For me, to progress in one's life and career isn't as much about straight lines as concentric circles that loop from one passion and experience to the next. Consider my real life example. After barely graduating from high school with a 1.9 GPA, I worked in factories and construction crews until age 23, before deciding to study at a community college ... for a job in HVAC. It was a good choice, but not for someone like me. My inepitude with tools, and my aptitude for daydreaming made me a danger to myself and others (I still have an acetylene torch scar to prove it.). Except for this: an English 110 course, a general ed requirement that my trade-minded brethren all groaned about. The teacher, as only a community college instructor would bother to do, saw something; an overlooked talent for words that I'd never taken seriously. He lit a small spark that I'd later kindle into the flame of my true career. Still, I had to fail-forward from an HVAC job (where I was mercifully laid off) before I pursued university studies in PR and journalism with a vengeance. That led to communication jobs with a major medical center, a $10 billion foundation, a certain golden-domed university in South Bend, and a beloved nature center with 1,100 acres of deep woods outside my office window. My passion for stories that move people -- to care for the natural world, to give generously for the public good, to pursue social justice and equity -- has been a through line in my career. As a magazine writer, speechwriter, author, foundation grantmaker, and nonprofit executive these attributes have allowed me to serve at mission-driven, field-leading organizations. I've stopped trying predict where the next circle will overlap, but the process hasn't steered me wrong yet.
Listed skills include Speech Writing, Program Development, Strategic Communications, Research, and 19 others.
