Do job interviews make you nervous? If so, you’re not alone. Many people get nervous because they don’t know what questions will be asked. However, there is one question you can almost guarantee you will be asked. In this solo episode, Amy gives advice on how to answer the most frequently asked interview question, “Tell me about yourself.” Since you already know one of the questions, there is no reason not to be prepared with a great answer. Amy shares a simple formula for answering this question, so you can prepare for interviews ahead of time. Two complete sample answers are provided.

Topics in this episode:

• Why it’s important to prepare for job interviews
• Two sample answers for the most frequently asked interview question
• A formula for answering the question “Tell me about yourself”
• The importance of sharing quantifiable results in interviews (and on resumes)

Christine O’Neill is an “Intrepid Explorer.” She likens herself to those who subscribe to the idea that all who wander are not lost, and although she wandered a bit in her career life, she eventually found exactly what she was looking for.

Christine was an English major in college, but she graduated without any idea of what she wanted to do. Sticking to an area involving her college studies, she went to work for Ogilvy PR. She learned a lot, but she knew this wasn’t what she would do her entire career. She was also still living at home, and it was time to move on. The “Intrepid Explorer” had no job offer, but she decided to make a move to Chicago where many of her college friends were working. After several months she landed a job with Rapp Collins and this opportunity brought her into the advertising world. Again, she learned and enjoyed her work but when she felt it was time to take on the next challenge, she made a move to Discover Card. There she had the chance to experience product development. After a number of years in Chicago, she made the decision to return to New York.

She had received a good severance package on her departure, so she was able to take some time for herself and think again about her career direction. These deliberations led her to Razorfish. With her years of experience, she became a publicist there. During her time at Razorfish, the company merged. She pivoted successfully into the newly formed company, and was riding high with great accounts and teams. But there came a point when she asked herself with all the successes she’d enjoyed, why was she not yet feeling really fulfilled? Christine made the decision to find someone to help her sort through what was going on.

She spent a year thoroughly examining her feelings and refining in her mind what she truly wanted from her career. Eventually she realized that she was meant to be a coach. She initially rejected the idea, but with much consideration, she knew it was the right decision.

Her first move was to enroll at IPEC, an accredited coach training program. She wanted to begin with a solid foundation. There she learned to really listen. Her training helped her to open new doors and explore new ways of thinking and problem solving. Once she had completed the IPEC training, she felt ready to strike out on her own.

In beginning her own practice, she followed the methods she had been taught at IPEC. As time went on, she acquired on the job training as well. She realized that to help her clients, she often had to assist them in exploring fears and negative self-talk before they could understand their career situation. The work has proven highly gratifying for her, so much so that she has expanded her practice to include executive coaching, leadership coaching, coaching for entrepreneurs and a variety of other business-related coaching areas.

Christine concludes by discussing with Amy the importance of resiliency. She explains how we can reframe the way we see things in order to deal more effectively at work and in our personal lives. She tells us some people know what they are meant to do from a very young age. But then there are those who need to sample many experiences before they find their true passion. Like Christine O’Neill, these are the “Intrepid Explorers.”

Topics in this episode:

• How positive self-talk is empowering
• How you can improve your resiliency and why you should
• How challenging yourself is important to your career and to your mental health
• How to take the best from a difficult situation and profit by the experience
• How being a risk-taker is a skill you can learn when you allow yourself to extend beyond your comfort zone

Links:

www.christineoneillcoaching.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/christineoneill/

Meet Cathy Farmer, a woman who helped blaze trails by integrating computers into American businesses. The term “IT” was relatively new when she began her career journey. She forged the way for women in the field wherever she was employed as she was usually the first and only woman operating a computer in the office. Her acumen with both computers and business made her unique during the 1980s when few women were encouraged to explore career opportunities in the field. Here’s a bit about the roots that produced this remarkable, independent woman.

Cathy was one of six children, and knew if she wanted to go to college, she would have to pay her own way. Her father was a big influence in her life and he always encouraged her to pursue whatever she wanted to learn, and for Cathy, this meant math and science. She began her college studies at DePauw University. After 2 years, she decided to take time off and enter the workforce. She dabbled in lots of jobs from bartending to handling insurance claims. After a year and a half at the insurance company, she returned to school at UMass/Boston where she majored in math and computer science, earning a BA in 1986.

At this point, she moved with her new husband to San Francisco. There she was hired by a beauty supply company to do coding and was their first female programmer. She was able to absorb a lot about business practices, and paid attention to how the entire company was run. Little did she know then how that knowledge would serve her well in the future. After a couple of years, she wanted more of a challenge and moved on to become a software programmer at Jandel Scientific.

She learned DOS and used Windows 1 and gained maximum proficiency in a 6 1/2-year stint. Her next stop was a small computer consulting firm, and time teaching at a Berkeley extension. This was followed by yet more consulting work, and after consulting at Kaiser Permanente, she became an employee there in 1998. She stayed for 15 years, proving invaluable to the company because of her abilities in both business and computers. When she left, it was to consult on her own.

A fascinating opportunity came along from Caesars’ Entertainment. It was a departure from all she’d done before, and she gained valuable marketing experience while she was there. It was at this juncture that Cathy turned her attention to startups. She tells us she has always had an entrepreneurial spirit, so she jumped in by becoming a co-founder of a startup (which has now been put on the back burner).

With two siblings on the autism spectrum, she gave some thought to how she could involve herself and support the efforts of those working for that cause. She became a member of the board of directors for the Organization for Autism Research in 2016, and in 2018, the National Science Foundation named her an Industry Mentor. She holds that seat still today. In 2019, she became the representative Consumer Reviewer of Grants for the DCMRP Autism Program. (Her list of titles in the autism support area is significant and you can access it on her LinkedIn profile.) In 2020, she co-founded “Autism Angels Group” to provide seed money for “private markets and for-profit enterprises that seek to include and empower those on the autism spectrum and “to aggressively drive economic opportunities and technology-driven solutions that create a positive social impact for the autism community.” Cathy describes this endeavor as the best thing she has ever done. She tells us she’s found that the work immerses her and makes her happy. What a wonderful way to begin to begin a second chapter in one’s career life!

Links:

www.autismangelsgroup.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathysf/

Topics in this episode:

• Don’t let others determine your path
• Think about all of the strengths and skills you bring to the table when applying for a new job (or starting a business)
• Growth involves risk-taking
• How rewarding it can be to do something you’re passionate about
• What is angel investing and how does it help startups

Kelly Travis found her path to success was a route through serious adversity at first. She sits down with Amy today to describe how she forged a successful and fulfilling career after passing through some dark times. But as is often the case, those painful experiences contributed to a passion to help others through their own difficulties.

Kelly was and is a competitive runner, and an All-American, in fact. College for her was an opportunity to continue with her sport. Full of anticipation and willingness to work to advance, she was unfortunately placed in the hands of a bad college coach. His body shaming and demands for weight loss profoundly intimidated the impressionable 19 year-old. She tried hard to please, but relentless demands from him and those she imposed on herself landed her in the hospital for 6 months with a severe eating disorder diagnosis.

During her hospital therapy, Kelly decided she would return to school, but not as the business major she had been. She determined she wanted to do something that would help her to empower women. When she returned to school, she began a major in public health, concentrating on mental health and addiction. This led to a first post college job as a social worker with at risk youth.

Kelly was still struggling to find herself. After a couple of years, she did a complete pivot away from social work. Since she had always had an entrepreneurial streak, she ventured into the business realm where she spent a decade. She found her competitive nature was very helpful in the publishing field. But the arrival of her first son gave her a time to examine where she was in her life, and although she was financially successful, she was not fulfilled and happy. She felt a need to be authentic as well as creative. She pushed ahead, put in the work, and started her own consulting firm. She was edging closer to something that felt true to her. When her second son was expected, she pivoted once more. Her self work was not yet complete, but she moved forward and began a coaching practice.

She initially started her business by being a trainer, but this morphed into something much more. She realized the commonality of what makes us happy and successful in any walk of life could and should be applied to the work she was doing. Her business model was taking new form.

She began helping clients to learn successful goal-setting techniques. She discusses with Amy everything from establishing a client’s real goals (as opposed to those created for them by others), to the incremental steps she or he must take to achieve those goals. She delves into self-sabotage, Imposter Syndrome, fear of taking action and other roadblocks people set up as she did, along the way to fulfillment.

Kelly Travis has created a unique life coaching practice rooted in her own experiences and refined by her continued education. She offers clients guidance as they take their own journey of self-discovery. She helps them recognize those often self-imposed inhibitors that delay or even stop personal and professional growth. She teaches the structure of goal setting and importantly, holds clients accountable when they make excuses, fall back or aren’t putting in the work.

There’s a lot to digest in today’s episode with Kelly Travis. Her interview will leave you asking yourself more than one or two good questions.

• How to set attainable, realistic goals
• How ingrained habits and traits can be a double-edged sword
• Career success, like personal happiness, is a process not an event
• How “stepping outside the box” is important to anyone who wants to succeed
• Why an “all or nothing” mindset is a landmine.

Links:

• kellytravis.net
• She Doesn’t Settle (podcast)
• @kellythelp on Instagram

Ann Mincey Jetton is an inspirational leader and was not your garden variety top executive in a highly competitive industry. She is a supreme communicator who brings her enthusiasm for encouraging the human spirit to everything she does. Today you will meet this dynamic businesswoman whose success seems almost incidental next to her real passion for uplifting those she comes to know and care for. Her life and career paths illustrate her message, and today Amy guides her through that story.

Ann grew up in southwestern Ohio and graduated from Southern Nazarene University in Oklahoma. She married her college sweetheart, but their union failed. She returned home to Ohio to rethink her future, and in doing so, took a part time job as a receptionist at a friend’s hair salon. She enjoyed working there for a year while she thought about her future. One day a sales representative from Redken hair care products was in the salon and told Ann there was a Redken field rep job she’d be perfect for. (Redken was the premier hair care line at that time and is now owned by the L’Oreal Group.) Ann loaded up her belongings and traveled to California, and in April of 1975, she began training for the popular hair care line. During her California years at Redken, she moved into the area of client education as her communication abilities became more and more evident.

You will not hear Ann describe how successful she was in her initial years, but when L’Oreal bought Redken in 1993, Ann was asked to continue on with them and move to headquarters in New York City. She had earned the title Director of Public Relations. She wasn’t sure she knew much about public relations, but like most successful people, she risked the chance to move forward. She found good hires to support her efforts, and together they forged a powerful department.

Ann began establishing strong relationships with influential beauty editors. These relationships opened doors, and increased Ann’s respect in the industry. She was tasked by L’Oreal to promote a line of products designed to create healthy hair and skin from within. This line was surely ahead of its time and although the line eventually ended, Ann’s hard work and exceptional skills were noted.

Using the theme “you are what you think,” Ann created a campaign of inspirational messaging. Her efforts eventually led to another promotion and the title Vice President of Global Communications. Not content with sitting behind a desk, Ann identified the most elite L’Oreal clients and salons. She spent her last years before retirement working closely with them to inspire and encourage each to greater success by connecting more meaningfully with their clientele. She continues to maintain ties to L’Oreal and many of her clients to this day. Periodically she can be found directing or speaking at seminars, workshops and conventions because of those long time relationships.

Although Ann retired from Redken, she has many other business and personal interests she pursues now. She’s written inspirational books that have led to annual retreats in Laguna Beach and Palm Springs, California. She is a counselor for HeartMath, a wellness organization that emphasizes heart-brain science. (heartmath.com) She is also president of her own brand, Starshine Systems, Inc. Ann has remarried happily and supports the work of her pastor husband and his church. And today her work was to inspire you with her faith that has taken her far in both her personal life and in business. This is not a story you will hear every day, but it is one that says the strength of your values and your beliefs can uplift you to be the best possible no matter what avenues in life you take.

Topics in this episode:

• Harnessing the power of belief in oneself
• The importance of channeling gratitude
• How having a foundation allows one to risk with less fear
• How to create a positive attitude
• How giving to others brings a return in all aspects of your life and builds self-confidence;
• Aspects of self-empowerment in highly competitive business

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ann-mincey-7720121/

Miia Torera is another success story in Amy’s podcast about people who have crafted unique careers. Prepare to be surprised by the major pivots she makes! She will inspire you to do the same if you’re teetering on the edge of a career move.

Miia didn’t enter college to experiment with coursework. She knew she wanted to major in international politics, follow that up with a law degree, and then find a position with the United Nations, but she made a short route change on her career roadmap when she went to work for a nonprofit program after receiving her bachelor’s degree. The job took her overseas where she worked for a democracy development program. She learned a lot as she taught people in underdeveloped countries about how democracy works. She continued on to law school though and eventually traveled globally with the UN and other international rights organizations. She found her varied work gratifying, but soon, her first major career shift loomed.

While doing her second summer internship in law school at Columbia, she worked for a law firm. She did well, and when she finished her studies, she was offered a position. It was 2008, and new positions were not plentiful, so she gave the offer serious thought. She would be based in New York and would be able to spend more time with family. And the icing on the cake was that the firm would allow her to continue the pro bono work she had gained such a passion for. She decided to take the job and so became a corporate litigator working with compliance and anti-corruption issues.

Fast forward now to early 2020. Miia had enjoyed over a decade of success in her law career and with her pro bono work, but it was time to grow and make a change. There was something undone but important in her life that she now felt ready to address more fully.

Miia comes from a family of successful writers. She wrote too, but not professionally as they did. She considered her writing an avocation and didn’t believe herself destined to write as a full-time occupation. But little by little, her humorous and anonymous online writing came to light, and she began to receive notice. It occurred to her that she might actually have a talent! The writing aspirations that had been quietly humming in the back of her mind became louder.

When the Covid-19 Pandemic intervened in travel plans, she found herself at home writing to amuse her children, and thus her first children’s books took shape. These were followed by comics, and the positive reader response was astonishing! She was inundated by the intense labor it took to produce and publish everything she was creating. With some help from family and others, she is now working full-time to produce new inspiring literature for kids.

2020 has turned into a pivotal year in Miia Torera’s life and career. She has fulfilled her personal dreams of bringing justice to people in need, and now she plants those dreams of justice in the minds of children through her writing. Her superhero characters are written to provide “diverse stories for diverse children.”

Topics in this episode:

• This year has reminded us that life can change quickly, so go for your dreams
• Family influences and support should never be discounted
• Self-confidence can make a big difference in personal success
• You aren’t one dimensional. Give yourself permission to make life changes based on your multiple talents and interests
• It’s good to plan early, but be flexible with your career plan
• Maximize your creativity by figuring out when and where you are most productive. Make a space that allows for minimal distractions
• People often take on too much. Allow yourself to reach out for assistance when the time comes.

Links:

https://www.miiato.com

amazon.com/author/miiato 

Today’s episode of Fashionably Late will answer burning questions about our mysterious interviewer, Amy Rowland. Who is she anyway? How did she come to have a podcast about careers? And what does she bring that will help you learn something from listening to her interviews? We hope today to answer these questions and more as Amy sits on the other side of the table and is interviewed herself.

Amy tells us she’s learned a lot of great career tips from the interviews she’s conducted, but she also has a wealth of experience of her own to contribute. Here’s an example for you that Amy will tell us about in her own interview. Amy is an NCAA champion tennis player twice over! The drive to excel and her competitiveness were major motivators in her early years. From watching Wimbledon as a 7 year-old to past her master’s degree, Amy was involved with the sport. She credits tennis with teaching her a lot about following your passion and striving to be your best. Most importantly, it taught her about who she was and what strengths she had.

One disappointing fact she discovered was that she was not going to be an elite player, yet she still loved the game. She evaluated some of her other assets and realized that coaching might be the career route to take. After college, she enrolled at Smith College in a 2-year program for training coaches. Eventually this led to a college coaching position. Logically this should have been the right job for her, but it wasn’t. She wasn’t sure coaching suited her. It was time to pivot, but to what and how?

Amy will describe the process that brought her to earn a Ph.D., teach and also coach again. This experience brought with it a whole host of new life lessons which Amy shares with us. Amy’s career lessons weren’t all academic, however. She was living in New York City and loved her life there. She was meeting interesting people who were working in many fields she was unaware existed. She was fascinated with their stories, and they were very willing to share with her. Amy realized people liked to talk with her and hear her opinions. This engaging quality helped her think about her next move which was law school.

Was she ready to take on law school at age 33? There were others enrolled older than she and she was mature enough at this point to enjoy studying. She had developed a strong support circle and once more juggled her responsibilities to move forward. Her law degree took her first into litigation work and then into corporate law. She loved the challenges and learned that advising and helping clients suited her well. Eventually, she found a position with a legal recruiting firm. This work checked all the boxes for her. After a time, her entrepreneurial tendencies made her realize that she possessed the skills and enthusiasm necessary to have her own recruiting firm.

Her business, Varia Search, is the next and most exciting stage in her career journey. At Varia Search, Amy has established a boutique legal recruiting agency. She specializes in bringing together startups and tech companies with the best matched legal professionals they require. She not only has her exciting new business, but she also writes a blog and of course, does this weekly podcast. She has recently been invited as a guest for another popular podcast called “She Doesn’t Settle” centering on outstanding women who are excelling and raising the bar in business today. Hopefully, Amy’s candor and tenacity will inspire you to keep searching for that position that’s just right for you.

Topics in this episode:

• Advanced degrees and law school require great commitment and financial expense; Do your research, weigh the pros and cons and make sure you truly have the resources to see you through such a big commitment
• How three common fears can hold you back from achieving the most you can from a career
• How to make successful cold calls or emails
• Learn to separate fact from fancy when it comes to what you truly enjoy doing and what is practical
• How to confidently make the decision to take a leap and pivot out of the situation you know

Links:

www.variasearch.com

[email protected]

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amylrowland/

Amy interviews Dr. Margaret Rajnic today to discuss her varied career in health care and health care management. Through discussion of her own unique route, Rajnic will shine light on some of the many alternative ways one can find success and fulfillment in helping others be physically and mentally well.

Margaret Rajnic initially wanted to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology. But at age 18, she was struck by a hit and run driver and it changed the trajectory of her career plans. Instead she headed off to a local community college where she majored in Hospitality Management. Though she didn’t know it at the time, this would be the start of an academic career that would take her all the way to her current post-doctoral work. But, at the time, she was struggling with a new prosthesis, continued pain and marginalization in different jobs she tried. This began a 10-year period of job movement as she attempted to form a career path that would be fulfilling while accommodating her physical limitations.

At one point she worked a job in security. With this work, she was able to continue her education, choosing to study medicine and nursing. She eventually found a part-time job in an emergency room as a patient transporter. Then upon receiving a scholarship, she entered nursing school and earned a bachelor’s degree. She was highly successful in her work in the various departments she was assigned, but eventually felt she wanted more. She determined to continue on with classes and achieved a master’s degree and became a Nurse Practitioner. She had shown facility with management skills, so with her latest degree, she was moved into several hospital positions which were administrative rather than hands on. All the while, she was gaining valuable experience in multiple hospital departments and units.

Something better came along though that provided a better balance for her as she wanted to return to more involvement in direct patient treatment. For 5 years, she managed and built a new homeless program from the ground up. She enjoyed the work and gained new skills like grant writing. More importantly, she was able to have more contact with the center’s residents. She set up a wraparound program too for the clients and was lauded for her innovation. With her program, services continued as clients were able to leave the center.

Margaret found a new opportunity with the National Naval Medical Center. There her abilities and experience in programming and scheduling led her unit to be recognized for attending to more internal medicine patients than ever before. More opportunities came to her after she developed a medical/home model. Now she was ready to take another step forward on her career path. She became a private contractor.

As a private contractor, she found a posting seeking senior leaders in her field. Responding to this, she was selected for a group that advised for the Affordable Care Act. Eventually the group’s work culminated in the Psychiatric Inpatient Act and the Value Based Purchasing Act. At this juncture, she determined she would start her own practice and truly have the ability to be independent, focusing on those aspects of patient treatment she felt most passionate about.

You will hear Margaret describe for Amy her current work and you will learn about some of the recent paths in modern medicine that have opened. These in turn offer new ways to think about a career in the medical field. Among other things, Rajnic will explain the effect of the pandemic on her practice and the people she serves. She will make you aware of how rapidly the field of medicine is evolving. Margaret Rajnic is an entrepreneurial health care provider. She is at the vanguard of new treatments, and she is doing it her own way.

Topics in this episode:

• How adversity can be a catalyst for great success
• How to prepare yourself to begin a medical practice
• Exploring the diverse opportunities in medicine
• The advantages of tailoring studies to work
• How risk-taking becomes somewhat easier with time and experience

Links:

www.rejuvenatemaryland.com

https://www.drzgreentherapy.com/

https://baltimoreketamineclinic.com/

Today’s episode is a departure from learning how to pivot well from one career to the next. Instead it’s about an accidental entrepreneur who has found his career satisfaction helping others effectively find their own personal success. His thoughtful approach to the structure of the work culture is a model worth studying for anyone, be they owner or employee. He shares with us some of the formula for creating a business environment that is stimulating, encouraging and ultimately high achieving. Amy introduces us today then to Bill Harper, CEO and Chief Creative Officer of wmHarper, a marketing and advertising house based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Listen to his story and you will have an entire plate of food for thought when the interview concludes.

Bill started at Northern Illinois University thinking that he would major in mechanical engineering. He found that major too limiting and switched to business. He tried that on, but it didn’t fit either. A serendipitous walk by an open classroom door led him down yet another path. He overheard a presentation on product marketing and he knew this felt like it was the direction he’d been searching for. He graduated from Northern Illinois with a BFA in Visual Communications.

His first job after college was in St. Louis at the major firm, D’Arcy, Masius, Benton & Bowles. At that time, they counted among their clients Sega, M&M Mars, Purina, Pillsbury and others. This was a great learning opportunity because the company was both large and successful. As he progressed, Bill found himself attracted to the work to be done at smaller firms. He enjoyed the closer community and the increased project ownership they offered. Eventually he took an opportunity to join a small startup. This was the point where he found his true calling as an entrepreneur. He learned a lot and as you’ll hear him emphasize, he’s always learning. Most significantly, he learned that creativity and productivity didn’t spring from him while delivering solutions and answers to employees. Instead, creating a culture where the employees were given the freedom and expectation to find their own answers changed everything for him as a company owner and for the people he would hire. He learned that if employees had the same values that the company espoused, everyone would experience more satisfaction, and their work would reflect their mutual trust as well as a cohesive sense of harmony. So how do you find the ideal employee? Bill explains how he threw traditional interviewing techniques out the window. His questions to potential hires changed. In job interviews, he looks for those working towards something rather than running away from something.

Bill’s philosophy and advice speak to everyone who works in a group situation. He provides a provocative slant on why you may not be achieving your personal best either as the boss or the employee.

Topics in this episode:

• How to empower employees to be their creative and productive best
• What elements make up an ideal work culture
• The art of curating employees
• How to stimulate team synergy and create a safe environment for risk taking
• How to answer the question “Do you know where you’re going and why you want to go there?”
• What to do if you mess up an interview
• How to get out of a rut and propel yourself forward

Links:

• wmharper.com
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/wmharper/

Today Amy speaks to Niki Spears, a motivational speaker. Niki began her career in education by teaching in a Head Start program. She worked in education for over thirty years and left her job as a school principal four years ago to support schools in creating and sustaining positive culture. 

Niki is the Co-Creator of PositiveKidsToday and Culture Cre8ion. She has written two books---The Beauty Underneath the Struggle: Creating Your Bus Story and a new children’s book titled The Hand Hug. Niki believes that if we support children and adults in embracing a positive mindset they will live a life filled with joy, love, and peace.

Amy and Niki talk about Niki’s pivot from working as a teacher and then a principal to supporting schools in creating a positive culture.  She will also talk about her recent transition to writing and motivational speaking. Niki offers advice to those struggling to find their career happiness.

Topics in this episode:

• How to pivot in your career
• The importance of staying positive
• How skills can be transferred
• There are many things you can do with one interest
• An easy way to tell if you love your job

Links:

• https://www.nikispears.com/
• https://www.amazon.com/Hand-Hug-Baelor-Books/dp/B08DSYRZFD/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=niki+spears&qid=1603722268&sr=8-2
• https://www.amazon.com/Beauty-Underneath-Struggle-Creating-Story/dp/B08GPW4B64/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=niki+spears&qid=1603722285&sr=8-1