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It’s Never Too Early

Getting prepared for college is a natural progression when you are in high school, but what about middle school?  I get the question all the time, “When is a good time to start preparing for college?”  My answer is always, “Right now.”

As a school principal, my kindergarten teachers were already starting the kids on career exploration.  Every year when the fire engine came and the crew would talk to the children about the role of the fireman and allow them to explore the truck, they planted the seeds of career awareness.  When Victoria’s dad would come and present a cooking demonstration to the 4th grade class as a chef from the Culinary Institute, he planted the seeds of career awareness.  And when Junior Achievement came and presented to the sixth grade students about banking, finance and investments, they planted the seeds of career awareness.

The timeline of preparing for college actually begins long before most people are ever aware of the impact.  It is only when the senior year is staring them square in the face and the realization of making a decision is looming that they bring it forward in their conscious thought processes.  But by then, many opportunities have already slipped by them.  Grades may not be high enough, perhaps the rigor of the courses wasn’t as strong as it could have been, or the involvement in community service was minimal in comparison to the other students submitting the same applications. Middle school does count!  For some students, their grades at the end of 8th grade establish their eligibility to play 1st semester in high school.  The level of courses you take in 8th grade will create a pattern for your next four years.  Are they challenging enough for you to match the goals you have when you think about universities and career paths?

The earlier you bring the awareness into conscious thought, the better.  It is not that you have to wake up each day as a middle school student and say, “What am I doing for college today?”   Rather, family dinner conversations can take on some career oriented topics.  The employment rate that got posted today, a class at school that is a favorite and why, a family trip that is coming up and all of the occupations that you will encounter on that excursion are excellent family dinner topics.  The more exposure to career options and exploration a child can have in formative years, the more prepared they will be to make decisions about their own career path.  The more discussions you have as a family about the importance of setting goals and challenging one’s self, the better.

It’s never too early to start planting the seeds and cultivating a remarkable harvest, that career path that provides a lifetime of joy, satisfaction and reward.

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Being the Leader

Do you remember your elementary school days when you wanted to be the line leader?

Why did you want to be the leader?

  • First to get to the destination?
  • Sense of authority or power over those behind you?
  • Feeling like you could take them anywhere?

Do you still want to be the leader?

Last week I suggested that you read an article about Leadership and the importance in today’s job market and the admissions process for college.  The author, Jason Jakus, wrote about eight qualities of Leadership.  I agree wholeheartedly with all eight, but I would add one more…Responsibility.  Good leaders take responsibility.

So as you look back over your own leadership characteristics and how they align with the eight indicated by Mr. Jakus, consider a time when you took responsibility for a situation and how your own leadership qualities emerged.  What was the situation?  What action did you take?  How long did it take?  What was the outcome?  If you can answer these questions, you just framed a response to an interview question about your own leadership.  You don’t have to be chairman of a corporation or committee, president of a club or organization to demonstrate leadership.  But you do need to consider your own leadership qualities and determine how or if there is a need to develop you more fully in order to be marketable to universities and employers.

Need help?  Click here to Contact Me.

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Leadership – Affirming It Truly Is for All

Have you taken the time to assess your own leadership qualities?  Did you know that leadership is being viewed by college admissions offices and employers as a valuable asset for all individuals who are making applications to their organizations?  Where do you stand with demonstrating humor, planning, vision, creativity, integrity, openness, assertiveness and development?

The following link leads to a wonderful article on the importance of leadership and the impact on anyone looking to get a job in the future.  Leadership is not something that happens overnight and it is not just for heads of corporations or nations.  Please take a few minutes to read the article and assess your own inventory of leadership qualities.  http://ezinearticles.com/?Leadership-in-a-Down-Economy-and-Using-it-to-Get-a-New-Job&id=2267609

Click here to contact me for assistance with career direction or building your leadership portfolio.

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Promoting Yourself

Several months ago I posted a blog titled, The STARS and Secrets to a Successful Interview. The content applied to students interviewing for college admissions or individuals interviewing for positions in the workforce.  This month, as I write about Leadership, the concept of interviewing technique once again is quite applicable and becoming even more important in a highly competitive admissions or job market.

So, as you prepare for an interview and reflect on your experiences and the things you want to promote about yourself follow through with secrets #3 and 4 and promote your leadership capabilities with confidence.

Secret #3 – STARS – Since past behavior may be a predictor of future performance, many organizations are turning to questions that require the interviewee to provide specific examples of situations that are indicators of how they may perform in the new environment.  That’s where the STAR comes in.   In answering a question that asks you to give an example, follow this formula:

     Situation – Identify the situation you are going to reference

Time frame – Identify the time frame that the situation required from start to finish

Action – State the actions that you took to resolve the situation

Results – State the results as they relate to your actions

Secret #4 – Do Your Own Interview – Make sure you have done your homework before the interview.  Know as much about the organization as you possibly can and be prepared with your own questions.  Your interview is not just about what you can do for the organization, but also how good the organization is for you.  Questions that you ask should not have answers readily available on the website or literature about the organization.  They should be specific to the position, supporting positions and opportunities for growth.  Demonstrate your interest and your desire to be a leader!

 

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Creating Leadership Opportunities

All too often people wait to be nominated or appointed to leadership positions for clubs, organizations, committees or teams.  But more and more, universities and employers are looking at leadership as a defining characteristic worthy of selecting one candidate over the other.  Even the interview process has evolved to the point of employers or admissions advisers questioning the specific examples of leadership you have referenced on a resume’ or application.  They want to know the circumstances that created a situation of need, what action you took, and the outcome as a result of your leadership.  So padding a resume’ or application with frivolous titles is not an effective option!

Creating leadership opportunities means stepping up to the plate and offering your expertise, time or desire to lead the group.  It also means listening to others, having your eyes open for opportunities and thinking about the current circumstances and what possibilities exist to make a difference.  Leaders make a difference because they create something bigger than themselves.

When you reflect on your resume’, can you demonstrate leadership?  If not, think about what you have to offer your team, club, organization or committee and how you can step up to the plate and lead them in a direction that will make a difference.  Think about needs in your community or organization, policies or procedures that need to be updated or mentoring programs that could be developed.  Leaders are not confined to positions of corporate authority or heads of nations.  Leaders are all around us and so are the needs that can provide opportunities.  What action will you take?

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Real Leadership on a Resume’

As August begins, the lazy days of summer are drawing to an end and thoughts of school and school applications begin to take center stage.  For college bound students there are applications to complete and essays to write.  For freshmen, sophomores and juniors there are activities to consider, sports to be played and if athletic opportunities are on your horizon in college, then you have a profile to develop.  (Athletes should check out www.collegesportstrack.com for profile and recruiting assistance)  So, how does leadership fit in to your application, resume’ or profile?

As competition for college opportunities increases, universities continue to fine tune their processes for admissions.  Scores on the SAT and ACT remain the highest ranking determining factor, but other key ingredients are steadily taking their place in line as important factors and in fact, tie-breaking factors when the choice gets narrowed and especially if scholarship dollars are on the line.  When student A is compared to student B and both have equal test scores and similar GPA’s, what makes the difference?  Leadership is a key ingredient.

Identifying leadership experiences on your application, profile or resume’ can set you aside and above other candidates, but it must be legitimate.  Titles alone with no substance will not help you and in fact can provide cause for concern with admissions officers.  Remember, you may allude to your experience briefly on paper, but in an interview can you substantiate your leadership opportunity?  Was it meaningful?  What did you accomplish?  Is there a legacy because of your actions?  Creating false impressions on your application, profile or resume’ can backfire regardless of how well you score on a test or in the classroom.  Your character is on the line.  Every university has a code of ethics to deal with issues of plagiarism or other infractions of what they deem to be inappropriate academic action.  So before you even get through the door, they check you out,  take note of what you say you have done, and then verify the reality of what you accomplished.

Leadership experiences are an outstanding asset to promote who you are to universities and organizations.  Are you padding your resume’ and creating a false impression or conveying real leadership?

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Projecting You as a Social Entity

How many hours a month do you spend on the Internet?  How much time are you using it for education, entertainment, work, purchasing services or products, or connecting with friends and family?  The average American spends 32 hours per month on the Internet.  A tidbit I learned on a recent webinar hosted by Juicy Results, a terrific web marketing company.   And as I thought about that number, I realized I probably spend that much time per week on the Internet!  If the nature of jobs and careers in the future is changing, then this is important information to know.

Do you have a social media presence?  What does it look like?  Universities and employers alike are using social media to “check out” their candidates.  Everything from your email address and voice message to your pictures and comments on the Internet are available for public scrutiny and feed into your public image or “social entity.”

Just as different people have different perspectives on issues, different generations view and address issues differently.  In regards to social media, there is a great article and some interesting data that specifically address the issues of school and job impact.  Click here to read the article and be sure to scroll down to table 2B and note the difference between Baby Boomers and Echo Boomers.  While an Echo Boomer may see nothing wrong with a particular message posted on a social media site, the individual responsible for your admission to college or hiring you may be a Baby Boomer and the posting is offensive.

Now ask yourself the question again and consider who may be on the other side of the computer monitor checking you out.  What does your “social entity” look like?  What do you need to do to create the kind of social image that characterizes you but doesn’t jeopardize future opportunities?  Contact me if you need assistance or want more information.