There is an old saying in the media business. "If it bleeds, it leads." This means that, in the race for ratings, advertisers and social media "friends," the more outrageous, notorious, or the more controversial the story, the closer it is to the beginning of the broadcast. For newspapers, it is "above the fold" on the front page. For magazines, it's the front cover.

The question we must ask ourselves is, "Is what I am reading really the truth, or just some news outlet's grab for ratings and more coverage?" Let's talk a bit about this today.

My company is in the middle of creating a program to help students nearing graduation make that mindset shift from "student" to "employee." In my preparation, I asked for feedback from current students. I need to know what they are thinking, the challenges they see before them, and what they believe they need in the way of help in making that transition.

The answers were honest revelations about their perceived challenges, and as I read them, I could see where a part of the challenge lies. Almost every response, to the question about challenges before them, had to do with the economy. "Nobody is hiring." "The economy is terrible." The blame was always outside of them. I wasn't surprised. Like you, that's what I read in the paper, and see on the evening news. But is this the real truth, or are we believing what we hear, and what we read? One morning last week, the radio reported that government figures showed that 216,000 jobs were created last month. So, companies are hiring.

We need to be careful who we listen to, myself included. I say this at every seminar, and you will find it in every video-based program we create. It is important to be careful what you accept as "truth" from others. It may be their truth, but it isn't necessarily your truth.

If there was one other thing I would encourage you to do, it would be to do your own thinking. You are smart and capable of doing your own research, and of making up your own mind.