High School Hamster Wheel

In this week's episode, I am delighted to welcome Christopher St-Hilaire to the podcast. Christopher is an extraordinary young man and he is proof that bumpy roads lead to beautiful destinations. At the young age of fifteen, Christopher was feeling uninspired and uninterested in what he was learning in high school, so he made the difficult decision to take a "leave of absence" from high school in search of the path that was best for him. As you'll hear during this episode, it turned out to be the right decision. Christopher's authenticity, kindness, and passion for making the world a better place will leave you believing that teens will in fact change the world.

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In this episode, I am joined by Gabe Nossier. Gabe is a transformative life coach for athletes. He works with professional athletes, weekend warriors, non-athletes, and parents of athletes in workshops, small groups, and individual coaching sessions. Gabe also hosts the "Clarity for Parents of Athletes" podcast, which is designed to help guide parents through stories from professional athletes about their journey through sports. During our conversation, Gabe talks about motivating kids both on and off the field and how pushing past their comfort zone will help young people grow. Gabe also shares his strategies for helping teen athletes find balance in their lives, plus a whole lot more. This is definitely a "game-changing" episode!

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My guest today is Calvalyn Day. You might remember Calvalyn from episode 9 of the podcast. She is a former school counselor and now works as a coach and consultant serving schools across the country. Calvalyn is also the author of two books, Drag Em Kicking and Screaming and Authentically Engaged Families. She has a wealth of experience working with families and teens. Most importantly, Calvalyn is a mother of four daughters, and Mimi to 4 grandsons.

I invited Calvalyn back to the podcast this week because I think it’s extremely important that we find better ways to communicate with our teens – during our day to day communication but also specifically regarding racism, antiracism, and social justice. 

Calvalyn provides helpful information about how the teenage brain works and offers some tips and strategies to get teens talking beyond one-word answers. Calvalyn also offers excellent suggestions for parents about how to engage our teens in discussions about racism, antiracism, and social justice. I learned a lot from Calvalyn and my hope is that you will, too.

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I am thrilled to welcome Joanna Lilley to the podcast this week. Joanna is a Therapeutic Consultant, Gap Year Consultant, and College Success Coach. During our conversation, Joanna shares helpful advice for parents of teens to help us transition from parent to partner. As our teens make their way through high school and out into the world, we as parents need to learn how to empower our kids to be responsible and accountable for their own future. For those teens headed to college this fall, Joanna provides excellent suggestions for helping our kids normalize their feelings amidst all the uncertainty. Joanna also shares valuable insight about helping your teen figure out if they are ready to start college in the fall, and if not, what other options they might consider.

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In this week's episode, I am delighted to introduce you to Morgan Peterson. Morgan is a rising college senior at North Carolina State University majoring in Fashion and Textile Management. Morgan is a highly-motivated young woman. Through her own creativity and perseverance, she found a way to secure not one but FOUR internships this summer. Morgan wasn't always a confident go-getter. She struggled with social anxiety as a teen but worked hard to overcome her fears and develop self-confidence. During our conversation, Morgan offers great advice for teens and young adults about how to figure out what you are interested in, even when you feel overwhelmed in high school. You won't want to miss hearing Morgan share her brilliant strategy for finding internships in a highly competitive and uncertain job market!

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In this week’s episode, I’m delighted to welcome back Golden Ticket Prof, Dr. Anna Stumpf. Anna is passionate about helping young people succeed and today she shares all of the reasons that LinkedIn is a valuable tool for teenagers and young adults. You might be thinking that without a lot of work experience or not being very far in their career, LinkedIn is a waste of time for young people. This episode will prove you wrong. Anna talks all about why teens and young adults need to get started on LinkedIn earlier and why it's different from all the other social media they have been using. We talk about the summary section and how it provides a really great opportunity to paint a picture of who you really are. Anna also stresses the importance of following people versus connecting with people on LinkedIn. Anna refers to LinkedIn as Google for professionals because of the robust search tool, and she shares her expert tips for using it when searching for jobs, people, companies, and groups. This episode is packed full of useful advice and clear, actionable steps for anyone looking to create or update their LinkedIn profile.

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It’s no secret. Our teens and young adults are facing a competitive and uncertain job market. In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing Leah Jewell. Leah is the former Managing Director for Employability Learning Solutions at Pearson, where she built learning solutions for high school, higher education, and adult lifelong learners, specifically around accelerated skills pathways to industry certifications, stacked credentials, and career preparation. Leah recently pivoted from corporate to entrepreneur and is now the Founder and CEO of 2AR Consulting, providing expert help in the learning and education space.

During our conversation, Leah provides advice and insight on the importance of instilling a lifelong learning mindset in our kids, why work experience, even in high school, is so critical to potential employers, and why kids AND their parents need to broaden their thinking about college, credentials, and certifications. If your teen or young adult is struggling to come up with a plan after graduation, I suggest inviting them to listen with you. It will definitely be worth your time and theirs.

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In this episode, I am delighted to welcome Dana Malstaff. Dana is the CEO and Founder of Boss Mom. She is a mother, author, speaker, business strategist, podcaster, blind spot reducer, and movement maker. Dana launched the Boss Mom brand with her first book Boss Mom: The Ultimate Guide to Raising a Business & Nurturing Your Family Like a Pro in 2015 and has turned the brand into an international movement. Now she has over 30,000 students in various courses and an organically grown Facebook group of over 50k that helps women all over the world build engaged communities, position themselves as authorities in their space and impact the world through a business that supports them instead of drains them.

During our conversation, Dana and I talked about the importance of human connection both in life and in business, why we should be asking what problems we need to solve instead of what kind of education we need, and how thinking like an entrepreneur will help us achieve success. Dana offers super helpful tips for teens and young adults as they job hunt during and after the pandemic. And as a huge bonus, Dana shares lots of great advice for parents who are re-entering the workforce or starting a new business. If you or your teen/young adult are starting a new career, this is a conversation you won't want to miss!

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During this time of uncertainty, high school and college students are worried about what their future holds while in college and beyond. As soon the quarantine is lifted and businesses begin hiring again, the job market will be more competitive than ever. How can a college student choose a major that they enjoy while also ensuring they will find employment after graduation? And how should a recent or soon-to-be college graduate approach the ultra-competitive job market?

This week's episode is the audio from a recent Facebook Live event that I co-hosted with Debbie Schwartz from Road2College. We were joined by Loren Kelly, an experienced college instructor and a career coach for students and young professionals. She spent 10 years in higher education, at both the community college and university level. Loren kept noticing the same theme when she had conversations with her students. They were investing loads of time and money, and many were still feeling uncertain about their path. They were stressed about choosing a major and what their career might be. Were they making the right decision? Were they taking the right courses? Loren knew she had the tools to help them. She now coaches and empowers students and young adults to pursue their futures with confidence and with clarity.

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In this week's episode, I had the absolute pleasure of speaking with Susan Spencer and her daughter, Charlotte Cramer. I was intrigued by an article that I read online written by Susan and I knew I just had to reach out and interview them. Luckily for me, they accepted my invitation. Their story begins when Charlotte made the difficult decision to leave college after her sophomore year. My conversation with Susan and Charlotte is heartfelt and inspirational. They talk candidly about the challenges they have faced (both in life and at the top of a mountain), and they discuss how their mother-daughter relationship continues to evolve. I am grateful to Susan and Charlotte for their honesty and vulnerability. Give this one a listen. You'll be glad you did.

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