WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2022 - MORE GRADUATES CONTINUED

 WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2022 - GRADUATES - CONTINUED

This week, I’ve been looking at some of my graduates.

FREIDA LEARNS ABOUT BODY LANGUAGE

Freida is an interesting story.  She was a shy, introverted young lady.  She was an average to a little above-average student.  

She needed experience, needed some self-confidence, and needed work experience in her major of information systems.

I like paid internships.  I think that a company that pays an intern wants a good return on investment.  Unpaid internships tend to be asked to make copies, make coffee, and run to the donut shop.   The student also is evaluated to see if they fit the company’s future.

Well, Freida just wasn’t getting an internship.  

I got a call from a non-profit, community-based organization that was looking for some technical support.  I immediately thought of Freida.  I worked with the organization and suggested Freida and we set up an interview between the director and our student.

It was maybe the most unusual interview I’ve seen.  I drove Freida to the organization’s office and introduced the director and the student.

The director was a large, enthusiastic woman - and really wanted a person for technical support.  She really bounced across the floor to greet Freida.  She said loudly, “I am SO GLAD to have you here.  We REALLY need you here.”  

Poor Freida, the shy student was physically backing away from this lady who was so happy to have the possibility of an intern.  I’ve read and studied body language and Freida’s body language was “oh my - what have I gotten myself into”; and the director’s body language was “HALLELUJAH - we have a savior” (in terms of technical support and help).

Yes, Freida did take the unpaid internship position and stayed on during her senior year.  It was a great year and a great learning experience for Freida.  She got confidence, was treated as part of the team, and was hired after she graduated from this organization and did an excellent job for the group.

*****

Now to a similar example - Greg.  (Note - all the names have been changed and I’m going through the alphabet to get names).

Greg was one of “those”  really technical guys.  He could (and would) tell you about the location of all the chips on a motherboard, about the latest developments in technology, why Unix was superior to other operating systems, and why Apple was junk.  (Have you met somebody like Greg?)

Greg’s ‘soft skills’ were greatly lagging behind his technical skills.  He was a nice guy - very smart technically - but lacking in some of the niceties of social communication.  I knew if he got the right position, he was going to be awesome, but getting the right position was going to be tough.  I thought of the old days of technology where the geeks were in the basement, keeping the mainframe going.  Management joked that occasionally somebody dropped a pizza into the computer room with a two-liter bottle of a highly caffeinated beverage.  

So, how to get Greg an internship.  He didn’t interview well.  His appearance was less than it should or could be (chipped teeth and more).

He was working at a senior living complex as a handyman.  As we talked, I suggested that maybe that senior living complex might need technical support.  

Boom - that was all it took - he made the suggestion to his boss at the senior living facility.  They hired him - and the rest is history.  It wasn’t the big-time job with Citibank, or Travelers Insurance, or The Hartford - but with a senior living organization.  And he thrived in that environment.

*****

I admit to being judgmental - and am working at getting away from that.  I wanted all of my students to take six-figure jobs, move up to be the CTO (chief technology officer) or a similar position, drive a BMW to work, and wear a suit and tie (or a dress suit for women).  

These two (and there were others) fit so well in their organizations.  They made a difference and loved what they did, and their organizations loved them.  

So, not all are cut out to be “C-level” executives; not all are going to be high-flyers making a huge amount of money - but there are jobs and organizations that need these people.  

“Find a job that you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”.  That adage implies if you are doing what you love you are not “working” in the negative sense, but thriving and growing.  

*****

American society has pushed us to make more money - but, hey, money is not the end result, but loving what you do is.  I worked for 38 years as a professor.  Could I have been in a corporate setting?  Probably.  But I loved encouraging, mentoring, and helping students become good citizens.  

Yes, LOVE WINS!!!

And, attitude is part of winning and loving!!!

Karen White, September 21, 2022, ©