J. Margaret Weaver Journal

Join Allison Dietz, veteran corporate and college recruiter, and J. Margaret Weaver as they spill the tea on acing the interview.

What You'll Learn:

To say "mental health" has been a buzzword the past two years may be a understatement.  There is so much that could be unpacked within this simple phrase, and probably just as many opinions about how to improve your mental health.

Whether in your professional or personal sphere, I think that most, if not all people would say that talking more about our mental health is a positive.  To add flavor to this conversation, I asked Laura Thomas, a psychology instructor with a background in leadership development and counseling, to share some of the themes that she teaches as well as tips on when to seek help, how to better navigate conflict, and how she came back to the workforce after pausing to stay home with her three children.  Our conversation is interesting, thought-provoking, and science/research based from a psychology perspective.  She also debunks some of the common "pop psychology" that is out there that isn't based in the actual science or research of psychology - who knew? 

Recommended Resources Mentioned in this Episode:

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb

Psychology Today

Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

StrengthsFinder / Living Your Strengths

About Laura Thomas

Laura Thomas is currently an instructor of Psychology at Central Washington University. She teaches Introduction to Psychology as well as Psychology of Adjustment. She is writing a textbook for her adjustment class this year. Laura was a Career Counselor at Texas State University and Southern Methodist University. She also taught leadership classes as the Assistant Director of the Leadership Center at Texas State University.

Laura was raised all over the world as an army BRAT. The traveling helped create her love for people and learning from others. She married her high school sweetheart and they currently live in Sammamish, Washington with their three children. The family loves to spend their time visiting national parks, camping, hiking, anything outdoors.

She received a Bachelor of Science at Kansas State University with a double major in Life Sciences and Psychology. Her Masters degree was from Texas State University with a focus on Counseling Psychology.

Did you know it can take a year or more to go from a croquis or quick sketch of a design to delivering the final production order? While I remember learning about fast fashion giants in business school that can consolidate this timeline down into about six weeks (an interesting, though different business model); small batch, independent designers like J. Margaret Weaver take a different approach.

Right now, I'm toggling between real life where it's Summer 2022 and work life where I'm preparing as far ahead as Fall 2023.  Planning so far ahead can be disorienting; while I have to envision timelines and events and demand for Spring and Fall 2023, I'm also reminded that it's still June 2022 when I want to sign a check with the wrong year.

Coming from the healthcare industry, I had no idea how detailed and labor-intensive it was to bring a design to life.  That said, the process is always fresh and fun because it brings together creativity, functionality and inspiration with user feedback.  For those of you who have completed a design survey or tried on a sample, your feedback has been invaluable toward bringing an initial idea to fruition.

If you're like me and curious how an idea ultimately becomes a piece of clothing in a store, listen here for the 411.

Join me as I talk to Lisa Caras, mom, wife, and marketing manager for her family-owned business - Jones Dairy Farm - about consulting, going back to business school, and keeping everything going at work, home, and in between.  Lisa holds a high degree of excellence and expectations for herself, and she shares advice and experiences she's had that have been instrumental in shaping her along the way.

I met Caitlin the summer before my freshman year of college on a long bus ride from Ashland, OH to Knoxville, TN.  She was on the University's cheer team, I was on the dance team, and we were headed to our respective cheer/dance camps at University of Tennessee.  While we didn't have time to get to know each other during the hectic, four-day schedule; as luck would have it, we were also both in the honors program and had been automatically enrolled in Heuristic Problem Solving together on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

We bonded over logic problems, economic models, and a love of fashion.  Over the years, Caitlin has not only been a loyal friend she's also been a source of inspiration for me thanks to her incredible work ethic, high standards, and intellect.  She can tackle any obstacle or problem, make the best of a less-than-ideal situation, and positions herself for success through over-preparation.

On this podcast episode, I interviewed Caitlin to learn more about how she started her career in politics and government, how she pivoted to a new role when her husband was posted overseas, and why she now relentlessly over-prepares for everything.

Disclaimer: views expressed here are Caitlin's own and are not representative of the State Department or U.S. Government.

Around the beginning of 2022, I saw posts from a few friends and “social media influencers” stating that they were going to take a 30-day hiatus from Instagram.  After a busy first holiday season with J. Margaret Weaver and the sense that I was spending way too much time passively scrolling, I decided to follow suit and take a 30-day break from all of my personal social media. I planned to post to my business accounts, but to spend less time on it and to eliminate, as much as possible, mindless scrolling.

Feedback.

Most everyone says feedback is important.  But what do we really mean when we say this?  Do we really want to hear about all the things we need to fix about ourselves? Are we willing to have tough conversations with people about something they could do better? Or are we more often soliciting positive comments and compliments under the guise of asking for feedback?

Listen to my take, including research on feedback and ideas on how to better share or receive feedback.

At the suggestion of a few colleagues, I put myself in the “hot seat” and switched my role on the podcast from the interviewer to the interviewee.  Michelle McClay, my longtime colleague and friend who joined me for the first episode, was kind enough to act as the host and guided me through questions on how I approached my career planning, tools and habits I have found to be game-changers for performance, and techniques I have used to address low points of challenging situations in my life.

I had the pleasure of spending a Saturday morning with Dr. Piontek, (who goes by Libby) a friend of mine in Kansas City to talk to her about her career, how she developed a personal brand, and what she has learned about the business side of medicine.  While her experience is focused on practicing medicine, her recommendations are applicable to young professionals across industries and professions.