careers

Bias in the Workplace

Posted on by Seniye Groff

Next week, I am co-presenting a session to a group of women new in their careers. Our topic is how obstacles can hinder women’s careers in the workplace. We all know bias exists and it certainly is a challenge for women…all women. I have witnessed it. I have experienced it. And I don’t want my daughters (or any other woman) to have to deal with it.

I have created some pre-work to set the stage for the face-to-face training, which I have shared below.

Individual Reflection: 

1.  What is my first memory of seeing or experiencing someone different from me? 

2.  When was there a time in my life that I felt different from others? 

3.  How did you deal with the situations above? 

Read This:

Bias Holds Women Back (forbes.com)

Individual Reflection: 

1.  What was your reaction to this article? 

2.  Have you ever experienced or witnessed any of the bias the article discusses? 

3.  How did you deal with the situations above? 

During the live session, we will walk through what bias looks like, how we all have bias and some things we can do when we see or experience bias. I know that women new in their careers might not be willing to speak up, but my hope is to share some tools that will help them address bias in a thoughtful, intentional, empowering way.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Posted on by Seniye Groff

I have been working with several people lately that want to make a change in their careers but don’t really know where to begin.  I have a few recommendations:

  1. Know your strengths.  Definitely take stock in what you are good at.  Not what you “think” you are good at, but skills that you have received positive feedback on.
  2. Know your weaknesses.  I know, so much more difficult.  And don’t give yourself the “pat” assessment that you don’t like conflict or something similar.  You need to be really specific with yourself.
  3. Know your value system.  In other words, what can you absolutely tolerate and not tolerate in a career, workplace, co-workers etc.  For example, if you know that being in an environment where you are not at a computer all day is paramount then don’t even think about taking a job where computer tasks are part of the major responsibilities.
  4. Once you know who you are (and  I mean really be honest with yourself) you can begin to identify transferable skills that are used from one job to another.
  5. Richard Bolles has written a workbook that can help you get started.  The book is loaded with practical exercises to help get you started on your journey to finding yourself, your skills and ultimately, happiness.

The New College Reality

Posted on by Seniye Groff

A co-worker loaned me her book, “The New College Reality” by Bonnie Kerrigan Snyder.  Although I have seven years before my older daughter goes to college, the book looked intriguing.  There has been lots of press in the media lately about the true value and benefit of a college education.  I do believe in college.  I think the college experience is valuable for any young adult since they will be faced with lots of “grown up” situations such as learning to live on a budget, managing their time and being strategic about what classes to take.  I worked all through undergrad and managed to finish school without any debt. If you have watched the nightly news, you will see many stories of students saddled with thousands of dollars of debt, with no meaningful job in sight to pay that debt down.

So, yes, I have seven years until the college drama happens, but according to Snyder, this is the best time to start thinking about college and how you will pay for it.  Snyder offers many intriguing ideas and examples.  This really is a great book to help you distinguish the dream of college versus the reality–especially if you need to figure out how to pay for it.  She starts off with ways to minimize your time in college by taking AP courses, CLEP credits and dual enrollment options.  These three things can reduce your time in college which obviously reduces your tuition bill.

The second insightful thing the book focuses on is to think about the career first, college second.  She gives the example of how kids visit the career center right before they are about to graduate (me included).  But, instead, the career center should be your first stop when visiting a college campus  or when your college life begins.  In other words, know where you want to end up and plan accordingly.  Kids need job skills that are in demand…save the art class for an extracurricular activity.

The third idea that I gravitated towards was how financial aid works.  Wow, what an eye-opener!  Parents that are thrifty and conscious of saving and spending really get dinged with the way the financial aid process works–especially if you are middle class.  Snyder suggests some proactive, legal measures to look better on paper.  Having a college degree is no longer enough and thinking you can wait until the last-minute to figure out financial aid is going to leave you with our pants down and a very disappointed child, too.  Buy this book!  I read it in two hours!