From the Founder: How I showed up as an FGP … in Kindergarten

Recruiting/HiringFrom the Founder
Written By Michelle Hoover

It’s back-to-school time, and I love it. September evokes the scent of sharpened No. 2 pencils. The crisping up of miserably muggy summer air to perfect fall-like temperatures takes me back to Friday night football games. Each sighting of a school bus reminds me of the days when I would eagerly anticipate the first day of school, when I would have trouble falling asleep because I was so excited to be among friends again and in a place where my only job was to learn. School and its core activities of studying and socializing were understandable to me—the expectations for how I was supposed to show up there were mostly straightforward. It was less clear at home, where, as the first American-born person in my family, I was carefully navigating the norms of a Korean culture I didn’t understand … a culture with customs, language, and rituals that couldn’t be more different from what I was absorbing from the Huxtables and the kids I was around five days a week. 

When I think about my school days, especially the early ones, I reflect on the behaviors I demonstrated as a young student that stayed with me for so long and even showed up in my professional demeanor. And when I apply the lens of being a First-Generation Professional (FGP), those memories take on new meaning.

An example: On one of the first days of kindergarten (yes, I have memories of kindergarten, but I can’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday), a classmate, out of nowhere, shot his hand up and announced to the teacher that he could read. No solicitation, no context. He just blurted out, “Mrs. Childs, I can read!” While I sat quietly on the floor, legs crisscrossed, saying to myself, “big whoop, so can I,” Mrs. Childs said, “Is that so?” and invited him to the front of the room to read to the class the day’s storybook. 

As he started reading the book aloud, holding the book up like a grown-up so we could see the pictures and follow along, I was incredulous to the scene unfolding before me: 

Wait, why did he announce that he could read? 

Should I have also shared that I could read? And if the answer was yes, was I just supposed to shout it out like he did? That would be wrong.

I can read to the class, too. Will I get a chance? 

My eyes darted around as I tried to understand whether my peers were experiencing this as I was: Can they read, too? Are they impressed by this?

When I recall this vignette, I first chuckle—Man, that’s an intense reaction for a 5-year-old! And then, upon giving it further thought, I conclude that I remained quiet as a result of being a product of my environment, where I was expected to not be seen or heard, and definitely not be a source of disruption, let alone draw attention to myself because I thought I was special.

Commence the establishment of a pattern.

Fast-forwarding to college, graduate school, and my career, I see how the pattern showed up and kept me quiet through those major phases of life. In college, I didn’t seek clarity from professors when I didn’t understand a concept. In graduate school, I hardly participated in class, by which I mean I rarely raised my hand to contribute a thought. I was always actively listening. At work, I became aware that workplace cultures can be highly political (and judgemental), so it was easier to just keep my thoughts in my head, just as I had in kindergarten. 

And now, as we are producing thought leadership on First-Generation Professionals, these experiences and insights illuminate why FGPs show up the way they do in the workplace. As the first members of our families to enter the white-collar world, we find that our working-class families and communities, while supportive, can’t offer the guidance, experience, or kind of advice we need. The best they can offer? 

Work hard. Everything will be okay.
Don’t seek attention. Stay out of trouble. 
Be happy with what you have. Don’t do anything stupid.

Do any of these well-intentioned yet seriously incomplete pieces of advice help FGPs advocate for themselves—a critical professional skill—in the workplace? Build social capital and strong networks?

Eighty-one percent of first-generation college students cite financial stability as their reason for attending college.1 When stability is your primary goal and you’ve navigated the unfamiliar terrain of college to earn a degree, the last thing on your mind as an FGP is to risk losing all for which you have worked so hard. What does this look like?

Blending in. 
Doing your best, even while suffering from imposter syndrome. 
Not drawing attention to yourself in any way. 

In other words, keep your aspirations to yourself and think quietly about what you need to do to be seen.

Our research on First-Generation Professionals shows that FGPs are most hindered professionally by a lack of professional communication capability and experience, and a limited professional network—all leading to a limited understanding of how white-collar environments operate. What we also know about FGPs intrinsically and what’s been stated by BCG is that FGPs are loyal, motivated, high-potential employees, ready for their capabilities to be unlocked. 2

So how do we harness and optimize the great capabilities of this segment of the workforce and perhaps get them to speak up, develop, and rise to professional challenges and levels they didn’t know they were capable of? One suggestion is senior FGP-to-junior FGP mentorship and sponsorship. According to BCG, FGPs are 40 percent more likely to be intrinsically motivated than their peers, and of those 40 percent, 48 percent are likely to pursue management positions later in their careers.3 We hypothesize that FGPs are intentional about becoming leaders because they know and appreciate the value of having the guidance of experienced figures and the positive influence those individuals can have on one's career, and they seek to make a similar impact.

This is just one of the FGP-focused strategies we are testing with clients to help them retain junior talent and identify high-potential leaders. We’re confident these kinds of initiatives will serve as a win-win for both employers and their FGP employees.

Now, to bring it full circle: Would you have shouted out that you, too, could read? Why or why not? 😀

1

"Facts About First-Generation College Students." Brandeis University. https://www.brandeis.edu/academic-services/sssp/i-am/facts.html/
Michelle Hoover https://www.baemleadership.com
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A First-Generation Professional Profile: Cesar Grisales