February 2009 Archives

As I counsel students, I am hearing more and more of them say that they want to do something that makes a difference. With that in mind, I attended the American Humanics conference held last month at the Marriott in downtown Indy.

What is American Humanics? To quote their website, "The American Humanics program is an innovative course of study that equips college and university students to become skilled professionals and leaders in America's nonprofit organizations." They have a program at IUPUI that enables interested students to prepare for a career in non-profits. This does not mean that you abandon your study of accounting or management. You take this program in conjunction with your major work to prepare you for non-profit work.

So why should you care about non-profits? Well, not only do non-profits employ about 10% of the American workforce (The Nonprofit Career Guide), by the time you are 25, you will have spent 1/3 or more of your time involved with non-profits. Think about it: hospitals, schools (including IUPUI) churches, clubs, sports organizations, symphonies, museums, and public TV or radio are all non-profits. If you want to make a difference, take a look at the non-profit sector.

If you are worried about money, consider that through donations, fees, and government grants, reporting non-profits in 2005 had total revenue of $1.6 trillion. Based on wages paid only, the sector surpasses the Netherlands as the 16th largest economy in the world (The Nonprofit Career Guide). Within the next 10 years (when boomers retire), there will be 640,000 senior level management positions available in non-profits (Bridgestar). These are well paid positions in every field of endeavor.

If you think you might be interested in the non-profit sector as you make your career plans, check out the that the CPO has provided on our website. The Nonprofit Career Guide is available in the CPO, BS 4090.

Heading into the holiday break, I finally decided it was time to do some electronic housecleaning.  After sending dozens of revised resumes to the recycle bin from my ridiculously crowded desktop, I turned my attention to my internet Favorites folder, which has never seen the delete key (it's true - I had a link for a Sharper Image sale).  One of the few favorites that survived the purge, however, is a link to an archive of Work with Marty Nemko podcasts.
Of all the links to share, why would I choose this one?  Because most of the career advice you find on the web is either generic, boring or both - and Marty is anything but generic and boring.  He is funny, sarcastic, blunt and doesn't hesitate to take on potentially controversial issues such as race and gender in the workplace.  He also happens to be a renowned career coach who has a weekly radio show on KLAW, an NPR affiliate in San Francisco.  Rather than spend an hour every week giving canned career advice to his listeners, he brings on authors, politicians, entrepreneurs and executives who provide unique insight on current issues, trends, and policies affecting the world of work.  He also invites on working professions from a wide range of industries - shows which are some of the best examples of informational interviews you'll find anywhere.   
Here are a few show capsules from Marty's website to peak your interest, all of which are available to listen to or download HERE:
November 9:  Obama advisor, Jared Bernstein. He and I debated the wisdom of a liberal versus libertarian-leaning approach to fixing economy. This is one of my favorite shows, ever. I think you'll find that it fairly and interestingly presents both sides of this critical issue.
 November 2: Barbara and Marty Nemko debate how to work a room.
October 26: Allison O'Kelly on stay-at-home moms trying to get back in the workplace.
August 31: An hour of call-in 3-minute career makeovers plus an ode to people who work 60+ hours a week, especially the women who do.
August 24: Race in the Workplace.
August 17: Penelope Trunk, author of Brazen Careerist, on Generation X and Y in the workplace. (She's pretty outrageous.)
August 3: Green Careers with Carol McClelland who runs greencareercentral.com and Marie Kerpan, a career counselor who specializes in green careers.
July 20: David Hodgson, author of Video Game Careers.
April 6: Attorney F. Lee Bailey on what it's really like to be a lawyer, plus tips for people currently involved in a criminal or civil case.