The 411 on informational interviews

One thing is clear:  Knowing how to conduct Informational interviews is a must if you are looking to find an internship, a job or just get clearer on your career path. 

Three steps that will make informational interviewing a smart, effective and productive process:

• Do thorough research about the company or career of interest.  I repeat.  Do thorough research and I mean thorough.  Go beyond the website.  Find alums in your school that work in the company or work in the jobs you would like to have.  One particularly effective technique is to set up Google search for the topic, company or job description you want.  This way you will be able to skim through information that has already been compiled for you.
• Decide on a specific question to lead with during your interview.  Once you become knowledgeable about the company you are interested, you can pick a few areas where you can go deeper.  These could be a specific area or products within the company where you see your skills be valuable.  Those you are interviewing will be more eager to share their opinion with you if they realize you are really serious about the subject of the interview.
• Find decision makers and advocates. Focus on places where decision makers and advocates gather.  Industry and professional associations are the most common places to find them.  Conferences are also good places to network.  Volunteering to any of these venues gets you closer to meeting speakers, authors, and experts.

Take advantage of the opportunity that Informational interviewing offers:  to learn about a job or industry of interest while making contact with those actively involved in the field.  The best of both worlds!

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Latina empowerment and development (LEAD) conference at Harvard College

The fourth annual LEAD Conference unfolded without a hitch.  Neither the cold nor the icy conditions stopped participants from attending this past Saturday morning.  They came from as far as California and New York to get inspiration from successful Latinas, to learn outside the classroom, and to network with others who want to make a difference. 

LEAD 2011 committee.  Photo credit:  Vanessa Monterosa

The conference was organized by Latinas Unidas at Harvard College, a student group founded in 1991.    True to the acronym that defines their name, the committee worked with a graduate student advisor—a first for the group—to be strategic about the organization and implementation of the conference.  “My experience with these wonderful young ladies has been nothing but rewarding:  They are bright, intelligent, dependable, and proactive,” said Vanessa Monterosa, the graduate student advisor who is currently pursuing a degree in Technology in Education at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Throughout the day, attendees enjoyed panel discussions and workshops ranging from resume, cover letter and interviewing tips to conversations about improving the number of Latinos attending and graduating from college.  Marcela Garcia, the editor from El Planeta newspaper, keynoted the event.

Two themes captured the essence of the 2011 LEAD Conference:

Perseverance.  In one form or another, panelists and workshop facilitators stressed the importance of being focused and staying the course.  “When you see an opportunity, grab it and stick with it,” advised Yvonne Garcia, Director of Segment Marketing at Liberty Mutual and National Vice President of ALPFA (Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting).

Pay it forward.  During the session Inspiring Tomorrow’s Leaders, Dr. Paz Olivérez, Founder and Director of Futuros, a California-based organization that promotes and improves college access for low income and immigrant students, reminded the audience of the responsibility of giving back.  “Having a college education is a privilege that not everyone has,” she added.  “And with privilege comes the responsibility to support the efforts of those who want to attend college but face obstacles.”

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Summer internships

If you weren’t sure about applying for an internship in the fall—when companies traditionally recruit their summer interns—you are in luck.  Just-in-time internships are the latest trend these days. Think of applying for an internship as a rolling process.  There is no definite deadline.  It all depends on finding the opportunity that fits you.

Along those lines, here are three main big picture ideas to help you make the most out of your internship experience…should you decide to pursue it.

Start with the end in mind.  What do you want from this internship?  Money?  A reputable name in your resume? The opportunity to work in an entrepreneurial environment? You must decide first what your key priority is.  It’s kind of working backwards.  Think of next September and ask yourself, what would make me the happiest when I think back about my summer internship? Once you have an answer (e.g. money, big-name company) then zero in on those companies that could make your goal a reality.

Make sure you will learn one new skill (at least).  When looking for an internship, one minimum requirement I usually advise clients is to find an opportunity that will challenge them in some way.  If you can do spreadsheets in your sleep, and this job is about Excel 90% of the time, you are going for the easy job.  But if the internship allows the learning of other similar programs or building on the skills you already have, then you will not only have something to show on your resume but your brain will also get a workout.  Now, if your main priority is to earn as much money as possible (remember, point 1?), then not learning a new skill may be the trade off you have to pay.  Your decision.

Seek opportunities to expand your network (responsibly).  An internship experience is a natural way to meet new people who may become future peers or bosses.  And more importantly, references.  Be open and available to social events with you summer colleagues.  The goal here is to build a professional image or dependability and likeability.  Stay away from careless and reckless behavior which can be easily captured on camera.

Remember the saying, "tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are?" The same applies to internships.  Tell me what kind of internship you are after, and I will tell you where you will end up.

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Career milestones while in college

As you may know from previous posts, I am a relentless advocate for a proactive mindset when it comes to managing your career.   In my opinion, college students who seek out opportunities to develop their own professional paths --while in college—will ultimately increase their success rate to find internships and jobs. 

In order to be proactive, one has to become goal oriented.  The same intent placed in writing a great paper or being an outstanding student while in college needs to be applied to creating and opening doors that ultimately will lead to jobs.  With this in mind, I offer you a few suggested goals—or milestones—to accomplish at each year of your college experience. 

Freshman Year. This is a year of transitions.  Students leave the high school lifestyle—familiar and structured-- and embark into college life—individual and unknown.  The focus during this period—in addition to academic achievement – needs to be in two areas:  social skills and managing time. Developing social skills while in college means to learn to interact with others—not only as friends and buddies—but also as team members.  This is the time when your professional reputation starts to take shape.  Time management is a key ingredient of that reputation.  Whereas in high school most of your classes were scheduled for you, in college you pick what you want to take and when.

Sophomore Year. At this stage, you know the law of the land.  You know who is a lazy student or who is a good team player.  You also have a better idea of professors’ preferred way of teaching and grading.  This is the time to up your game.  Start to consider a few majors, areas of interest, internships, companies—if have not done so already.  Get involved in student organizations, and expand your horizons beyond your immediate residence hall, or study group.  If possible, take classes or cross register at a different school.

Junior Year.  Start to get serious about internships, jobs and professional relationships.  Take calculated risks.  This is a good time to start an entrepreneurial venture if you want to.  You know enough not to leap into a dark hole and still have a one year cushion in case it doesn’t work.  The same applies to internships.  Explore internship opportunities in different areas if you have several choices.

Senior Year.  During this period focus on communicating the value you bring to hiring companies.  Showcase all the skills you have developed in the past four years.  Your resume is only one of the tools to help market yourself.  Networking events, information sessions and tapping into your school’s alumni network are a few other avenues to reach out to your prospective target employer.

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The benefits of joining professional organizations

When I suggest to college students to join one or two professional associations, they usually give me a look of disbelief and confusion.  “I am not a professional, yet,” is a usual response.  Or, “It’s too expensive.”

They could not be more wrong!!

Professional organizations are one of the best sources for college students to explore career options, expand and enhance a professional network, and identify and develop leadership skills.   Some skeptics may argue that student organizations fulfill a similar role.  I beg to differ.  Although student organizations offer an excellent forum for students to develop as leaders, the experience is mainly at the peer level.  Meanwhile, professional organizations provide college students with the chance to interact with peers from other schools and professionals who could later become mentors or, better yet, employers.

If I were to summarize the benefits of joining a professional organization in one word, I would choose opportunities.  More specifically, professional organizations offer college students significant benefits such as:

Resources.  In the form of scholarships, supplies (e.g. notebooks, phones), free training and professional development, tutoring, and mentoring.  Human resource departments of large corporations usually have a college liaison that works with colleges and professional organizations. 

Jobs and internships.  Future employers welcome the chance to get know and to groom their prospective employees.  Every networking event creates an opportunity to meet decision makers from companies that could lead to an invitation to an open house or an interview.

Leadership development.  Becoming a member of a professional organization places college students at the forefront of leadership roles.  By getting involved in committees, members learn about collaboration, team work, delegation and accountability—all while developing and executing a project.

So, next time you hear about an upcoming event hosted by a professional organization in your field of interest, think twice before turning it down flat.

In terms of cost, most student memberships for a year period are on average $25.  Imagine:     How much would you invest to increase your chances of getting the job of your dreams or finding the mentor you always wanted? Would that value be $25?

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Skills, knowledge, and traits…oh my!

When asking for career advice, how many times how we heard, ‘play to your strengths,’ or ‘focus on what you are good at?’  Or my personal favorite:  ‘share your gifts with the world.’  Although there is nothing wrong with these words, they offer plenty of encouragement but very little direction.

Here is my own version of these inspirational phrases:  You need to know what your strengths are before you can share them with the world.  There is a twist to this issue, though.  What if I am not sure what my strengths are? And what do we mean by strengths, anyway?

There are three different ways to define strengths in terms of career development and job search:  Skills, Knowledge and Traits.  To illustrate the differences among these three, let me introduce you to Mike.  Mike is a freshman with an aptitude for languages.  He is bilingual in Spanish and is working on his French. 

Skill is the specific ability to perform an action which could have been learned through the environment or deliberately acquired.  Skill mastery could be reached over time.  For instance, Mike’s ability to communicate in several languages is a skill.  He may have picked up Spanish at home.   So for him being bilingual is an inherent part of growing up.  But his efforts to become fluent in French are due to his own choice. 

Knowledge refers to information, data, and subjects learned by formal or informal means.    In Mike’s case, his ability to communicate in Spanish relies on words and idioms absorbed throughout of cumulative learning.  This database of information became the foundation to his ability to communicate in Spanish. 

Traits are personal tendencies that result in behavior.  These are natural preferences that influence how we perceive and behave.  For instance, Mike’s natural predisposition to being friendly and outgoing might have influenced his interest in languages.

Now that we are clear about the distinct differences among these three types of strengths, what skill would you like to strengthen? How about learning to network effectively?  Or perhaps you may want to become better at managing your time?

Whatever your next step may be, keep in mind that the road to self-discovery and self-improvement is an ongoing but rewarding process.  Enjoy the ride!

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Proactive career management 101

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” Management guru Peter F. Drucker.

            Although Drucker’s words are over a decade old, they still ring true in many ways.  For instance, preventive health care aims to foster healthy eating and stress reduction habits to decrease the likelihood of future illness.  Financial literacy workshops look to arm adults with tools to make sound, long-term financial decisions that will generate wealth and economic security.  Through these efforts,  we attempt to create a healthier and more secure financial future for ourselves.

            Why, then, can’t we do the same for our professional future?

            You may be saying, ‘I’m already doing that. I am looking for internships and visiting the Career Center often.’ If you are taking steps towards your career, congratulations!  Every step taken in the right direction is a victory.  However, what I am proposing to you is to lay a foundation that will allow you to start building and managing your career during--not after-- your college years.  The goal is to become deliberate and conscious about shaping the future of your professional life.  Here are four initial steps to proactively start managing your career:

• Have strategic and tactical goals.  Strategic goals are those that have long term impact and create significant change.  Tactical goals are those that are generally short term and aim to solve a specific issue.  A strategic career goal could be to choose a major.  A tactical goal is to learn how to write effective cover letters.
• Understand and accept that YOU are in charge of your career.  Yes, your family may be helping you pay for college and the career counselor may be guiding through the process.  Ultimately, the decision of what path to pursue rests with you.  You are the chief executive officer (CEO) of your professional life.
• Start to narrow down your career options.  Choose two to four career paths, industries or companies that are attractive to you.  Having only a few will allow you to focus all your energy and time on learning all you can about them.  You can then decide if they are the right fit for you.  By the way, this step is a strategic goal.
• Be clear about your skills, traits and abilities.  The more you know about yourself, the better equipped you will be to build on what you have and improve and develop what you want to change.  There are tests you can take to identify specific traits.  Your career center office can guide you with this step.

            As the CEO of your career, are you ready to make an executive decision and take charge of your professional life?

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