Millennial (Half) Minute: Parents, Know Your Boundaries During Your Kid's Job Search Parenting

My PR go-to expert, Orly Telisman of Orly PR, recently shared what I will call an OMG helicopter parent moment. Not surprisingly, Orly frequently receives unsolicited queries from job seekers looking for positions in public relations. What she does not frequently see – or want to see – are emails from the parents of adult children looking for jobs. So, this particular Facebook DM from a total stranger caught her by surprise:

“… my daughter is graduating on May 4 in PR. Do you know of anyone looking for a superstar?”

Annoyed, Orly still sent this kind but direct response:

“Sir, I’m glad you a such a huge advocate for your daughter. But you are doing her no favors by applying for potential jobs for her. We business owners need to see what she is made of, not you. See her drive, not yours. Know what her abilities are, again, not yours. Good luck to her. She has quite a go-getter dad – and she’ll be lucky to have his go-get-em skills, too.”

Moral of this story: Let your Millennials do their own job outreach. Networking and asking your own adult friends for contacts is one thing; communicating with prospective employers on behalf of your adult child is, TBH, not cool.