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Sharon Lechter
Sharon L. Lechter is a CPA, author, entrepreneur, educator, international speaker and philanthropist. Lechter is best known as the co-author of the international best-selling book Rich Dad, Poor Dad and the Rich Dad series of books as well as one of the founders of the Rich Dad companies. In addition, Lechter is the co-inventor of the Cashflow for Kids board game and propelled the launch and development of a Web site designed to teach children financial literacy through fun, educational and interactive games.
In January, 2008 Lechter was appointed to the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy to serve a two-year term. It is the council’s responsibility to keep the American public financially competent and competitive.
She is co-author with Greg Reid of the forthcoming book “Three Feet from Gold”—which is presented by the Napoleon Hill Foundation.
Terrilyn Gibson
An Interview with HR Manager Terrilyn Gibson
By Tom Carroll
Terrilyn Gibson, MA, is a former FBLA member and presently serves as an HR Manager supporting a sales group at Daiichi Sankyo, a Japanese pharmaceutical company. Ms. Gibson was recognized last year on a Professional Division membership survey as a person who made the most of her FBLA experience, landing co-ops and internships at Regions Bank and Mercedes-Benz, and ultimately an internship and three-year job at Johnson & Johnson.
Terri’s job at Johnson & Johnson was recently impacted during a round of layoffs in March so she’s been going through quite a balancing act — searching for a job, planning a wedding, starting a new job, and preparing to relocate after the wedding!
This interview tells her story and demonstrates how Terri is applying skills she learned in FBLA to navigate these choppy waters, including landing a job offer in less than a month.
Terri, how were you introduced to FBLA and how did you know it was for you?
I entered a cooperative education and work program my senior year of high school. I still remember my teacher, Mrs. Marion Powell. She introduced us to FBLA. She helped us research and prepare for competitions and went with us to the district and national events. In our program, we received coaching and training on how to go into the workforce, including how to prepare resumes and interview for jobs. Once we landed our positions, we received continued coaching and support from her.
What were those first competitions like for you?
We spent a lot of time preparing. We learned about the background of FBLA and its purpose. The experiences were fun and helped us bridge our high school coursework into real life. We were expected to interact with actual business leaders and learn from them how to apply our skills on the job.
Mrs. Powell brought valuable learning materials into the classroom and made the process fun. To pay our way to competitions, we had lots of fundraising activities that were fun, too.
At the time, could you see how those experiences might later help you in your career?
Yes, it was all so valuable. Even the process of selecting which competition I wanted to enter was helpful. At the beginning of the class session, I was offered a co-op job at a bank, and had opportunities to interact with the bank human resources (HR) manager. Through that interaction, I began to understand what her job entailed and I became really interested in the interview and career exploration processes. It was this interest that led me to the FBLA interviewing competition.
How did all this impact the way you participated in FBLA?
I became very interested in learning more about HR so I used FBLA resources for connection and discovery. I used them to research the business world and learn about the different types of businesses and positions that were on the market. This helped to shape my aspirations even more. Because of these experiences, when I was a senior in high school (age 17), I decided I wanted to be in HR and I’ve never wavered since.
Did FBLA influence your college career?
Well, I always wanted to go to college. Getting a chance to begin my career through the co-op program and learning more about the career path through FBLA was instrumental for me. It shaped the focus for my major in college and helped me realize that I needed to have an internship to really get into the field.
After my high school internship, I knew I wanted to intern in HR during college and start working as soon as possible. Because of my success in the FBLA interviewing competition, I looked for a program at the University of Alabama and landed an internship through my college internship office. This added focus to my major and my internships and by the time I graduated, I was able to land a position in Human Resource Management with experience.
What was your internship history?
I worked at Regions bank and also on campus while I was getting my bachelors in business management. After that, I worked at Mercedes Benz U.S. International, Inc. During my masters program, I completed an HR internship at Johnson & Johnson, which led to full-time work with J&J after receiving my masters.
How did FBLA help you with the internships?
FBLA helped me really focus my efforts in school on a career path. This really made me stand out amongst my peers when I was looking for internships.
What would you suggest to a junior or senior in high school to help them get a head start on their career?
One of the most important strategies in looking for or building a career is networking. FBLA allows like-minded students to network with each other and it also brings students together with prospective employers and other people working in the corporate world. Networking with these people can help you focus your efforts after high school.
You’ve used the word “focus” a couple of times. What does “focus” mean to you in the business context?
Whenever you’re thinking through decisions — like where to go to college, what to major in, what kind of internships you’d like to seek, what types of student organizations you’d want to be involved with in college — “focus” helps you be decisive and get the best out of college. Your choices and the experiences they bring you turn out to be very relevant and impactful when you’re putting together a résumé. Those choices develop your career aspirations and the experience helps you to ensure that you are pursuing a path that matches your interests.
Did you know that your early activities would do so much to help you build your résumé?
I don’t think I was considering that. I simply had a teacher who made the activities we were doing really fun and relevant. This helped me become excited about business. The excitement helped me focus on a career path and also helped me select related activities throughout college.
What’s your best advice for a high school senior about networking?
Looking for internships and side jobs while you’re still in school can be very difficult, especially when everyone is applying for those jobs. You are just a number. But when you get involved in professional organizations, and you get to know people who are already doing what you imagine yourself doing in the future, they can help guide and coach you. They know about opportunities you might want to pursue and can steer you to people able to help you learn more about what you need to succeed in your field.
Four things you must always do:
- Be open to opportunities presented — seriously investigate them and follow through on good recommendations.
- Listen carefully.
- Ask lots of questions with the intent to learn.
- Learn from the people who are already out there doing what you would like to do.
It seems like mentors played an important role in your career development. How did you approach those people?
Being positive and looking for a human connection with other people is something that really helps. I always asked people for their recommendations and suggestions. I’ve found that professionals are willing to provide their advice if you ask. It helps to be very confident in yourself and your skills and to be excited about the career. This allows you to present yourself in a way that gives others confidence in you.
Do you think of yourself as a “leader,” Terri? How did your participation in FBLA influence that?
Definitely. In FBLA we put together committees and decided how we would represent ourselves in district and national competitions. We decided how we would organize our fund-raising. I found myself emerging as a leader in those activities and those experiences helped build my confidence as a leader.
Your position at Johnson and Johnson was recently eliminated. How did you use your FBLA experiences to find a new job?
Well, J&J began making lots of layoffs and decided to downsize HR in the Consumer Division by more than 50%, including my position.
I searched and interviewed almost daily for three weeks and ultimately received an offer from a Japanese pharmaceutical company called Daiichi Sankyo.
It’s so common now for people to be laid off. Because I’m such a strong proponent of keeping your résumé current and building a strong network, I felt the pressure to get a new position quickly. I’m always the one giving the advice or interviewing people in my job, so I felt pressure to do what I always advise other people to do and have some fruit come from my labor.
Was the layoff a surprise
Well, management let us know a few months ahead of time that they were going to be laying off approximately 50 percent of the HR employees in the consumer sector. I knew that every position was being considered. Of course you don’t want to believe it could be you until it turns out to be you! The news was a total shock to me and the people who I supported.
I had supported a client group through a round of layoffs they were going through in December — going over benefits, explaining severance, and all of the resources that were available — and the very next month, I found myself on the other side of the table!
What’s the first thing you did right after you heard the news?
Actually before I got the news, I had prepared in my head how I was going to respond because I didn’t want to react in a way that would embarrass me later. I thought: “If I’m told that my position is not eliminated, which questions do I want to ask?” And “What questions do I want to ask if my position is eliminated?” It’s hard to think through what you want to know and want to say in an emotional moment. I didn’t want to look back later and regret not asking a question when I had the chance.
When I got the news, I asked my questions. I was very professional. I told them that I understood. They told me that I could go home for the day to allow myself to wrap my head around what happened and deal with it. I took them up on that and took the rest of the day off to process the event.
What were your next steps?
I received my 60-day notice on Friday. On Monday I began searching for jobs online. I sent emails to colleagues who might have other contacts seeking someone with my skills. I reached out to people from my past and current jobs, updated my LinkedIn.com profile, and updated my résumé. As a practice, I keep my resume updated, so I just needed to add a couple of bullet points like position end dates and very recent accomplishments.
When I called or emailed people and they told me they knew someone who had an open position, I was ready with my resume and sent it right away.”
How did you get the interview for the job you just landed?
I actually bid online for the position without getting connected through anyone in the company. A former co-worker had told me that this company was nearby and that she had a neighbor who worked there and always talked about how wonderful it was. I did some research online about positions they had open, what the company was all about, their financial status. And then I just bid online.
Most of the other positions I got interviews for were through networking and knowing someone who had some insight about the opening. My experience this time was different — it was totally online.
Okay, so which online resources would you recommend for job finders these days?
My company offered an outplacement service. To learn about the most current career searching strategies, I attended the orientation session and met with a consultant. For my search, I used:
- Indeed.com
- LinkedIn.com
- Facebook.com
- Telephone
Indeed.com allows you to get pretty specific about what you are looking for and then pulls together results from a number of job search sites.
The other tool I used was LinkedIn.com. People post positions directly on LinkedIn. Recruiters actually comb through LinkedIn and reach out to you directly. It’s important to update your résumé and make sure it includes keywords for your field. I had recruiters contact me directly through my LinkedIn inbox. On the site, I also sent messages to colleagues asking for job leads, contacts, and recommendations. It’s easy for people to write you a recommendation on LinkedIn.
I even had a recruiter reach out to me through Facebook. I was surprised by that one. I also reached out to colleagues on Facebook for advice and to provide them with updates.
When I reached out to my network, I didn’t say, “Would you please help me?” or “Would you please do something?” I told them my position had been impacted in the layoffs and that I was looking for other opportunities. I asked if they had any recommendations for me for next steps — anything that I could be doing to find good opportunities faster. At that point, sometimes they would volunteer, “I can reach out to so and so” or “How about checking into this?” or “Let me send you a contact.” I didn’t want to put any pressure for them to do something for me.
What did you do during the face to face meetings/ interviews that you had?
I had a positive attitude. I felt very confident that I would be getting something soon and very positive about the opportunities. I know sometimes that it’s hard when you don’t know where and when the next job is coming, but it makes people feel more comfortable when you remain positive. I even had comments from people like, “You seem to be very optimistic, motivated, and excited about what’s next.” When they sense this, they’re much more willing to help.
So this is your third week in your new position. What tips do you have for new employees to get up to speed quickly in a new position?
Before I got there, I’d researched online quite a bit about what the company has been doing. I looked at the new articles that were out, mentions in the press, the financials. I started meeting with people right away to find out what is their role and what’s important to them. What are they looking for this position to contribute? Where/how do they see me fitting into this organization? I’ve been doing a lot of listening and asking a lot of questions.
Is your new position similar to your last one?
Yes. It’s nearly identical. Some people use the opportunity when they’re laid off to think about changing careers. From my perspective, it’s easier to get into a company when you bring a successful track record applying a certain set of skills. Once you get the job, you can prove yourself in that role and make the move to a different position. I was looking for the same position, so I could speak to my accomplishments and my history in the previous role. I had worked in the pharmaceutical section of J&J in a recruiting role, so I was familiar with both the industry and had previously held an HR Generalist role.
What about this experience do you most appreciate?
I’m very excited about my new company. The people are a delight to work with. The company is strong financially and growing.
Although this was a stressful and challenging experience at times, the journey truly helped me to continue to hone my career development skills, expand and strengthen my network, and embark on an exciting new experience.
Tom Carroll is the owner of Evolutionary Learning (evolutionarylearning.com), an instructional design and delivery company focused on helping clients to improve performance by learning from the best and sharing with the rest.
Beginning April 13, members from all FBLA-PBL divisions can participate in a contest to submit a full color graphic illustration depicting the upcoming membership year theme: FBLA-PBL: Simply the Best! The graphic illustration may be used in national FBLA-PBL printed and online promotions. If FBLA-PBL uses your illustration, you will win a $50 coupon good for ordering merchandise from API MarketPlace. All contest submissions should be submitted as digital files (.eps, .pdf, .tiff) to the national center by May 1, 2009 and become the property of FBLA-PBL, Inc. E-mail files to communications@fbla.org, and please fill out the waiver form. Click HERE to download the waiver form.
Download Interview with Power Presenter Jerry Weissman (mp3)
Jerry Weissman is the world’s number one corporate presentations coach. His private client list reads like a who’s who of the world’s best companies, including the top brass at Yahoo!, Intel, Intuit, Cisco Systems, Microsoft, Dolby Labs, and many others. Mr. Weissman founded Power Presentations, Ltd. in 1988. One of his earliest efforts was the Cisco Systems IPO road show. Following its successful launch, Don Valentine, of Sequoia Capital, and then chairman of Cisco’s Board of Directors, attributed “at least two to three dollars” of the offering price to Mr. Weissman’s coaching. That endorsement led to more than 500 other IPO road show presentations that have raised hundreds of billions of dollars in the stock market. Mr. Weissman’s focus widened from coaching IPOs to include public and privately held companies. His techniques have helped another 500 firms develop and deliver their mission-critical business presentations.
State Senator Kenneth Corn was elected to the Oklahoma State Senate in 2002 at the age of twenty-five making him the second youngest state senator in state’s history and the current youngest serving senator. Prior to his election to the senate, Corn served two terms in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. He was elected to the House at the age of twenty-two which made him one of the youngest Oklahomans to serve in state’s history.
Corn was born in Poteau, Oklahoma in 1976 to Elester and Katy Corn. He graduated from Howe High School in 1996 and the University of Oklahoma with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science in 2005. He was a member of the OU President’s Leadership Class, a Ruth Norman and United State Senate Youth Scholar. Corn is the only person to serve two terms as the State President of Future Business Leaders of America and one term as National President.
How did serving as an officer of the FBLA prepare you for your role as State Senator?
The opportunity to serve as a national officer gave me the skills necessary to be an effective communicator and the ability to set goals and establish a plan of action. I have often used my ability to think critically about issues and always factor the human element into the solutions we seek. I learned that from FBLA.
What are the similarities working in the government and the private sector as a business leader?
As an elected public official, you must learn how to best serve your constituents. That is similar to business because you have to learn to meet the needs of customers and make sure that you meet their expectations. Unlike the private sector, an elected leader must make the decision for the greater good, while in business you focus on the bottom line.
How important is networking and relationships to the work you do?
Networking is extremely important. You win elections based on the connections you have made and by meeting the public while expressing your ideas. Networking also allows you to expand your resources that can help you do your job more effectively.
How can young business leaders earn the trust of more senior members of a business or organization they work for?
It is important for young leaders to prove themselves by their willingness to work hard and put in the hours needed to be effective. Being prepared to do the job means you may be asked to complete and be willing to learn from your peers. It is extremely important to gather as much wisdom as possible by listening and putting that information to work.
Do you believe business education is a priority for our schools?
Business education is extremely important for young people. It is imperative for them to understand how the economy works and how important fiscal management is for them as individuals, government, and business. The basic understanding of the free enterprise system can serve as a great incentive for young people to establish goals, to be creative, and to understand how we are all connected to one another.
Download Podcast with Social Networking Guru Melissa Giovagnoli (mp3)
Melissa Giovagnoli is a social networking guru, keynote speaker and bestselling author, who founded Networlding in 2000, based on her seventh book on the science and practice of social networking. Networlding is a marketing and management consulting firm helping individuals and organizations achieve a “network effect” in their marketing, communications or sales initiatives.
She has been a guest on shows like the Today Show on WGN, CNBC, and has had a book discussed on The Oprah Winfrey Show. She received an “Outstanding Woman of the Decade Award” by The University of Chicago Women’s Business Advisory Council. She is currently working her twelfth book, Convergence, which focuses on the trend of the merging of media and entertainment, internet, television, education, music and publishing. Her clients have included companies such as AT&T, Disney, UBS, Motorola and Hewitt as well as hundreds of entrepreneurial organizations.
Resources:
Networlding for Teens: A Guide to Building Relationships and Opportunities for Success
101 Great Tips for Building Relationships and Opportunities in the Age of the Network
Download Interview with SBA District Director Adalberto Quijada (mp3)
J. Adalberto Quijada, a former FBLA-PBL member, is the District Director of the Santa Ana District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration with service responsibility for the counties of Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino in Southern California. As District Director, Mr. Quijada is responsible for the delivery of SBA programs and services to approximately 6 million people in the tri-county area, which covers over 28,000 square miles. Small businesses in the geographic area comprise in excess of 600,000, representing 16% of the total California business population. Quijada is also responsible for the management and oversight of SBA Resource Partners including four Women’s Business Centers, three SCORE chapters and a Regional Lead Center with a network of three Small Business Development Centers and three satellite locations.
Before coming to SBA, he led the marketing department of the U.S. Postal Service in Los Angeles and held an executive position as a member of the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs promoting programs related to NAFTA and other programs of bilateral interest.
Mr. Quijada holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University, respectively.
Download Interview with marketer, business blogger, and author Seth Godin (mp3)
Seth Godin is a bestselling author, entrepreneur, and agent of change.
Godin is author of ten books that have been bestsellers around the world. His most recent titles include The Dip and Meatball Sundae. Free Prize Inside was published in early May, 2004 and All Marketers Are Liars was published in 2005. His books that have been bestsellers around the world and changed the way people think about marketing, change and work. Permission Marketing was an Amazon.com Top 100 bestseller for a year, a Fortune Best Business Book and it spent four months on the BusinessWeek bestseller list. It also appeared on The New York Times business book bestseller list.
Unleashing the Ideavirus is the most popular ebook ever written. More than 1,000,000 people downloaded the digital version of this book about how ideas spread. Featured in USA Today, The New York Times, The Industry Standard and Wired Online, Ideavirus hit #4 on the Amazon Japan bestseller list, and #5 in the USA.
Seth is a renowned speaker as well. He was recently chosen as one of 21 Speakers for the Next Century by Successful Meetings and is consistently rated among the very best speakers by the audiences he addresses.
Seth was founder and CEO of Yoyodyne, the industry’s leading interactive direct marketing company, which Yahoo! acquired in late 1998.
He holds an MBA from Stanford, and was called “the Ultimate Entrepreneur for the Information Age” by BusinessWeek.
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A special thanks to Lauren Frey and Jeff Nordstedt of PTA Interactive, a division of Planned Television Arts for giving FBLA-PBL permission to use this podcast.
Want to make the best use of your time and get the most out of your attendance at this year’s NLC in Anaheim? Get the Edge in advance by reading the NLC Guide online in this cool new reader!
You can also download and print out a PDF copy of the pages you need to take with you to conference.
Are you an active FBLA-PBL member who would like to represent our organization as a national ambassador? Do you want to take your leadership involvement with the organization to the next level? For those looking to take on this prestigious role, consider applying for a FBLA-PBL national office.
To see if you are qualified, download the 2009–2010 FBLA-PBL National Officer Candidate Guide. Best of luck in your campaign!
The 2009 IFL, NLC, and competitive events schedules are linked below. Please note that these schedules are subject to change.
Did you know there was a brand-new revision to the dress code? The code was changed on January 9th. Female FBLA-PBL members are no longer required to wear nylons when dressing up. Take a look here to see the amended dress code.
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