The Black Oracle

Michael, a fiction writer, wrote a 20something profile last year. His book The Black Oracle is now available for purchase. Here’s what he had to say about it:

Humans, you are not alone.

“Joachim is a hunter in the jungle of a post-apocalyptic Earth. Though generations have passed since the Great Death, something has evolved in the trees beyond the giant glowing mushrooms, mutants that want to see human entrails spread along the jungle floor.

And now they’ve taken Joachim’s wife.

To get her back, Joachim will have to give the leader of these demons something in return: immortality. A creature knows when he is going to die, after all. Plunged into a world of magic and darkness, Joachim must find the only woman who knows where the ingredients are. She is a prophetess known as the Black Oracle living in the realm of Zalm, but she’s a little preoccupied at the moment. She leads a rebellion against the ruthless High Council, and when Joachim seeks her out, he too finds himself consumed by her struggle.

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Student creates a Lego résumé

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You’ve been to the Lego store. You’ve watched the Lego movie. But have you seen the Lego résumé?

Last year, college student Leah Bowman created a Lego-themed résumé for an Account Services internship. Using Lego Digital Designer, Bowman created a Lego version of herself and placed it on her résumé.

Bowman’s résumé also contained “assembly instructions” that highlighted her skills and explained why she was the #1 choice for the internship.

20something with Down’s syndrome lands dream job through Twitter

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It’s been very difficult for millennials to find jobs in today’s economy, but what about millennials with special needs?

This article discusses how a Twitter campaign helped Ben Small, a 26-year-old aspiring chef with Down’s syndrome in England, land his dream job:

#GiveBenAJob: Twitter campaign helps aspiring chef with Down’s syndrome land dream job (telegraph.co.uk) 

Why millennials value volunteering

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Despite stereotypes of being self-absorbed and apathetic, millennials actually care more about volunteering than older generations — at least according to a poll that the Associated Press and GfK conducted. This poll finds that people under 30 are more likely to say that citizens have a “very important” obligation to volunteer.

Why is volunteering so important to millennials? Perhaps because so many of them grew up in a culture that encouraged and even required volunteer work. For 24-year-old Morgan Gress, community service was required at her high school, and there were numerous opportunities to volunteer at her college.

Millennials doing worse than expected after college

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Cosmopolitan.com conducted a survey where they asked around 800 twenty-somethings whether their post-college lives were better or worse than what they had expected. The majority of those surveyed — 73% of women and 53% of men — felt that they were doing worse than expected in their careers, savings, or living situations:

Most Millennials Are Doing Worse Than Expected After College (cosmopolitan.com)

What successful people were doing at 25

Oprah in her 20s (Photo credit: YouTube/OWN TV)

Last week’s guest post discussed how, in this age of technology where everything’s fast and instant, we expect professional success to come instantly as well.

And it doesn’t help that we’re constantly seeing and hearing about exceptional young athletes, musicians, and actors who have all achieved high levels of success before their mid-20s.

But not everyone who became successful had their careers figured out by their mid-20s, as this Business Insider article proves:

What 18 Extremely Successful People Were Doing At Age 25 (businessinsider.com)

Nobody Likes You When You’re A Millennial

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This post was written by Dolly, a UCSB graduate and an aspiring lawyer: 

Some days, I wake up feeling like a barista-designed agave latte, ready to awaken the senses and release my potential. And some days, it’s gas station coffee. Welcome to my rarely lavish, mostly ludicrous, twenty-something life.

The other day, I thought about the weird urge I felt to have every part of my life planned out and why I was feeling so anxious to get all my ducks in line. I couldn’t shake the nagging feeling of being behind. It was like waiting for the light to turn green and I was at a yellow. And that got me thinking about the little things in my life that were shaping how I expected the big things to occur in turn.

20something entrepreneur starts bridesmaid-for-hire business

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Ever heard the expression “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride?” Well, 26-year-old Jen Glantz has been a bridesmaid so many times that now she’s doing it as a profession!

After being a bridesmaid four times in the past year alone (and twice in one week), Glantz posted an ad on Craigslist offering her services as a professional bridesmaid. Her ad went viral: she got over 100 responses within 48 hours, and her new business got coverage on media outlets including the Huffington Post, USA Today, Good Morning America, and the Today Show.

How to make the most of your 20s professionally

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Levo League recently published an article about how to make the most of your twenties professionally. While the article is geared toward young women, I think it could apply to all people in their twenties:

10 Ways to Make the Most of Your 20s Professionally (levo.com)

One piece of advice that the article gives is to use the time in your twenties wisely. Similar to Meg Jay, who warns us against delaying adulthood until we turn thirty, this article tells us not to waste our twenties procrastinating.

Millennial activist swims with sharks

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You wouldn’t think that sharks need to be protected, but 29-year-old marine activist Ocean Ramsey is setting out to change that notion. Millennial magazine profiles Ramsey’s efforts to protect sharks and give their their image as savage killers a much-needed overhaul:

Marine Activist Ocean Ramsey Fights the War on Sharks (millennialmagazine.com)

It’s estimated that humans kill 100 million sharks each year. One reason why sharks are killed is for their fins, which are used to make shark fin soup. Though shark fin soup isn’t tasty or healthy, it’s perceived as a status symbol in mainland China, where customers pay up to $100 per bowl.