Letting them fly
A parent recounts the humorous process of helping their 16-year-old daughter create a CV for her first job. The author admits to embellishing the teenager's mundane habits to make them sound like professional skills.
Why it matters
It highlights the common generational gap in professional expectations and the informal ways parents assist their children in entering the workforce.
HAVING RECENTLY DISCOVERED that my 16-year-old had far too much time on her hands, which was leading her to find any and all kinds of trouble that exist in the world, we decided that it was finally time for her to get a part-time job.
To be fair to her, she has wanted a job ever since she realised that employers give you money in exchange for your time, and that this money could then be converted into clothes, make-up, concert tickets and matcha.
She had already sent her CV out to a couple of local businesses since turning 16, but hadn’t heard anything back, and I didn’t really push the issue either. I was reluctant for her to take yet another step into adulthood, and also far too aware that she will spend enough summers working in her lifetime.
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