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Jamie Harrison

7 Deadly Sins of Young Employees

This week, we start our 7 Deadly Sins series, where we cover top mistakes, blunders and snafus of the office, from fashion to communication to management. Follow our series to ensure you don't make the same mistakes, and find ways to correct yourself if you have. When it comes to entering the workforce, the millennial generation are faced with many challenges. On one hand, they’re eager, determined and tech-savvy. On the other hand, they’ve been labeled as arrogant, pushy know-it-alls. BlackEnterprise.com talked with two experts on the top seven vices that can facilitate a young professional's career downfall: Calvin Harris Jr., president of Harvin Consulting L.L.C. and Millette Granville, author of The Exceptional Leader:A Quick Guide to Personal Branding and Leadership Development (AuthorHouse; $12). Take heed as Harris and Granville give ways to improve your strategy for ultimate success. ---Jamie Harrison

This week, we start our 7 Deadly Sins series, where we cover top mistakes, blunders and snafus of the office, from fashion to communication to management. Follow our series to ensure you don't make the same mistakes, and find ways to correct yourself if you have. When it comes to entering the workforce, the millennial generation are faced with many challenges. On one hand, they’re eager, determined and tech-savvy. On the other hand, they’ve been labeled as arrogant, pushy know-it-alls. BlackEnterprise.com talked with two experts on the top seven vices that can facilitate a young professional's career downfall: Calvin Harris Jr., president of Harvin Consulting L.L.C. and Millette Granville, author of The Exceptional Leader:A Quick Guide to Personal Branding and Leadership Development (AuthorHouse; $12). Take heed as Harris and Granville give ways to improve your strategy for ultimate success. ---Jamie Harrisonmore
WRATH: Thou shall treat all workers with same respect. Young people sometimes forget to treat the support staff with the same respect that they would give to a CEO, Harris says. "Some of the most powerful people in the office will be administrative assistants and secretaries because they have been there for a while and they can help prevent you from making mistakes."more
SLOTH: Thou shall not forget the value of time. Punctuality is an excellent way to determine how serious someone is or how lackadaisical they will be. Some of the younger generation don’t take punctuality as seriously because they are a lot more lax. When you get to meetings early, it allows you to connect to those who are also early to the meeting; the go-getters. When you’re late and everybody turns around to look at you, you can’t take that moment back, says Granville.more
PRIDE: Thou shall not be too arrogant to pay your dues. Be smart enough to realize that paying your dues and doing grunt work are really opportunities for people to see your caliber of work, Granville says. "It can really open up doors for you because the smaller tasks can lead to bigger projects."more
ENVY: Thou shall not deprive others chance to get to know you by being antisocial. In the professional world, the work day is not just at your desk, Harris says. There will be times where it’s beneficial for you to socialize outside of the office with your colleagues because it’s in those situations, that people can get a chance to learn about you and this can have a dramatic effect on your career.more
LUST: Thou shall dress and act according to the position you desire, not the one you have. It goes back to piece of old school advice: You never dress for the role you have; you dress for the role you want. "I think the younger generation tends to fall a little short on the presentation piece because prior to entering the workforce, their world is a very relaxed environment," Granville says. "You have to plan for your career wardrobe. You want people to see the talent you bring to the table and not be a distraction." more
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