Using the old noodle, exec advises recent college grads
2 years, 12 months agoby Hal Mattern
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If you are a recent college graduate, Nicholas Aretakis has some advice for you: "You don't have to live off ramen (noodles) any more." Unless, of course, you really, really like them.
Aretakis, a Scottsdale high-tech executive and entrepreneur, has launched a Web site and written a book, both playing off the ramen theme and both designed to help young adults make the transition from student life to the real world of work and financial responsibilities.
"My belief is that things haven't changed much over the years in the way we transition between school and work," he said. "Ninety-five percent of students really don't know what they want to do. They go to school and get in a career they aren't passionate about. They have no direction because they don't start out with the vital information they need."
His interactive Web site, no moreramenonline.com, provides some of that information and links 20-somethings together to share their success stories and solutions to shared problems.
Aretakis also is self-publishing No More Ramen: The 20-something's Real World Survival Guide in the fall. The book grew out of his 15 years of mentoring young adults and his travels around the country last year visiting colleges and talking to students, graduates and new hires. He said common themes arose, such as their inability to create budgets.
Many were members of what is known as the "boomerang" generation, moving in and out of their parent's homes when the financial need arises.
"I consider all of these young people co-authors," Aretakis said. "Their stories, their worries and their real-life situations are the heart of No More Ramen."
