Thoughts on "Career but without College"

The Wall Street Journal had a great article entitled, “Career but without College” (July 19-20, 2014) written by Tamar Jacoby.

She writes:

A third requirement of a good career path is that it must be aligned with economic needs. ...Many high schools and community colleges teach job skills, but too many of them use outmoded techniques and equipment or steer young people to industries that aren't growing. The best way to stay current is to partner with an employer, who can offer advice about what’s in demand, help design curricula, lend equipment even provide training.

So, the article is talking about an education-company partnership. That is why colleges have employe advisory boards and it is super important.

Another angle would be individual-individual partnership. Reach out to people in your field of interest and establish a relationship. Conduct informational interviews, ask for guidance, and be somewhat consistent in your correspondence. Because of my work in secondary education, I thought this was a very good idea for a high school student about to embark on his/her post-secondary journey.

Don’t just read college brochures, but truly immerse yourself in these important decisions.

What should I do? How do I figure it out?

Throughout your life, you might find yourself asking questions like “What should I do?” You might find yourself answering that question differently at different points in your life (maybe not).

Here are some resources that might help you answer that question.

Formal career assessments

Self-Directed Search  http://www.self-directed-search.com/.

The Strong Interest Inventory

Clifton StrengthsFinder

Website

http://www.onetonline.org/

http://www.vocopher.com/CSI/CCI_workbook.pdf

Books

The Adventures of Johnny Bunko by Daniel Pink

What Color Is Your Parachute by Dick Bolles

Is 8th Grade an appropriate time to start networking?

The Highland Park Landmark (April,17,2014) had a full page article about a career day that Elm Place Middle School ran. They had a yoga instructor, County Sheriff, musician, dentist, interior designer,etc. come and speak to middle schoolers. It was a nice article and pretty straight forward, but there was one quote that caught my eye.

And while seeing a classmate’s parent or a former student talk about their career might give students the reassurance that any of these careers are within their reach, it’s also an important networking opportunity; something many people might not think about as early as eighth grade. So much of life is about networking and it can start as early as eighth grade. In fact, we have a student who, five years ago, heard radio broadcaster David Kaplan and he later reached out in college and got an internship in the summer.

Question:

Is 8th grade a premature time to network and think about college internships? Are 8th graders supposed to think 6+ years down the road?

Follow Up Question

If the kids in Elm Place Middle School are consciously networking as early as 8th grade does it raise the bar for the rest of the future workforce? Are other 8th graders going to be at a disadvantage? Does this type of networking happen naturally without a career day? (e.g. your friend's father knows someone, your uncle works at... etc.)

Thanks for reading! Just wanted to share something that was on my mind.

How Ford can sell more cars in India or The transferable Skills of a sociologist

Transferable skills are determined by analyzing past accomplishments/experiences and using outside-the-box thinking to figure out where else you can apply those skills.

For example…

I was talking to an Insurance Salesmen who was looking to hire other salesmen for his practice. We started talking about the retail banking industry and how it is not as vibrant as it once was (think automated tellers). He felt that someone with teller experience would potentially be a good insurance salesman. The retail bank tellers have solid experience with customer service and up-selling other banking products during a transaction. He said that experience would translate very well into selling insurance products. To me, that is a classic case of transferable skills.

Personally, I like the transferable skill concept because it is liberating. It can help you switch careers/fields without going back to school. It helps an individual understand his/her market value.

While reading a Wall Street Journal article, GM Ford Struggle to Crack India's Market I started to think about the transferable skills of an Sociologists. The article talks about how the American car companies were trying to break into the car market in India.

In India until recently, GM and Ford focused mainly on the pricier sedan segment and bigger sport-utility vehicles, which haven't been as popular as inexpensive hatchbacks.

ONET defines the Sociologist’s work as…

Study human society and social behavior by examining the groups and social institutions that people form, as well as various social, religious, political, and business organizations. May study the behavior and interaction of groups, trace their origin and growth, and analyze the influence of group activities on individual members.(http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/19-3041.00)

Wouldn’t GM and Ford be able to sell more cars in India if they had a Sociologists in their employ? They could have figured out what type of car people in India want? What to name the car? Etc.

The power of Transferable skills, right?

Reading the Wall Street Journal thru a Career Development lenses

 “Former Yale President will lead Coursea”

MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are truly becoming a significant entity and it is exciting! EdX, Udacity, Coursea, etc. are all MOOC providers that can revolutionize higher education.

Will people’s perceptions change about MOOCs replacing traditional higher education? If yes, how long will that take? Can MOOCs ever completely replace traditional higher education? What about all the student services that come with a diploma? What about the built-in networking? Maybe a MOOC is cheaper, but will it help you land that job?

Which brings me to the next article…

 “Grad Student’s Loans Surge”

It was a short and provocative article about borrowing money for post-secondary education. They illustrated the piece with John Berg’s story who was 150k in debt because of his loans for a doctorate in psychology.  He got a gig at the VA, but it is hard to buy a home at $68,000/year and $1000/month payments.

I don’t believe you can plan out your career years in advance, but how does the cost of higher education factor into someone’s career planning? Is there a breaking point where traditional higher education isn’t worth the cost?

The Tommy Gun and your career

Daniel Pink wrote a wonderful book called

The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need

It has six insightful and empowering lessons. The last one is entitled

Leave an imprint

“Recognize that your life isn’t infinite and that you should use your limited time here to do something that matters.”

In a different book, I read about  John T. Thompson and his invention, the Thompson submachine gun (or the Tommy Gun). He has an interesting story because his invention was used in several capacities.  When the gun came to market there weren’t any major wars to use it in. WWI had just ended and John Thompson died before the gun was used to “clear trenches” in WWII. Law enforcement agencies and gangsters used the gun. The infamous St. Valentine's Day Massacre utilized Tommy guns.

Did John Thompson feel like he made a positive imprint? Was he disappointed knowing that gangsters like Al Capone used his invention for crime? Thompson never truly got to see the good his gun did in WWII as a “trench sweeper” that helped defeat the Axis. Would that have made a difference?

Career and the Unexpected

 Krumboltz writes that, "The counselor's job is to facilitate the learning of skills, interests, beliefs, values, work habits and personal qualities that enable each client to create a satisfying life in a constantly changing work environment."

 Economic situations, unexpected personal events, unexpected information throw everyone for a curve, right?

How do you look at that curve? Is it a normal aspect of career choice or something that results in a strikeout? 

By viewing unplanned events as opportunities for learning, you are changing the game.

 Not only do you wait for the curve, but perhaps you should take action to generate and find those "curveball" opportunities.

The other day I saw a bank manager in a public forum trying to drum up business. I initiated a conversation about the future of retail banking. His response surprised me and I gained a perspective I did not have before. I also gained his email to follow up with for a couple of my projects. Who knows, right?