Best Careers for Personality Types

This was shared with us by Emily Parker of CollegeMatchUp.net.  Today, many job assistance organizations and career counseling centers will factor in a person’s Myers-Briggs personality type when helping them find the ‘perfect’ job. Find your type below and you will see a few suggestions to get you started in finding a role that can best fit your specific disposition.  Remember, these are general terms and suggestions presented, as opportunities abound and you’re not necessarily limited to what’s listed!  Below the infographic the 16 MBTI types are listed and identified!

PersonalityTypeJobsPost

ISTJ

These types are good work horses, as they get things done. They see every detail of a plan and aren’t afraid to spend extra hours at the office or take on extra work. To compensate, they seek out jobs with high rewards.

Nickname: The Duty Fulfillers

Prevalence: 8.5%

Perfect careers: Business administrator, police officer, lawyer

ESTJ

These are the defenders of our society. They seek out jobs in which they can feel accomplished and important, as well as helpful.

Nickname: The Guardians

Prevalence: 13%

Perfect careers: Military officer, teacher, sales representative

ISFJ

Like the ESTJs, these types are supportive, but in a much more nurturing, caring way. They feel things intensely and like to help others through difficult situations.

Nickname: The Nurturers

Prevalence: 7%

Perfect careers: Interior decorator, social worker, childcare

ESFJ

Full of empathy, ESFJs seek employment in places where they can connect with their client, student or patient. A high amount of these types are in the nursing and teaching fields.

Nickname: The Caregivers

Prevalence: 12%

Perfect careers: Nurse, counselor, teacher

ISTP

These types look at a problem from absolutely every angle. They like to problem-solve and believe there are multiple ways of finding solutions.

Nickname: The Mechanics

Prevalence: 6%

Perfect careers: Forensic pathologist, computer programmer, engineer

ESTP

ESTPs are the “go-getters” of the personality types. They are high-energy and enjoy friendly competition. They work well in fast-paced environments that are challenging and rewarding.

Nickname: The Doers

Prevalence: 10%

Perfect careers: Marketing, paramedic, athlete

ESFP

ESFPs crave the spotlight. They are very creative and thus stay away from jobs that require strict routines or office work. They like to travel, to design and to express themselves.

Nickname: The Performers

Prevalence: 11%

Perfect careers: Artist, fashion designer, consultant

ISFP

Like ESFPs, ISFPs are creative, though in a much more introverted way. They tend to choose jobs that require imagination and originality, but they’d much rather work in solitude.

Nickname: The Artists

Prevalence: 6%

Perfect careers: Musician, photographer, veterinarian

ENTJ

Born leaders, ENTJs are risk-takers with sharp wits. They can make firm decisions and never feel regret. They are best in charge of large accounts, corporations or business decisions.

Nickname: The Executives

Prevalence: 4%

Perfect careers: Corporate executive, entrepreneur, judge

INTJ

These types are the thinkers. They can solve complex problems and enjoy doing so. Most are in a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) field.

Nickname: The Scientists

Prevalence: 1.5%

Perfect careers: Scientist, engineer, corporate strategist

ENTP

ENTPs like to solve potential problems, and they are often looking toward the future. They connect well with people and they like to work in teams on complex issues.

Nickname: The Visionaries

Prevalence: 4.5%

Perfect careers: Psychologist, actor, systems analyst

INTP

Like The Scientists, INTPs do well in STEM fields. But they also enjoy scripted public speaking and teaching, as they enjoy sharing what they find with others.

Nickname: The Thinkers

Prevalence: 2.5%

Perfect careers: University professor, mathematician, forensic research

ENFJ

ENFJs enjoy doing volunteer work and helping others. They are also good at organization and do well planning events and parties.

Nickname: The Givers

Prevalence: 4%

Perfect careers: Clergy, events coordinator, writer

INFJ

ESTJs are The Guardians, but INFJs are a bit more prone to choose careers that offer small victories. They don’t want to save the planet, they just want to make the world better one person at a time.

Nickname: The Protectors

Prevalence: 1%

Perfect careers: Chiropractor, early childhood development, dentist

ENFP

These types like to be surrounded by other creative types. They thrive on others’ energies and enjoy being a part of creative, political or social movements. They’re also perfect leaders with great communication skills.

Nickname: The Inspirers

Prevalence: 7%

Perfect careers: Politician, television reporter, writer

INFP

INFPs can be perfectionists, but this usually benefits them in their careers. They see only one solution per problem but work very hard to reach that solution.

Nickname: The Idealists

Prevalence: 2%

Perfect careers: Psychiatrist, social worker, teacher

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The Ruse of the Unemployment Numbers

US UnemploymentHungry? Imagine being served your multi-course dinner by a Ph. D. in Pharmacology, or getting your burrito delivered by an experienced human resources professional. Both of these scenarios are very real. Both of these individuals, one a friend, the other an acquaintance, lost jobs due to economic downturns at their respective organizations and both have taken jobs, simply to pay the bills, while they seek out new opportunities in their chosen professions.

Both of these individuals are examples of many that have succumbed to a massive, but hidden, problem called underemployment. Watching falling unemployment numbers now being reported below 6%, down from nearly 10% four years earlier is, in many ways, simply misleading.

I believe it was Mark Twain who quipped, “statistics are like an alienist; they can work for either side.” The ‘official’ unemployment rate (technically called U3) is a simple and broad measurement that divides the number of people who are not working, want to work, and have been actively applying for jobs by the sum of the people working and those loosely defined as unemployed. In doing so, today, you get a number that’s just below 6% as stated above. While many seem to accept this as THE measurement of employment health, this is merely one measurement though; The unemployment rate can be calculated using a variety of differently ‘useful’ parameters and the U3 rate leaves out many that should be included as they are in the U6 statistic (see below).

With the Fed preparing to raise interest rates as soon as they believe the labor market is strong enough, determining that strength is difficult. But one fact everyone should be able to reasonably agree on is that the ‘official’ unemployment rate does not even attempt, and can’t really, measure the actual strength or health of the labor market exemplified by the openly known fact that Fed Chair Janet Yellen looks at a “dashboard” of at least nine labor market indicators!

Thus, lots of people who are unemployed by many reasonable definitions may not count as such, depending on the metrics used, in the official government statistic. In fact, using the government’s own definition, workers who are discouraged or marginally attached to the labor market do not count in the official unemployment rate. There are different, broader, unemployment measures available, but they do not get the headlines.

In fact, of the over 90 million Americans 16 years old or older that are not working, hence not part of the equation, fall into several categories: retirees, stay-at-home parents, students, and those who would prefer working but have given up on finding a job. Policy makers have been reduced to making educated guesses about the relative size of each subgroup of those not working because the capture of the actual numbers is speculative at best, and then their potential to reenter the labor market as conditions improve remains in question too.

Despite the significant decrease in the official U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) unemployment rate, the ‘real’ unemployment rate is most likely over double that approaching near 13%. This number, which is a better portrait of the nation’s REAL economic health, reflects the government’s U-6 report, which accounts for the full unemployment picture, and this includes those that are marginally attached (describes individuals not currently in the labor force who wanted and were available for work)to the labor force, plus those “employed part time for economic reasons.” In July, this marginally attached group accounted for 2.2 million people. To put that in perspective, there are currently 16 states in the U.S. with populations smaller than 2.2 million. Another number, large in and of itself is the 741,000 discouraged workers – workers not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. These are included within the list of marginally attached people. Another 7.5 million were not considered unemployed because they were employed part-time for economic reasons. Those people are also called involuntary part-time workers – working part-time because their hours were cut back or because they were unable to secure a full-time job.

Unemployment is really a measure of labor market disequilibrium; it measures the mismatch between employers’ demand for labor of various types and workers’ willingness and ability to supply that labor. Unemployment that is “too high” or “too low” in aggregate, or in specific job categories, is really about these mismatches, not the overall health of the labor market.

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What’s Missing in the College Experience? Part 4 of 4

Choosing a major can be stressful!

Choosing a major can be stressful!

Part 4 of “What’s Missing in the College Experience” – Where is your major leading you?

Many people end up doing work completely unrelated to their major in college, but it still helps to know for what careers that major might matter when selecting a major or concentration. Students who really know the possible career paths with an undergraduate degree are few and far between at the time of major selection. Many students choose their majors in their sophomore year before they have much work experience at all. There would be many benefits to students if there was a consultant at the school keeping track of where their major may lead, career-wise, and what those careers meant in terms of average activities. Not only would students be making a more informed decision, but it would jump start the process of searching oneself to figure out what they really want to do before the big crunch at the end of senior year.” (Eli Lisseck ’13)

While I was at Mount Holyoke College as the Director of Recruiting and Employer Relations, I had the opportunity or working with many great partner recruiting organizations and some really wonderful students looking to make their mark in the world. One woman, in particular, that really ‘got it’ was a student that was interviewed and hired by, I believe, Paine Webber.

She was a history or psychology major, I can’t remember for sure, but the point being she was hired on by a pre-eminent financial institution after graduation in the liberal arts. Upon being installed on a team, one of her also recently graduated co-workers, had come out of a more formal business program as opposed to her degree in the liberal arts. Upon hearing of her ‘history’ or ‘psych’ major, he turned to her in a meeting and brazenly said, “what are you doing here?” Without missing a beat, she responded by saying, “to do the things you cannot!” A brilliant retort and was coming from someone that could articulate her liberal arts experience and how it would be a good translation to that financial working environment.

But for many, that transition and translation is not so easy.  College is a major expense in one’s lifetime but students who don’t follow their hearts by delving into subjects they’re most passionate about will ultimately hurt their chances of a successful—and satisfying—career in the long term, many college officials say.

For college students, declaring a major can be a stressful moment in one’s academic career. What do I major in? What should I choose? Now I have to live with this? These are some of the questions that plague thousands of newly minted college students each year, looking ahead, producing beads of sweat and who have nightmares of doing the ‘diploma walk’ only to head off the stage after graduation directly into an unemployment line.

For many, they view it as though they essentially are to say, ‘this is now what I am to do for life…’ While true to some degree, no pun intended, a major is really nothing more than saying I am specializing in an area of interest and taking the classes to support such. For someone who already has a career destination in mind; say they want to build bridges as an engineer or be a surgeon, they are lucky in that they are on a defined path and their declaration of major is more of a natural means to an end. The more difficult task is when one doesn’t necessarily have a set outcome in mind; no set path or destination, and choosing or declaring a major can be a pretty stressful addition as one feels they are essentially locking in by having to ‘choose their future.’

The good news is that, as stated above, a major is a focus and what, for many, is missing in their college experience, is a real, comprehensive understanding as to how that major is, or can be, translated to the working world and charting off on a career in the future. This is especially true when majoring in the liberal arts or humanities where the outcome can be a much more abstract path as is not necessarily a linear translation to a job or career.

Much of what happens in the classroom, and its success, is in how one, upon graduation, understands the subtlety, nuance and range of skills that are now to be articulated in a way that explains its relevance to a potential employer.

Most majors are elastic in that employers rarely ‘need’ a specific degree majored in, but instead a set of skills (both hard & soft), experiences and the ability to put them into motion. It is rare that a new hire is showing up at the door with a stand-alone skill. Employers look for a mosaic of such and future college graduates have such, but many do not know they have such and it is in this applied learning, this translation that can be the ‘make or break The college experience is too often limited in making that translation for students and many times the only discussion of such is schlepped over to the off-in-the-corner, stand-alone career services to make those connections evident.

This is a huge missed opportunity in that while these dedicated offices of careers and career transition do what they can, without the full ‘eco-system’ buy-in of the campus at large, the talk of transition from academics to career is usually too limited or late in coming and is missing a great opportunity to be as effective as it could be.

Much of what should or could be done during the college experience is a synthesizing of one’s academic studies at every corner of the respective campus, in a way that fully cross-pollinates, so that students have four years of not only academic intake, but four-years of transitional understanding of their academic history, both looking back and looking ahead? The college experience should, and can, be an artful balance of synthesizing interests, skills, personality strengths and acquired knowledge while at the same time acquiring tangible experience outside of the classroom.

In a perfect world, in the first four semesters, when wrapping up the sophomore year, if possible, this synergistic learning would make for a much better understanding of one’s choosing a major and how it ultimately can be a better blueprint for the transition to career and life after college.

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What’s Missing in the College Experience? Part 3 of 4

A stands for 'average!'

A stands for ‘average!’

Part 3 of “What’s Missing in the College Experience” – Everyone’s Getting A’s

There has been an over-saturation of high grades in the academic world lately. I am not nearly the first to write about the subject; the phenomena has caught the attention of many school administrations as well. The truth is that, statistically, most people are average. Most people fall near the middle of a bell curve, but many college professors have been awarding a disproportionate number of A’s to students. The prevalent culture dictates that if you don’t have A’s across the board, you aren’t a good student. This plays heavily into an unrealistic expectation for students of how the world will react to them, and overall it hurts their levels of success in the working world.” (Eli Lisseck ’13)

I don’t think that it’s been any secret in terms how ‘academic creep’ has seeped into our educational institutions. It has certainly been not an isolated manifestation as democratization has worked its way into the fabric of many parts of society; trophies awarded for showing up, everyone on the field getting a ball, surveys (see below) really becoming a simple pass/fail response instead of recognizing shades of grey, etc.

In terms of academia, it has been an increasing trend creeping through the college campuses and taking over the academic culture in a slow, and steadily upward way. Even reaching the Ivy Leagues with the most recent, and perhaps the most publicized showcasing in the news being Harvard and how grade inflation, or the expectation thereof, has become the new rule. In Harvard’s case in particular, the ‘average’ grade is reported as being an ‘A’ with the median grade being an ‘A minus.’ Turns out one of the nation’s most ‘rigorous’ academic programs is also one of the nation’s most lenient graders.

Now how is this even possible you ask? In fact, it is, and should be, statistically impossible for if you were to look at a bell curve, there should be an appropriate distribution of each grade, A through F with the average award being somewhere in the middle near the C range. So, whatever the rumors were about C being average, apparently that’s not the case anymore.

Currently, as an A has become the new C on students’ transcripts, it brings the question to mind, what does earning an ‘A’ even mean anymore if they’re being given out like confetti? I wrote in a previous post about an increase in employer skepticism as they have the luxury in today’s economy to really put the lens of scrutiny on potential candidates in the hiring process. It has changed the hiring process in that there’s nothing really to differentiate a candidate today if you simply look at one’s transcript and academic history; everyone is stellar, spectacular and an A-level scholar. So when an A used to mean that a student was putting in the sweat-equity to earn that mark, now it is looked upon as merely an automatic, an expectation on the employer’s part, so, again, if everyone has one, what is its real value? And if it doesn’t reflect exceptionality, what does?

Further, according to a December Washington Post article, nearly 41 percent of undergraduates obtain a grade of A- or higher, while only 5 percent of undergraduates are receiving grades of C or less, nationally. Again, this is a statistical impossibility of the true bell curve’s measurement of students as a group and, what the grade inflation obviates is, that colleges are losing their grasp on how to gauge students’ work and the ramifications attached to that.

There is a two-fold factor that has contributed to grade inflation making its creep in our nation’s colleges and universities. One is mainly because employers want the ‘best’ students and so it stands to reason that they want to see A’s. If a student receives an A then they must be good. Secondly, in combination with this, generally professors want to help their students and in addition they simply want to be liked, which is perfectly understandable but in an overarching way, in helping, they are hurting.

For an employer who’s hiring on-campus, and A means exceptional, and that’s all they’ll see in the moment. They’ll just see that A, of that student, in that moment which, hypothetically, was awarded to that individual student for his/her perfect competence in Corporate Finance or something of that ilk. They are, or I should say were, unaware that the grade they coveting, could essentially be offered by any student they are to meet.

It reminds me of a recent (analogous) interaction I had when bringing a Volvo in for service. I had the work done, paid the bill and left. Afterwards, I was asked to complete a survey on my ‘experience’ as everything is now an experience. I agreed and the survey was a typical 1-10 sort, meaning 1’s get everyone fired and 10 is exceptional!

Or so I had assumed. In thinking about my ‘experience’ and also thinking it good; I’ll give 7’s & 8’s as I thought it fair and representative of their work. For reference, to me a 1 is either losing the car I came in with or breaking something, making it worse AND charging me for it, while a 10, on the other hand, would be when the work is done for free along with a paid trip to Tahiti!

In any case, shortly after seeing the 7’s & 8’s I recorded on the survey I received a call from the dealer’s “Crisis Team” to mitigate this catastrophe….

They asked me “what was wrong and why was I dissatisfied?”

I said “I wasn’t at all.”

They said “well if that’s the case, then we really aspire to receive 10’s on the survey.”

So, I asked, “if that’s the case, why did you not qualify that to begin with and if so, then what does the 1-9 on your survey really even mean?”

They told me that “anything below a 10 was a failure and they would seek to rectify such.”

That didn’t really answer my question so I again said, “essentially what’s the point of 1-9 then? Shouldn’t it just be pass/fail instead if you’re not allowing for an gradation in the evaluative process? I stated that I was happy with the work, it wasn’t a binary situation of either a 10 (happy) or everything else (sad). I wasn’t willing to just simply give 10’s and if you’re wanting to view this as a ‘failure’ then that is your option to do so.”

Getting back to the issue at hand, academics, the real solution, and the more difficult one, like the service issue I just reflected on, is to deflate the grade nationally across the spectrum. Allow for the shades in between a simple pass or fail structure. Faculty, managers, supervisors, whatever the case may be, must grade throughout the spectrum and be willing to give D’s and C’s for average work, and students must once again feel the need and work hard for the almighty A. If this is the case then the A can once again achieve something in it’s real meaning; being exceptional!

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When Does the Interview Actually ‘Begin?’ Part 2

The "interview" is every interaction you have!

The “interview” is every interaction you have!

Last week I asked the question ‘when does the interview actually begin‘ and now here’s another example of when interviewing, as part of your job search, it’s best to be on your game – all the time!

When I was the Director of Recruiting & Employer Relations for Mount Holyoke College’s Career Development Center, we had what was, at the time, a very good and disproportionately large amount of activity in our career center both on the student and employer front.

Annually, in the fall, ‘banking season’ hit like clockwork as all the heavy-hitters from Wall Street and beyond came up to the (Pioneer) Valley to recruit for internships and full-time employment, each trying to get a jump on their competitors in the process.  What helped was that we shared recruiting opportunities with other institutions in the area so this was added benefit to the employers coming to the area; they got access to 5 colleges for the price of one in only one or two days of their staff time!

New and aspiring analysts and interns were needed and the likes of JPMorganChase, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, UBS, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Lehman Brothers, Barclays (sadly, some of these are now casualties to the 2008 financial hiccup) and many others, would arrive on campus for their catered information sessions so that the team could present the value of their respective organization over a nice meal and some mingling and networking time.  This would typically happen the evening before their a day-long roster of pre-selected analyst want-to-be’s interviewing skills being put to the test.

One of my favorites was a woman who came up each year to host the festivities.  She was an alumna of Mount Holyoke so there was a bit of an allegiance on her part but she also wanted to make sure that the process was done and done well, meeting the candidates herself. Not that she had any distrust in her team or was a micro-manager.  She didn’t and she wasn’t.  But she DID view her visit as a way to tell the prospects “this is important and I’m making the trip to say so.” As she was up in the ranks too, as a Managing Director on Wall Street, she was a player for real and the students knew this and were thankful she was to make the trip.

The day-long interviews would take place and at the end of such, the team would gather and chat about who they think should get the ‘Holy Grail’ of an invitation for a second round back at the corporate headquarters in Manhattan.  For those that got this invitation, they were on their way! Large attrition happened in the first round but of the few selected for the second, they had a good chance of receiving an offer.

The day of the second round interviews in NYC was where you’d meet a good cross-pollination of members of the organization and get a better picture of what each of them did.  This Managing Director was interested in watching how the candidates would navigate the day in the city and their introductions around the office.  In particular, though, and unbeknownst to the candidates, one of the most important interactions and moments of their day was navigating through reception.

She never told them this or qualified it in any way, but for her it was one of, if not the, most important part of the day’s screening.  She’d watch each and every candidate and their interactions with the person or people at reception and carefully register how the candidates treated those individuals behind the desk.  If there was any sense of less than stellar treatment that potential candidate, their potential just went away in the moment. they’d still go through the machinations of the day’s plans, but an offer would never then come.

Any sign of dissent, disrespect or condescension to the reception staff was a death knell for a candidate and she would wield this without any elasticity no matter how well the candidate ‘nailed’ their second round day!  To her it was an interpolated measurement of how that candidate, if hired, might be in interactions with clients, customers or staff alike, and for this Managing Director, if one treated anyone with any sort of that demeanor, home they went.

Her reasoning was that everyone is on their “best behavior” when meeting with the people they think are important in the moment.  She wanted to see, in sort of an organic way, that there was no variation in their treatment of individuals they were to come in contact with, no matter how low or high in the pecking order, real or perceived.  This was her baseline measurement; no matter how good the rest of the day to be, this was the foundation in her measuring the emotional IQ, social graces and moral fiber of each and every candidate and while it was never the final decision to hire a candidate, it was ALWAYS evidence for the decision not to….

Optimism in the Job Search – A Short (True) Story

A new take on keeping positive!

A new take on staying positive!

The job search is a funny thing and in these recent economic times it has been made all the more difficult even for the most seasoned. There is no question that in conducting an effective and comprehensive job search, it is of the up-most importance to keep oneself in good spirits and of a good frame of mind as this has a ripple effect through every interaction during one’s search.  

Probably one of the most ‘extreme’ examples of this, and I put extreme in quotes because in this case it is, but in a good way, as you’ll see by the end of this writing.  I was having lunch with a friend the other day and to give a little background, he’s spent his working life in customer service/relations on the corporate side of the fence.  He first spent many years in banking, starting as a teller and working his way into customer relations and eventually into client account management.  After a series of mergers and acquisitions hostile take-overs, his bank folded and many of the staff were let go, re-positioned or re-located.

He was transferred to a branch bank in an urban area that he wasn’t particularly pleased about, but he still had a job.  For about two-weeks things went along as regular; customers coming and going, bank operations happening as normal, really the only differences being a new commute and the building was much smaller from what he was accustomed to having come from the main location.  

After about two-weeks of that regular, mundane sort of banking operations & existence, his career path was changed a bit when two men came in with masks, pistols and an agenda.  Everyone was ordered to the floor and, as expected in these sorts of situations, was ordered to stay quiet, money was then demanded and with that, the exchange could be done with, hopefully.

However, this case was a bit different once the money was handed over, which was given with no question as everyone’s safety is obviously paramount.  These guys decided, after they had secured their ‘withdrawal,’ one of them reaching over the teller counter, and like any good Chekhov story, ‘if there’s a gun involved it better go bang!’  So, without looking, he squeezed the trigger and fired a couple shots into the floor not realizing who and where people were positioned on the other side.

Luckily, after the guy ventilated the floor a bit, and having left, everyone, employees and customers alike having survived the melee relatively unscathed, got up, relieved as the alarms started going off.  Needless to say, and not realizing in it in the moment, my friend’s banking career ended as one of those random shots hit the floor no more than 6 inches from his side. Other than going to testify against the two men (they were caught a short time after the excitement) he never went back having decided that being shot at was really best being avoided in his future and FOR his future.  

Fast forward 19 years later, after having spent said time, again, in customer service/relations but this time in a much safer, hidden-from-the-public, cubicle environment of a major toy manufacturer, where he was recently laid off, among many others, after some restructuring of its corporate bottom line.  Back to our lunch where we were chatting about the times, the economy and kind of commiserating about such as it’s been about a year’s time now since he received his pink-slip, I asked him

“how’s your job search going?”  

“Miserable,” he said.  

I asked, “are you getting any call-backs or interviews so far…?”  

He said, “no, I’m lucky in that as other’s go through all the trouble of applying, getting interviews and then told ‘no,’ I simply get rejected right from the get-go!”  He then went on to say, “this gives me more time to do things I really enjoy instead of all that job-search rigmarole for nothing…”  

In saying this, we both broke out in laughter, reminding me of a time years ago when we were mountain biking and he let fly another great quip…  

As we were riding, looking back as I realized he had crashed.  I yelled, “are you ok?”

He said, “oh yeah, I’m fine.  Luckily the ground was there to stop my fall!”

He said both in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way, and I realized this, but also at the same time, with a legitimate, real sense of keeping his chin up in the whole process and recognizing with his situation the cliche, ‘if you’re given lemons, make lemonade!’  I found this refreshing and with an optimism that, as an employer, who wouldn’t want it in their ranks?  

He’ll find that next venture, some-way, some-time, and when he does, they’ll be the luckier to have him!

When Does the Interview Actually ‘Begin?’ Part 1

Watch what & when you speak!

Watch what & when you speak!

As we approach nearer the end of the spring semester, graduation looms for the nation’s college seniors.  This leaves many new potential entrants of the job market starting to examine and prepare for this annual transition and individual rite of passage.

The impending interviews will be out there waiting for many that have started to plant some seeds in their job search.  With that, the talk about when and where the interview actually begins becomes a topic for many career professionals and pundits.  Many say it is when you arrive the obligatory 10 or 15 minutes early before your slated time-slot.  Some say it’s once the handshake has taken place and a welcome into the office has been given. Many theories and opinions are bandied about.

Frankly, while all can be ‘true’ for the interview proper; the actual sit-down, face-to-face with your interviewer, the ‘rules’ for such, can be a bit misleading.  Anything that transpires within the actual framework of the interview, no matter how good, can be undone in a heartbeat after such when the employer starts to put in a little time to research your candidacy, with intent or not, and what you need to understand is that as a new job seeker, and for the future, your interview definitely does not start when you show up for a meeting! What many people fail to realize is that interviews begin even before the moment of contact is made with an organization as evidenced by the anecdote to follow.

When I was Director of Recruiting and Employer Relations for Mount Holyoke College’ Career Development Center there were many instances, but one in particular, when this really came to light.  We had a great recruiting program and many organizational and corporate ‘heavy-hitters.’ On this given day, one of the recruiters, who was from PriceWaterhouseCoopers, was up from NYC for a day of interviewing on-campus.  He had a full-day’s roster and was ready to vet some aspiring students.

In hearing he was to be on-campus for the day, his sister who was in the area and also happened to be an alumna of Mount Holyoke, had agreed to grab lunch together during his interviewing schedule break.  On a full-day 12 to 13 interviews could be conducted by a recruiter and our campus’ recruiting program was also open to other colleges in the area as we shared opportunities collaboratively.

On this day, like many other days, an aspiring senior from one of the neighboring institutions was on the interview roster and he just happened to be scheduled for the 11:30 slot just before the lunch break.  He did all the proper things for his interview. Was appropriately dressed, researched and well-prepared.  Was even about 20 minutes early before his interview and was planning to sit quietly and wind-down, which he did.

At 11:30, he met the interviewer, went in and ‘hit it out of the park!’  Great interview!  Great candidate!  Seemed really interested and knowledgeable and in addition, one who really wanted and was willing to learn.  Perfect, right?  The interview ends, he thanks his interviewer and off he goes as is practice.

In the interim, as the interview was being conducted, the PWC rep’s sister had also come a little early to meet her brother for lunch. While sitting there, she saw the candidate come out of the office and she hasked her brother, “did you just meet with him?”

He said, “yes, great, great candidate. Really nailed it.” “Why?”

Then she told him….

What no one realized at the time was that while he, the candidate, was walking across campus to get to the career center for his interview, on-time yet, he was chatting with his friend the whole way.  During this ‘chat,’ he had nothing good to say about this particular organization or the field in general and was just complaining the whole way about having to ‘work the machine.’
As she was scheduled to meet her brother for lunch and, also heading over early, she happened to be right behind this candidate AND his friend listening to the whole conversation along the way! She didn’t realize the context or the connection in the moment and he was unaware that forces in the world are indeed around him.

So, when she saw him come out of the interview, she connected the dots and put it all together; guess what she told said recruiter?  Yep, you guessed it!  She relayed all the negativity coming out of him that she heard on the way over to the interview.  Sadly, as great a candidate as he was, his chances of joining with that organization ended in that very moment!

Needless to say, he never did get that role or join PriceWaterhouseCoopers back then.  Sadly, also, was that he never knew the reason why an offer nor a continuation of consideration was not extended as many employers, even more so now, are reluctant to say anything in terms of feedback or criticism.

I thought this was a ‘teaching moment’ (I really dislike that term/buzz phrase) so I did later follow up with him to try to offer some clarity on the issue and the circumstances in particular which he was both oblivious to and very thankful for.  If nothing else, I am confident that he realized that the process can be much larger than it seems and the ‘six-degrees’ of separation are out there, watching you, working either with you or against you.  It’s up to you to decide how much help or hindrance they are to be though as every action, motion and on-line post is being watched and part of the over-all evaluation!

To all the aspiring new graduates, recent graduates and Millennials in general, keep the path traveled well-groomed and clean behind you as it will clear what’s in front of you too!

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The Buzz Words are Killing Me!

Overheard from the planet, umm, table next to me recently while sitting at a café; 

Academic Buzz Words

Buzzwords of Academia

“Often I see a common core representation of the information exposure delivery model with an achievable outcome of deliverables that best fits our pedagogy in increasing students’ knowledge of self and of work and learning options. These best practices in increasing student’s understanding of hegemony in the process of engaging incoming students in major exploration prior to their arrival on a college campus and allowing us to blend the marginalized into a better acknowledgement of cultural acceptance and awareness…”

Huh?  I could feel the headache starting to come on…. 

I was, in fact, minding my own business for the most part, but the unintelligible pretension next to me was too much to ignore so I started to tune in.  On an intellectual level I understood each and every word.  I was able to process what was said; “dog,” “staircase,” “banana,” each word I knew, but while understanding such, when strung together, what the hell did I just hear?  What are you meaning to say?  It makes absolutely no sense!  Is it even English? 

So, it got me to thinking as I live in a college town and these sorts of discussions are pretty commonplace.  Enough so, that it’s almost the norm and it’s easy to forget what simple, normal, regular, refreshing laymen’s speak is like.  I looked around a bit and actually found there’s a coined term for this alternative form of English; “Academese.”

“Academese” – An artificial form of communication commonly used in institutes of higher education designed to make small, irrelevant ideas appear important and original. Proficiency in academese is achieved when you begin inventing your own words and no one can understand what you are writing or saying (as defined by the “Tameri Guide for Writers”).  A “new language” used to communicate amongst each other that is so patronizingly littered with industry jargon, that it can only elicit two possible responses; the quizzical head-shaking of one who hears it, doesn’t get it, and feels they may be missing something, OR the nodding of heads in Jim Jones like, ‘drink-the-Kool-Aid,’ admiration by the very loyal followers that commit to such.

Now let me just qualify that this writing is in no way meant to be a condemnation of the academic institutions in our nation, nor those that work within.  Bear in mind that it is written somewhat tongue-in-cheek, and that this may be seen as an attempt to take away people’s ‘boxes’ that they like to work within, but there is cause for something to think about.  What’s said and communicated in the academic ranks today is a far different way of speaking, literally a different form of communication than in the ‘work place’ of America. 

This may not be ‘news’ as it’s really nothing new, but what IS new is how divergent in recent years the language chasm has evolved?  Realizing this, and that it is our nation’s preparation of a new generation for the work force, does bring to mind the question, are the college grads indeed being best served by those who steward?

David Foster Wallace is quoted as saying;  “I regard Academic English not as a dialectal variation but as a grotesque debasement of Standard Written English, and loathe it even more than the stilted incoherencies of Presidental English… or the mangled pieties of ‘Business Speak….’  and in support of this utter contempt and intolerance I cite no less an authority than Mr. G. Orwell, who 50 years ago had Academic English pegged as a ‘mixture of vagueness and sheer incompetence’ in which ‘it is normal to come across long passages which are almost completely lacking in meaning.’”  – Harper’s Magazine, April 2001

Time in college & university is frequently some of the most intellectually stimulating years of one’s life.  Unfortunately, it also means navigating an exhausting and expansive gauntlet of ever increasing pretense and jargon that is a verbal exercise of intellectual leap-frog, if you will.  Let’s examine a few of the now ubiquitous linguistic words & phrases of the academic elite, in no particular order;

“Giving 110%” – When you hear this said, you’re basically hearing someone yelling that they’ve failed 3rd grade math!  Effort’s certainly measurable but 100% is everything!  You can give no more!  Your ‘everything,’ no matter what it consists of, is 100%, that’s it!  Such a cliché expression and because ‘everything’ is ALL you can give, if you’re claiming it, you’ve essentially duped someone into expecting less so that anything more can be perceived as that ‘110%!’  If that’s the case, you’ve still only given, at most, ‘everything,’ or 100%!  Even if you were to clone yourself, then you’d be expected to give 100% x 2.  At 110% you’ve then failed by 45%.  See the maths!?

“Reach Out” – this has become a mainstay in the language of wanting or needing to include others.  Jargon for, “let’s set up a meeting” or “let’s contact this person.”  Just say that.  Use your words people! 

“Leverage” – This is the granddaddy of all when it comes to nouns converted to verbs, second only to Facebook as in, ‘facebook me!’  ‘Leverage’ is sweepingly used as a pseudo-verb to describe how manipulation can be applied to a situation.  Should be a noun and remain such.

“Think Outside the Box” – This is a ridiculous and overly used phrase coined by the consulting industry and then adopted by academia long after it had already become cliché.  No one thinks ‘inside’ the box anymore!  They’re not allowed to!  This tired cliché means to approach a problem or situation in an unconventional fashion.  How about this?  Just think!  Get rid of the box!!!

“Best Practice(s)” – Ugh!  I can’t go an hour without seeing or reading about someone asking for best practices!  This refers to a method or technique that is supposed to deliver ‘superior results’ compared with other methods and techniques.  But who knowingly uses ‘mediocre practices’ and who defines what’s ‘best?’  Singularly one of the most pompous linguistic confections sprinkled over the industry.  Particularly annoying is the fact that it flows like cocaine in ‘Tony Montana’s’ house in the movie “Scarface.”

“Deliverables” – Deliverables?  Really?  How and when did this become the term for a finished product?  Granted, it does sound sexy in the meeting; “why yes, the student deliverables are in the final stages.”  Proposals, workshops, brochures, whatever the case may be, just say what you mean instead of trying to make it sound more important than it is.

“Multi-Tasker”Let’s give this one its LONG overdue resting place.  Multi-tasking is doing a lot, poorly.  Simple.  Sadly, it’s used waaay too often as a badge of honor; “I’m so busy but I’m multi-tasking to get the job done.”  In saying such, you’re telling people two things; 1) that your time management is essentially poor so you’re scratching at a lot of things at once, and 2) you may be ‘getting a lot done’ but nothing particularly well done!  No matter the accolades for your heroic undertakings, quantity kills quality.  This phrase really needs to be sent to the dust-bin.

“Empower” – Everything and everyone is always being ’empowered.’  Sounds good on the surface but what’s not realized is that this overly used verb basically says “you’re allowed do a little bit of this, but I’m still in charge here.  I am empowering you.”  Essentially tasked by someone above you in pay grade when they would like you to do a job of some importance. It’s also called the ‘most condescending transitive verb’ ever.  If ever you hear this platitudinous request directed your way, duck, ’cause you’re being talked down to but you’re NOT supposed to realize such….

“Irregardless” – This is the only ‘word’ on this list that isn’t actually a word!  Please; if you mean ‘regardless’ or ‘irrespective,’ say such!  All too often, these are now combined, so much to the point that somehow this bastardized amalgam of the English language seems to have made a place in our vocabulary.  Once, at a campus-wide meeting, I listened to the Dean of the School of Education let this one fly in the presentation.  No one said anything but you could hear the collective gasp!

“Buy-In” – This means agreement on a course of action.  Sadly, it is laced with a disingenuous undertone.  Notes David Logan, professor of management and organization at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business: “Asking for someone’s ‘buy-in’ says, ‘I have an idea.  I didn’t involve you because I didn’t value you enough to discuss it with you.  I want you to embrace it as if you were in on it from the beginning, because that would make me feel really good.’”  

“Cultural” – Sure, “cultural” is already a relatively common word, but academics tend to let it flow as freely as a Porsche on the German Autobahn.  Presumably, this is because they want their oft-captive audiences to think them ever so worldly and knowledgeable.  Its use is never ending as a shameless inclusion and plug; “we’re off for a cultural meal!”  “I have a cultural meeting to attend.”  “The get together was so cultural in nature…!”

“Dichotomy” – The ubiquity of “dichotomy” understandably happens due to its near-universal relevance as conveniently it can be made to have context in anything & everything.  Every class and degree path guarantees studying at least one!  That being said, the good thing is that once you’re done with your degree and have graduated, you’ll not hear the word again and can forget it exists. 

“Diaspora” – As a concept, it is entirely necessary for students to understand the social, political, anthropological, sociological, psychological, geo-political and economic elements of the word and how it relates to the world around them.  Just don’t confuse it with ‘diorama’ as the art majors have a hold on that one!

“Empirical” – Visible, tangible, simple as that!  No matter one’s major, he or she will likely encounter “empirical” over and over and over and over and over and over and probably over again until you’re using it everywhere unbeknownst as we do in the word “like;” “hold on, I’m going to get my empirical example of a sandwich.”  Granted, it can be an essential component of debate and rhetoric, but would it kill professors to use a few synonyms for variety’s sake?

“Hegemony” – There exists no aesthetically sexier term than “hegemony.” But college students know all too well that even hotness with a touch of Marxism gets tiresome after repeated exposure, especially if it keeps hammering out the exact same points.  We get it!  (Wikipedia definition) “Cultural Hegemony describes the domination of a culturally diverse society by the ruling class, who manipulate the culture of the society — the beliefs, explanations, perceptions, values, and mores — so that their ruling-class worldview becomes the worldview that is imposed and accepted as the cultural norm; as the universally valid dominant ideology that justifies the social, political, and economic status quo as natural, inevitable, perpetual and beneficial for everyone, rather than as artificial social constructs that benefit only the ruling class.”  Huh?

“Collaborate” – If your department head or supervisor says ‘you need to collaborate,’ they are telling you, without telling you, that they are not entrusting you on you own to handle the task at hand and there remains better or more credible sources elsewhere so “reach out” (see above) and get them involved!

“Marginalized” – Marginalized and education walk arm-in-arm on the way home every night.  Like plenty of other terms highlighted here, few will deny that “marginalized” doesn’t have its place at the table too.  The fringes of society should be heard and have a place but with the frequency of its application, students also have the right to hear the idea relayed with different words, and there’s a numbness growing to its use as ‘everything is now in the margins.’

“Pedagogy” – Good luck getting those first-years (remember, “freshman” is a tired, old anachronism) to listen to anything attached to this in a sentence.  While it actually sports a simple, straightforward definition; one more easily conveyed using layman’s terms, people will spend more time wondering if the second ‘g’ is pronounced ‘gee’ or not?

Very few classrooms, not to mention the institutions themselves, around the nation provide effective career readiness curriculum and understanding that actually demonstrate career decision-making models that show students how to analyze, evaluate, decide, set career plans while in the midst of their studies and then tangibly put them into action. There is a huge gap, a chasm if you will, between academic institutions and what they provide, and what the employment market on the other side of the fence is actually looking for? 

The interesting thing is that the institutions don’t see this or see it in varying degrees of acceptance and, as the saying goes; ‘they don’t know what they don’t know?’  The language, as mentioned in this writing, is part & parcel to the divide.  You might even say “empirical” evidence, from the list above. 

People don’t communicate like this off campus, after graduation.  Not recognizing such shows a great anachronism in the teaching, the preparing of our nation’s youth, the college grad, for their next endeavor; adulthood and the employment that comes packaged with such. 

Until ‘life after college’ connection permeates every department and academic major on the nation’s campuses, this divide will be evident and students leaving with their degrees in hand, wet-behind-the-ears being told, “You’re going to be great!  Do great things!  You’re you!” and other such cliché and empty accolades, the divide will continue in its evidence and the students, now graduates, will be looking back asking “why did I pay for that!?    

So the next time you hear someone mentioning the need to “reach out,” “touch base,” “shift a paradigm,” “leverage a best practice” or worse “join a tiger team,” please kindly lean in and tell them to ‘do it!’  Just don’t let them say they’re doing it!

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