Work Mom Meets Career Dad Are you struggling to determine your career path? Career Dad and Work Mom are here to help! Career Dad Kerry Doyle joins us to talk about his work helping young people find their passion and career BEFORE dropping thousands of dollars on college OR if you just don’t feel like college is right for you. From networking to prioritizing your passions to the many ways to get to know an industry before you enter it, we cover a ton of ground. Themes discussed in this episode * Normalizing career uncertainty * The importance of self-discovery * College isn’t always the right choice * Ways to stay motivated in the career search * Skill-building > job titles * Handling rejection and career stress Featured Guest Expert Guest: Kerry Doyle, the Career Dad What He Does: He helps parents and teens explore their intended career path before wasting thousands of dollars on college tuition. He’s not anti-college, but he helps young people consider the many career avenues available since college isn’t the best choice for everybody. Connect: You can find him on LinkedIn and his website Episode Highlights Timestamped inflection points from the show * 4:00 - Normalizing career uncertainty: Knowing your career calling in your twenties is VERY uncommon. It’s better to explore what you might be interested in to find the right fit rather than search for that perfect career. * 9:00 - College isn’t always the right choice: From trade schools to excellent jobs that don’t require degrees, there are tons of options out there. College may not be the right choice for you; it’s just a matter of doing your homework and exploring your options. Kerry can help you do that! * 10:00 - The importance of self-discovery: Strengthfinder assessments, career counselors, and talking to people in your intended industry are great ways to figure out the right career path for you. * 18:00 - Handling rejection and career stress: Consider rejections as learning experiences. Take the lessons learned, learn to pivot or shift directions, and keep it moving. * 23:00 - Skill-building > job titles: Entry-level jobs and jobs that aren’t your dream job can be the best option because they teach you tons of skills AND can get your foot in the door. Don’t turn down a job just because it isn’t perfect. Top Quotes * 6:40 - Kerry: My advice is to look for that experience beforehand, before you make the investment. I'm not against college. Do some homework before college, something that you're not used to doing. Get out of your comfort zone. And don't assume that college is always the right choice. * 7:30 - Kerry: We're responsible for our careers, our own lives. It's not the teachers and parents anymore. It's us. * 10:00 - Kerry: You can connect with them digitally, you know, through LinkedIn or something, but explore and get in conversations with people, go meet with them in person or through Zoom or something, and find out what it's really like. * 12:00 - Kerry: There are a few reasons I wouldn't put all my weight into the assessments. One, it's a snapshot in time and our personalities and our interests change over time. It's also based on theory. Yes, it's based on statistics and behavior and surveys and other things, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to sync up with you. * 14:00 - Lori: A good career counselor is probably an even better option. Someone who can sit with you and ask you questions like, do you like to make things with your hands? Are you a woodworking kind of person as a hobby? Well, then maybe skilled trades would be a good place for you. * 18:00 - Kerry: You take those moments that are difficult and you look at them as learning experiences and say, okay, I need to strengthen that or maybe shift here, pivot here, whatever. But it's all a data point. * 20:00 - Lori: One of the things that I would suggest people do is find people in the industry that you think you're interested in. Connect with people either that you know or on LinkedIn and ask for an informational interview. * 22:00 - Kerry: Anything new to us can be scary, and it usually is. But that fear gets magnified the longer we think about it, the longer we overanalyze it. Once you take the action, that fear gets reduced. And the more action you take, that fear gets reduced and reduced and reduced to zero. * 23:00 - Kerry: If you get to know more people, whether they have an opening or not, they will refer you to somebody else when they hear of an opening. So the side door, the stepping stone jobs, that's more likely to happen than going to a job posting and saying, oh, there's my perfect job. I'm going to apply for it and get it. Links Connect with me on LinkedIn. Order my book! Transcript Who is our ideal listener? This podcast is for young professionals who want to learn to play the emotional context sport of business and experience less drama and more success. How can you be more logical and less emotional? Be strategic, and Work Mom Says can help you. “I tell people to back up, put down the magnifying glass, and look at the big picture when you’re responding to something,” said Lori Jo Vest, Work Mom. “In doing this, you will understand that what’s really upsetting you right now will be something you don’t even remember next week.” What value can people get from listening to this podcast? Listening to Work Mom Says can help you grow your mood management skills, improve your ability to reframe situations, and look at things from a strategic point of view. This makes it easier to enter a work situation and get the most positive results. On Work Mom Says, we also offer tips and tricks for creating connected positive relationships that last over time. People will want you on the team if you can create connected positive relationships and work environments. You become an asset, and you will be more successful when you’re an asset. “I also like to talk about developing traits like optimism, persistence, tenacity, stick-to-itiveness, sticking with things, and approaching every project with a curious mind instead of a fearful mind,” said Lori Jo Vest, Work Mom. Why do I do this? A few more words from Work Mom I do this because I naturally fell into the Work Mom role when I worked in the ad agency business and had so much fun with it. I also realized I had made just about every mistake there was to make. I don’t hold myself as a stellar example of truth and how you should be. I hold myself out there as someone who has been bruised, battered, and beaten up and learned some important lessons. I’d love to share these lessons with young people so they don’t have to make those same mistakes or be the idiot I was. I also want to help young professionals realize that many things our culture prioritizes aren’t really important. We talk a lot about what should be important and how to present your best face at the office so that you can succeed. I’ve learned so much throughout my career, and it’s gratifying to share that with young professionals, help them avoid some of those mistakes, and help them achieve success sooner.