Communication is EVERYTHING!

The single biggest skills gap in recent college graduates is verbal and written communication.  So let me be concise here and provide several recommendations to build both of those communication skills.

Verbal

  • Always be aware of your own emotions when having a conversation.  You need to control your reactions, think clearly, breath steadily, and focus on listening. Without strong listening skills, you will never be a great communicator.
  • Practice having hard conversations by debating a subject and being willing to adjust your perspective.  Stubborn, strong minded people typically are not known as effective communicators.
  • Take advantage of every opportunity to speak in public.
  • Practice eliminating filler words by picking a random topic and speaking about it immediately for 3 minutes. For example, avoid saying: “He like didn’t like say what he like meant very like concisely.”  Also, silence is okay but filling silence with “Ummmmm” or “Ahhhhhh” is not effective communication.
  • Control your nerves by 1) controlling your breathing (steady breathing), 2) before you start, think of something that makes you smile (it will release dopamine which calms you and makes you happy), and 3) preparing — always prepare to speak in public!

Written

  • Read challenging texts like textbooks, trade journals, peer-reviewed research, and high quality publications (not newspapers).
  • If you come across a word you don’t understand, look it up!
  • Practice using new words in your conversations.
  • Practice writing and proof your work 3 times before you submit.
  • Use a professional editor who will review his or her edits with you.
  • Get extra help.  Students are always provided extra help with writing! You just need to ask.
  • Read, practice, and repeat!

A strong communicator will no doubt be a very strong candidate for college admissions and for employment.  However, you will not become a strong communicator if you just do what is expected of you in your high school and college courses.  It will take a strong commitment on your part, a consistent multi-year effort, and an unrelenting determination to learn. Good news is, research proves that anyone can develop their communication skills! Finally, start now!

Steven J. Harvey, Ph.D.
CEO & Founder, My College Max, Web Site: www.mycollegemax.com
Executive Director, The WNY Consortium of Higher Education, Web Site: www.wnycollegeconnection.com

 

What are the skills employers are looking for in college graduates?

Nace – The National Association of Colleges and Employers has identified and defined the following skills that employers expect college graduates to possess.

  • Critical Thinking/Problem Solving: Exercise sound reasoning to analyze issues, make decisions, and overcome problems. The individual is able to obtain, interpret, and use knowledge, facts, and data in this process, and may demonstrate originality and inventiveness.
  • Oral/Written Communications: Articulate thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively in written and oral forms to persons inside and outside of the organization. The individual has public speaking skills; is able to express ideas to others; and can write/edit memos, letters, and complex technical reports clearly and effectively.
  • Teamwork/Collaboration: Build collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers representing diverse cultures, races, ages, genders, religions, lifestyles, and viewpoints. The individual is able to work within a team structure, and can negotiate and manage conflict.
  • Digital Technology: Leverage existing digital technologies ethically and efficiently to solve problems, complete tasks, and accomplish goals. The individual demonstrates effective adaptability to new and emerging technologies.
  • Leadership: Leverage the strengths of others to achieve common goals, and use interpersonal skills to coach and develop others. The individual is able to assess and manage his/her emotions and those of others; use empathetic skills to guide and motivate; and organize, prioritize, and delegate work.
  • Professionalism/Work Ethic: Demonstrate personal accountability and effective work habits, e.g., punctuality, working productively with others, and time workload management, and understand the impact of non-verbal communication on professional work image. The individual demonstrates integrity and ethical behavior, acts responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind, and is able to learn from his/her mistakes.
  • Career Management: Identify and articulate one’s skills, strengths, knowledge, and experiences relevant to the position desired and career goals, and identify areas necessary for professional growth. The individual is able to navigate and explore job options, understands and can take the steps necessary to pursue opportunities, and understands how to self-advocate for opportunities in the workplace.
  • Global/Intercultural Fluency: Value, respect, and learn from diverse cultures, races, ages, genders, sexual orientations, and religions. The individual demonstrates, openness, inclusiveness, sensitivity, and the ability to interact respectfully with all people and understand individuals’ differences.

To learn how to build those competencies, visit your Career Services office or look into www.MyCollegeMax.com, an online tool that is designed to build the above skill sets and help college students succeed! Bottom line, the students will need to proactively seek out different experiences to build these “higher order” skill sets that will prepare them for today’s job market.  The more they do, the more skills they develop, the more competitive they will be.

Steven J. Harvey, Ph.D.
CEO & Founder, My College Max, Web Site: www.mycollegemax.com
Executive Director, The WNY Consortium of Higher Education, Web Site: www.wnycollegeconnection.com

Why Former College Students have Regrets after Graduation

Most former college students have regrets after graduation. A recent survey by Gallup and Strada Education Network finds that half of former students would change at least one of three decisions: the type of degree they pursued, their choice of major, or the institution they attended. Out of 90,000 respondents, 28 percent would chose a different institution,

36 percent wish they chose a different major, and 12 percent would have pursued a different level of degree. On the other hand, former students are happy with the quality of education they received.

Students primarily have regrets due to incomplete understanding of the following:

  • Employment Opportunities
  • Earning Potential
  • Long-term Student Debt

It is important for college bound students to utilize available resources in order to make the right decisions. Make sure to visit My College Max and explore the tools to help prepare for college and career. Go into college with a plan in order to avoid unnecessary regrets!

Steven J. Harvey, Ph.D. 
CEO & Founder, My College Max, Web Site: www.mycollegemax.com
Executive Director, The WNY Consortium of Higher Education, Web Site: www.wnycollegeconnection.com

13 Essential Leadership Skills

 

Guest Blogger: Kayla LaForest

A recently published article by Forbes reveals that new leadership skills are required as different generations move in and out of the workplace. Leaders need to be constantly updating and improving their skills if they want to be successful in the modern work environment.

The 13 must-have leadership skills of today are:

  1. Executive Presence: Leaders must embody composure, charisma, confidence, and credibility. However, more than just those traits, Executive Presence shows up in the way leaders are trusted and how they communicate, develop strategy, and carry themselves under pressure.
  2. Resiliency: Great leaders can bounce back from defeat and manage personal and business anxiety effectively and calmly.
  3. Culture Management: Leaders need to be able to create a culture in their office that makes people excited to walk through the door. Employees want to feel as if they are a part of something bigger than themselves.
  4. Navigation of Ambiguity: Fast paced and ever-changing work environments have made it essential for leaders to remain relaxed and inspire their teams in uncertain times.
  5. Hybrid of Skills: Gone are the days of developing a singular expertise. Today’s leaders must have adaptability across different areas of business in order to continue climbing the ladder.
  6. Multigenerational Management: Since the current workplace ranges from Millennials to Baby Boomers, leaders must be able to manage the strengths and weaknesses of different generations.
  7. Collaboration: Leaders must use their skills, including clear communication, when working with others who may have different agendas.
  8. Emotional Intelligence: Emotionally Intelligent leaders are in tune with their own emotions as well as the emotions of others.
  9. Social Media Presence: Leaders should develop an online presence to connect with others (i.e. LinkedIn) and be able to demonstrate professionalism on social media platforms.
  10. Authenticity: It is now essential for leaders to be present and connect with all levels of their team, both personally and professionally.
  11. Mastery of Crucial Conversations: Leaders need to be able to engage in critical conversations, including emotionally charged ones.
  12. Leadership of Virtual Teams and Independent Contractors: Today’s leaders need to have the ability to lead team members who are both present and not present (i.e. remote employees).
  13. Co-Creative Leadership: In order to get engaged teams and better results, leaders need to be able to co-create with their employees and produce change with them.

Start honing your leadership qualities in college so you can take your skills to the workplace. Visit MyCollegeMax to help create an individualized path for career success!

Steven J. Harvey, Ph.D. 
CEO & Founder, My College Max, Web Site: www.mycollegemax.com
Executive Director, The WNY Consortium of Higher Education, Web Site: www.wnycollegeconnection.com

What is a college student’s “currency” in the job market? The answer may surprise you.

When a student chooses a career path, they are really selecting a major that will lead to that career.  That’s the easy part.  The hard work starts when you begin your college career and find that your chosen major may not be the best choice for you.  Then you start to question your direction and the stress begins.

To avoid this trap, keep things in perspective.

  • Most people will have multiple careers which means you will jump from one field to another.  For example, you may be a teacher, sales person, trainer, and financial planner all in your lifetime!
  • It’s more important to select the right major than it is to select the “right” career.  Why?  Simple.  Your major will be what offers you your foundation while your college will offer you a world of opportunities outside of your major to build your expertise, skill sets, and passion, as well as explore multiple careers (Register with your career services office as soon as you get onto your college campus!).  For the knowledge economy, your skills are what’s important and what will be your “currency” in the job market.  Focus more on developing those transferable and high demand skills and you will ultimately create more opportunities for yourself.
  • There are likely many jobs that you will enjoy, many of which may not even exist when you are in high school.  Again, it’s not about the job as much as it is about the right major.  Most majors will lead to 100’s if not 1000’s of job opportunities; as long as you play your cards right.

Studygroup relaxing in beanbags while doing school work.

So what is the most important thing you can do for your future, spend the time to examine your interests, values, and the kind of job environment you want to be in; meet with people in careers you are interested in and interview them (why did they choose the career, what is the best part, what is the worst part, would they do it again, etc.); do an internship in the field (may not be feasible); shadow for a day (more feasible than an internship); research the job market and whether or not a particular job will be high growth or offer no opportunities (O*Net will tell you that); do a site visit; go to employer events; and more.

If you don’t know how to move forward, that’s okay!  Go to your school counselor or check out MyCollegeMax.com to see what you can do to take charge of your future because it’s YOUR future!

Steven J. Harvey, Ph.D. 
CEO & Founder, My College Max, Web Site: www.mycollegemax.com
Executive Director, The WNY Consortium of Higher Education, Web Site: www.wnycollegeconnection.com

 

Every high school student should find a “community cause.”

In a smart move about 10 years ago, New York State, like most states, began to require community service as a graduation requirement.  This creates a “required” opportunity for students to get involved.  However, only when a young person extends that commitment beyond what is required, will it truly pay off.

There are few opportunities for a young person like volunteering.  Take the following examples:

  • Part-Time Job: A part-time job is a great opportunity to earn some money, develop some work-related habits, and gain some valuable experience.  However, most part-time jobs are limited in scope; do not require a lot of higher order skill sets like critical thinking, problem solving, and evaluation of solutions; and provide few opportunities for independent work.  These limitations do not negate the value of a part-time job.  However, they do highlight the limitations of this type of experience and the way many future “full-time” employers will view it.
  • In-School or Out-of-School Activity: Today, more than any other time in the history of our nation, young people are involved in activities outside of their school work.  Examples include sports, dance, acting, robotics, investment clubs, drama, band, music, singing, and so much more.  These are great opportunities, however they are limited in scope.  Meaning, while you can excel as far as your commitment and talent will take you, it is a very focused effort.  Still, these are great opportunities but, like the part-time job, have their limitations.
  • Internships: Internships are fantastic opportunities and every young person should participate in an internship program several times during high school and college.  However, internships require a level of commitment on the part of the employer that many cannot make.  This means that internship opportunities are limited, may not always benefit the intern the way they are intended, and often are not progressive and fail to build on previous experiences.  Again, like part-time jobs and extracurricular activities, internships should be a part of every students’ experience.

So what makes volunteering different?  There are several characteristics of volunteering that can greatly enhance a well-rounded set of experiences that include each of the above.  These include:

  • Exposure to diverse experiences and cultures that provide increased opportunities for testing one’s skills, developing higher order skill sets, and gaining a global perspective;
  • Development of autonomous and independent habits that will benefit a person in absolutely ever human activity they will be engaged in for the rest of their life;
  • Opportunities to experience diverse corporate functions like product and service development, marketing, human resources, and finances to name a few;
  • Progressive responsibilities that evolve as the individual demonstrates increased abilities, responsibilities, and commitment;
  • The opportunity to develop emotional intelligence including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management; and most importantly
  • The opportunity to develop a sense of purpose and passion for something that drives you to succeed in a way that no extrinsic reward ever can.

Of course the best set of experiences include all of the above mentioned opportunities.  However, volunteering is the greatest opportunity for this generation to develop a sense of purpose, meaning, motivation, and passion; all qualities that seem to be missing in today’s youth but which are the key to their success.

The Missing Link In Student Success

In our extraordinary efforts to educate a hugely diverse student population for what is the greatest era of innovation, particularly around technology, we have forgotten what made this country so extraordinary.  Think about it.  The American education system didn’t really become what it is, mass education, until the industrial revolution.  Therefore, those who drove the industrial revolution did not participate in mass education nor were they required to memorize, store and repeat enormous amounts of information, data and facts.  The American education system, which by the way looks largely the same as it did when it began with the addition of a few more bells and whistles, was only designed to “produce” individuals to work for the industrious few who drove innovation like Rochefeller, Vanderbelt, and Ford.  So what did they have that our students do not and why is there so much resistance to providing our students the “opportunities” to become great like those who drove America to become the greatest economy in the history of the world.  Well the answer is simple, “passion.”  But the answer is a little more complicated than simply saying, “Kids these days need passion!”  The following will very briefly provide an overview of the current situation and how we got here.

First, the American education system was designed to fill factories with competent factory workers.  Desks were in rows, teachers taught in the front of the classroom, and students’ success was measured by tests.

Second, most jobs were predictable or they had tasks that once you learned the pattern or path to completing the task, you could do the job.  Today’s economy no longer has those types of jobs.  In fact, most jobs, whether they require a certification, 2-year degree, 4-year degree, or graduate work are “organic” with no clear path to completion and not clear final outcome.

Third, while the economy drove innovation at an incredible velocity, K-12 education and higher education were limited in their ability to keep up because of cultural norms against change, rigid and inflexible infrastructure (lots of buildings and classrooms), and little pressure to keep up with the change.  This meant that even though educators recognized the changing world around them, they clung to their old ways of thinking and teacher: desks were in rows, teachers taught in the front of the classroom, and students’ success was measured by tests.

Finally, in a last ditch effort to elevate the United States to the less than impressive middle-of-the-road academic position among post-industrial societies, our political government has focused to the detriment of the very people they are trying to help (i.e. students), on how well our kids can test.  The government’s resistance to and lack of acknowledgement of what is happening right in front of their eyes is exactly what got us into this situation when educators failed to keep up with what drove change in what is now our knowledge economy.

The Missing Link

The missing link then is the one thing that cuts across all of the previously stated conditions.  The missing link is the student!  When did anyone who has accomplished greatest done so by doing exactly what they are told, learning only what they are taught, and resisting any call to take control of their own future.  NEVER!

So here we are, understanding why we are where we are, what the problem is (in very simple terms), and what the missing link is.  Now what?  Here are 5 simple steps to begin to turn things around starting with the most important piece, the student.

  1. Students WILL NOT recognize that they need to change.  That means the adults in their lives have to take it upon themselves to create “opportunities” for them to come to that conclusion themselves.  You CANNOT teach them.  That will not work.  You have to expose them to various activities that spark interest which is the precursor to curiosity and then passion.  This will only happen if they have autonomy to work independently and determine what their final product is without interference or judgment (i.e. grading).
  2. Students need the time to experience life.  This means that somewhere in the chaotic world of the American teenager you have to find time.  Cut back on scheduled obligations and allow for “technology- free” opportunities for students to explore, be curious, and become motivated.
  3. Coach your teenager; do not teach them.  Think of it this way.  Every time you teach your child, you take one step forward while she takes two steps back.  Remember the proverb: “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day; teach him how to catch fish, and he eats for a lifetime.”  The proverb becomes more important when you envision “teaching” a child to fish.  My guess is that when you read it, you didn’t think teaching was in a classroom with you up front and your child or student taking notes and eventually passing a test on fishing.  You likely envisioned fishing and handing the pole to the child.  That’s the difference between teaching and coaching.  A coach allows a child to learn by doing.
  4. Talk to your child about their future!  It’s very hard for teenagers to envision the future because of the way the brain is developing in an adolescent.  So you need to help them to think about the future and yes even plan for the future.  High school students ARE NOT too young to think about a career path.  They may not pick a specific job but may choose a career path that may lead to thousands of jobs.  The reason why a high school student should have a career path is because when they go on to earn a certification or a bachelor’s, master’s, or associate’s degree, they are more likely to graduate and find a job!  I know what you are thinking, “Most kids eventually graduate.  College is a time for exploration.”  If you thought that, you would be mistakenly right.  Why “mistakenly right?”  Because only 41% of the colleges in the botton two thirds of selective colleges (where most students go to college), graduate in 6 years for a 4-year degree.  These 2 extra years cost students between $110,000 and $180,000 in real and opportunity costs!  PLUS, most students, according to employers, lack even the most basic skills to enter the workforce.  By thinking about and planning for their future, students are in a much better position to succeed after high school regardless of what post-secondary education they choose.
  5. Stop stressing!  The believe that “my kid will be the best” is a fact that most people know isn’t true but still fall into the pressures of society to push our kids to be the best.  Actually most kids, mine included, will be normal and not the best.  That’s just the law of averages.  So instead of aiming for success, aim instead for happiness.  What’s the difference?  Happiness is based on being able to prioritize what you value in life.  If you are able to prioritize what you value, you will consider yourself a success.  If, on the other hand, you cannot meet your values, no matter how successful you appear to others, you will not be happy.  So aim for “happy” and you’ll get whatever you value, whether that’s family time, financial security, wealth, service to others, etcetera, is up to you.

While there are plenty of things students can do to prepare for college, the previous five recommendations are a great start.

Most likely it is not surprising that the missing link to student success is the student.  Yet, we still fall short of positioning students as the center of their own success.  Why?  Because it’s easier not to.  Try this by reading #1, doing what it says; then reading #2, doing what it says; and then reading #3, and doing what it says.  No looking ahead!!!

  1. Write your name on a sheet of paper.
  2. Put your pen in your weak hand and now write a goal for yourself.
  3. Now, keeping your pen in your weak hand, put the pen on the paper, close your eyes, and write down top goal of a the last cashier you purchased something from.

What does this tell us?  First, it’s easy doing what we always do.  Second, change is uncomfortable.  Third, change without understanding is nearly impossible.  So, as hard as it is for your teenager to change and evolve, it will also be challenging for you to change and evolve.  You will need to be very conscientious of your actions and the way you “coach” your child.

To learn more about what was in this post, follow up with a couple great resources!

**In the interest of pure transparency, I am the founder and CEO of MyCampusMax, LLC, owner of MyCollegeMax.com.  But don’t let that stop you!  ;o)

Good luck and come back for more blogs on Maximizing College Success!

Steve