lisa

Degrees at IU:

• B.A. Psychology, minor in Sociology (1990)
• M.S. Education (2004)

What advice would you give to a student navigating career choice?  

There are many people available on campus whose job it is to help students find their best-fit career and major. It is okay to ask for help. You don’t have to figure it all out yourself. It took me much longer to figure out my best-fit career than it would have had I had career coaches available to help me.

What is one thing you wish you would have known when beginning your career journey?  

As you gain experience in the career fields you are considering, be sure to pay attention to how you are feeling as you do the work. Take time to reflect on those experiences. Really think about what you liked or didn’t like, when you felt truly engaged vs. when you were bored. Sometimes, we think we have to talk ourselves into liking certain things because we don’t think we have choices around what is really a good fit for us. It may mean just changing one part of your job, not changing your job altogether. Sometimes it does make sense to change jobs though. Do your best to have courage and confidence in knowing your value. It took me a while to have enough confidence to realize that my contributions are valuable, and that I can find ways to make my job a better fit, instead of just saying yes to everything that was asked of me. I learned to advocate for myself in a professional manner that benefits the organization as well as myself.