More than half of Americans work while on vacation. For physicians, the proportion is 7 out of 10. We might see these data and think, “Excellent! We are dedicated workers, striving to be our most productive. What’s wrong with that?” I learned what’s wrong with overwork the hard… Continue reading »
In 2014, my co-founder, Marcela Sapone, and I started Alfred with a simple goal: to create something impactful while solving the problem we personally faced —how to make more time in our busy lives as renters. A decade later, that mission feels more relevant than ever. What began as a… Continue reading »
What is leadership? It should be self-evident that it is more than the title on a door or the seat at the head of a table. Leadership is a testament to one’s ability to navigate through the murky or even dangerous waters, and for the common good rather than personal… Continue reading »
I don’t have a graduate degree (Masters or PhD) and honestly will likely never get one. Sometimes this can feel like a limiting factor in a technical data scientist role. However, there are ways to fill in some of those gaps to limit this imposter syndrome. Really the… Continue reading »
Research tells us education begins at birth. High-quality, interactive early learning experiences are foundational for later success in school, career, and life. For parents with young children, accessing child care that will yield lifelong developmental benefits is paramount. Any working parent who has… Continue reading »
My calling compels me to think about what boys need most at all times. I am often asked “why an all-boys school?” or “what are the benefits of an all-boys school?” These are important questions to ponder, and at the heart of the answer is one simple yet profound concept:… Continue reading »
We humans are tempted to attack anything that appears foreign to us. As psychologist Abraham Maslow observed, when you have only a hammer, you’re inclined to look at everything as if it’s a nail. This unfortunate tendency often stems from a lack of nuance. Continue reading »
A fellow consultant recently said she sat through a public meeting full of nonsense. She didn’t raise her hand and point out the misguided assumptions. She wanted to leave but stayed. As we spoke she pondered why she neither left nor spoke up. Without fuss, we agreed it would have… Continue reading »
I don’t know whether to be buoyed or depressed by the latest findings about female lawyers in Big Law. Let’s start with the cheery news: Contrary to popular belief, women are remarkably bullish about their Big Law experience, according to a recently released report by legal intelligence firm Leopard Solutions. Almost… Continue reading »
Though we undoubtedly crossed paths a few times beforehand, Mike Gerbush ’09 and I didn’t formally meet until just before the pandemic. We had both attended Williams College, but one of us is six years older (you’d never know by looking at me) so we didn’t overlap. One of us also… Continue reading »
The New Year is the perfect time to reset priorities and refocus on implementing healthier habits. I believe this accessible and actionable list will be beneficial to fuel a healthy and prosperous 2023! 1) Master the Morning Routine – A positive and energizing morning routine sets the stage for a… Continue reading »
Republicans recently took control of the House of Representatives in the 118th Congress, and one of the items at the top of their priority list is a slew of inquiries into environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. Broadly, ESG commitments have become popular with many investors and asset managers,… Continue reading »
As a student, I learned early on that my name was different. A kind of difference that was not bad, but too complicated for someone to engage with during formal introductions, let alone daily, transactional encounters. That lesson is one that I learned… Continue reading »
A year ago, my family crawled into a hot air balloon gondola in the predawn darkness of Kenya’s Masai Mara. We slid into the gondola, which was resting sideways, strapped in, and waited for liftoff while lying on the ground. The whole start to the experience was rather clunky and nothing… Continue reading »
“Am I in the ‘right’ career?” It’s the question you struggle with each and every day. The good news is that you’re not alone. A recent poll found that approximately half (52%) of American workers are planning to make a career change this year. It’s no wonder that by age… Continue reading »
I decided to go to Williams so that I could play golf. After several seasons on the women’s golf team, I got the political bug. I ditched my golf clubs and instead volunteered on campaigns; founded a mental health advocacy group on campus; and pursued various political and advocacy internships… Continue reading »
I’m going to start with the conclusion: Non-binary and gender-diverse people should be accounted for in your organization’s data. By working with your internal experts – employee resource groups, DE&I team, Talent Attraction and Legal – or calling in external experts, you can develop optional demographic questions that satisfy federal… Continue reading »
Recruiting: It’s the new marketing. French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr wrote, “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” The more things change, the more things stay the same. That concept can be applied to business too. Since the dawn of time, business has been based on making money by… Continue reading »
You might have heard the mantra “Fake it until you make it.” It expresses the idea that you should embody a confidence or persona that you might not actually possess. And I disagree with it. I’ve gotten into trouble for being too honest in my career and in life, but… Continue reading »
On April 28, 2005, conservationists and government officials held a press conference that made headlines across the world. Their bombshell announcement: the ivory-billed woodpecker, long thought extinct, had been rediscovered in bottomland forest in Arkansas. The bird had… Continue reading »
As a Native American, I am proud to live and serve in a city that recognizes the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Auburn is one of more than 130 cities and states across the United States to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day. We are fortunate to share land… Continue reading »
He was a young man in police custody, admitted to the ICU with diabetic ketoacidosis. As I reviewed the medical record, I was struck by the fact that he had been in college about a year ago. I walked into his room and met a Black man in his 20s,… Continue reading »
Words are powerful things. When deployed clearly and effectively, they can propel new ideas forward and motivate social change. Unfortunately, they also can bring more confusion than clarity and lead reformers down the wrong paths. We run that risk with the use of the word “skills” in the current debate… Continue reading »
Venture Capital is an industry defined by long feedback cycles and avalanches of uncertainty at every turn, yet the prevailing narrative and style of most new venture capital investors are to stay up to date daily with newsletters, funding rounds, deal sizes and the opinions of everyone but their own. Continue reading »
In a few days, most of us will sigh with relief that 2020 has passed. In early spring, we were introduced to COVID-19, changing the ways we work, play, learn, shop, worship, and celebrate holidays and milestone events. Many are suffering from the economic impact, not to mention the… Continue reading »
Prior to joining their faculty last year as an adjunct, I’d had only glancing contact with Berkshire Community College (south of Williamstown, in Pittsfield), and while each interaction had been positive, my overall attitude towards a community college education remained – I confess – mildly dismissive. My own experience of… Continue reading »
Many people face their future with the presumption that there is only one life. They know it has to be lived with imagination and considerable effort. As some of my fellow Alumni Career Commentary authors have noted, life can often take unexpected turns in unusual directions. But I discovered, mostly… Continue reading »
I have been speaking to students, parents, faculty, staff and administrators pretty much nonstop these days. Sometimes it is in Zoom webinars for teachers, teens or parents on how to stay grounded in all of the uncertainty, and sometimes it is in one-on-one coaching calls with educational leaders who are… Continue reading »
Five years ago, I left a financially rewarding but personally unfulfilling first job in finance to take advantage of an opportunity to compose music for commercials. Overwhelmed with excitement, I took every penny I had (plus a huge pay cut) to pursue my dream of a professional music career in… Continue reading »
As the former CEO of Mission Bit, I was a passionate advocate of bringing coding education to every public school student across California. We involved community leaders, idealistic college students, seasoned educators and some of the largest education funders in the Bay Area to support our cause. To… Continue reading »
During my third year in medical school, I was not looking forward to my infectious disease rotation in the HIV clinic. I was worried I would only see sick, suffering patients with a complicated and chronic disease who couldn’t be helped. And I’d decided to become a doctor because I… Continue reading »
Non-profit leaders bemoan the constant need to drum up resources to achieve success. Whether running a charitable entity, trade association or civic organization, leaders envision how far they could advance strategic goals with an injection of additional revenue. But resources aren’t limited to budgeted dollars. Sometimes, the chance to offset… Continue reading »
I find myself speaking and writing publicly about the role that forward-looking individuals and families play in the life and prosperity of cities across North America. Many of these individuals are remarkable in the modesty with which they live. They are influential and affluent far beyond their appearance and demeanor,… Continue reading »
The best leaders have an innate ability to deal with whatever’s thrown at them. Here’s how to tell who’s got it and who doesn’t. Effective leaders must meet challenges and resolve them productively, day after day, for… Continue reading »
Always dreamed of returning to a snow covered campus to teach a Winter Study course? A career shift towards gigging might be a vital step towards making this a reality. When most people think about “gigging,” they immediately think about young people working as Uber drivers, taskers, or… Continue reading »
In 1973, John R. Coleman — then president of Haverford College and a respected labor economist — took a sabbatical. Over the course of those few months, Coleman dedicated his time to working menial, blue-collar jobs on an incognito basis. He made sandwiches, worked farm fields and dug ditches. It was part intellectual inquiry… Continue reading »
For those of us in the baby boomer generation, our legacy is not turning out the way we had planned. On our watch, the gap between rich and poor has turned into a chasm, our public schools have become re-segregated and our confidence in institutions is at an all-time low. Continue reading »
Our business and popular culture celebrates entrepreneurs who launch new businesses for their vision and daring – and rightly so. Innovation has been a cornerstone of this country since its founding. However, as someone who partners with CEOs of middle market and emerging growth companies to recruit top talent to… Continue reading »
My husband jokes that when people find out I’m a psychologist, two things happen. Either they either close up and look nervously for an excuse—any excuse—to exit the conversation, or they open up and start sharing and sometimes over sharing…then, I sometimes joke that then I’m the one left looking… Continue reading »
Last summer, I moved to New York City with no job. It was my second time bound for Brooklyn from the Berkshires. Reflecting on my initial experience, I set some ground rules for Round 2: In order to live in NYC, this time I must:… Continue reading »
When I decided to change careers, I was plagued with reservations, self-doubts and even feelings of disloyalty. While I expected this, I didn’t anticipate just how scary this phase of my life would be. I now count that time as valuable experience and rely on it every time I coach… Continue reading »
I wasn’t one of those kids with a strong commandeering personality: the ones who seized what they wanted or could say “no” without a flicker of remorse or moment of doubt. I had a bubbly and adorable spirit, which was often confused for a strong personality. However, beneath my carefree… Continue reading »
On my last day of clinical practice, I hung my white coat, my name in red embroidery above the pocket, on the back of the office door. Then it dawned on me that I wouldn’t be returning. I carried the coat gingerly across the icy parking lot to my three-year-old… Continue reading »
The minute I appeared in the front hall of Kugayama School the receptionist got up from behind his desk, opened the glass door of the administrative offices and came out to greet me with a smile, a bow and “Ohayoo gozaimasu.” The feeling that I mattered was inescapable. All day… Continue reading »
When I was graduating from Williams, I had very little idea of what a job was. That sounds naïve but it was true. My parents were academics so, in some ways, I had been in a college setting my whole life. At Williams, I studied political science and studio art. Continue reading »
“What is Big Data and how could it impact my career?” In my current work, I often get asked this question. Here’s a quick primer on Big Data, its present and potential benefits, and why some of its most groundbreaking future users will possess a liberal arts education. Big Data… Continue reading »
I guess you would call it a liberal arts approach to life: In the 35 years since I left the Purple Valley, I have worked on Wall Street, earned my MBA and owned eight businesses ranging from restaurants to real estate, from consulting to cold-pressed juices. These extensive corporate and… Continue reading »
It’s that time of year when Williams seniors are carving out well-worn footpaths between the library, the office of career counseling and the Purple Pub. The days of balancing senior seminars with 100-days parties, prioritizing the hunt for a post-college job over the hunt for a costume for Saturday night’s… Continue reading »
Two sales executive candidates walked into an interview with the CEO at one of my client companies. The first candidate was in the prime of her career, boasted strong credentials and had a dynamic presence. The second was in the latter stage of his career, had lesser accomplishments (proportionally to his… Continue reading »
If you’re interviewing for a job at a startup, the process can be worlds away from the hiring experience at large-scale firms and corporations. Startups, especially those that have not yet raised funding, have very little margin for error in their hiring process. Given their lean operations and generally tight… Continue reading »