No one likes a sore loser. But what about a falsely-humble winner?
While there are many wonderful qualities that we Millennials embody, one of the not-so-wonderful attributes of our generation is the idea that our entire lives need to be documented on social media.
Have you heard that joke, “pics or it didn’t happen?” It seems that we’ve taken that mindset a little too seriously when it comes to our personal and professional lives. On any given weekend, girls are squeezing their way into pictures and asking their friends to pose for selfies just to make sure their night is documented on Instagram…because if all your followers don’t know you went to the bars, does it really count?
In an age of social media sharing, can we be successful in work, school or life without announcing it on four different social media platforms? If it isn’t recorded on Facebook for 1,200 of your closest friends and relatives to read, did it really happen at all?
We’ve now entered the time period when students are finding out about internships, grad schools and summer jobs so our News Feeds are clogged with statuses like “Hard work truly does pay off! I can’t wait to spend the summer interning with Goldman Sachs! My dreams are finally becoming a reality!” or “Thanks for all the support, I’ve finally decided to pursue my Master’s Degree at Harvard!”
There is absolutely nothing wrong with being proud of your accomplishments. However, there is a time and a place and a proper etiquette for it and maybe during finals week on Facebook isn’t it.
For all those hipsters out there who are just too cool for social media, one of their main arguments for staying out of the cyber sphere is the artificiality of social media. If you’re truly friends with someone, why do you need social media to keep in touch?
Odds are you’ve already sent out a group message letting all your friends and family know the great news, so why announce things like internships, jobs and personal achievements on Facebook and Twitter if it’s not to brag about your opportunities?
Not all statuses are honest, either. No one ever posts statuses that read “Hey Dad, thanks for making a call and getting me an internship I’m not qualified for at your company!” or “Guess what, guys! I know a guy who knows a guy who got me a job in his company’s marketing department!”
Just as there is nothing wrong with being proud of your success, there is also nothing wrong with using connections to gain opportunities. In fact, that’s really the way the world works nowadays. But we’re so quick to brag and rub our high school rivals’ faces in our success that we’re not truly appreciating the circumstances in which we earned them.
When we say that “hard work truly pays off,” we really only mean our hard work paid off. What about all the candidates for your position that would say they worked hard, as well? In many cases, when employers are looking at equally qualified candidates, they choose one over the other for fairly arbitrary reasons – your school affiliations, your connections, a specific class you took that may set you apart. In reality, hard work probably got you an interview but luck or coincidence got you the job or internship.
Again, as a generation of future leaders and entrepreneurs, our accomplishments are many and we should celebrate them. However, a simple change in your occupation and workplace, school and/or current location on Facebook would probably suffice.
In an age of social media inundation, it seems as though the notion of etiquette and the quiet satisfaction of a job well done just isn’t a modern day concept. So while you’re busy composing an incredibly happy tweet or Facebook status about your new opportunities, remember that not everyone is as lucky as you are and be prepared to piss a few people off.