our tips! Suzanne: Author & Manager Many of us have drastically adapted the way...
Gen Z Book Recommended by Kirkus/Publisher’s Weekly!
This just in! The MY JOB book series is now three for three in positive reviews by the independent council of readers at Kirkus, a division of Publisher's Weekly. An age-specific job manual featuring compelling stories and authoritative...
Failure: How To Defeat It
Can anyone reading these words say that they have not experienced failure? Our Fear of Failing Overprotected Children A research center at Columbia University, headed by Xiaodong Lin-Siegler and dedicated entirely to the study of failure, finds...
What’s Most Terrifying About Writing a Book
Hint: it's not the work. The Long Hours No One Sees Maybe you've heard of authors who perch briefly in front of a screen and spew an entire book within mere days or weeks; I suspect foul play there, in either the process or the product. My two rotting novels,...
ANNOUNCING: Our Gen Z Book Is Here!
New Book! Did you know?--every purchase helps create jobs to end poverty. Unique Focus and Content Coauthors Suzanne and Sanam worked together for two years on our book. My young coauthor, Sanam Yusuf, was still in high school when we began concept and...
Empowering Young Entrepreneurs Today
Editor's note: The MY JOB Gen Z book soon will provide hundreds of tips and tools to help young adults land their first job and advance toward their dream job. -- However, we won't stop sharing other resources that come our way! Finimpact, a software and finance...
My Delayed Book Feels Like an Overdue Baby!
Writing Is NOT Like Sex, but... Anyone who's attempted to write a book can attest that the process feels entirely different from making a baby. You do get moments of bliss when the words conjoin in perfect harmony, but ninety-nine percent of the time you're just in...
How to Find Hope to Get to Work
Excerpt from the Epilogue of our forthcoming book. We're grateful to Dr. Wendy Leonard, founder of TIP Global Health (formerly known as The Ihangane Project) and The Hope Initiative, for sharing her expertise on supporting health, care, and hope in young...
How to Save Time & Effort in Your Job Search
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. This penultimate entry from our new book helps you save time and energy by setting up a simple tracking system and using your ultimate weapon--your phone--to find the perfect job. How to Organize...
How to Interview to Get the Job You Want
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. *INCLUDES UPDATES FOR COVID-ERA INTERVIEWING. This entry runs long, because interviewing provides such a vital opportunity for you to reveal your true self and talents--and to glimpse the company's culture and the...
How to Create a Powerful LinkedIn Profile
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. Think LinkedIn is only for older professionals? Well, that may be where your next boss is looking for YOU. LinkedIn: Why Bother? Over 760 million users from over 200 countries. 80% of users cite...
How to Write a Winning Cover Letter
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. The first step in reaching out into the void of the unknown, at the company where you believe you want to work, might just be the most difficult. If you do better with talking, then dial them up and see if you can get...
How to Compose a Succinct Resume
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. Even though, during the COVID pandemic, you may never take the bus or train across town with a paper resume in hand for a job interview, you still need that winning resume. It could your first chance to be "seen" by...
10 Reasons I’m Grateful for Generation Z
Happy Thanksgiving! This year, in spite of all the challenges we face as individuals and as a global family, I realize that much of the gratitude I feel (TRULY feel) comes from my work on this Gen Z book. Here are some of my favorite qualities of Gen Z, and why I...
How to Land Your First Internship
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. Do you find yourself caught in the "no experience/no hire" bind? Does it seem that everyone around you has a resume full of credentials and extracurriculars long before graduation? One of the quickest ways to catch up...
How To Job Hunt during the COVID Pandemic
Highlights from Chapter 4 in our forthcoming book. Dear Wonderful Readers, We hope you're enjoying our five-month blog series that previews the book we'll release, open-source and free for you (and on sale via online booksellers), on New Year's Day. So far, we've...
Gen Zers in Retail, Transportation, & Travel
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. An entire ecosystem of products and services exists by and for Gen Zers. Here, we showcase just a few examples: handmade candles, designer sneakers, bottle-cap decor, sports and office equipment, online youth-centric...
Gen Zers Working in Internet and STEM
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Jobs for the pandemic, the present, and the future: These Gen Zers didn't wait for someone else to hire them--they taught themselves how to code and invented their own ventures. Meet two Adams and ten others from the...
Want Your Name on Our Book Cover?
Dear Wonderful MY JOB Community, A few words from you could get your name on our book cover! Just like everything else about MY JOB Gen Z, we'd like to crowdsource the comments on our back cover. These comments will grace the cover and attract readers...
Human Rights and Impact Champions
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Today, on Election Day in the United States, we celebrate the passion and compassion of Generation Z--many of whom consider themselves inherent human-rights activists: They were born believing all humans deserve equal...
Scary Jobs for Generation Z
Happy Halloween! We interrupt our regularly scheduled posts from our forthcoming book in an attempt to spook you. Hoo hahahahaha . . . Ghost Jobs Just months before COVID hit, the New York Post reported that 43 percent of employees age 22 or younger had...
Jobs in Food, Nutrition, Sports, & Gaming
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Turns out, Generation Z includes a LOT of foodies. You can find plenty of amateur chefs on TikTok and Instagram, but we've included here a sampling of youth who've created entire industries around nutrition and food....
Finance and Marketing for/by Gen Z
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Meet Gen Zers who've developed bitcoin and rallied funds to finance youth-led companies, and amplified the value of Gen Z businesses out to the world through peer marketing. Finance Aaron Easaw Age: 18...
Gen Z Environmentalists Fighting for Our Planet
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Discover some of Gen Z's fiercest advocates for the environment, whose voices are being heard from Native American Reservations to the United Nations. Environment Greta Thunberg Age: 16 Environmental...
Gen Z’s Incredible Voting Power
We interrupt our usual storytelling about Gen Zers in fascinating jobs, to focus on another type of power they wield: that of the VOTE. Gen Z Has Incredible Voting Power Generation Z makes up one in ten eligible voters; that's 24 million strong. Who...
Gen Zers in Entertainment & Social Media
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Discover some of Gen Z's most famous prodigies onscreen via vlogs, videos, toy reviews, musical and poetry performances, and (virtual) standup comedy. Stay tuned for more details in our book on what motivated them,...
Fashion Design, Beauty & Body Products
Highlights from Chapter 3 in our forthcoming book. Our next few posts will cover outliers who've earned fortunes, invented products, entertained millions via social media, and had tremendous impact with their work in a range of fields. We found scores of...
Webcam Porn, Grocery Clerk, Hospital Intern
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. The three Gen Zers highlighted below all have wound up in jobs they may not have envisioned for themselves--but that pay decent money, in the case of Tessa tending a small grocery store and Theo doing webcam porn....
Civil Engineer, Eating Disorder Dietician, Hospital Trainer
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. Three Gen Z women rock amazing jobs: Morgan's college co-op program matches her with advanced roles in civil engineering in Cincinnati, Ohio; Pilar helps women (mostly Latinx) with eating disorders discover the power...
U.S. Marines, Politics, International Management
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. Some people seem to find their way early in life . . . Kristen lives in Spain and manages construction, repairs, and deliveries for an international company. Michael L. lives in Hawaii and serves the U.S. Marines as...
Hulu, Homeland Security, & Real Estate
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. Many of our Gen Z friends wrote in to tell us about the high-profile jobs they've landed at very young ages! Meet Danielle from Homeland Security in Florida, Kamrie in real estate staging and photography in New...
REAL Gen Zers Working Through COVID-Part 2
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. These three innovators transformed the COVID pandemic into an online internship abroad, a socially-distant lifeguard post, and a gap year on a farm in Hawaii. Lana Age: 19 Job: Online Tutor Location: New York...
REAL Gen Zers Working Through COVID
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. Meet five resilient members of Generation Z who've found inventive ways to keep the cash coming in, or take a breather, during the COVID pandemic. Catherine Age: 18 Job: University Student Location: St....
Meet Our First Group of Gen Zers!
Highlights from Chapter 2 in our forthcoming book. We surveyed REAL Gen Zers to discover what it’s like to launch a career, with or without training or college courses, in today’s world. Our narrators hail from across the United States and around the world....
How Gen Z Works
Highlights from Chapter 1 in our forthcoming book. As sixty-one million Gen Zers enter the workforce in the U.S. alone, what advantages and challenges do they face? What are their values and aspirations? How We Define Generation Z First of all, who is...
The Rising Power of Gen Z
Preface to Our Book, by Suzanne Skees The World You Were Born Into—and the Pandemic You Graduated Into You Entered a World of Trauma You entered life during the Great Recession, watching your Millennial and Gen X/Y parents lose their jobs, homes, and an...
“WE ARE Gen Z,” by Sanam Yusuf
How this Gen Z author defines herself and her approach to work in the midst of the COVID pandemic. “You’re Too Young”--I Don’t Think So! So many people tell me, “You’re too young to write a book.” But I also hear others say, “The future belongs to...
MY JOB Gen Z: Who and What You’ll Find in Our Book
MY JOB Gen Z Finding Your Place in a Fast-Changing World (c) 2021 by Suzanne Skees and Sanam Yusuf An open-source, narrative nonfiction book full of true stories of jobs along with best practices for how to make your dream-job come true. ...
NEW Book on Jobs for Gen Z!
What's been happening with our MY JOB team behind the scenes, the pivotal decision we made about Book 3 in our series, and how you can be the first to get it--for FREE! Behind the Scenes at MY JOB Gen Z How the Pandemic and Recession Hit Us This year, when the...
What Publisher’s Weekly Indie Says About MY JOB 2
Hello Wonderful MY JOB Members, We're two for two on positive reviews from industry experts for the MY JOB series! I shared on this blog the the review of Book 1 by Kirkus, and--just in this month--we scored high points on Book 2 with Publisher's Weekly's...
Booklovers on a Budget: Our Kindle Bestseller Now Just $.99!
Hello Everyone, Did you know that you have one more week to get your hands on the Kindle version of MY JOB Book 2? amzn.to/2ndV9Rs It's just 99 cents through Halloween! MY JOB: More People at Work Around the World had already hit the Amazon bestseller list for...
“The Story of a Job Is the Intimate Story of Human Life, and Hope”–Video 3 of 3
The last in our video series from Harvard explores: The connective power of sharing our stories of work; How I began writing about people working their way out of poverty--who asked not for charity but for a chance at WORKING their own way out of poverty; and...
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Books that create jobs: The MY JOB book series builds community, shares stories, and funds job-creation programs to end poverty.
