Our forefathers worked as a means to provide food, clothing and shelter for their families. They labored long hours and withstood exhausting schedules to put “bread on the table.” The work ethic was ingrained into their psyches and passed on from one generation to the next.

Lessons were taught based on a strong sense of ethical responsibility to one’s employer. “Ask not what your employer can do for you, but what you can do for your employer.” Workers showed up early and stayed late. They looked to take on extra responsibility and prove their worth. They coveted the opportunity to earn a paycheck. They went the “extra mile” to ensure their position.

Flash forward and concepts like “passion” and “self fulfillment” crept into the equation. “Find your passion,” we instruct our children. “Do what you love and the money will follow,” we advise our college bound progeny.

Clothed in the best suits, trained in the best schools, they enter the work place. We thought we had prepared them by providing personal coaches, SAT tutors, semesters abroad and summers at sea. They enter the work force with expectations as inflated as their egos. “What’s in it for me?”

What happened to those long lost values? When did the work place become a “buyers” market? For those who crave success in today’s world, the economic reality, marked by soaring unemployment, has forced a shift back to the “old fashion” principles of hard work and high standards. We need to rethink and re-message expectations for the next generation.

I would love to hear your thoughts---laura@realwomenwin.com