New year, new career growth strategy! In this episode, I focus on career growth and job searching strategies you can implement in 2025. I talk about the realities of the current job market, challenges that job seekers are encountering, and steps that you can proactively take to grow your career this year! I also define internal career moves and lateral career moves, and explain how you can leverage these to pivot into a new role or industry. Listen now!

Referenced Episodes: 

Community Building & Networking Podcast Playlist

⁠34. Lowering the Stakes without Lowering your Standards⁠

Resources and Links

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

In this episode, I interview Mel Moreno, co-founder of GhostTown.Global. Mel shares her experience breaking free from family expectations carving her own path as a first gen and only daughter in her family. We discuss our experience founding a business while having a full time job, and what it takes to make it succeed without having venture capital funding. 

We also talk about transferable skills, and how all the skills you develop in your career, including service industry jobs, can be leveraged to move you forward. Lastly, we dive into all things related to Mel’s paranormal tracking app, manifestations, and connecting with ancestral knowledge. Listen now! 

About Today’s Guest: 

Mel is a first gen latina with the only member in her family with a Masters Degree in Ecology. Mel is working at a university as a developer team lead with hopes to become an assistant manager. Mel is the co-founder of GhostTown.Global, a paranormal tracking site and hub. 

Resources and Links

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

In this Career Spotlight episode, I talk with Jeyra Arocho, an Afro Latina fire protection engineer and trailblazer. Jeyra, who was displaced from her home of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, shares the challenges she has overcome in her career, including language barriers and housing insecurity. But what stands out is Jeyra’s fierce determination and the joy she brings when talking about helping others through their own career journeys. We discuss all things mentorship, self-advocacy, and how to make it in a male-dominated field when you’re the Only in the room. 

Jeyra’s story is one of resilience, determination, and pursuing your dreams. It was such an honor to interview her!  

References: 

Society of Fire Protection Engineers 2023 Compensation and Benefits Report

Resources and Links

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

n this episode, I cover three specific actions you can take right now to get job offers in the New Year. Look, as of this publish date, there are still five full weeks in the year. That is five full weeks when you can be taking action that will help you get job offers. And no, I don’t mean endlessly applying into the void of an Applicant Tracking System (ATS). I mean actual, meaningful steps that are planting the seeds for the job offers you will harvest in the New Year. 

I also explain why not all job offers are right for you, and how you can decide what offers you should accept or reject. 

Referenced Episodes: 

Community Building & Networking Podcast Playlist

26. From Nonprofit to Financial Services with First Gen Professional Alejandra Carbajal 

Resources and Links

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

In this episode, I teach you the strategies you can start implementing today to get job offers faster. These are the strategies that I teach inside my 1:1 coaching program and that my clients have leveraged to collectively increase their salaries by over half a million dollars! I share templates that you can use to follow up after you apply, reflection questions you can journal on to get into the right job searching mindset, and even share ChatGPT prompts you can use to be more effective in your job search. 

I also cover common mistakes that you may be wasting your time with that are not helping you get jobs and are leaving you with no responses, no job offers, and a whole lot of frustration and disappointment. 

Resources and Links

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

Register Here to learn How to Get Job Offers Faster

In this episode, I share a 5-step process you can use to increase your confidence during job interviews. The first step focuses on a helpful way to think about job interviews that will ground you in your own strengths and certainty that you can do the job. Then, I dive into concrete strategies you can implement to increase your confidence. 

This is the job interview process I used to secure multiple six-figure job offers, and it’s the process I teach my clients that has helped them increase their salaries by over $500,000. 

Referenced Episodes: 

Interview Prep Playlist

⁠34. Lowering the Stakes without Lowering your Standards⁠

Resources and Links

FREE WEBINAR: How to Get Job Offers Faster: https://thefirstgencoach.com/register 

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

Register Here to learn How to Get Job Offers Faster

In this episode, I share three ways you can increase your salary by $30,000 by sharing case studies from past clients. I share the specific steps my clients took to increase their confidence negotiating their salaries, acing the job interview, and learning to speak about their accomplishments. Together, these skills helped them increase their salary by $30k! Tune in to learn what steps you can take to increase your salary by $30,000 too! Plus, why you NEVER have to stay at a job that is making you regardless of how long ago you started.

Referenced Episodes: 

68. Cat’s Journey to $30k in Raises in her Government Job

33. How Caroline Secured a $30k Pay Increase, Left a Toxic Job, and Began Living Her Dream

Resources and Links

FREE WEBINAR: How to Get Job Offers Faster: https://thefirstgencoach.com/register 

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

When I was growing up, I thought my only career options were: doctor, lawyer, teacher. In today’s episode, I talk to an actual lawyer and ask her ALL the questions I wish I had had answers to growing up. This week’s guest is Kimberly Lopez, host of the Latina Legal Minds Podcast. Kimberly is a badass Latina who is not only thriving in Big Law, but also paving the way for other Latinas in the legal field. 

Kimberly shares insight into the legal professional and what you need to know before you consider this career. She also speaks candidly about her own journey as a first gen Latina navigating law school and corporate environments. Tune in to hear all her gems as well as the wildly insensitive advice she got from a college advisor. 

About Today’s Guest

Kimberly Lopez is a powerhouse commercial litigator renowned for her unwavering advocacy. With an impressive track record, she fearlessly represents clients in courts across Florida and nationwide. A first-gen in many ways, Kimberly has worked her way up from summer intern to partner at one of America's largest law firms. An award-winning, DEIB advocate, Kimberly is on a mission to change the narrative regarding Latinas in the profession. She is the creator and host of theLatina Legal Minds Podcast, building community among Latinas in the profession and sharing knowledge on the climb.

Stay in touch with Kimberly on Instagram @latinalegalminds and on LinkedIn!

Resources and Links

How to Land a High-Paying Job: thefirstgencoach.com/freetraining 

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

In this episode,I speak to the founder and CEO of Bonita Fierce Candles, Melissa Gallardo. Melissa shares her journey of launching a candle brand that celebrates Latine Culture and Heritage. She talks about how she turned her hobby into a full-time business, the lessons she’s learned along the way, and the support she’s had and the investments she’s made that helped her get here. Melissa talks about how some of the oppressive structures in corporate, such as not having health insurance as a contracted employee, led to this pivot and to creating the life she wants to live for herself. 

Resources and Links

How to Land a High-Paying Job: thefirstgencoach.com/freetraining 

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram

Money anxiety is a beast. In this episode, I talk through 5 steps you can implement to manage money anxiety while in your job search. I share my experience growing up low-income and continuing to earn a low salary even after I got my master’s degree, and how that led to making an “investment” decision out of desperation and lack of financial literacy. I talk about the lows that come with trying to make ends meet, and why being graceful with yourself if the absolute most important thing you can do while job searching. 

Referenced Episodes: 

76. Why Your Wellness is Essential to the Collective with Wealth Para Todos Founder Rita-Soledad Fernandez Paulino 

43. From a Financial Mess to a Financial Educator with Mayra Alejandra Garcia of @DebtFreeLatina

92. Redefining Financial Freedom with Lizbet of @LizbetTalksMoney

79. Increasing Your 9-5 Salary with Your Transferable Skills

Resources and Links

How to Land a High-Paying Job: thefirstgencoach.com/freetraining 

Private 1:1 Coaching: https://calendly.com/thefirstgencoach/discovery-call 

Download your⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠FREE Resume Guide and Template⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Follow @⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CarlaTheFirstGenCoach⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on Instagram