Laura Miller

I appreciate the section about introversion as I am an introvert and a task oriented person. I am not good at “small talk”. Knowing you can navigate creating networking using your own personality and style makes this process seem a lot less intimidating.

Informational interviews are a great way to find hidden job opportunities, but can also be super-intimidating. I think having my students go through a real “cold call” request for an informational interview will really help them overcome those fears and be ready to use this strategy when the time comes.

I’m excited to work with students on the idea of inbound and outbound networking. Who do you know in the industry you are seeking (outbound)? And, try finding someone to contact at a company you are interested in and reach out to see if you can make contact (inbound).  I think talking to both someone they know and someone they don’t know about their chosen industry will be a great experience.

I’m thinking about my own current networks (school colleagues), and how I can better engage within that existing network. Doing my own work on this will help me talk about the benefits with my students. In particular, the challenge for me as an introvert would be to nurture dormant relationships. How can I encourage students to do this when I’m not comfortable doing it? I appreciate this opportunity to work on it.

I appreciate the idea of paying attention to understanding and relevance when communicating via email or virtually. Being thoughtful of how we replace nonverbal communication in these circumstances is important to continue connections and rapport with students. 

It’s so important to take the time to really understand the client and what they are actually looking for. Once you know the “big picture” it becomes easier to coach the client into helping themselves achieve their goal. Do not solve the problems for them, instead, be there for support as they consider different solutions on their own.

This has been a wonderful refresher on active listening, body language and positive feedback. It is good to take a step back as a counselor or coach and assess yourself to ensure you are using these tools and ideas effectively.

I found myself enjoying this as almost a "refresher" to counseling. Going over concepts such as; using unconditional positive regard, developing rapport, and active listening- these are all key ingredients to being a good counselor.  It was fun to go over these basics again.  In addition, I really like the idea of coach vs. manager.  As I reflect on my years as a counselor, I've found I'm becoming much more of a "coach" as I've found over the years that having students find answers for themselves is just far more productive than giving them the answers.

The post interview communication is so important as it shows interest in the company, as well as thoughtfulness and responsibility. The idea of building a portfolio feels to me like the replacement of the paper resume.

I’m wondering if it really is still important to bring paper marketing materials to an interview. If a job seeker has an online profile and portfolio, and has digitally submitted all application materials, why bring paper copies? It feels as though we are moving away from paper materials enough now that this step would redundant.