Are You Too Young For That Job?

When I got my first job out of college I was hired by my mentor, Sharon Saunders, whom I’d worked for while I was a student at Florida A&M University (FAMU). She was taking on the role as the head of PR at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) and she asked me to come work for her as she built her new team. I accepted and one day after I arrived, she introduced me to the chancellor of the university (equivalent to president), James Ammons, Ph.D. in passing at a board meeting. I later said to her, “isn’t he a little too young to be the president of a university?” I mean, he looked smart and capable, but he didn’t have any gray hair and he clearly wasn’t in his fifties. He seemed youthful and energetic. My frame of reference for a president was my own university president, the iconic, legendary President Frederick S. Humphries, Ph.D., a man with years of wisdom etched into the subtle wrinkles on his face, who was literally and figuratively a giant in the higher education industry.

Of course, I later learned that Chancellor Ammons had impeccable credentials and experience that qualified him for the role. He had served as provost on Humphries’ executive cabinet and was active in participating on committees for the accrediting body of universities, which meant he understood the rules required to run a university properly. I had literally judged Chancellor Ammons’ entire book by his cover! (Mrs. Saunders later told me he got a kick out of hearing about this exchange). Unfortunately, we as members of society do this all the time. We judge people by their appearance, assume their age, skim a resume for key words and put people in a box.

Ironically (or maybe karma), being judged based on age became something that I would find myself dealing with during my own career. When I was 34, after years of doing entertainment PR in Hollywood, I reconnected with Mrs. Saunders and accepted another job working on her team, this time back at my alma mater, FAMU. I was the director of public relations and happy to be back in Florida. After three short months on the gig, my boss decided to retire. She recommended me to become her replacement to her boss and he approved (thank you, President Larry Robinson). Needless to say, this decision was not well received by others at the university, some of whom I’m sure thought they were better candidates for the role.

I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but I accepted the position anyway for a few reasons. First, I stepped out on faith and trusted God that I had the skills to do the work. Clearly my boss saw something in me that I had not yet seen in myself and this was an opportunity to exercise confidence in my abilities. Second, I wanted to be of service. Even if I didn’t see myself as a leader at the time, I knew I could steer the ship until a permanent hire was made. Third, why did I think I was too young? I had a decade of experience in public relations by this time. I had a master’s degree in integrated marketing and management communications. I'd put together successful campaigns for CBS, TV One, Bishop T.D. Jakes and more. Without realizing it, I had quietly placed myself into a box with a label that indicated what I wasn’t supposed to achieve a VP level role by this stage of my life. Yes, I did see the role as head of PR in my future, but it was MUCH further down the road and here God was saying, “No, we’re going to do this now. You’re capable for operating at this level now!”

Then I started to think of friends in my circle and their personal goals. One friend set a goal for himself to make a salary of $100K by the age of 30. Do you know how much he was earning by age 30? $100K. I looked around at some of my former colleagues from my agency days and to my surprise, some of them had already reached VP status. Could it be that I hadn’t achieved such milestones in my own life simply because I hadn’t made them a priority?

One of my favorite quotes is by Walt Disney, “If you can dream it, you can achieve it.” Walt Disney had a vision for his life and just look at the magical worlds he created through theme parks like Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom. Additionally, Habakkuk 2:2 in the bible reads, “Write the vision down and make it plain so that they who hear may run with it.” As young people, we must have a vision for our life, but it is critical that you write it down, make it tangible. Put it on your vision board and then work to make it a reality. ??

I think some people who have a problem with how fast young people climb the ladder of success are those who want to map out your progress in comparison to their own. They didn’t make partner until 50 so therefore you shouldn’t make partner until 50. Sadly, they can’t see that by placing those false timelines on you that they are doing themselves a disservice. They are preventing themselves from reaping the benefits of your talent. The agency where my former colleagues were promoted to VP (based on talent despite age), it is a progressive organization that has built a strong HR model for rewarding staff and promoting from within. Every organization is not set up that way and it shows in how an organization is able to retain talent.

So, let’s go back to the original question: Are you too young for that job? The only person whose response matters to this question is yours, and I hope that you’re beginning to realize that you get to decide the timing of your journey. Like me, you may get the call sooner than you think. Some of the most impactful leaders in our history served in leadership when they were young. Jesus literally changed the world through his teachings and died at the young age of 33. Martin Luther King Jr. led a movement to fight for the civil rights of African Americans during his thirties. Oprah Winfrey was host of her own nationally syndicated talk show at age 32. Issa Rae co-wrote Insecure for HBO by age 31. Steve Jobs co-founded Apple and created the personal computer at the age of 21. You can be a lot of things: under-qualified, overqualified, old or young… but what God has for you, is for you! And his timing is perfect!

In conclusion, don’t sell yourself short! Experience is important, but once you have that, don’t limit your acceleration with rigid timelines and DON’T let the opinions of others distract you from your vision. I think you have what it takes to do whatever you put your mind to at whatever age you’re ready to receive it. But, don’t quote me....step out on faith and let me know how it goes!