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Should you have a career plan, or stay flexible? According to Harry Kraemer, the answer is “yes.”

In this episode of NET Collective, Kay McBrearty, career coach and founder of Waterville Partners, sits down with her longtime mentor and former boss, Harry Kraemer. Harry is the former Chairman and CEO of Baxter Healthcare, a professor of Values-Based Leadership at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management, a Forbes columnist, and the author of four books, including From Values to Action and Your 168. Harry wrote a Forbes column with advice for graduates, and in this conversation, he explains why you can only adapt to change once you have deep roots: values you know, live by, and won’t compromise.

In this episode, we cover:

• How to slow down and take stock of your values, and the difference between a value and a preference
• The “continuum of change,” from resisting change to creating it, and why failure is where we learn the most
• Why Harry tells students to be both planful and flexible
• His three-column legal pad exercise for students who don’t know what they want to do
• “Get in”: why landing in the door matters more than landing the perfect role, and how a seat in the cafeteria can launch a career
• What to tell anxious students and parents about AI and entry-level jobs
• Thinking about significance more than success: “Less about the CV, more about the eulogy”

Harry also shares his grandfather’s daily advice, which has guided him from math major to CEO to professor: “We’ll do the right thing, and we’ll do the best we can do.”

Visit netcollective.org for more resources. Connect with Harry Kraemer @ harrykraemer.org for access to his newsletters, Forbes articles, books and more. 

#NETCollective #HarryKraemer #ValuesBasedLeadership #CareerAdvice #CollegeStudents #CollegeGrads #ParentingTeens #ParentingYoungAdults #CareerPivot #Adaptability #AIandJobs #FirstJob #Leadership #FromValuesToAction #Your168 #CareerCoaching

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Later is an unreliable place to store an intention. That's where Part 2 begins.

In Part 1, we talked about why a child with ADHD can know exactly what needs to get done and still not act on it until the deadline is right on top of them. This week is about what to do. Much of it rests on a principle from Dr. Russell Barkley that I come back to with families all the time: when something isn't happening reliably inside a child's head, move it outside their head.

From there we get practical. We talk about making time something a child can actually see, why a deadline a month away needs to become something smaller this week, and what to do when getting started is the hardest part. I also share a simple rule I teach my clients called "do it or cue it," and we talk about the one sentence parents can change that shifts the whole conversation with their kid.

None of this means lowering expectations. The work still has to get done. What changes is how we help a child get there, so the emergency at midnight isn't the only thing that gets their brain online.

If you missed Part 1, start there. It explains why these strategies work.

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Your teenager has two weeks to write a paper. You mention it, and they tell you they know. A week later you mention it again. Then it's 7:30 the night before it's due, and the same kid who couldn't get started is typing at the kitchen table like their life depends on it. And you're standing there wondering where this freny was two weeks ago.

In the first episode of our two-part series on ADHD, we walk through one of the most useful ideas we share with our families. Many kids with ADHD live in two time zones, now and not now. Drawing on Dr. Russell Barkley's work, we talk about why a deadline two weeks away can feel almost unreal until it suddenly becomes urgent, and why that has very little to do with intelligence or how much a child cares. We get into prospective memory, which is simply remembering to remember, and why doing it "after dinner" isn't actually a plan. We also cover why kids with ADHD often lean harder toward the reward that's right in front of them, and what to do when two parents see the same behavior completely differently.

This episode is about understanding what's happening. Part 2 is about what to do. As I tell families often, ADHD is usually not a problem of knowing what to do. It's a problem of doing what you know when you need to do it.

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“We make too much money, so we won't qualify for any aid — why even bother?” It's one of the most common myths about paying for college, and today we're busting it wide open.

In this episode of NET Collective, Kay McBrearty and Vinita Patel sit down with Todd Weaver, President of Strategies For College, Inc. Todd's been helping families crack the code on financial aid and merit money since 1995 — and this fall he's living every stage of the journey himself, with a brand-new freshman, a May graduate, and a kid navigating a gap year, all in his own house.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why affordability should shape your college list — before you ever fall in love with a school
• How merit aid actually works (hint: think "automatic discount," not personal judgment)
• The Student Aid Index (SAI) — and why there are actually two of them
• What juniors — and their parents — should be doing right now
• Whether it's too late to find money if you're already paying the bill
• How to talk to your kids about cost without making them feel limited

Whether you're just starting the college search or already writing tuition checks, this conversation will change how you think about what “full price” really means.

Grab the full glossary of financial-aid terms and Todd's contact info in our show-notes handout at netcollective.org.

Connect with Todd Weaver: strategiesforcollege.com or [email protected]

#CollegeFunding #FinancialAid #CollegePlanning #MeritAid #StudentAidIndex #CollegeAffordability #NETCollective #ParentingTeens #CollegeAdmissions #PayingForCollege #ScholarshipSearch #CollegeCosts #CSSProfile #CollegeBoundParents #HigherEd #StrategiesForCollege

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Two out of every three people at work are unengaged — not fully checked out, but not thriving either. What if that's not a laziness problem? What if it's a fit problem?

In this episode of NET Collective, Kay McBrearty, career coach and founder of Waterville Partners, and Vinita Patel, school psychologist in private practice, dig into why smart, capable people end up somewhere they can't thrive — in a job, a major, a friend group, a team — and how to find your way back to a better fit.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why two-thirds of the workforce shows up unengaged — and why that's often a fit problem, not a motivation problem
• The three things everyone needs to thrive: a place to contribute, grow, and belong
• The “two circles” framework — knowing yourself and knowing the opportunity — and why fit lives in the overlap
• How stress and “survival mode” make it harder to notice red flags in a big decision
• What “parallel pathing” looks like if you can't walk away from a poor fit right now
• How to reframe a misfit as information, not a measure of your worth

Kay shares her own story of chasing a prestigious role that looked amazing on paper — and what it taught her about asking the right questions before saying yes to anything, whether it's a job, a college, or a commitment.

Grab the two-circles framework and reflection questions from this episode in our show-notes handout at netcollective.org.

#FindingYourFit #CareerCoaching #WorkplaceCulture #CollegeMajors #SelfAwareness #NETCollective #CareerAdvice #ParentingTeens #JobSearch #ExecutiveFunctioning #EmployeeEngagement #CareerTransition #ParallelPathing

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When a bright, capable child is struggling, parents often know something isn’t adding up long before they understand why.

In this episode of NET Collective, Vinita Patel, licensed school psychologist, draws on more than 30 years of assessment experience across school settings and private practice to help parents understand what comprehensive neuropsychological testing can actually reveal.

Vinita and Kay walk through the process from start to finish: when an evaluation may be worth considering, what areas are typically assessed, why school input matters, what testing can—and cannot—tell us, and how results should translate into meaningful support at home and at school.

They also explore the quieter signs that are easy to miss, including inattention that doesn’t look hyperactive, and the fear many parents carry about diagnoses and labels. Because the goal of an evaluation is not to reduce a child to a score or a diagnosis. It is to understand how that child learns, what may be getting in the way, where their strengths lie, and what to do next.

If you’ve ever wondered, “Does my child need testing?” “What will it actually tell me?” or “How can an evaluation help us better understand what my child needs?” this episode offers a clear, practical, and reassuring place to start.

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The college admissions process can feel overwhelming before it even begins. When should students start? How involved should parents be? What are colleges actually looking for? And how do families find the right college fit without getting consumed by rankings, deadlines, and pressure?

In this episode of NET Collective, Kay and Vinita sit down with Dr. Jill Maraldo, founder of High Performance Academics, to break down how families can approach the college search and application process with greater clarity, confidence, and less stress.

From building a balanced list of safety, target, and reach schools to understanding demonstrated interest, Early Action vs. Early Decision, the Common App, SAT and ACT testing, course rigor, extracurriculars, and holistic admissions, Dr. Maraldo helps separate what truly matters from the noise.

They also tackle an equally important question: How can parents stay involved and supportive without taking over the process?

Whether you have a junior just beginning the college search or a senior already navigating applications, this episode offers practical guidance—and a refreshing reminder that there is no single “perfect” college or one path to success.

If college planning is on the horizon for your family, start here.

Learn more at Netcollective.org

College admissions policies, testing requirements, financial aid practices, and application options vary by institution and can change from year to year. Families should always verify current requirements directly with each college or university.

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Navigating Obstacles: What To Do When the Plan Didn't Work!

Season 2, Episode 3 (203)

Who is this for: For students, young adults, and the parents and educators supporting them.

You organized the space. Built the systems. Steadied your mindset. Lined up your people. And then… a bump happened anyway.

In this episode, Kay and Vinita tackle what happens when you've done everything right and it still goes sideways — the rejected application after a perfect one, the crushed interview that still doesn't land the job, the roommate conflict, the bombed test. This isn't about preventing the bump — it's about what to reach for when it shows up anyway.

Kay walks through three tools you can use the moment a plan falls apart: WOOP (a research-backed way to plan for the obstacle, not just the goal), Team You (figuring out exactly who to call when it hits), and Let's Talk (how to ask for — and offer — support). Then, three mindsets that make those tools actually stick: grit, reframing, and vulnerability.

Because it happens to everyone — including the people who planned the hardest.

Tune in to learn:

• The WOOP method for planning around real obstacles (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan)

• How to build “Team You” — the right people for this moment, not just in general

• Dr. Lisa Damour's 5 sentences for parents when you want to offer support, and the 4 A's for students, when it's time to ask for help

• Three mindsets — grit, reframing, and vulnerability — that carry you through

At NET Collective, we believe growth happens through connection. We're here to help families navigate transitions — from classroom to college to careers and beyond — one conversation at a time.

Listen wherever you get your podcasts or visit netcollective.org for today's worksheet and tools.

#netcollective #navigatingobstacles #obstacles #resilience #grit #reframe #vulnerability #mindset #copingskills #WOOP #careercoaching #parentingteens #collegestudents #backtoschool #mentalhealth #lifeskills #rejection #mentorship #NavigatingEverythingTogether #OneConversationAtATime #NETCollectivePodcast

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What does real self-confidence look like in a teenager—and can it actually be taught?

In this episode of NET Collective, Kay McBrearty and Vinita Patel sit down with Leslie Randolph, self-confidence coach for teen girls, TEDx speaker, and host of the Why Didn’t They Tell Us? podcast, for a powerful conversation about how confidence develops, what quietly chips away at it, and what parents can do to help teens strengthen it.

Together, they explore the connection between teen confidence, anxiety, perfectionism, social media, negative self-talk, fear of failure, and risk-taking—and why a teenager can appear confident on the outside while struggling very differently on the inside.

Leslie also challenges the idea that confidence means being fearless, outgoing, or certain of yourself. Instead, she offers a very different way of thinking about what it means to become confident—and why some of the experiences parents instinctively want to protect their children from may actually be essential to building it.

This conversation is filled with practical insight for parents, teens, young adults, and anyone who has ever allowed fear, doubt, or perfectionism to hold them back.

If you want to help a young person believe in themselves, take healthy risks, and trust that they can handle what comes next, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

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You can have the backpack packed, the calendar organized, and the dorm room ready—and still not actually be ready.

In the season 2 opening episode of NET Collective, Vinita Patel and Kay McBrearty go beyond the traditional back-to-school checklist to explore what it really means to be ready for a new school year, college semester, career transition, or season of life.

Vinita introduces four pillars of readiness: physical, executive functioning, emotional, and relational—and explains why preparing for what’s ahead requires more than simply getting organized.

Together, Vinita and Kay explore how to:

• Create physical spaces and systems that reduce unnecessary stress and free up mental bandwidth
• Use executive functioning strategies to plan ahead, manage time, navigate unstructured time, and follow through
• Prepare emotionally for discomfort, setbacks, uncertainty, and the inevitable challenges that come with transitions
• Build confidence through action rather than waiting until you feel completely ready
• Identify mentors, trusted adults, friends, and resources before you need them
• Approach a new school year or semester with greater intention instead of simply reacting once the pressure hits

They also discuss the important role parents can play during transitions—supporting young people without taking over, asking questions instead of immediately fixing, and recognizing that parents are navigating their own transitions too.

Because readiness isn’t a feeling you wait for. It’s a series of intentional decisions you make before life gets busy.

Prepare your space. Prepare your systems. Prepare your mindset. Prepare your people.

That’s readiness beyond the checklist.

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