the young and old

I work at a mine - for those of you who don't know. not only is the mining industry predominated by men, but it is also flooded with the older folks. these are all those "baby boomers" from back in the day. the big issue in the industry is that these "baby boomers" are getting ready to retire and there is this enormous gap that exists. that gap is the space between the experienced and the non-experienced. those who have worked in the industry for decades and those who just graduated college.

I never thought it was that big of a deal until my time here. here I am, a 22 year old college graduate, in meetings with people who are twice - if not three times - my age. I am pretty confident that I'm the youngest salary paid employee here. you may think that it would be a big deal - older folks thinking I don't know anything (which I pretty much don't) and me possibly trying to push people around. but that's not the case at all. I'm embracing the immense amount of knowledge my coworkers have. and (I think) they appreciate my young and fresh personality. and hopefully they'll appreciate my fresh ideas whenever I come up with some.

although sometimes I feel slightly out of place at work, at the same time I feel right at home. I get along with everyone pretty well and I've started getting used to giving people shit since they've been dishing it to me for quite some time now. and I think people are starting to understand me a bit more. everyone knows I'm the big suns fan. they know that if they wanna talk basketball they can come to my office. and they know that if they need a candy fix to come to my office. it's kinda nice to have people visit you in your office. especially when it's the place you spend more of your time. there's a couple of guys that are in their 20's that I think I can call my friends considering they stop by my office multiple times a day to chat/eat candy. and I have nothing but respect for those guys since they're the ones doing the actual work. I work with the numbers. they create the numbers. they fix things. they are the ones who are making the copper.

so in an environment where things can be awkward and uncomfortable, it is a pleasure to go to work (for the most part). just because there may be a huge age gap between you and your coworkers doesn't mean there will always be tension. it doesn't mean it's impossible to get anything done. but I think it's important for those who are the youngest at work to appreciate their coworkers. they've been there probably before you've even been born. they may not know the technical details of the process, but they have such a vast amount of knowledge. I think it's common for college students just beginning their career to enter the workplace and dismiss their coworker's ideas because they don't have a degree. and I don't agree with that. I think we should go to them for ideas. we should take the opportunity to learn from these people. so what if they don't have a degree? they've been able to be successful and have a steady career for a reason. learn from them rather than push changes without their ideas and opinions. embrace the fact that you are surrounded by older folks. it's not so bad after all.

awesome: this article. finally some recognition.

lame: this article. really mr. obama? are you really already assuming the lakers & celtics are going to be in the finals before game 4 has even begun? disappointing. very disappointing.