Like Ripples in Water, Professional Growth Happens in Ebbs and Waves

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When I decided to pursue my doctorate degree, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. All I knew was that I loved school and saw it as a way to continue my own personal and professional growth and development. I didn’t pay much attention to how I would grow into an academic over time, but now that I reflect on it, it was definitely not a linear process, but rather occurred in ebbs and waves.

What I was not ready for was how non-linear the process would be. There were significant fits and stops; times where my fingers could not keep up with the thoughts coming to me, and other times when I literally cried because I could not make sense of a basic idea in class. There were times when I spoke like the expert I was becoming, and times when I could not even find the words to explain my thoughts. There were times I felt like my mind was not my own, racing ahead of my comfort zone, and times when it was completely blank.

These waves of activity followed by ebbs of inactivity also affected me physically. One week I would gain weight and then the following week I would lose it again. I’m sure others who have written a thesis can relate to this. During those periods when things stalled for me, it seemed like my entire PhD would come to a screeching halt. Fortunately, I did complete the PhD and life proceeded onward. It was these experiences, these taller waves separating the ebbs, that became so transformational for me. They taught me to anticipate the patterns and to know when and how to act.

Doing a PhD also involves developing important but smaller, transferrable skills such as focus, tenacity, resilience, resourcefulness, agility, adaptability, concise writing, insight, self-knowledge, etc. These formed small building blocks for my professional development As it turns out, these skills also developed in waves and ebbs. They did not come into focus slowly over time, but instead appeared suddenly because I needed them right then & there to achieve a milestone or complete an assignment.

Coming to accept these is an intricate part of my successes over time. I hear the same from colleagues who have experienced this in their own professional development. Perhaps this process hearkens back to our human development, which also tends to come in waves – like that growth spurt when we turned 12. Perhaps our professional development emulates the natural human growth spurts earlier in life. Whatever the reason, I have come to accept these are a normal part of the process.

Interestingly, these waves also occur in our business. When we started with our website, we saw an original surge in interest that quickly reached a plateau. When we started distributing a regular newsletter we noticed another wave of activity not just on our website, but also in people wanting to partner with us. The phones rang more often, our PO box required regular checks, and email boxes filled. When we branched out into Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and LinkedIn, we saw another wave of interest.

It was because of these successive waves that we are now at the top of most Google searches – just type in Collegiate Gigster and we’re right there under the Gigster.com ad (they paid for that, so we’re not worried). With every new milestone of success, we saw the ripple effect across all the ways we interfaced with the public, from our websites to our newsletter to our social media pages.

Most recently we were asked why we don’t teach classes. A silly question, really, especially since this was our original plan for the business. So we dusted off the idea and we are starting our Collegiate Seminars this November. Again, we saw a new wave in interest across all our media. When we go live with Public Academic, we expect to see another wave hitting all our  platforms.

At Colégas we see the importance of embracing these waves as a company. We can’t stress enough the importance of recognizing this process in your own businesses. It has been my experience in life, and especially in my professional life, and it is now what I am seeing in the growth of our business. Like ripples of water on a quiet pond, growth occurs in tall waves followed by wide ebbs in between.

Transferrable Skills for the Over-40 Set

In a previous blog on transferrable skills, it was brought to my attention that the suggestions I made were more appropriate for those just finishing college and entering the workforce for the first time. That is true. That demographic doesn’t have the skills and experience that will help them land their dream job right away. Often, they have never worked and have only “done school”, so they need some coaching to identify what skills they did acquire while completing their education that can translate into skills that will help them succeed in the world of work.

The suggestion was to look at how those who are 40 or older can identify their skills and translate them to fit to the modern work environment. As I was drafting this blog, I came across a post by Jo Weech who spoke about the experiences of interviewing while 40. Her descriptions are at times funny while other times they are soul-crushing. Her recommendations are for the employer to focus on the opportunities, skills, insights, and maturity that “older” employees can bring to an organization.

This blog is about what you can do to shine. I go back to the categories I used in my previous blog and ask you to do some reflection. Look at areas in your resume and work (both paid and unpaid) experience and see how they can be retooled to fit the contemporary work environment:

Management

• Project management

• Time management

• Problem-solving

• Organizing events

• Task-focused

• Managing a budget

Supervising Skills

• Domestic and international team leadership

• Mentoring and coaching peers

• Team-work

• Interpersonal skills

• Skilled in working with diverse groups

• Leading small or large groups

Entrepreneurship Skills:

• Creating or doing something new

• Risk-taking

• Being resilient

• Winning awards and grants

• Networking

• International travel and experience

Communication Skills:

• Writing

• Public speaking

• Multi-lingual abilities

• Training others

• Keeping the important people informed about your progress

• Web, email, content creation and social media

Knowledge & Information Skills:

• Learning (taking classes)

• Critical thinking

• Research & analysis

• Managing data & information

• IT applications & programming languages

• Subject matter expertise

You may never have had to look at your resume and your experiences in these terms. Developing different ways to look at your skills, abilities, and experience gives you the insight to decipher job descriptions to better understand what it being asked by the employer. You need to become more adept at reading between the lines and seeing how to market your skills, abilities, and experience to match what is being asked of in the job description. You need to become a translator, someone who understands the job market and knows how to make your skills fit.

Remember, survival of the fittest has nothing to do with strength, and everything to do with the ability to adapt. Those over 40 experience a different kind of Imposter Syndrome. This sort of imposter isn’t one that knows they will be found out as a fake, but one who doesn’t feel like they belong in the current work environment. With that mindset, we give off a feeling of inadequacy…sometimes this feeling is so strong that we don’t even bother to apply for the jobs in the first place.

I’m not saying that your feelings are wrong. They are not…they are a real response to a real situation. What I am saying is that you have control over your future. You must remember the drive and desire to succeed that got you the work experience you have now. You must not get stuck in the thinking that “at my age, I shouldn’t be doing this!” whatever “this” is. The new economy requires all of us to retool and continue learning, growing, and challenging ourselves.

Demographers are saying that the US population will continue to age well into the 21st century. Birth rates are dropping, and people are living longer. Currently employers don’t know what to do to better integrating a multi-generational workforce. That needs to change in order for industry to remain competitive worldwide. You may be just the person to help in that transition. Businesses must do better in abiding by the EEOC guidelines and consider diversifying their hiring practices to ensure that the best candidate for the job is hired. In the meantime, do the work on yourself, both mentally and physically, to make sure you present your best self to the world. Evolution benefits those who adapt.

Keep it Positive! Seeing speed-bumps rather than road-blocks

As a Collegiate Gigster, I read a lot of cynicism online. It usually comes up in conversations about the economy or politics, but also life in general. Life can be difficult, especially for Gigsters and I’m not saying it isn’t. What I am saying is that our life is full of events, and it is the meaning we give to these events that make them negative or positive, or what I call seeing roadblocks vs. speed-bumps.

As we proceed through our day at work, having negative thoughts does not make the work any easier. Sometimes we really have to search for the good in the things around us. According to Johns Hopkins University medical researchers, having a positive mental outlook benefits our body and mind. From a physiological perspective, when you are positive, you are more relaxed and focused on the present moment. This allows optimal blood flow to your entire brain, but primarily the frontal cortex, to better problem-solve and deal with issues as they come up. If you are in a negative mindset, you are usually under stress. This state concentrates the blood flow in the part of the brain where the fight-or-flight response originates from. It limits your visual focus and you react, instead of responding to situations and events more introspectively.

Remaining positive, even hopeful, is one way to keep your mind and your brain healthy and consequently receptive to the positive resources in the environment. The article also talks of re-framing your assessment of the circumstances around you. Take for instance the example of getting into an accident on the way to work. Yes, this isn’t ideal, but it does happen. How we deal with this circumstance determines whether this is a roadblock or a speed-bump. A roadblock could lead you to fall apart at the side of road, crying and feeling helpless and hopeless. A speed-bump mentality focuses your mind on the foresight of paying your car insurance on-time (and adding roadside assistance to the policy).

Also consider the fact that it was just a fender bender and not a horrible wreck that could have landed you and possibly others in the hospital. Focusing on the positives allows you to not only better deal with the immediate issues, but also helps you move on from them. The simple mental exercise of re-framing can keep you from going down a rabbit hole of despair that limits your ability to help yourself.

Reach out, ask for help, ask questions, stay humble, smile, laugh. Also have faith in your abilities and your capacity to thrive. Your smarts got you this far, so I’m confident that you will continue to transform those roadblocks into speed-bumps. I like to think that Collegiate Gigsters are a little better at this than most, but this advice is good for everyone.