Advice to fresh graduates - STAR BYTES by Butch Francisco

The other day, I gave our fresh graduates a few pieces of advice on how to get on with this world after college. Below are some more tips on how to survive the early phase of their respective careers.

One piece of advice they should consider is this: Don’t suck up to your boss. Your superior is older and wiser. He or she knows you’re just buttering him/her up and might end up suspicious of your every move.

And while we’re on the subject of bosses, don’t resent your supervisor for being overly strict. He or she only wants you to learn the ropes – which is actually for your own good. If your boss demands a lot from you, take this as a compliment because he or she obviously sees a lot of potential in you.

My first boss was Melinda Quintos de Jesus, one of the few lady journalists who dared criticize Marcos at a time when it wasn’t fashionable yet to do so. Mrs. De Jesus – or Mrs. DJ – was strict and demanding. And the sound of her voice was enough for me to cower in fear and bury my head like an ostrich in the nearest wastebasket. One time, my eardrums almost broke in half after she screamed at me over some photos that were supposed to accompany my article in our weekly magazine.

After I had remedied the situation, it was back to normal for her – as if nothing happened. When it was time to call it a day, in fact, she even cheerfully bade me goodbye – like a doting mother who had just lovingly recited Mother Goose nursery rhymes to her two-year old son. Say goodbye to yourself – I sniffed in my little corner.

The following day, the first thing that greeted her on her desk was my resignation letter – a rather short one since it only contained two words: I quite! Mrs. De Jesus had me called to her office at once and – in very kind words – told me all about the intricacies and vicissitudes of life.

Although I felt good after our long talk and eventually decided to stay on, I still feared her like the Krakatoa on the east of Java. In fact, I used every legitimate excuse in the world to get out of the office and away from her skirt.

It was only years later that I realized what a good boss (and person) she was. Her being overly strict with me pushed me harder to do my best. With the kind of training she gave me, I was able to build a strong foundation for myself.

When building a solid foundation, one needs to have discipline. And discipline to me is being able to concentrate fully on your work – without getting distracted by outside factors. Like love life, for example.

It’s actually difficult to embark on a career and have a love life at the same time – especially so if you work in media where you don’t keep regular working hours.

A word of advice to our new female graduates who have just found employment: If you have to keep your college boyfriends, never make the mistake of making them wait for you in the office until you’re done with work. With your date constantly looking at his watch and pacing like a eaged jaguar in one corner of your office, do you think you’d be able to concentrate on your work? There’s even his chance that you’d end up quarreling after that because you made him wait.

So girls, if you can afford to put your love life on hold while you’re starting a career, you are well advised to do so. You’ll have all the time in the world for love (not to mention better prospects) once you’ve established yourselves in your chosen field. Of course, if at this point you are dead sure that you can snare Prince William of England, then you can tell your employer this early that he can go hang.

Early in your career, it is important to show your boss that you are diligent and capable of hard work. Avoid giving you superior the impression that you are always in a hurry to go home. And never say no to any assignment that is thrown on your lap. They won’t give that assignment to you anyway if they know that you can’t do it.

When I was still a young journalist, I managed to move ahead of my contemporaries – modesty aside – not because I churned out the best pieces. I beat most of them because I was the only one who was willing to put the magazine to bed and do presswork 18 hours straight. Of course, I was cantankerous and impossible to deal with most of the time. But I always got the work done and constantly got a raise.

And my final word of advice to our fresh graduates starting on their new jobs: Never feel that you’re being exploited. (This is different from sexual exploitation.) Some of you may get this feeling that you are not being compensated properly for all the hard work you are doing. Now bear this in mind: Maybe you find your tasks hard and difficult because you are still new and unfamiliar with the job. But it’s part of the process. Unless you are a hopeless numbskull, you will find your duties easier to accomplish with each passing day.

Most beginners may actually feel underpaid. Unfortunately, you don’t have any bargaining power yet and cannot march to your employer to ask for a raise. However, there are other things you can do to achieve positive results given your situation. The best you can do is learn the ropes of the trade. Try to get a wealth of experience. Once you know the business like the back of your hand, then it’s time to collect.