Steps Millennial Architects Can Take to Improve Their Career
The job market that millennial architects face today is challenging. Lack of experience can lead to them falling into a number of pitfalls when they first enter the workforce.

The "Millennial Generation” is the generation born between 1980 and 2000. Millennials make up around 54 million people in the United States alone. Many believe that millennials are entitled, they are high maintenance, they are addicted to social media, they don’t stay at the same job for an extended period, and they don’t understand the concept of privacy because they have grown up in a society of social media and internet.

Why should a millennial architect care about these misconceptions? Because, in many cases, the individual who is going to hire you is from a previous generation. So going into the interview understanding some of these preconceived ideas that the interviewer might have will help you identify and avoid loaded questions that could derail your progress.

For example, an interviewer might ask you why you only stayed six months at your last job. You need to be prepared to answer in a convincing way that reassures the interviewer that you are not going to leave the company in less than a year. Here are some other tips that might be beneficial.

Tip 1: Quit Complaining

A common complaint new architects make is that their salary is not high enough. They say that they went to school for a number of years and they can use SketchUp for 3D printing, AutoCad, and all of the other architectural software out there, but they don’t earn as much as software engineers. The truth is that all of these facts are irrelevant to an employer. Employers are concerned with how effective you are and the value that you bring to the firm. When you prove yourself to be effective, your salary is going to improve.

Tip 2: When You Are at Work, Work

Many architectural firms put blocks in place to prevent their employees from accessing social media sites. They don’t want their employees wasting time; this may be a little bit ridiculous because if you don’t trust an employee to work, you should not hire them. But that is beside the point. New architects fall into the trap of thinking that they need to work 14 hour days to prove themselves valuable to the company. But the truth is that an eight hour day that is well planned out will accomplish more than a 14 hour day that’s full of distractions like social media. If you want to prove yourself, use the time that you are at work to work. Your employer will see the results and will reward you.

Tip 3: Be a Good Employee

Don’t take advantage of your employer. Your employer doesn’t owe you anything beyond the ability to make money from doing a full days work. Don’t speak badly about them, and don’t rant about them on social media. If you need to be away from work, ask for permission. If there is a legitimate emergency, let your employer know and do everything you can to prevent the emergency from negatively impacting your work.

Finally, never stop investing in yourself. Your education did not stop because you graduated. Take additional classes. Get additional licenses do whatever you have to do to improve your value to your employer.