Pursuing an Educational Career?

I got my "Birkman First Look"TM results today.  It didn't tell me stuff that I didn't already know somewhere deep inside.  So that made me curious...  Was it like a horoscope where you got generic statements that you would accept as truth?  Naturally, I peeked at everyone else's reports.  One guy has been in almost all the workshops with me, so we compared notes and we had different reports!  Phew!

Here's my "Life Style" results:

My style:  optimistic and creative
My needs:  friendly competition and flexibility in environment
When stressed:  tend take things personally (no surprise here)

My career management report was even more interesting because I had preferences / interests in nearly everything.  However, the biggest elements were under artistic, musical, literary, and social service.  If you limit the examination to the first page of that section of the report, you will find the following (edited to eliminate stuff I don't want to do, but in the order ranking from the report):

• College / University Professor (shows up several times under different categories)
• Therapist / Counselor / Coach / Career Counselor
• Sociologist
• Psychologist (shows up several times under different categories)
• Employee Relations Professional / Industrial Relations / Personnel Professional (really not sure if I still want to do HR, though)
• Visual Arts
• Travel Agent
• Trainer
• Marketing and Advertising (why is this under "Employee Relations / Training"?)

It also had stuff like being an engineer, but I am not going back to school to get an engineering degree.  I don't really like Calculus all that much, anyway.  And, I think I remember the question where I indicated that I would prefer an engineering type role and it was against being a plumber (messy, yuck) and something else even less palatable.

There you have it.  My areas of interest.  As I look for my next role, I need to focus on creativity first, and then social service.

Another Reason to LOVE Queen's

Like many of the other students in the Ottawa Class of 2011, I investigated a significant number of programs, attended seminars, and interviewed alumni before finally selecting the Queen's Executive MBA.  I knew that I was getting a solid program.  I knew that it was going to be hard work.  I knew that I would be surrounded by a diverse set of students that would only add to the richness of the program.  I knew that the faculty was phenomenal.  I knew that I was going to be exposed to a variety of experiences that other programs only dream about providing to their students.

What I did not know was how flexible Queen's is.  Sure, the marketing materials imply that there is flexibility, but you don't really know what it means until you are faced with needing some.

Today, I contacted a friend to let her know about my new employment status.  She came back and asked if I was staying in Ottawa or returning to Toronto.  If I am returning to the "centre of the universe", she has an opening at her company that is in line with my abilities and experience and she'd put in a good word with the hiring manager.  That was unexpected.  I hadn't thought about moving back.  It's only been 13 days and I have only applied for one job so far.  My husband and I have decided that I need to consider all options, so I am going to include Toronto in my job search, and if the right opportunity comes along...

What does that have to do with Queen's?  Well, I am only 50% through the program.  (Technically, I think we've done more than 50% of the coursework, but there is still 50% of the time left.)  If I end up in Toronto, what does that mean for school here?  Well, I have options.  I can stay here (which means commute to Ottawa on class weekends) or I can transfer to the National program.  Or I can do a blend where I stay in the Ottawa program and mostly come here, but drop in on some of the National program video conferences.  I had heard of people transferring between the programs, but never considered it for me.  Now I know the gut-wrenching decision-making that goes on and I feel incredibly supported by the director of my program and the Queen's administration.

I have told my team that should it come to be that I move 400-500 kilometres away, I will keep the team intact and commute to town on class weekends.

Does anyone have a spare bedroom I can use every other weekend?  Just askin'!

My Last Yoga Class...

This Saturday will mark my last yoga class.  Kind of like losing my job, I knew it was coming.  You can only justify offering yoga with one attendee for so long.  What makes the cancellation extra disappointing is that it wasn't Queen's that told me.  The yoga instructor told me when I ran into her in the hallway.

Bye, Zina.  I really enjoyed my personal yoga classes with you.

Welcome to Day 3 of the Rest of My Life

I thought I was OK.  And I will be OK, but for the past two days... not so much.

I didn't sleep much for two days.  Last night, I slept for about 5 hours.

It was hard to clear out my desk on Friday morning.  Then I had to find a lawyer and get my severance letter reviewed.  That means Friday was used up with leaving administration and I didn't get to study for stats like I had hoped.  To be honest, my mind wasn't in it anyway.

Saturday, I got up early and had a leisurely breakfast at the Marriott.  It's much nicer than the Crown Plaza across the street from school.  I told Albert, my server, that I had an exam to write and he just let me sit there quietly flipping through my binder, eating an amazing omelet (asparagus, spinach, ham), and drinking coffee long after the food plates were taken away. Then I wrote my exam.  I figure I passed.  Isn't that all that matters at this point?  Ideally, I get a B on it.  It'll be a blemish on my straight A average.  I'll just have to live with it.

After the exam, a bunch of us went to Baton Rouge for a drink and some food.  During lunch, we talked about our goals of the program.  One of the guys said he was employed at the beginning and expects to be unemployed at the end.  It was a joke.  It hit a little close to home for me.  So I went home and slept for 3 hours.

This morning, it is a beautiful and sunny.  According to my computer, it only looks nice out...  It is still 0C out there.  It also says it is partially cloudy out.  Must be another Ottawa.

Off to make pancakes for the lovely Jennifer.  The fabulous Nicole is on a sleepover.

It's the end of the world as I know it and I feel fine

My department is being restructured with the majority of my work going to my Director (who spent a considerable amount of time socializing, so I guess he needed something to do), which means that as of today, I do not have a job.  Many people are shocked and dismayed.  Other than the fact that my current income will end after a period of time, which sucks, I see this as a positive development.  I already have plans!

First, after I pick up my stuff later on this morning, I have a whole day to study for Stats!  And I feel good about it because I had an excellent session with my tutor last night and have a work plan.  One of my teammates put together an amazing set of cheat sheets for the exam.  I feel incredibly supported.

Second, I have given my girls' babysitter notice.  She has been wonderful about it and has offered to watch the girls if something comes up.  Again, I feel incredibly supported!  This means I am saving a few bucks AND I get to spend more time with my lovely daughters, at least in the short term.

School is my next priority.  After I nail the Stats exam, I am going to motor on my individual project, my paper on revenue forecasting, my HR paper, the Walmart case...

Then I plan to maximize the value of my outplacement package.  It includes things like videotaping me while going through a mock-interview.  The outplacement counselor said they have tons of jobs in their job bank, too.  It's all good!

At home, I will be working on the exterior landscaping.  Buy some dirt and try to find "bunny-proof" plants.  I bought an early-blooming heather the other day and the local bunnies have been dining on it.

I am also going to ramp up my training for Ottawa Race Weekend.

So, as you hear that I lost my job, fret not.  I know I will look back on this time and reflect that it was the best thing that could happen!

I Had a Nap

These days, I feel exhausted.

Last week, or was it the week before, I fell asleep on the homeward-bound bus and woke up long past my house.  (My husband came to my rescue.)

Today, I had a "nap" that started sometime after loading the dinner dishes into the dishwasher, briefly ended when I was awoken to kiss my girls goodnight, and continued until about 10:30.  I am too groggy to focus on studying for stats, too alert to go back to sleep.  Because I seem to have stopped blinking and my eyes do not water, my eyes are too sore to read.  Although isn't it interesting that just after writing that, my eyes decided to water and I can see a bit more clearly?

I chatted with a co-worker who is an elite athlete earlier today (or yesterday, now that I notice it is past midnight).  She had conducted a lunch and learn for the HR team on sleep habits a while ago.  I had retained that the first four hours of sleep contributed to physical repair and the next four contributed to psychological repair.  I asked her what happens when you wake up in the middle of the night terrified that you are going to fail your stats exam and get kicked out of your beloved MBA program.  She said the following:

The ideal sleep period is from 10pm to 6am.  (That's what I used to do before starting the MBA.)
Between 10pm and 2am, it is physical repair time.
Between 2am and 6am, it is psychological repair time.
If you go to bed at 10pm and wake up at midnight and go back to sleep at 2am (after lots of tossing and turning and driving your mate crazy), you lost out on 2 hours of physical repair.

So...  It looks like I have had 30 mins of physical repair.  If I can fall asleep by 1am, I can get one more hour of physical repair.  If I stay asleep and only wake up when the alarm goes off, I'll get 4 hours of taking care of my head.

That begs the question of the benefit of my extended nap, though.

I am meeting with a tutor tomorrow to establish some strategies for Saturday morning's exam.  I am looking forward to sleeping through the night again.

I Think the Deadlines Are Too Tight

Warning:  a little whining ahead.

Most of these said deadlines are team imposed.  I have several deliverables due on Tuesday because that seems to be the only day that we can get together as a team.  This is frustrating because I would really rather be focusing on Stats.  The exam is in less than six days and I have been spending my free time on Balanced Scorecard (which is should be working on - it is due in 11 days), HR, and now, the mini-case for Finance.  When am I supposed to study for Stats?  It doesn't matter if I have people offering to help me if I can't take the time to come up with questions for them.  Or carve out the time to actually see them.  This will be a week where I don't see my family.  That sucks.

Sorry, Sweeties. It's Not Nice Enough To Eat Outside

Last weekend - or maybe it was the weekend before - while making the traditional Sunday morning chocolate chip pancakes, I looked out and saw a cool yet beautifully sunny morning.  I decided to let my sweeties eat breakfast outside.  And they loved it!  They wiped off the table's dusty debris.  They set the table.  And they carried out the heaping plates of pancakes and nearly demolished them all.  For a brief moment in time, I was the best mommy ever.

Today, we have intermittent clouds and it is very cool outside.  Not an ideal day for impromptu alfresco dining.  I'll put an extra chocolate chip in the smiley faces to make it up to you.

Grande Quad Americano Needed

We started Financial Management today.  Right after a morning of Management Accounting.  We're all in class with our eyes glazed over.  It's pretty sad.  Sean seems like a good guy; we're just tired.  During a break, I headed down to Starbucks and asked them which drink had the highest caffeine content.  They recommended the Grande Quad Americano.  It worked for about 20 minutes.

This is another course with dry material... which means videos!

Here's the video that Sean showed us after we got back from first break:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUhb0XII93I

And here is the second:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UC31Oudc5Bg

Then we got to hear from a guy who used to work for CitiBank in the UK.  We got the play-by-play of the credit crisis and the meltdown of the financial institutions.  There is so much jargon in the presentation that it was hard to stop the guy for clarification.  He was pretty enthusiastic about the subject, that's for sure.

I Gotta Feeling

A friend was looking for boppy music for running or her boot camp class or something and I gave her the Black Eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling".  That made me think of this video that JP showed us during Creativity and Innovation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zcOFN_VBVo 

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood

It is an incredible day weather-wise.  It is at least 27C out there; warmer here than it is in Florida.  I was inside feeling sorry for myself and all the schoolwork I have to do...  And then I realized my kids were doing the same thing I was:  sitting in front of a computer.  And my husband told them to get off their bottoms and get outside.  Well, they made their playdates and I went along.  Four grade 3 girlies and I went off to the park.  They were riding their bikes and playing on the monkey bars while I read about balanced scorecards.  In two hours, I had a nice sunburn (who'd have thought it was possible to get a sunburn in Ontario in April?) and four pooped girls on my hands.  What a beautiful day in the neighbourhood!