Seth’s writing is 100% brilliance. Today’s post is no exception…

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Career fairs…

are neither.

Of course they don’t exist to help you plan or execute a career. Most of the organizations with booths are bottom fishing, looking for enough willing and able employees to fill established gaps in their companies. This is hiring on the hoof, wholesale filling of average jobs with people trying to be average. Planning a career at a career fair is a little like looking for a soulmate at a singles’ bar.

And fair? Hardly. Because there are no average people, right? There are average jobs, certainly, average in that they require people to fit in, do what they’re told and follow the manual. I’ll grant you that those jobs need to get done, but I’m not sure they have to get done by you.

By the time a job opening hits the career fair, it’s a job you don’t want. And by the time a job seeker is walking down the aisles, standardized resume in hand, it might be too late for her to find a job that’s worthy of her.

Here’s to a new, better sort of career fair, one that’s selective, interactive, long-term and both career and fair.

Authored by Seth Godin.

In fact, these “success skills” are so different that it actually makes you angry to think about what else you could have done with that $100,000 you spent on college – like taking that 12 month world tour you’ve always dreamed about.

Think about it…was Advanced English useful? No, not if you’re a copywriter. In fact, many writers have to be re-trained to write at an 8^th grade level. That’s right…write dumber so people can understand your message! How about Finance…was that useful? Maybe a bit, but it’s nothing you couldn’t have picked up after reading a few decent books. Computer classes? Hell no. You can learn much more from surfing the net and educating yourself than going to class. The truth is, knowledge you acquired in school is not very useful in the real world, at least not on a day-to-day basis.

I became acutely aware of this during my first job at Goldman Sachs. Nothing I studied for the prior 4 years was even remotely useful in that job. It made me wonder what the point of college was. But I digress…

You see, it wasn’t until after I started working that my real education began. As I looked around me, I started to see a knowledge gap – there was a big difference between what it took to be successful in school and what it took to be successful in the real world.

And as my career progressed from Goldman Sachs to a hedge fund, I became more and more convinced about the presence of this knowledge gap. It was inescapable – those who deleted their mental hard drives and forgot all about “getting an A” and instead focused on acquiring “real world” skills were promoted faster, got higher pay, and were happier at work.

As I transitioned from hedge fund analyst to entrepreneur I thought to myself, “How can students benefit from this insight? How can we fill this knowledge gap so that recent graduates can become more successful, earlier in their career?”

And so began the construction of TAG’s Mentorship Program …

TAG’s Mentorship Program is a course in Real World Insight (notice the similarity with the name of this blog?). Not only do students get matched with a professional in their dream company (yes, whatever company they are interested in working for), but they are meeting and discussing topics that are essential to career success. It’s basically an entire relationship designed to help students conquer the “Knowledge Gap” and become more successful professionals.

So, what is this “Knowledge Gap” that students conquer with TAG? Glad you asked…

There are twelve categories of knowledge that students aren’t acquiring in most institutions of higher education (each of these topics is part of TAG’s renowned Mentorship Program curriculum). Without further adieu, here is the “Knowledge Gap” that separates academic success from professional success:

How to network intelligently

Your network is the key to success, in business and in life. Networking the right way – TAG’s way – can mean the difference between achieving your career dreams or working in a dreadful 9 to 5, counting each miserable second until retirement.

How to become more productive and efficient

We all have 24 hours in a day. So why do some people achieve so much, while others seemingly so little? Much of it has to do with productivity and efficiency. If you can learn to master these skills, you’ll gain a competitive edge.

How to sell

You are a product. Companies “shop” for you. If they like you, they’ll “buy” you through a job offer. Knowing how to sell – even if you don’t want a job in sales – is a critical skill that will pay dividends throughout your career.

How to set actionable goals and achieve them

You wouldn’t think this is a skill, but it is. How many of your past five New Year’s Resolutions have you stuck with? Can you name the last goal you achieved? There’s a reason a lot of us have trouble achieving our goals, and TAG’s Program helps answer why.

How to make a great first impression

Think about the power of a great first impression…it can alter the course of an entire relationship. Unfortunately, too many people are not confident when meeting someone new because they never know what to say. If you had the firepower to make an amazing first impression, how different would your life be?

How to market yourself

Personal branding is all the rage. But do you know how to boost your credibility – both on- and off-line? Self-promotion, if done the right way, can lead to fantastic and unexpected opportunities.

How to perform masterfully in an interview

It takes something special to stand out from the 30 other interviewees vying for the job. So how do you do it? TAG’s Program teaches you what your University never did – the skills you need to ace every interview from now until the end of your career.

How to deliver a power presentation

In tests to determine what is most feared among adults, speaking in public ranks first, outstripping the fear of height, snakes and even death. But what if I told you there really is nothing to fear? If you were armed with the right knowledge – the knowledge gained in TAG’s Program – you’d have the clarity of mind you need to deliver a power presentation.

How to conduct primary research

What if you could utilize the same research methods as those used by analysts in the hedge fund world – do you think you would have an advantage when it comes time to interview? These methods – the methods practiced by TAG students – are the key to gaining insight that will blow away your competition.

How to make critical assessments

In school, you’re taught to accept what’s written as fact. But in the real world, these “facts” are sometimes built on ridiculous assumptions (remember the housing bubble?). Recognizing the difference and being able to make critical assessments will put you on the road to becoming an expert in your field.

How to read financial statements

Understanding financial statements is more than just knowing how to read numbers. The most important element is understanding the interplay between a person’s job and a company’s financial results. This uncommon knowledge is the Holy Grail for those looking to rise through the ranks and lead an organization.

How to be successful in life

What is success to you? While some people have devoted a lifetime to understanding what makes people happy and successful, others have never even considered the question. In the final session of TAG’s Mentorship Program, students take a closer look at what it means to be successful and learn how to reach their maximum professional potential.

If you can conquer these twelve knowledge areas – just as TAG students have – you will be in control of your own career. And that’s the greatest position one can ever hope to be in.

What do you think? Are there any “Knowledge Gap” areas I missed? Let me know!

The economics (below) confirm the theory that college is indeed a bubble.

A: Regulatory reform that puts the consumer first.

As Obama so powerfully says, “Change is coming to America.” And higher education institutions across the U.S. should be paying serious attention.

Today, Louis Soares and the Center for American Progress released a groundbreaking white paper on higher education. The idea:

Put the Student first in College.

Make no mistake: This is not a small change. This is a fundamentally new approach to the higher education market – a market plagued by 4,900 different suppliers, each with their own agenda, mission and performance record. Soares writes:

In most sectors of our economy, customer focus is paramount, as it should be in education, too. Customer focus could yield a more student-centric system through the development and dissemination of user-friendly ‘truth-in-education’ information that helps students make ‘best-fit’ choices regarding which education provider to select based on customer preferences such as: academic quality, price, convenience, learning style, beginning education level and the anticipated return on their investment in education.