we are at Wake Forest this weekend…our youngest son is graduating from there…it made me think about how getting good grades in college can really makes a difference in your future…

now, many of us, like me, got by in undergrad with C’s…we still did OK, because we work hard…

BUT, it sure makes a big difference if you can show folks that you are smart..yes, even, “book smart”…common sense has to be there…but being smart sure helps you in life…and employers love it..

so when interviewing, even if you have been out of school for a few years, if your grades were really good, let the hiring authority know you did well in school…

if you didn’t do so well in the first year or two of college and did well in the last couple of years …or you had good grades in your major, but your overall gpa wasn’t so hot…don’t hesitate to share with a hiring authority that you did well in those situations…

if your grades in college were not that hot, whatever you do, don’t justify poor performance…something like, “My grades were not as good as I would have liked. If I had it to do over again, I would have studied harder,” works well. Then emphasize working hard at “other” things, like a job during school, or social activities, i.e. fraternity, sorority, organizations, politics, etc.

You will never be able to make reasonable excuses for poor grades, so don’t try.

If your kids or someone you know is starting college, tell them that Tony said that few things take the place of being smart…you can open many more doors in your career with good grades…