Best Practice Approaches to Training for
Career Development Professionals

According to Richard Hawk, “’Best’ can be defined as most productive; and ‘practice’ can be defined as an actual performance or application.  A best practice, then, is the most productive application.”

This Roundtable discussion will focus on how career counselors, coaches and advisers to develop, create, and deliver great presentations.  We will be discussing the ADDIE model as well as other techniques.

Please come and share your favorite career development training practices, activities and/or training techniques.

Helpful links:

• Steve Hughes’ Hit Your Stride
  
• American Society for Training and Development
  
• The Training and Development World
  
• Free Management Library: All About Training and Development (Learning and Development)

Articles to help set the stage:

• Hawk, R. (2005). Training: Making it Interesting Professional Safety, 54-56.
• Hough, K. (April, 2011). Improvisation: A radical new way to train, T&D, 64-68

Please RSVP to Bernice Hillukka at Behilluk@msn.com or no later than Friday, December 9.  We will be serving food at our meeting, so please RSVP to ensure there is enough for everyone.  Also, if you have any food allergies or preferences, include that in your RSVP.

All career counselors, coaches, employment specialists and other career professionals are invited to this fun, free event. MCDA members are encouraged to invite their coworkers and colleagues.

For more information, check out the EventBrite invitation.

Questions: Contact Carol.Ellingsberg@va.gov.

• RSVP here

Facilitator:  Darren Kaltved
Date:  October 18, 2011
Time:   6:00 – 7:30 pm 
Where: University of Minnesota Law School, Room 473
(http://www.law.umn.edu/contact/directons.html)

October’s exciting topic:      PERSONAL BRANDING

Is perception reality?
What are other’s perceptions of you?
Have you ever Googled yourself?

 When you see brands (e.g. companies, products, services, etc.) somewhere, you tend to associate them with a certain set of expectations or perceptions that are connected with a product or service. You associate these concepts, thoughts and images with these companies because of the brand each company has established.

This month’s discussion about the simple concepts of Personal Branding will include:

• How we as career development professionals can enhance our own brand.
• How to enhance the brand of our clients/students.
  • How to prepare clients/students to leave a footprint relevant to their passion.
  • Helping clients/students to establish stronger credibility and visibility.
  • Create a more competitive edge.
  • Be able to surround themselves with those that compliment their strengths.

We all have superpowers, but do we know how to make them know?  Join us for a fun, interactive and informational discussion.

About Darren: www.linkedin.com/in/darrenkaltved

Additional Resources:

• www.darrenkaltved.com (personal branding blog)
• www.reachcc.com (personal branding company developed by William Arruda – personal branding guru)
• www.personalbrandingblog.com
• “Personal Branding 101: How to Discover and Create Your Brand“ (Mashable)
• “10 Ways To Build Your Personal Brand” (Business Insider)
• “What is a Personal Brand and Why Do You Need One?”

Please RSVP to Bernice Hillukka at Behilluk@msn.com or Carol Ellingsberg at Carol.ellingsberg@va.gov no later than Monday October 17th.  We will be serving food at our meeting, so please RSVP to ensure there is enough for everyone.  Also, if you have any food allergies or preferences, include that in your RSVP.

• The President’s Corner
• MCDA Board Members
• News for NCDA
• MCDA Fall Event
• My Top Five Career Assessments
• Member Spotlight
• Book Review
• SIG Spotlight
• Welcome New Members

The President’s Corner by Janet Pribyl

Hello and welcome to the beginning of what is shaping up to be another great year for the Minnesota Career Development Association. I am excited about the possibilities as I embark on my year as President.

I look back fondly on my years as a young professional. Oh, how I looked forward to the yearly MCDA conferences where I eagerly connected with others who were like me, was exposed to a multitude of new ideas, and learned necessary skills to use in my development as a professional in the field. I’ve come a long way since then, and so has this incredibly wonderful and vibrant organization!

Thank you to all the wonderful candidates who ran for positions on the MCDA Board of Trustees this past summer. It was an unusual year, with a number of resignations from The Board to be filled as well as the usual number of regular term positions. We had a very well-qualified representative pool of candidates and voting for just a few was hard. I am happy to report that we have an excellent Board for the coming year and I am truly excited about the energy, ideas, and action already coming from the new Board.

Planning is under way for the major events which MCDA hosts throughout the year.  The Fall Event, a presentation by SagePresence, will take place on Thursday, November 3 at the Ridgedale Library in Minnetonka. The Winter Event is tentatively scheduled for March 1 and will be finalized soon. The Spring Conference, scheduled for April 19 and 20, will, once again, prove to be an extraordinary event with the keynote speaker and one of the PDI’s already set. Save all the dates on your calendar now!

 The National Career Development Association conference in San Antonio, Texas, this summer was a great opportunity to connect with colleagues from across the country and the world. Despite being teased about the temperatures in Minneapolis and San Antonio being the same (!!) and the impending Minnesota state shutdown looming large, I managed to attend a number of sessions that truly inspired me. I’ll be sharing more with the Board as the year progresses.

As President, one of my priorities will be to focus some of the Board’s energy towards making MCDA programming more accessible to all of our membership. Coming from Duluth, I find it difficult to attend many of the happenings in the Twin Cities area and wish there were alternatives to in-person attendance. I want to pursue the possibilities of using technology to open the monthly roundtables and other events to those who live some distance from the events.

I am truly humbled by the honor to serve as your President and look excitedly toward the new year of possibilities. Please feel free to contact me, or any of the members of the Board of Trustees, with suggestions, ideas, or even complaints, as we embark on the year.  Thank you!

2011-2012 MCDA Board of Trustees by Irene Rossman

Congratulations to the newly elected MCDA Board Members!!  We are delighted to announce the following individuals as part of our 2011-2012 MCDA Board of Trustees:

John Merladet, newly elected Treasurer and member of Executive Board
Shonda Allen, newly elected board member
Ben Hansen, newly elected board member
Cindy Hinderks, newly elected board member
Sue Holm, newly elected board member
Janine Papenfuss, newly elected board member
Jennifer Rosand, newly elected board member
Shelby Strong, newly elected board member
Kathy Ward, newly elected board member

In addition to our newly elected board members, the 2011-2012 MCDA Board of Trustees include:

Janet Pribyl, President and member of Executive Board
Shelley Jensen-Decker, President-Elect and member of Executive Board
Carmen Croonquist, Past President and member of Executive Board
Darren Kaltved, Secretary and member of Executive Board
Marie Carter Brooks, board member
Lisa Cook, board member
Mary Dwyer, board member
Denise Felder, board member
Mike Haugen, board member
Suzie Karsnia, board member
Irene Rossman, board member
Kate Southwick, board member

All MCDA members are welcome to attend the monthly MCDA board meetings. Meeting dates and times will be posted on the MCDA website.

News from NCDA by Paul Timmins

Okay, we’re obviously both fans of the Minnesota Career Development Association, or I wouldn’t be writing this article and you wouldn’t be reading it.

But I’m writing today about our affiliate/parent organization, the National Career Development Association (NCDA). If you’re more familiar with MCDA than you are with the national association, you’re not alone.  But NCDA has some exciting things cooking!

This year’s NCDA conference was in San Antonio, earlier this summer.  I took pictures at the Alamo, walked on the Riverwalk, and I shared a cab ride with Denise Felder, Janet Pribyl, and the lead singer from a really loud band that I hope to never hear again (he played some of his “music” for us).

And the conference was good, too.

I’ve attended several NCDA conferences in the past, and this year’s was no different:  Nearly 1000 professionals from across the United States (48 states) — and several other countries around the globe — were there networking and sharing best practices.  I was particularly struck by just how many legends in the field of career development were there, mingling with all of the rest of us. From Minnesota’s own Sunny Hansen to other experts like John Krumboltz, Spencer Niles, Mark Pope — these are the people who have written the career counseling textbooks we’ve all read!

My perspective on NCDA has changed a bit: After several years as a member, I was recently elected to a term as Midwest Region Trustee on the group’s Board of Directors.  In this capacity, one of my responsibilities is to promote NCDA connections with state chapters like ours. I’d be happy to talk with any of you about either organization.

Honestly, it would be great to see more Minnesotans connected with NCDA. For those of you who are looking for ways to get involved, here are two things to think about:

• The NCDA Leadership Academy is an experiential, two-year program that gives participants the chance to work closely with career development thought leaders on projects that can impact the career development profession. Previous participants have worked on projects to deliver career counseling to underrepresented groups, grow state career development associations, and promote the career development profession. Members receive a stipend to support their attendance for two years at the NCDA annual conference, and many alumni of the program have gone on to leadership positions in NCDA and throughout the career development world.  Applications are now available at  bit.ly/oNxmRr
• Next year’s NCDA Conference will be in Atlanta, GA from June 21-23, 2012. Proposals are now being accepted for conference presentations — the deadline is October 3.  See www.ncdaconference.org for more information.

Finally, it’s a particularly exciting time to get involved with NCDA because 2013 marks the 100th anniversary of our founding. The centennial celebration should mark a great time to reflect on where our profession has been, and where we’ll go in the future.

If you are interested in connecting with NCDA but need more information or a little encouragement, let me know. And, watch out: I’ll be trying to promote Minnesotans’ involvement in NCDA in the next few years. We have a lot to offer!

The MCDA Fall Event:  Winning Presence for Career Development

 There is a common denominator in the experience of career counselors working with their most challenging clients, and in the experience of their clients looking to present themselves when they network and interview.

That common denominator is a sense of risk. We are presenting ourselves and our ideas to an audience we want to inspire into action. Success or failure seems entirely determined by our performance in the moment, and with that sense comes natural barriers to our performance: We feel anxious and uncomfortable, we don’t know what to say or how to say it, and it very often seems like we’re trying to sell something to someone who may not want to buy.

Join us Thursday, November 3 for a presentation by Pete Machalek of SagePresence addressing all of these challenges in one fell swoop. As a filmmaker who has transferred his skills from the film set to the business world, Pete brings his expertise in message design and performance to show you how to master your role and win over audiences in even the most challenging moments.

By the end of this inspiring session, you will know how to:

• Forge meaningful connections with your clients – even in times of stress and frustration – creating an opportunity for productive communication
• Lead efficient conversations that will help you provide exactly what your clients need to elevate them to their next success
• Help your clients network more productively and interview more effectively

 Join us at the MCDA Fall Event:
Date:  Thursday, Nov 3, 2011
Location:  Ridgedale Library; (12601 Ridgedale Drive Minnetonka, MN)
Time:  12:30-1:00 Registration with presentation from 1:00-4:30

Thanks to Workplace Coach Institute

WCI was one of the sponsors for the Career Development conference last May, and is a locally-founded organization.  Workplace Coach Institute^SM, Inc. is dedicated to bringing a system of humanity and civility back into the global workplace. Co-founded by Nancy Branton, PCC and Cynthia Kivland, MCC, the company offers ICF, NBCC and Board Certified Coach approved certifications, along with corporate coaching or consulting, and career, leadership and HR training and assessment certifications. For more information, check out their website:  http://workplacecoachinstitute.com .

My Top Five Career Assessments by Nancy Branton

After coaching numerous clients to make a career transition, I found that career assessments are an integral part of that process. Armed with their assessment results, career transitioners can evaluate their current career and make wise decisions to prepare for their next career.

I recommend five assessments to use with career transitioning clients to help them uncover what’s most important to them for their next career. They are:

1. Golden Personality Type Profiler (GPTP) or Myers Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®);
2. Career Liftoff ® Interest Inventory (CLII);
3. SkillScan™ Career Driver;
4. O*NET™ Work Importance Profiler™; and,
5. Page Work Behavior Inventory (PWBI).

Both the GPTP and the MBTI® are based on Jung’s Theory of Psychological Type, and are excellent and reasonably priced assessments to administer to career transitioning clients to learn about their personality type preferences.  Based on their preferences, career transitioners find out their four-letter personality type, which is one of sixteen possible types. The Golden Personality Type Profiler has an additional scale: Tense—Calm, which shows how they tend to react to stress. After they know their personality type, they can learn more about whom they are, the careers that best fit their personality, and what aspects of the social work environment will fit them best.

The Career Liftoff ® Interest Inventory is an inexpensive assessment to administer to career transitioners. The CLII gives them their highest Holland Themes, top occupational interest scales (OIS), and occupations that link to their OIS’s. As they view their top six OIS’s, they can brainstorm possible new directions for their career. Using O*NET® Online, they can compare their highest scoring Holland themes with occupations’ highest Holland themes to determine which careers are a good match.

The SkillScan™ Career Driver is an inexpensive assessment to assist career transitioners in understanding their current skill sets and occupations that link to them, skills they’re motivated to use, and their highest priority skills to develop for the future.  Additionally, they gain knowledge and tools to link their skill results with their Holland-based interests and their four-letter personality type; doing so enhances their understanding of their multifaceted selves.

Often clients are unaware of their career values. The O*NET® Work Importance Profiler™, a free online assessment, helps them become aware of their highest career values and the needs that underlie them.  With that information, career transitioners can compare their highest career values with those of various occupations in O*NET® Online.

The Page Work Behavior Inventory measures your clients’ work styles, leadership style, selling style, and more. Using O*NET® Online, they can compare their highest scoring work styles with occupations’ highest work styles to determine if various careers are a good match.

In summary, administering and interpreting these five assessments to career transitioners will help them fully understand their personality, interests, work styles, career values, and motivated skills. Then, they can establish a career direction that is most satisfying and motivating for them.

Member Spotlight – Sally Power

Editor: Sally, you’ve been involved in career development for quite awhile.  Tell us how it all began for you.

Sally:  My interest in helping people have more successful careers really started in the mid-1980s. At that time I was putting together a new course called Management: Challenges and Purpose (which became the beginning course for all MBA students for almost twenty years). The students in that course had time to reflect on management, the future, their personal strengths and weaknesses, and their values so that they could write a “personal growth statement” about what they wanted to do professionally and how they could achieve those goals. It was a great experience for me and taught me how important it is that individuals build their career aspirations both on who they are as a person and on what they see in the world that needs doing.

Editor:  At what point did you find yourself getting more actively involved in career development?

Sally:  In the mid 1990s, I had personally come to a turning point in my career. I had thought for a long time that I would eventually become a college administrator but when I had an opportunity to do some of that, I found that it was not personally rewarding. That led me to spend some quality time reviewing what I wanted to do next with the help of a career counselor. The upshot of that process was my articulation of my next goal as becoming an expert in some particular subject area. My next problem was – what would be the area?

Editor:  That’s exciting! You’ve been through your own career transition.  What happened next?

Sally:  I began reading what interested me and at the end of about a year, I had my subject area which was how workforce dynamics were changing and impacting people in midcareer. It was my concern that people already in the workforce were unlikely to have the time or recognize the need to revamp their career management skills. It took quite a while to build my knowledge but I kept at it and finally had an article published in an issue of The Counseling Psychologist. That was followed by my book, The Mid-Career Success Guide which is a self-help book that shows what I believe you need to do and how working people can do this by spending about four hours a month on those activities.

Editor:  Well, your persistence has paid off and you’ve become established in your field.  As you look to the future, what is on your horizon?

Sally:  Recently I have started another transition. My interest in the challenges facing the workforce as it continues to evolve at such a fast pace has continued and grown. And, as I have aged, my recognition that my time is precious has also grown. So, I have just taken the retirement deal at my institution and refocused my life to work as an independent consultant on the impact of workforce changes on career management both for individuals and organizations. Projects of interest to me are why more individuals do not upgrade their career management skills, how the career management skills of contract workers are different from the skills of traditional employees, and how companies can engage their workers in a way that not only improves the company’s performance but also improves the individuals’ career management abilities.

Editor:  Sally, I’d like to mention an accomplishment of yours that is of particular interest to MCDA.  Earlier this year you received the Research Award granted by MCDA to individuals who have made significant contributions to our field in the areas of research and publications.  Your long list of relevant books, articles and papers speak for themselves in support of this honor.  On behalf of the career development community, I thank you for your commitment to leading edge information and thought-provoking research and we look forward to your new topics of interest!

Book Review:   Work at Home Now: The No-Nonsense Guide to Finding Your Perfect Home-based Job, Avoiding Scams, and Making a Great Living by Christine Durst and Michael Haaren

Reviewed by Dina Bergren

Have you worked with clients who need or desire to work from home?  Have you searched for telecommuting jobs only to find questionable ads?  According to Work at Home Now authors, Christine Durst and Michael Haaren, approximately 1 out of 59 “work at home” job postings are legitimate.  This insightful book identifies trustworthy websites for professional telework (i.e. telecommuting) positions, provides online search strategies, and helps prepare individuals for telework success. 

Telework job sites are organized by “type” and include tips from insiders, company information, and position titles.  Job categories include: 

• Consultants and subject matter experts;
• Education, teaching, and tutoring;
• Technical and web-related;
• Accounting and financial;
• Translation and linguistic;
• Writing, editing, and proofreading;
• And many more!

This book also lists telework-friendly companies that may allow more flexibility and freelance websites where applicants can bid for jobs.

Along with specific companies to target, the authors offer strategies on how to use search phrases and tools to manage a telework job search.  Examples of many search phrases are provided, along with tips on how to use tools such as Google Alerts (www.google.com/alerts) to receive notifications of telecommuting job leads based on defined search criteria.  Strategies for searching niche job banks, large job banks, and job aggregators are also discussed.

Geared toward professionals in a variety of fields, it is packed with insightful tips on researching companies, creating resumes customized for telework, preparing for interviews, and even convincing employers on the benefits of telecommuting.  This book is a refreshing, information-packed resource for those seeking alternative work arrangements.   The authors’ website, called www.ratracerebellion.com, also has current and updated telework sites.

SIG Spotlight on NCDPA

Northland Career Development Professionals Association (NCDPA) is a professional organization serving career development professionals from Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin, which meets in Duluth.  The group was designed to provide Northland career professionals a local organization that offers the opportunity to network and grow professionally. Members come from diverse positions including career counselors, job developers, life coaches, vocational rehab specialists, and school counselors.  The next meeting is September 29^th on the topic “Live Your Strengths: Understanding and Using StrengthsQuest”.  If you’d like more information, please contact Kathy Pykkonen, President, at 715-394-8024 or email Kpykkone@uwsuper.edu.

Welcome to New Members

The following members joined MCDA June through August:

CurShonda Allen
Goodwill/Easter Seals

Christopher Feider

Tracy Germ
St. Mary’sUniversity ofMinnesota

Jane Haas

Nicolee Holmgren

Miranda Johnson
CapellaUniversity

Janice Kalin
JLK & Associates

Danielle Lindquist
American Medical Systems

Sheryl Saul
Saint Mary’s University

Don Sletten

The Minnesota Career Development Association (MCDA) offers monthly RoundTable meetings that focus on selected career development topics to help us become better practitioners.  RoundTables also serve as a time to network with colleagues working in a variety of sectors.  Note that you do not need to be a MCDA member. We encourage you to spread the word to your non-MCDA member colleagues!

Facilitator:  Richard Davy, Minnesota Dept. of Labor & Industry

Date:  September 21st 2011 

The RoundTable for August 2011 is canceled. The next RoundTable will be in September.

 Facilitator:  Richard Davy, Minnesota Dept. of Labor & Industry

Date:  September 2011 – date TBD

Time: 6:00 – 7:30 pm

Where:  TBD

September’s exciting topic is: Benefits of Minnesota’s Apprenticeship System

This discussion about the apprenticeship system in Minnesota will cover the following:

1)   How the registered apprenticeship system is structured

2)   How can dislocated workers and college students benefit from an apprenticeship?

3)   Apprenticeship program development and growth

4)   Challenges our clients face entering apprenticeships

5)   Engaging potential apprentices

6)   How can education, career development and employers work together to provide advocacy for apprenticeship opportunities?

7) Using employer networks as a way to build an apprenticeship

References for the participants to read in advance:

1)   This article describes a successful apprenticeship program in North Carolina that was accomplished through employer collaboration: Crafting a Skilled Workplace

2)   Basic explanation of the apprenticeship system: http://www.doleta.gov/jobseekers/Apprent.cfm

Please RSVP to Bernice Hillukka at Behilluk@msn.com

• The President’s Corner
• Award Winners
• Marc Freedman’s Big Shift
• Looking for a Few Good Board Members!
• Volunteer Opportunities
• Book Review
• Member Spotlight
• SIG Spotlight
• Multicultural Counseling
• Global Career Brainstorming Day
• Welcome New Members

The President’s Corner

Greetings!

This is my last President’s Corner before handing the “gavel” over to Janet Pribyl. Reflecting on the past year, I am extremely proud of all that MCDA has accomplished. Here is a recap of some of the highlights:

• To increase programming options for our members, MCDA established a partnership with Careerwell.  Careerwell offers 3-4 monthly tele-interviews from thought leaders on a wide array of career-related topics. I conducted an interview with Sally Gelardin, founder of Careerwell, to heighten awareness and utilization of this new service. The interview was posted on our website, and has been used by Careerwell as a model to help other career associations across the country maximize  the benefits of their program.
• Our monthly roundtables continue to feature a variety of topics and discussions. They are well attended and highly regarded by our members.
• MCDA offered three major events during 2010-11. The Fall Event, “Fear & Bullying in the Workplace,” was presented by Dean DeGroot.  Our Winter Event was presented by Nick Tasler, author of “The Impulse Factor.” The Minnesota Careers Conference was held April 28 & 29. William Arruda provided a full-day pre-conference workshop on On-line Identity Certification for Personal Branding. The other pre-conference workshop, “Building a Resilient Workplace,” was presented by Cindy Kivland & Nancy Branton from the Workplace Coach Institute.  The conference featured Richard Leider as keynote speaker. Each conference participant received a signed copy of his landmark book: “The Power of Purpose.” The event also offered 16 breakout sessions, an awards ceremony, and concluded with a networking reception.  All events received exceptional evaluations from participants.
• MCDA formed closer collaborations with two other local Twin Cities organizations: the Minnesota Coaches Association (MCA) and Shift. MCDA and MCA jointly sponsored a workshop in October:”Reinventing Yourself in the Second Half of Life” presented by Fred Mandrell. In May, MCDA, Shift, and MCA collaborated to offer a well-attended program featuring Marc Freedman. We believe these collaborations have made the Twin Cities career development / coaching community even stronger and more dynamic!
• To commemorate National Career Development Month in November, two Board Members (Vic Massaglia and Darren Kaltved) took turns offering daily career development tips, quotes, and links that went out to the membership list-serve. It was innovative, informative, and generated many positive responses from members!
• To engage graduate students and encourage their participation in MCDA, two new Board positions were created for graduate students. We welcomed graduate students Christine Giefer and Leslie Svacina to the Board this spring. 
• We continue to have a successful mentoring program, pairing new career development professionals with seasoned mentors in the field.
• Paul Timmons, Board Member and Past-President of MCDA, was elected as a Regional Board Member for NCDA.  Congratulations, Paul!
• Three of our members (Mike Stebleton, Elizabeth Craig, and I) presented at last year’s NCDA conference in San Francisco.
• Sadly, in March we lost Bridget Kenadjian. A well-respected member of MCDA and the Twin Cities career development community, Bridget was a recipient of this year’s Jules Kerlan Lifetime Achievement Award. She received news of the award a few days before her passing.  We are grateful for the many contributions Bridget made to our field and our organization over the years, and extend our sympathies to Bridget’s family.

In closing, I would like to express my appreciation for the opportunity to serve as President this past year. It has been rewarding to lead an organization that represents such a dynamic, passionate group of career professionals!  I am also very grateful to the MCDA Board Members, to Lois Vogt (MCDA’s administrator), Kim Marrone (newsletter editor), and everyone who assisted with our programs, services, and events.  All that we have accomplished has been through teamwork – and a solid commitment to the mission of this organization. Thank you, and enjoy your summer!

All my best,

Carmen Croonquist, MCDA President 2010-11

Congratulations to our Award Winners!

The following talented individuals (and one group) received awards at the recent Minnesota Careers Conference:
Patricia Berg – Jules Kerlan Award
Bridget Kenadjian – Jules Kerlan Award
Mike Haugen – Marty Dockman Merit Award
Sally Power – Research Award
Northland Career Development Professionals Association – Marty Dockman Merit Award

Please take a moment to congratulate them on their achievement! 

Marc Freedman’s Big Shift by Kate Schaefers

Marc Freedman was recently in the Twin Cities to talk about his new book “The Big Shift: Navigating the New Stage of Life Beyond Midlife.”  In his engaging talk, Freedman challenged us as individuals and as a society to rethink our images of what it means to age and retire. 

 Freedman believes that we are on the cusp of defining a new life stage, after midlife but before frailty, characterized by engagement, contribution, and continued work. This new life stage is driven by a perfect storm of trends, including shifting demographics, longevity strides, economic realities, and new understanding of aging.  People are progressing through their 50’s, 60’s, 70’s – and even their 80’s – with health, vitality, and the desire and ability to work.

 The stakes are high.  The first of the 78 million baby boomers have already reached age 65, the traditional retirement threshold.  Our social systems are projecting burgeoning demands and overwhelming deficits as the boomers age.   Freedman argues that it is completely unrealistic for a society to financially fund 25-30 years of leisure for a segment of the population.

 Just as important, Freedman stresses that continued work benefits individuals as well as society.  For a generation that is work centric and socially conscious, withdrawing from society isn’t necessarily appealing.  Instead, Freedman sees a yearning for work that feeds the soul as well as the belly.  He sees this movement as a generativity revolution, a social movement that emphasizes contribution, meaningful work, and a paycheck.

Freedman challenges us to move past the oxymorons that have surfaced to describe this phase, such as “young old” or “working retirement.”  He suggests that we embrace this new stage, which he calls the “Encore Stage,” and expand societal structures to normalize and facilitate movement into meaningful work in these productive years. 

 As career counselors, we will be instrumental in helping clients make these shifts in midlife and beyond.  Our tools that assess interests, values, and skills can be used to clarify priorities and career/life direction.  Our expertise in networking and job search can be put to good use as clients explore and create opportunities for themselves.  Our theories and models translate well in working with this population’s issues.  However, we will need to expand our definitions of what it means to work, and help clients imagine a variety of ways to work and contribute, including volunteer, part time, project, phased retirement, and other creative ways to sculpt work to accommodate shifting life priorities as people age.

 Marc Freedman’s talk was hosted by SHiFT, a Twin Cities community that supports midlife shifts to meaning in life and work.  MCDA partnered with SHiFT for this event, and many MCDA members will be facilitating follow-up workshops for the SHiFT community.  This partnership is exciting, since career counselors bring an important expertise to the career and life transition process.  Career counselors will serve as important resources as individuals navigate this new Encore life stage. 

Freedman struck a nerve with his book, by painting an encouraging picture of what society could be if we harness the talent of this life stage.  Our challenge is to create new ways to take advantage of a generation’s talents, experience, and desire to give back and have impact. 

Looking for a Few Good Board Members!

Ever wondered what happens in Board meetings?  Do you wish you could have more impact in the career development community?  We hope you’ll consider becoming an MCDA Board member!  We’re looking to fill seven open Board of Trustee positions, a treasurer position, and a president-elect position.   You’ll have opportunities to:

  * Build relationships with career development professionals from a variety of settings and expand your network of contacts in the field.
  * Develop new skills in leadership, project management, speaking, writing, editing, program planning, web design, etc.
  * Make a contribution to the profession of career development and the community.
  * Have fun!

Expectations of a member of the MCDA Board of Trustees are:

  * Serve for a three-year term (treasurer is a 2-year position)
  * Understand the mission, purpose, by-laws, and past practices
  * Assist in planning and implementing annual goals and strategy
  * Provide ideas, input, and information to the group process
  * Attend monthly meetings
  * Respect ideas and viewpoints shared by other board members
  * Participate in working groups, serve as committee chairs, and take on projects
  * Ask the leadership for help, clarification, or information when unclear about something
  * Strive to improve the organization’s standing and scope by working towards goals

All this fun for just a few hours a month!  The approximate time involved per month is 3 hours total (2 hours at a Board meeting, and 1 hour to keep up on organization/Board communication). Then, depending on additional committees or projects you volunteer for, your commitment may be a little more during some months. Past Board members have found the time commitment to be very manageable for someone working full time.

Act now! If you are interested in running for one of the open board position or would like to recommend someone, contact Irene Rossman by June 20 at 952-915-7605 or irene.rossman@cpitwincities.com

Volunteer Opportunities

The MCDA Board is looking for volunteers interested in helping with events for the 2011-2012 year. We need:

• Coordinator for our Fall Event (typically held in October or November) – Could be Chair or Co-Chair
• Coordinator for our Spring Conference (to be held in April 2012) – Could be Chair or Co-Chair

If you are interested in serving as a Chair, Co-chair or participating on the planning committees for these events, please contact Carmen Croonquist at 651-497-7178 or cjcroonquist@yahoo.com.

Book Review:  The Impulse Factor by Nick Tasler
Reviewed by Irene Rossman

Nick Tasler, researcher, speaker and Management Columnist for Business Week Online, is the author of “The Impulse Factor”, where he explores the psychological and genetic factors that shape decision making.  Tasler discusses why some people take more risks than others.  At the beginning of his book, he proposes this experiment: Which option would you prefer?  The first option is a chance to win a three-week, all expenses paid trip to Europe. This requires flipping a coin; if it turns up heads, you win the trip, but if it turns up tails, you get nothing. The second option is a guaranteed one-week vacation to Europe with no strings attached. Tasler presented this exercise to the audience at the Winter Event.  Three-fourths of audiences choose the second option – the safe route – with one-fourth selecting the riskier option.

In his book, Tasler writes: “By knowing each of our specific decision-making tendencies, we can exercise control over them.”  He concludes that people approach decision making from either a “potential seeking” or “risk managing” perspective. Potential seekers can quickly identify new opportunities and often shoot from the hip. Risk managers, on the other hand, are more cautious and favor more existing opportunities.  More important than your type of decision making style is how you manage your strengths and weaknesses in making decisions.  Tasler encourages all of us to learn more about what motivates our decisions, and armed with this knowledge, make more positive and empowering decisions.

According to the author, people that take greater risks are genetically predisposed to be so and are often more successful.  However, impulsivity can bring disastrous consequences. Tasler discusses how to overcome the downside of such impulsiveness while maximizing its benefits.

Along with his book, Tasler has developed the “Impulse Factor Test”, an online assessment that identifies our Decision Pulse and classifies people as potential seekers or risk managers.  Tasler describes the anatomy of decisions as having four components: decide, execute, adapt, and learn.  He says that good decisions must be reliable, rational and regret-free.

 I highly recommend “The Impulse Factor” and find Tasler’s research and approach to decision making very helpful for my own life and in working with clients.

Member Spotlight on Bridget Kenadjian, In Memoriam

In March, the Career Development community suffered a significant loss with the passing of Bridget Kenadjian.  Bridget was a member of MCDA for over 8 years, serving two terms with the Board of Trustees and as Secretary on the Executive Board.  She tirelessly volunteered in both leadership and support roles including conference committee member each year, presenter for conference break-out sessions and key leader in the development of the new mentor program.  And, as this Editor well knows, whenever an article needed to be written for the newsletter Bridget would volunteer and fulfill her promise without any reminders. 

Bridget’s career spanned 20 years and included accomplishments such as:

• Chaired the first U of M system-wide employment expo and increased employer participation by 250%
• Developing and implementing the Peer Advisor Program at William Mitchell College of Law
• Nominated to serve on the national board for Equal Justice Works, an organization to help law students
• Created more than 40 career planning tip sheets

 Bridget will be deeply missed by many people whose lives she touched by sharing a part of herself and her commitment to career development.   Although her life was cut short, her memory and impact will live on in the hearts of many.

SIG Highlight – Organizational Career Development SIG by Kim Marrone

The focus of this SIG, which is led by Tom Bodin and Leslie Philmon, is to discuss ideas for providing career planning resources to employees within organizations.  As a collaboration with the local ASTD (American Society for Training and Development) chapter, discussions are often centered around needs and changes in the workplace.  For example, the topic for the May event held recently was speech coaching.  Marlene Schoenberg led the discussion by referencing the movie “The King’s Speech” as a launching pad for communication examples and principles. 

Other exciting topics are planned for the rest of the year including: 

• Vision Boards:  Mapping to Achieve Career Goals (June 17^th)
• Resourceful Thinking: How do you continue career development when you are unemployed or underemployed? (July 15)
• Trends in the Minnesota Economic and Job Market by Rachel Vilsack (September 16)
• Military Workforce – Integrating Veterans Back into the Workforce (October 21)

For a full list of 2011 topics and details about meeting place and time, check out the Events tab on the MCDA website.

Multicultural Counseling:  Understanding the Person Sitting in Front of You By Katherine Bowen & Kathryn Archbold

 What Is “Multicultural”?
Who do we see? For most of us, the clientele that is walking through our doors is significantly diverse from us.  We then experience a multicultural counseling session. In scenarios such as this, counselors can find it difficult to connect with or understand the client. The client may feel that there is a valley between the counselor and themselves. Conversation can become more difficult and the working relationship can become strained. However, with education and effort, the multicultural disconnect can be overcome so that an effective working relationship can be established.  

Expectations
Let us first establish that the counselor can never be fully competent in another culture, unless it becomes their own.  During the April MCDA RoundTable, hosted by the University of Minnesota Law School, the attendees discussed moments where they have come in contact with another culture that was foreign and they felt the need to apologize for their misunderstanding of the other culture. However, the expectation should not be that we should be aware of every culture that could walk through the doors of a counselor’s office. Rather, we should focus on making it a learning opportunity in the instances where the differences cause a rift between two people. These are the places in which either a strengthening of or the disintegration of a relationship takes place.

Next Steps
As counselors, we are in a constant state of assessment. What is the client’s main needs? Where does our client want to be in the next six months? How can they be helped to get there? Asking the right questions of our clientele gives us the power to most effectively lead the client down a desirable and personally rewarding path.  After all, helping a person reach a rewarding path is ultimately one of the greatest perks of being in the career development field.  

This skill can be readily applied to understanding a client from another culture.  The difference is that the counselor would need to start at a more basic level of understanding when they begin their questioning process. Doing some research of the culture can help the formation of smarter questions to ask the client. Again, the goal isn’t to be competent, but aware. They are the competent ones when it comes to their culture. Going to them with your questions will build the bond of a trusting working relationship.

Understanding Self
As stated above, in order for a counselor to successfully work with a client from a different background, they must admit that they do not know everything.  This client must be approached with as much curiosity and desire to learn about them, as with caution and knowledge of personal biases.  Understanding yourself and your individual roles in society will help you recognize the differences between your client and you.  We have all been raised in a culture that tells stories of normative cultures and fills our thoughts with what is or is not ‘typical’— aka unconscious biases.  If we are able to detect our prejudices and where we may fall prey to ignorance of struggles that our clients face, we are able to see where each one is limited and may not fit into the proper idea of the hetero-normative society.

We recommend that first you work with yourself. Doing this may be the biggest and hardest step to take before working with diverse clients. Many of us do not want to believe or acknowledge the social injustices and disparities that affect our clients.  This is not to place the client in a box because in the end no individual is the same as the next. Instead, the hope is that working to create knowledge within us would be an effective way to create an understanding and trusting environment with all of your clientele.

2010 Global Career Brainstorming Day by Carmen Croonquist

On Friday, December 3, 2010, 156 career professionals from the US, Canada, and the UK met in 12 live and five virtual events. The objective: to brainstorm best practices, new programs, new processes, trends and more that are currently impacting, and projected to impact, global employment, job search, and career management. Sponsored by the Career Thought Leader Forum, each event was hosted by a facilitator and recorded by a scribe. I facilitated the Twin Cities’ event, held at Axel’s Bonfire in St. Paul. As scribe, Nancy Branton recorded the results of our brainstorming activities. Ona Pradhan, Cindy Hinderks, Paul Sears, Joanie Natalizio, and Ed Duda participated in the event. We were given a list of possible discussion topics that fell under two categories: 1) best practices and trends, and 2) visions for the future. Some of the topics: resumes, portfolios, cover letters, personal branding, job search processes, industries/professions on the rise, online identity management, assessment tools/technologies, career coaching strategies, trends in how people find jobs, and changes in candidate hiring. There was great synergy in our group. Even though we had from 11:30 AM – 4:00 PM, we were only able to cover a few of the key topics that primarily fell under the category of best practices and trends. It was an enriching experience for those of us who participated. Post-event data was evaluated and is presented in the attached “white paper” document. Feel free to share this information with your colleagues and clients! The 2011 Global Career Brainstorming Day has been scheduled for October 14^th. For more information: http://www.careerthoughtleaders.com/brainstorming2011/ .

Welcome New Members

The following members joined MCDA March through May:

Steven Barker
Self employed

Julie Berg      
HRD Consulting

Jennifer Briggs                  

Christopher Buckley          
University of Minnesota

Deborah Cuneo                 
Workforce Solutions

Diane Daleiden
Anoka County JobTraining Center

Kathy Dammann               
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Anna DeBower 
Univeristy of Minnesota – CSOM

Christina Forsythe             
Rasmussen College

Judy Galt      
Career Partners International

Greg Gapinski                  
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Jodi Grams    
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Nona Haller   
Capella Universtiy

Joyce Halverson                
University of Minnesota – College of Liberal Arts

Susan Holm  
University of Wisconsin-Superior, McNair Scholars

Sheran Huhner                  

Julia Janssen
Ridgewater College

Darren Kaltved 
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Michele Kirby
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Kristel Lastine
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Traci Laughlin
NE Regional Corrections Center

Sharon Lowry
Anoka County – Job Training Center

Nikki McGowan                 
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Colleen McNab
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Julia Miller     
Concordia University – Saint Paul

Peter Miller    
Connexus Energy

Said Mohamed
Goodwill-Easter Seals

Ann Ness      
St. Catherine University

MaryJo Noehring               
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Andrea Obrycki                 
University of St. Thomas

Theresa Olson                  
J. Cameron & Associates

Christine Powell                
Augsburg College

Julie Poyzer  
Minneapolis Community & Technical College

Denise Pranke                  
Walden University

Poonam Puri   

Dana Rechtzigel               
St. Mary’s University of Minnesota

Anne Roos    
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Jennifer Rosand                
University of Minnesota

Mirza Selimovic                
Goodwill-Easter Seals

Kaia Sherburne                 
University of Saint Thomas

La Tasha Shevlin               
University of Minnesota (Twin Cities)

Emily Sladky 
Metro State University

Patrick Smith
Minneapolis Community & Technical College

Greg Steenson                 
St. Catherine University

Shelby Strong
The George Washington University

Chinh Truong 
University of St. Thomas

Sharon Weaver                 
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Cindy Whitcomb               
Central MN Jobs & Training Services

Serving on the Board offers opportunities to:

• Build relationships with career development professionals from a variety of settings, and expand your network of contacts in the field.
• Develop new skills in leadership, project management, speaking, writing, editing, program planning, web design, etc. You can choose which projects or skills to develop.
• Make a contribution to the profession of career development and the community.
• Have fun!

Expectations of a member of the MCDA Board of Trustees:

• Serve for a three-year term (treasurer is a two-year position)
• Understand MCDA’s mission, purpose, by-laws, and past practices
• Assist in planning and implementing annual goals and strategy
• Provide ideas, input, and information to the group process
• Attend monthly meetings
• Respect ideas and viewpoints shared by other board members
• Participate in working groups, serve as committee chairs, and take on projects
• Ask the leadership for help, clarification, or information when unclear about something
• Strive to improve the organization’s standing and scope by working towards goals
• Must be a current member of MCDA

Approximate time involved per month: three hours total (2 hours at a Board meeting, and one hour for organization/Board communications). Depending on the committees or projects you volunteer for, you might need more time during some months. Past Board members have found the time commitment to be very manageable for someone working full time.

You can find out more about the Board of Trustees here.

Board elections are coming soon. If you are interested in running for one of the open board position or would like to recommend another MCDA member, contact Irene Rossman by June 20 at 952-915-7605 or irene.rossman@cpitwincities.com.

When: Tuesday, June 21, 2011 6:00-7:30pm

Where: University of Minnesota Law School, Room 473 (http://www.law.umn.edu/contact/directons.html)

Facilitator: Beth Lory

Please RSVP to Bernice Hillukka (Behilluk@msn.com) no later than June 20th. We will be serving food at our next meeting, so please RSVP to ensure there is enough food for everyone. Also, if you have any food allergies or preferences, please indicate in your RSVP. Note that you do not need to be a member of MCDA to attend this event.

Summary:
The June Roundtable will focus on employer use of Facebook as a tool in the applicant pre-employment screening process. This topic was the subject of my graduate thesis research in the Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership program at St. Catherine University, St. Paul. Through an analysis of data gathered through an online survey of hundreds of employers who recruit students and alumni of the University of Minnesota, and interviews with both a privacy and employment law attorneys, I identified the legal, privacy and ethical implications as well as the benefits of this practice. My presentation provides recommendations for employers who are thinking about utilizing Facebook as an applicant pre-employment screening tool, and things to think about if employers are already using Facebook for this practice.

When: May 19, 2011

Start Time: 1800
End Time: 1930

Where: University of Minnesota Law School, Room 471 (http://www.law.umn.edu/contact/directions.html)

Topic: Emotional Intelligence, Social Intelligence and Career Success

Facilitator: Shelley Jensen-Decker

Please RSVP to Bernice Hillukka (Behilluk@msn.com) no later than May 18th. We will be serving food at our next meeting, so please RSVP to ensure there is enough food for everyone. Also, if you have any food allergies or preferences, please indicate in your RSVP. Note that you do not need to be a member of MCDA to attend this event.

Emotional Intelligence, Social Intelligence, and Career Success
We’ve all heard about emotional intelligence (EI) and its importance to career success. Recent research has uncovered a closely related concept called Social Intelligence (SI). While EI is about how we handle ourselves (awareness and management of emotions), SI is the ability to get along well with others while winning their cooperation. SI is a combination of sensitivity to the needs and interests of others (i.e. your “social radar”), an attitude of generosity and consideration, and a set of practical skills for interacting successfully with people in any setting. Some research suggests that SI is more important than EI for leadership and career success. Join us for a discussion on the relationship between EI and SI, their importance to our success, and how to help clients become more skilled in these very critical areas.

Please feel free to review the following resources and/or bring your own:

Book: Social Intelligence: The New Science of Success, Karl Albrecht

Article Social Intelligence and the Biology of Leadership: http://hbr.org/2008/09/social-intelligence-and-the-biology-of-leadership/ar/1

Article: http://www.lawcrossing.com/article/1400/Workplace-success-often-tied-to-social-intelligence/