My Letter to a Brainwashing Job Recruiter

                                    

Dear Mr. Recruiter,

             I appreciate the time you took to present the perks and glam of your company, along with your factually supported personal beliefs, to eager, naïve, job seeking college students.  But I will pass on your ever practiced offer to live an ordinary life. Your company, while it may be a great "career", with fancy pensions, promotional abilities, and the ego boosting, 9-5pm, all benefits included "package", is NOT what I was put on this earth to do.
            I may be younger, less experienced, and naïve, but I promise to pursue a career that pays off in more ways than just dollar signs. I can not tell you how many alumni I talk to on a daily basis, who have been hypnotized by glittering job pitches (such as yours). Within 3 months, they are so depressed about their life and realize they are not reaching their full potential. Where does this leave them? A recent college graduate, already looking for job #2 at the age of 23, with an almost non-existent self-esteem. This is a problem.
            Not only does your speech convince graduates that money is the goal of after college life and success, it also persuades them to take the easy road to money, devaluing their potential. As a society, we need to stop preaching that making the most money is the only way to prove who we are. In my opinion, money is the worst example of a successful person. People who make the most money are no longer human. They do not work for a purpose, for something greater than themselves, or what they always dreamed of doing.
             But I do want to thank you, for reminding me in the midst of an overwhelming senior year, why I work so hard. The late nights in the library, never going to the beach, missing nights with friends, and countless tears. It's all an inner drive, to become my destined self : The person who  puts smiles on children's faces from here to China, enjoys working overtime off the clock, and constantly worries about money being tight. Yes, I want to do ALL of these things.
            Because you know what, those things make for a LIFE. And a "Life", is the all encompassment of living your destiny, to always do things you never dreamed your could do, that are bigger than yourself. But most importantly experiencing the unexpected twists, turns, tragedies and triumphs.
           I hope to see you in the future. To shake your hand, myself where I am meant to be, and hopefully you finally understanding that...

"Money doesn't buy happiness"

 

 

Sincerely,
 

Meredith L. Brown