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"  As ELLE&amp;#039;s April guest blogger, Katherine Schwarzenegger will be dispensing wisdom culled from the people who inspire her all month long. (For the record, the 24-year-old interviewed the likes of Anderson Cooper, Eva Longoria, and Serena Williams for her new book, I Just Graduated\u2026Now What?, so she knows her stuff.) Here, the author and blogger talks candidly with mom Maria Shriver about the generational gap, the negative impacts of social media, and how we are short changing ourselves by trying to be somebody else: What opportunities are available to my generation that weren&amp;#039;t available to you? The Internet has changed the possibilities that are available to young people. Women are able to cover topics like sports and business, which I think is great. I also think young women today have the opportunity, if they are lucky, to take time off if they have a child. That didn&amp;#039;t really exist when I was starting out. Back then, I didn&amp;#039;t really know any women in the network news who were also mothers\u2014except for Barbara Walters. Related: Is Christine Bronstein the Most Powerful Woman in Politics Are there any downsides to this current climate, you think? Having so many opportunities available makes it much more confusing and difficult for young people. Now young women and men can go off and start their own companies. I wouldn&amp;#039;t have done well if I hadn&amp;#039;t had the structure. That worked for me. I am actually a believer in structure and learning a profession from the bottom up because it teaches you everything you need to know. It tests your work ethic and your passion for the career. You&amp;#039;ve said that women spend too much time fantasizing about their weddings, but not enough time thinking about what makes a healthy relationship\u2026 I think the more time you think about making yourself complete as a human being, the better you will be in a relationship. In the end, the best thing to devote your time to is your family. I think young people should focus more on the person they want to be in the dreams as opposed to the dream itself. They should focus on making themselves whole and complete. Young women should learn how to provide and how to be smart about their finances. When I was in my twenties, no one talked to young women about finances, boundaries, or healthy relationships. Women were just beginning to enter the career path so growing up, very few of my friends&amp;#039; mothers worked outside the home. My mother was really the only woman I knew who went to an office every day, who wore pants, who traveled a lot for work, who hung out with men, and who played aggressive sports. So gender roles are changing\u2026 Yes, the roles were very different when I was growing up. Men now are dealing with challenges that their fathers didn&amp;#039;t grow up with: Men are being asked by women to be more involved partners; men are dealing with empowered women who want a say in the families finances; and men are being asked to care for aging parents. Women are asking men to be both sensitive and strong. I think that creates a lot of mixed messages for young men. Related: 5 Easy Ways to Get a Raise at Work Okay, okay. Switching gears: What do you think a young, professional woman needs to do to stand out against a sea of qualified applicants? Knowing yourself and being willing to work hard makes you stand out. Anytime I interview someone and they ask about vacation days, I don&amp;#039;t hire them. I never hire someone who doesn&amp;#039;t write me a thank you note or someone who doesn&amp;#039;t want to work her way from the bottom up. I look for someone who has a great attitude, who is willing to work really hard, who has a pleasant attitude, and who is grateful. A lot of people who are smart aren&amp;#039;t pleasant to be around; a lot of smart young kids don&amp;#039;t think they need to do the same beginner style work I used to have to do. I will say that I have a young woman who works at NBC with me now who wants to be a producer. She is willing to do anything that I ask her to do to get her on her way. Her willingness makes me want to help her\u2014and I will. Do you think social technology is aiding or hindering the quest for gender equity? I worry that social media has made us rude and has made us irresponsible with our words. Some of the things that I read on social media today I would never say to my worst enemy. I can&amp;#039;t believe the things I see on TV and on social media now. I worry that social media has made us less compassionate as people, and less kind to one another. Related: The Blinged-Out World of Formula One Heiress Tamara Ecclestone Last question: Who do you think is my generation&amp;#039;s Hillary Clinton? I think it&amp;#039;s a huge mistake when people try to become the next &amp;quot;you know who.&amp;quot; I find it interesting that you didn&amp;#039;t ask who is the next Mother Teresa or Gandhi. I think you do much better trying to live your own life and not trying to live someone else&amp;#039;s. If you try and be someone you&amp;#039;re not, you&amp;#039;re going to get in trouble. The best thing you can do is be your own original self. That&amp;#039;s the work of a lifetime.  Photo: Getty Images "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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