by Melissa Judy | Apr 30, 2012 | Job Search, life purpose
As a graduate student, I’ve been constantly exploring the various roles that are available in higher education. A professional isn’t limited to student affairs, as I entered graduate school believing. I had blinders on to Greek life when I began, and as I near thesis defense time in June, and graduation in August, I’m realizing that my niche in higher education may not have been where I thought it was this whole time, but I’m finding peace in this realization.
I decided to pursue a master’s degree when I was told I would need one to work in student affairs. I was a veterinary technician at the time and I had realized that I missed academia and I missed Greek life. I thought, how great that I could make a living from working with other Greek students! So, in the fall of 2010 I began an online master degree program in higher education administration. I chose to do it online because I’m a military spouse and it made sense to take my education with me rather than try to transfer credits. As I began, I focused my assignments heavily on Greek life, but I began to open my eyes to other departments such as orientation, first year programs and student activities. In the meantime, I had begun working as a communications specialist in an alumni relations office. I learned a lot while working there and gained some valuable website administration, writing and social media skills. I loved the environment I was working in, not to mention the people.
My husband was stationed in California in August 2011 and we moved, meaning I had to leave my wonderful job, but continue my degree. While here, I’ve applied for numerous student affairs positions, some an hour away, with little success. Finally, the job of my so-called dreams opened and I applied. It was a remote position working for a national sorority’s headquarters. I would be charged with advising chapters and chapter advisors for an organization I believe does great things for its members and communities. I had interviewed for this position just before leaving my last job, but it was open again and I was beyond excited. I knew someone who worked there and thought it was perfect for me, especially as I near graduation.
Just when I had been asked to do a phone interview, I received an e-mail from a friend asking me if I would be interested in another communications position for a development office at my husband’s duty station (he’s stationed at a military graduate school). This position would be a promotion from my last job, still be in higher education, and I would get to have lunch with my husband. Oh, the dilemma! So, I said, sure I’ll apply. That day I was asked to come in for an interview the following day and I obliged. In the interview, I told them of my upcoming phone interview and my inability to decide. They were surprisingly okay with it and just told me to keep in touch.
The day came for my phone interview and I was pretty nervous. More nervous than I had been in the communications interview the week before. Strange. As I hung up the phone, I couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that I wasn’t where I was supposed to be right then. I had been reminded of the negatives of Greek life and the cattiness that goes along with being in a sorority the week before and I wondered if that negativity might creep into a position I may hold in Greek life and it hit me. I worried that feeling would eventually become my every day and I knew I didn’t want that. I also worried that my love for Greek life may dwindle if I was faced with that feeling every day and that I may eventually just get burned out on it all. And, I really didn’t want that. I knew that the communications position was essentially a guaranteed job, and I somehow in my gut I felt I belonged there.
So, I contacted the military school and told them I wanted to come in for a second interview and they jumped at the chance. I interviewed with the president of the board of trustees and the executive director of the foundation and a couple of hours later I had an offer letter in my inbox. It was that easy. All thanks to an e-mail from a friend asking if I’d be interested in applying since she knew I’d been job-searching already for several months. And the best part was, they were ok with my military spouse status, the fact that I knew we’d be moving again in December. They even offered the potential for remote work when I moved, the holy grail of military spouse careers.
I then set about e-mailing the sorority I had interviewed with, telling them I had accepted this position. I received an e-mail back stating that I would not be asked back for on-site interview and they wished me the best of luck in my search. I can only assume they had sent me a form e-mail, and that’s ok.
What I realized in taking this job, again in higher ed communications, is that I had set my path. It felt like a huge, life-altering decision, but I knew it was the right one when I felt relieved after making it. I knew that in making this decision and putting this job on my resume, I would be branding myself as a communications professional rather than a student affairs professional, but my gut trusted it and so, so did I. That’s not to say that I’m not building transferable skills, or that I’m tied to this niche that I feel comfortable in right now. And, it doesn’t mean that I’m merely taking a job that doesn’t challenge me, because two weeks in, I’m already challenged! I just know that, at this time, this is where I’m meant to be and I’m happy with my decision. I know that in not making Greek life my job, as I had hoped, I won’t be in danger of getting burnt out and I’ll be able to offer more of myself as an advisor in a volunteer capacity in the future, when hopefully we move to a place with a collegiate chapter of my organization nearby.
I should also say, there’s nothing wrong with taking a job you know you’ll do well in and feel completely qualified for. Not every job has to be a stretch for your skills and experience, especially if it’s a jump in titles and pay.
Ultimately, you have to follow the path that feels right. Your place in higher education may end up being completely different from what you envisioned for yourself, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Just because you have been pursuing a certain position or function, doesn’t mean that others within higher education may not be a better fit. Take the time to explore the different paths that are available to you and really feel them out, see if your gut reacts to any of them. Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself, but also don’t be afraid to take a position that really uses your already existing skills. Honing those skills is never a bad thing, as long as you keep moving up and forward!
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by sean@higheredcareercoach.com | Oct 27, 2011 | Career Skills, Job Search, life purpose, Social Networking, transferable skills, Who-Dos, Workplace
Motivation is sometimes hard to come by, but it’s essential to keeping forward momentum in your career.
If anyone knows this, it’s online marketing strategist Tommy Walker, who went from being fired over pair of pants 3 years ago to writing a magnum-opus guest post “106 Excuses That Prevent You From Ever Being Great” on Chris Brogan’s web site. Brogan, known for almost never accepting guest posts, took a chance on Walker’s piece, and in the process threw any editorial guidelines he might have had out the window, posting all 7,000+ words of it.
The response the post received so far has been phenomenal, with 329 retweets and 1,260 likes on Facebook as this is being written. We’ll talk to Walker about his journey from fired cell phone salesman to successful online marketing strategist and guest blogger, and get tips for knocking down excuses and staying motivated.
This segment was pre-recorded, and will air Friday, October 28, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. ET. To listen, follow this link or use the player in the right sidebar.
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by sean@higheredcareercoach.com | Jun 24, 2011 | Career Skills, Coaching, Higher Education, life purpose, Site News, work/life balance
How many times in your career have you faced a decision where there was a good job in front of you (maybe even offered to you) and you knew it was a terrible fit, or that the benefits outweighed the costs? This has happened several times to me, and luckily, in most cases, I had the good sense to walk away.
In those cases when I didn’t, though, I took a job and was miserable. It’s also happened that I took jobs and the jobs changed, or my interests changed at a different pace than the jobs (or institutions) adapted to change. In cases like these, it’s best to know what you are not.
In this vein, I want to clearly describe what I am not, and what Higher Ed Career Coach is not.
- I am not strictly a professional blogger. First and foremost, I am a professional career coach, organizational consultant and speaker. The blogging supports the dissemination of my ideas, of my perspectives on career strategy, and serves as a marketing vehicle for my coaching programs and services (individual and group coaching, webinars, information products, etc.)
- I am not an advertising professional, and this is not a “job search” site. You cannot find job listings here, and I have no intention of becoming a job board, in part because that is a saturated market, and in part because I believe that sector of the advertising marketplace is dying, as the web 1.0 model of “job boards” is being replaced by social advertising.
- I am not a conventional information marketer. I am an educator and a coach. Anything I sell through this site will be:
- Educational (i.e., based in philosophy but instructional in nature and delivery)
- Reflect my personal and professional perspectives as a reformed educator, critic, strategist, and an educational reformer (i.e., an outsider from the inside, now looking back in, and commenting on what is good and what is broken)
- Concerned with convergence of ideas, lessons from other industries and fields, and real-world factors, including economic factors, political concerns, and the environment.
- Intelligent, in that readers can expect articles to be generally written at or above the college reading level. My assumption as publisher is that my readers are smart, not easily confused, and engaged in the development of coherent and well-rounded perspectives on a variety of topics. The Flesch reading ease score for all submissions is available to me as editor and publisher, and most articles on the site rate as “difficult” or above. Articles are not revised for that reason, as long as uses of grammar and spelling are appropriate. Articles appearing here assume that the reader is an academic professional, member of the faculty, or someone capable of functioning in those capacities, so articles will not be “dumbed down.”
- Social, in that topics that relate to social networking and intelligence, and how they play into job searches and career planning, will be regular features. Understanding how to create a socially intelligent career strategy is a core concept of this site, and in most cases, coverage of other topics will also include ways to approach those topics in socially intelligent, relevant and appropriate ways.
- A good-humored, good-natured and personal brand. I want this site, and my corporate brand to reflect my values and the values of everyday educators who work in the trenches and persevere in living lives of service and commitment, despite the many and growing challenges of modern higher education.
The site’s values are drawn from the well of my experience, my commitment to the core values mentioned above, and my belief that the best answers are rooted in how individuals, institutions, businesses (including independent small businesses like my own), and personal learning networks work together to raise the collective intelligence of our society and mobilize change through social action.
To be most effective, we need to have a sense of humor as well as a sense of commitment, a belief in the good intentions of others, met with our own good intentions, and brought to life and to action by the power of personal relationships, common interests, and common goals, and not dictated by traditional methods of business, most importantly closed networks, claims on personal ownership of collective public information, and the sheer pursuit of financial gain at the expense of competitors and the public good.
My financial goals for this site are simple and rooted in the American dream. I want to support my family and spend time with them, support my profession and be able to criticize it, so that it can change and grow. I want to have good conversations with intelligent, kind, committed people. And one day, I want to be able to retire and play with my grandchildren and work in the garden, without being a shriveled up husk of a man, spit out by a system that didn’t understand him and never valued his contributions appropriately. (Which is where I was headed, if I had stayed at Penn State.)
As I mentioned, it’s never been about money. It’s always been about passion for ideas, service to the greater good, and helping people like me live lives of purpose and authenticity
Hopefully this article, and others published recently have cleared up for you what this site is and is not about, and who is or is not responsible for the content herein. If you like the ideals that this site is committed to, please keep reading and join the conversation.
If you are looking for intelligent career strategies to help you move forward in your career, and intelligent ideas for solving the problems of higher education, and you don’t mind the contrarian views, crusty language and occasional humor, then Higher Ed Career Coach is the site for you.
If you just looking for position listings, or run-of-the-mill career advice, visit a job board like HigherEdJobs or Monster.Com, a university human resources page, or LinkedIn.
That’s where I would go, if I were looking for a job, instead of planning a social revolution.
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by sean@higheredcareercoach.com | Jun 23, 2011 | Career Skills, Higher Education, life purpose, Site News
In any job search, and indeed, any business, an understanding of convergence will help you to contrast yourself from the “competition.” Potential employers or potential clients need to understand how you are different, but they will make decisions based on perceptions that you are a better fit for their needs, or a better value for their budget. To stand out, you need to explain your Unique Value Proposition, and start building your personal brand in alignment with it. This makes it clear where their needs converge with your own. This point of convergence is your potential point of agreement. I’d like to share the approaches I have taken, and open up a conversation about how to differentiate yourself from competitors.
When it came time to put some names to things, I began researching potential site names, to make sure that I could contrast myself against others trying to reach the same market. I followed the advice of several well-known bloggers and began by searching for preferred names and seeing which ones were already taken. Then I searched on terms that might mean something similar, but were not taken.
Then I combined related terms to come up with a new semantic term that did not have any results or competition. This is called working from the “long tail.” The idea is that by creating a convergent idea and a new term to go with it, you can stake out some digital claim to use of the new terms, and work to connect deeply with a smaller market. This was the case for “higher ed life coach” and “higher ed career coach” in July 2009, so I moved ahead on registration.
I had already eliminated many options because they were already taken, or seemed similar to names that already existed. I would have loved to use the words “college” or “student affairs” in my site names, but most of the good names were taken. I thought about other terms that might be appealing and settled on “higher ed.” This made sense because it was not well-worn digital ground, and because few people outside of the career field referred to the field as “higher ed,” instead using the terms “university administration” and “faculty” to describe working in the field. For all the great terms related to “college life,” they seemed to be locked up by admissions advisors, and people trying to sell lifestyle merchandise to college students. So, while it may have seemed boring to many, I chose titles that described my target audience and what I hoped to do.
I won’t claim to be the only person working in higher education that can provide solid career advice. I read other blogs, including Mama PhD, Eric Stoller’s Blog, Insider Higher Ed, Higher Ed Jobs, BreakDrink, On the Go with Ed Cabellon, and many others. I won’t claim to be the only life coach or career coach working with college students and higher ed professionals. There are many others out there doing the same things, and who have been doing so for many years.
I will say that I believe myself to be the first person with a national brand premise based on providing these types of services primarily for higher education audiences. I say this because I did the research for quite a while before betting my career on it. My brand premise and the promise that comes with it is unique, and in describing it in the way I did, publicly and as early as July 2009, I opened up a new niche in both the coaching industry and in higher education, by creating a new sector called higher ed coaching. I’ve been providing advice and coaching services under these brand names since 2009, and gaining ground. I won’t claim to have universal appeal, but readership has been climbing steadily, and my network has been growing. It’s clear that I am on to something.
So clear in fact, that I’ve been identified by some as a promising player in the coaching industry and in higher education, and by others in both fields as a threat to the status quo. I’ll explain more about that as it becomes necessary and appropriate, but for now I want to concentrate on the Unique Value Proposition of this site, its brand promise, and the services and programs that go with it. I’m not really concerned with what others are doing. There’s room on this stage for many players and I believe in improvisation and cooperation. I also believe in the unique nature of what it is I am trying to do, and in my motivations for doing them.
My name is Sean Cook and I am the original and only genuine Higher Ed Career Coach™. It is my personal coaching brand, and is supported by web properties and coaching programs and services that support my personal brand. I am solely responsible for the content of these sites, and not affiliated with any other corporation or individual coach or consultant, unless you read a specific disclosure indicating otherwise. Higher Ed Career Coach™ is my personal brand.
The Higher Ed Career Coach™ brand is…
- An Outsider brand, based in part on the idea that the higher education system and industry is broken and unable to adapt to the realities of the modern economy, political landscape, and the changing nature of learning and communication.
- A Convergent brand, based on the idea that fixing the problems of higher education will require adaptation, and that adaptation will only happen when those inside the broken ecosystem of education look outside their ivory towers and embrace open-system thinking, as well as new ways to construct and support learning and communication.
- An Intelligent brand, based on the belief that creating opportunities for understanding, reflection, research and debate are key to solving the problems of higher education.
- A Social brand, committed to the belief that intelligent networking and awareness of network resources will create opportunities for new knowledge and practice.
- Good-humored, Good-Natured and Personal, based on the value of relationships, and not measured by the value of business transactions conducted.
How would you describe the different core aspects of your personal brand? And what do you think about mine? Did I forget anything? What do you think I can do to reinforce the ideals above? Do you find them appealing?
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by sean@higheredcareercoach.com | Jun 22, 2011 | Career Skills, Higher Education, life purpose, Site News
Over the last five years, I’ve experienced a convergence of events in my personal life that drove me to consider the need to change my circumstances and with it, hopefully my personal and professional destiny. First I became a father. Then I learned that I have a neurological disorder, which affects my mobility and is aggravated by stress. Then I had a year where my whole staff hated me, and I couldn’t dig myself easily out of the personal and professional hole I found myself in. Then some things changed, and I was able to do so. Others were not able to, and chose to move on.
I took the next few years to redeem myself and to redouble my efforts to be an effective supervisor and mentor, and I feel that I was able to do so. I began researching options that would allow me to move on from Penn State and the first option was a doctoral program at the University of Georgia. I was invited to interview, but not admitted to the program. What little feedback I received amounted to the fact that I had expressed more practical than theoretical interests. It hurt at first, but I was eventually able to glean a lesson from the experience, move past it, and to start getting more specific about what other options I wanted to research.
It was a blessing in disguise, because in that exploration, I realized that my interests do not lie in the direction of teaching student development theory. I’m more interested in helping professionals understand effective practice, and effective professional involvement, so they can move forward in their careers with authenticity of purpose, and have satisfying (and balanced) careers and lives. Coming to Athens also made me realize how much I always wanted to live there, and how much better it would be for my family if I moved closer to both my parents in South Carolina, and my partner’s parents in Florida.
When I decided on pursuing coaching as a career choice, I initially wanted to do life and transition coaching for college students, and transition coaching for their parents, because I had been really troubled by Millennial students and their helicopter parents. I also had an interest in doing career coaching for persons working in higher ed, because I could have used it going into the field, and later as a supervisor and member of the central management staff for Residence Life at Penn State. I know for a fact that many of my staff (students and professionals) needed it, but that as a supervisor, I could only give them so much, because of the power differential involved in supervision. I believed that, as an experienced professional with a lot of great experience as a supervisor, as a candidate, and a member of search and interview committees, I had a unique set of gifts to put to work, and that by doing so, I could make a difference in the careers of many people. So I rolled the dice, left my job, and gambled that I would be able to pull together these convergent ideas into a coherent business concept.
In my mind, I have all the pieces tied together and it makes sense. But I haven’t explained it so well, and it’s clear that I need to, so that people won’t get confused or stay confused, because it’s not enough to explain the convergence, you have to explain the separate ideas before you show how they all come together. As a storyteller, I’ve always understood that. So I’m going to back up a little bit, as I have been doing so far this week, and tell you, as best I can, my story.
I’m not doing this so just to talk about myself. In putting forth my life examples, I’m hoping that you will relate, and see, in your circumstances, some parallels, and find some lessons you can apply to your life and career.
In every story, there are lessons worth finding and questions worth asking. And we can definitely learn more if we have some conversations. So please comment freely and share your story, ask questions, and tell me and your fellow readers your story and more about the points of convergence where you exist, operate, and feel most comfortable.
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by sean@higheredcareercoach.com | Jun 16, 2011 | Career Skills, life purpose, Negotiation
Games are played when you take calculated risks, in anticipation of potential rewards. So let’s finish out this week’s discussion of game theory, careers and business by examining the risk-to-reward ratio, and how you should figure it out.
If you work with me, you do have some level of risk, because I will tell you outright that I can’t get you a job, and I won’t guarantee that you end up with one. Nothing takes that responsibility off of your shoulders. I can only offer my personal commitment to my clients, and I don’t work with every client who comes to me. I only work with those I feel I can help. To do otherwise just amounts to taking people’s money. And like I said earlier, I’m not motivated by money. I do fear not having it, but in reputational businesses like coaching, you are only as good as two things…your coaching skills and your honest commitment that if you can’t help someone, you’ll return their money. I will.
I’ve been blogging for two years and coaching professionally for year and a half, and so far (knock on wood!) no one has ever asked me for their money back. I’ve offered to return payment to a couple of clients who had a hard time getting jobs, and even offered one client more than once, but so far, I’ve never had to return a client’s payment. I don’t even have a time period on asking for it back. I may some day, but for now, I’m the Land’s End of the coaching world. Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back. Period.
For me, what are the risks and what are the potential rewards?
Well, here is where I’m going to be brutally honest with you about what I’ve risked to get my business and my websites to this point, and what the rewards have been.
Risks:
- Left a standing position at a great university that I could have retired from.
- Left all the benefits that came with it, except for COBRA, which expired at the end of last month. Probably the most risky thing I did, because I knew that leaving a group plan might mean that I would lose my health benefits and not be able to get them back, because I have a neurological condition. We have insurance for Sarah and the kids, but I’m having to go through some hoops and am currently uninsured, though I’m hoping that will be done soon, too.
- I now have to self-fund my salary, pay all my expenses for my home, my life and my business out of savings and income, and now I have a lawyer, more insurance and an accountant. I’m not going to go into numbers here, but let’s just cut to the chase…I’ve spent way more than I’ve made, and I’ve given away at least ten times what I’ve sold. It hasn’t been easy, but I have no regrets. Not one.
Rewards
- A sense of personal satisfaction when I help people get jobs they want, or into the graduate programs they hoped for.
- Less stress in my daily life, and almost complete control over my projects and my schedule.
- More time with my wife, kids, and extended family.
- More time for community activities, like Athfest, the Athens Half Marathon, and talking with people who interest me, like artists, musicians, writers, small business owners and even the homeless people who hang out on College Avenue in downtown Athens across from Holmes/Hunter Building and the Arch.
- More time to write, create, philosophize, and stir the pot, to come up with new ideas, crash old ones together, and see where the conversation goes.
Taking a look at all the above, and factoring in what I have spent, versus what I have made, you might be tempted to say I’m not winning. But you’d be thinking about the battle, while I’m thinking about the war, so you’d be wrong. I know what I am fighting to do, and why I am doing it. If you don’t understand that, then maybe you’re not playing the same game.
What rules are you playing by?
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