Established Professionals: They Were Once in Our Shoes!

By Trish Vega, Toppel Peer Advisor

Have you ever come across a successful individual and thought to yourself, “Man, they work so hard and are doing so well! They must have superpowers or something.” Well, I’ve definitely been there. But even though someone’s current position may be awe-inspiring, it’s important to remember that they too were once in our shoes!

I had the chance to interview Mary Anne Viegelmann, the Global Employee Experience Manager within the Human Resources department at LinkedIn, and she shared with me her best career advice for college students like us.

Ready? Let’s go!

Mary Anne Viegelmann/via LinkedIn

What can college students do to prepare for their careers while they are in school?

"You don’t really know exactly what you’re gonna do in life, but you generally know the things you like doing. Be aware of those passions and skills that you have and try to find the intersection between those two." 

"Talk to as many people as possible no matter what they do! Learn about people from all different backgrounds, it doesn’t even have to be “formal networking”. You never know what those conversations might bring. Most people don’t have a figured out plan for their work but a lot of times it

starts with a simple conversation. People are so willing to talk to college students because they want to help you succeed. Take advantage of that now!"

What qualities do you believe makes a career-ready individual?

"Especially with college students, it’s so important that you are coming into the workplace with fresh new eyes. Your viewpoints and actions are not jaded, you’re not stuck in the mentality of 'that’s the way we’ve always done it'. You’re more open and willing to see things differently and you should use that to your advantage. Employers like people who are positive and willing to take on anything. Saying yes to almost anything and trying almost anything will get you pretty far. And when I mean 'saying yes' I mean being willing to take on projects you may not even know a lot about, because it is all a learning experience. Also, be willing to ask a lot of questions! All this helps build new skills too."

"This is huge especially in the tech world. In the four years that I’ve been in Silicon Valley, I’ve seen constant change. So adapting to that and figuring out how to change your programs quickly is so important."

Shift happens throughout careers and throughout life. How have you learned to deal with unanticipated changes in your career journey?

"When I deal with change, I try not to dwell on it too long. As long as the change does not interfere with my values, I think, 'Okay, there is probably a change for a reason.' Some change you obviously can’t control, like when a company is growing, but I try to look at the pros and cons of the change and work with it. If there’s a change that you think is bad, you should still question it and bring your opinion to the table but do it with an open mind. And I think that comes with a certain attitude of positivity and

openness. It’s better to do it with a positive attitude than with a negative attitude, because you have to do it anyway! So why be a grump about it?"

Any other advice?

"One of the biggest reasons of why I’ve been able to be successful in my work is because I’ve taken to heart one of our core values at LinkedIn, which is that relationships matter. And so the way I always approach every situation is to always think about the people first. It doesn’t matter what my motive is, they’re people first. Usually people are more willing to help you out if you have a strong relationship, so by focusing on the person, I almost won’t even have to ask if I need something because they already want to help you. That’s been hugely important for me, building on the relationships without any expectations, because it’s important to know the people you are affecting. And even if there’s nothing they can do for you, that’s okay. You’ve built a relationship and maybe you’ll get to work with them later on. If you can adopt that trait in college, your network will be huge."

"I think college is such a great time to explore and see what’s out there. I don’t think you have to have it figured out. I’ve been working for 15 years in different kinds of roles, and I’m still learning a bunch of different things. Always be learning, always find different opportunities to build your skills. Volunteering is such a huge part of that. You create such great relationships. And showing your skills in something other than schoolwork will help you too. Employers like to see that you are well-rounded, and they especially like to see volunteer experience, especially good employers. Those companies who care about people first will ask those types of questions and notice that type of thing on your resume or LinkedIn profile.

"Lastly, just have fun!"

~~~~~~~~~

Thanks Mary Anne! So what do you think? In what ways have you experienced that relationships matter?

Is the Dream Job a Real Possibility?

By Kelly Martin, Toppel Peer Advisor

Last night during an outreach presentation I was giving for Toppel, I was asked a very interesting question. The girl asked me how to deal with the “issue” that even though she was a psychology major, every summer she had interned for a fashion or magazine company because it was something she was really interested in. She was concerned that her resume didn’t look like the resume of someone studying psychology and she was preparing to apply to grad school for psychology.

This question made me sad in a way; this girl was concerned that by pursuing something she was really passionate about she was maybe short changing another aspect of her life that she also cared about. My first response was that despite the fact that interning at a magazine or in the fashion industry may not seem directly relatable to psychology, at the end of the day, any internship or job experience teaches you invaluable skills that are applicable anywhere. So on your resume, even if you have a lot of experiences that may not seem to relate to your field of study on the surface, think about everything you learned at those experiences and you are bound to find skills that are universally applicable.

But the question continued to stick in my head. Since thinking about it more, I think I would add to that response. This girl was clearly passionate about the fashion industry, but also passionate about her studies in psychology as she was hoping to apply to grad school to pursue it. I would encourage her to think about those passions and how she can find a way to make them intersect.

I recently read an article on LinkedIn about a woman who had been in the marketing field as VP for a long time. But eventually, with the help of a career counselor, she reassessed what she was really passionate about, things that had occurred in her personal life, and realized she wanted a change, and ended up working for a non-profit for widows and widowers. She herself had become a widow 5 years prior, and felt a strong drive to helping others like herself, and as she now declares, she has her “dream job”.

I think we often worry too much about what we should be studying and what jobs we should get, when we should really think about what we want. If you’re doing something you actually care about, you will inevitably be happier. I think everyone has a dream job, we just often think it’s not attainable because we don’t have the right degree, or the right qualifications. But if you really assess your experiences, and combine those with your passion, it’s worth pursuing that dream job. You never know, you might just find it.