This month has been a month of changes for my team who also happens to be my family. In fact, my entire family works in my business now. My husband is our IT guy and proofreader and all four of our children work for the business in many different categories.
My assistant and my oldest son just graduated from college on Saturday with a semester grade point average of 3.8 and cumulative GPA of 3.017. That is excellent work for an older (mid 20 year old) student who was not successful in college the first year and then took a four year break. With a crushing schedule his senior year and intensive capstone project now completed, we are proud that he has achieved his goal and now ready for a career on his own.
As my administrative assistant and AdWords assistant, Chris will be phasing out his service with my firm and launching into his own new career. I am very excited for him!
My other three kids, triplets, have completed their first years at college with GPAs ranging from 3.8 to 3.1 for the year. They will be cycling in to take on more job responsibilities this summer gearing up to learn more and do more for my business.
My words of wisdom for young people and their adult mentors is that motivating, boosting, and pushing kids is key to their success. Help them to understand that a GPA determines their employability and that it is a real discriminator is important. They would like to believe otherwise.
Dig a deep hole, with a low GPA because they have not been serious about school, and it may take them three years to dig out. Get under a 3.0 and their resume may not even make it to the hiring manager’s desk when they start looking for a job after graduation.
My younger kids are already seeing that to get an internship, you’d better have a 3.2 to 3.8 GPA to even be considered.
The bottom-line is to not be a helicopter parent or mentor, but to demand accountability and encourage good and early study habits at college. Lay down the law if you are paying for college that bad grades really mean they won’t go back but need to take a break and work as a cashier or waiter for a few years to gain maturity. These may be some of the hardest decisions you as a parent may make, but will benefit your kids and better prepare them for future employment.
Congratulations to all college graduates and we are wishing you much success in your future endeavors.