My old high school

Young-ish folk! I want to hear from you!

If you are in a nonprofit career now, what did you think you’d be doing when you left high school?

When I graduated from high school, I was on my way to becoming a forensic pathologist. This was before the days of CSI. I loved dissecting and solving problems. And now, I do project management and strategy for nonprofit and educational organizations. So basically I still love dissecting and solving problems.

I’ve been invited to speak to a high school about careers in the nonprofit sector. I’ve done this sort of talk many times before with university students, but wanted to capture glimpses of other young people in the sector.

I’m compiling stories /audio /video that answer any or all of the following:

1. What is your job title? With what organization?
2. What sort of stuff do you do in your job?
3. What did  you think you’d be doing when you graduated from high school?
4. What experiences have you had that led you to where you are now?
5. What influence did your parents have as you navigated education and career options?
6. If you could go back and give your high school self some advice, what would you say?

Share below, or email to trina@trinaisakson.com.

How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar
Rosetta Thurman and Trista Harris
2010
174pp
$19.99 / $24.99 (after November 15)

Before I even delved into this book, I had to try very hard to literally not judge a book by its cover. The word “rockstar” and the image of a single person in the spotlight, on a pillar, surrounded by fans, completely turned me off.

Perhaps the target audience is younger than I, more extroverted than I, less advanced in career than I.

Nevertheless I can see the cover and title appealing to those in the first few years in their nonprofit career, keen, and eager to be the face of youth that are changing the world.

But, I’m not judging a book by its cover. I’m judging its contents. So I read the book through the eyes of a soon to be graduating university student, or a young professional fairly new to the sector (though the book’s introduction indicates the intended audience is the latter).

What the book does well:

First of all, the general format of the book appeals to me. I love lists, and I love practical, implementable action items, of which this book has 50 (plus sub-tips).

There are some great tips, including ones related to:

• Speaking openly about goals
• Getting management experience by leading committees
• Stretch assignments
• Ditching martyrdom

Rosetta and Trista also do a great job of using examples, both personal and of real young professionals, to illustrate their tips. I found this very useful in being able to visualize the practicalities or potential outcomes of their suggestions.

I really enjoyed Rosetta and Trista’s emphasis on the nonlinear career path, though I don’t believe this is unique to nonprofits as they suggest. This advice cannot be repeated enough to those about to enter the workforce or recently within it. Your past job titles or degree programs don’t define you. You do. Repeat: You do.

Another highlight of the book is the attention paid to diversity throughout. If you are a reader of Rosetta’s blog this won’t surprise you, but for those who are not, you will be treated to examples of all sorts: organizations that differ in size and mission, and individuals that different in experience and background. In that sense, I think every reader would be able to personally connect with at least one person sharing his or her story within.

Finally, Trista and Rosetta use an approachable and upbeat tone of voice throughout, so the book is not a heavy read.

What the book could have improved upon:

The book starts off very extrovert-centric. The introduction, which relates being at the back of the room with bad and being on stage speaking with good, casts aside and further marginalizes the oft-misunderstood introverts who very possibly get great work done without making a big fuss about it. (Disclaimer: I am one of those oft-misunderstood introverts. And Note: Sometimes making a fuss about your work is important. And Note: The book doesn’t stay extrovert-centric).

The book is also quite America-centric. Though there is one example given of young Canadian nonprofit staffperson, the specific examples of tools and resources are generally located in the US or directed to a US audience.

One of my largest frustrations while reading was that some of the sections were too short  (e.g. Tip 37: Create Your Own Professional Development Plan is only 3/4 of a page and I would have loved to read more) whereas others are way too long (e.g. Tip 44: Introduce Yourself to a Search Firm is 9 pages long and I feel less relevant to the intended audience).

Because of this, I felt while reading that the book goes all over the place. Because some of the tips were so short, others long, some providing a series of subtips, others with lengthy examples, I felt my brain was getting tugged around. On one hand this makes the book fine to read a tip at a time, out of order, over a long period of time. On the other hand, it made reading the book in one sitting a bit distracting.

The final call:

I think this book could have broader appeal than the intended audience described in the introduction. I think this book could also be suited to students planning on entering the nonprofit sector after graduating, or for any young profession in general, as many of the tips are relevant in all fields.

If you’re tight on cash but interested in this, I would suggest visiting a career advisor, talking to a few people who have jobs that resemble those you aspire to be in in a few years, volunteering, and following some nonprofit career-ish blogs, like Rosetta’s. I’m not a reader of Trista’s blog, but from reading Rosetta’s feed, I recognize many of the tips from previous posts.

Overall, I think it could have used a bit more editing, but offers a wide variety of tips to a young professional which can be used as a diverse grab bag of career advancement opportunities.

Find out more:

You can buy the book (in electronic or paperback version) here.

Find Rosetta on Twitter at @rosettathurman and on her blog at rosettathurman.com

Find Trista on Twitter at @tristaharris and on her blog at New Voices Of Philanthropy

Executive Director, Take a Hike Youth at Risk Foundation

Deadline: June 30

My friend Michelle is becoming a mother, and her position is open. I have a variety of experiences with Take a Hike as a donor, volunteer and event attendee, and they’ve all been fantastic!

This would be a great opportunity for a younger (in age or career) nonprofit professional looking for challenging but well-supported leadership position.

Read the posting on Charity Village here. They are hoping to hire by mid-July for a mid-August start.

SFU Certificate in Dialogue in Civic Engagement

Deadline: July 10

I completed this certificate in April this year, and also developed online curriculum for the first course in the program. I think this program is highly appropriate for activist and advocates, government employees involved in public engagement, citizen organizers, and private sector employees that have a public role in their work – anyone really with an interest in “strategically addressing issues of public concern.”

The people – faculty, staff, and fellow learners – were diverse, experienced, and encouraging, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the program. I was able to use the techniques and principles immediate in my work and was able to explore possible further career interests in dialogue and civic engagement.

Scholarships are available for selected applicants from nonprofit sectors – don’t let the costs stop you from applying.

Read more here.

The top tip I enjoy sharing with students is how a degree does not define you. You do. I demonstrate this by sharing my main post-university jobs (high school teacher, nonprofit gala event manager, and promoter of student engaged citizenship and community-university engagement) and asking what they think my undergrad degree was in. Chemistry and Biology are generally not the first guesses.

The workshop participants brainstormed different tips and resources related to finding employment in the nonprofit sector. They came up with a pile of suggestions in a really tight period of time – many that were new to me. Learning happens in every direction.

Looking for Jobs and Volunteer Roles

• govolunteer.ca (volunteer roles)
• nonprofit and volunteer sections on Craigslist
• charityvillage.com (Canada-wide jobs and volunteering)
• Career & Counselling Services at universities
• The Red Book Online (organizations based in Metro Vancouver)
• careers.ubc.ca
• workcabin.ca (environmental jobs)
• goodworkcanada.ca (green jobs and volunteering)
• Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF)
• Volunteer Vancouver (Vantage Point)
• Idealist.org
• City websites (e.g. City of Vancouver, City of Richmond, City of Burnaby)
• volweb.ca
• Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
• getinvolved.ca (via Andrea)
• Keep your eyes and ears open for odd opportunities. Have a passion for the area in which you work and play around with stuff outside your job description, it goes far. (via mjfrombuffalo)

Networking and Mentorship

• Arts Tri-Mentoring/Engineering Tri-Mentoring
• Joining Clubs/Student Associations (e.g Emerging Leaders Group)
• Sharing experience with other volunteers
• Me Inc. – Commerce Conference (external networking)
• Parents and family friends
• Volunteer in residence
• Professors
• Friends of friends
• Mailing Lists/talking to people at fairs
• Make use of relevant LinkedIn groups (Non Profit & Philanthropic Job Board) and Twitter contacts (via Andrea)
• Research ideal potential employers and conduct an informational interview (check out a WLU informational interviewing booklet) (via Andrea)

Resumes, Cover Letter and Interviews

• Research company before interview
• Career services (for help)
• Hook for cover letter – be interesting
• Be specific to job description
• Be unique, passionate (to certain extent)
• Interviews –
• be down to earth
• practice potential q’s
• confidence
• Don’t’ answer questions in conventional way
• Situation, task, action, result, transfer (technique for answering interview q’s)
• Reveal your transferable skills
• Be honest

Learning and Workshops

• Mentoring Programs
• Involvement Showcase (CSI)
• Green Book
• SLC 2010
• Google
• Events UBC Site
• Career Days
• Community workshops
• Company workshops
• Clubs
• Go Global (Exchange)
• Read
• Community centers/resources
• Research seminars
• Research the rules are for the part of the sector in which you’re looking (do you need a specific degree?) (via mjfrombuffalo)

Things NOT to Do

• Don’t pick something you don’t find interesting
• Don’t lie about your passion
• Don’t be inconsistent in your approach (e.g. volunteer work can be just as important as paid work)
• Don’t have ANY visible content online that’s questionable. Always manage your online personal/professional brand. (via Andrea)
• Bashing – don’t criticize another organization
• Don’t name drop
• No assumptions
• Don’t ask about wages (to begin with, anyway)
• Don’t be in it for the money
• Don’t burn bridges
• Don’t do it just for the sake of your resume

What a fantastic list! You can find more ideas for young nonprofit professionals in Metro Vancouver here, including common mistakes made by new-to-nonprofit job seekers.

Image Credit: Paul Caputo

New to the Vancouver nonprofit scene?
Young in age or young in career?
Here are some places for you to get yourself started.

1. Careers
2. Volunteering
3. Networking
4. Professional Development
5. Learn More About the Sector
6. Social Media
7. Mentorship Programs

Got more ideas to add? Great – we’re just getting started! Comment and I’ll plug them into the post.

Careers

• CharityVillage.com
• Association of Fundraising Professionals Vancouver chapter (fundraising jobs)
• Alliance for Arts & Culture (arts organization jobs)
• Craigslist.org
• Individual organizations’ websites – time consuming but true. To find organizations that are connected to causes that interest you, visit the Red Book Online and browse by organization subject area and sub-subjects. The site is archaic, but useful if you have time to browse.
• University sites (for current students/alumni):
  • Capilano University Student Employment Services
  • SFU Career Services
  • UBC Career Services
• Networking using the topics below.

Volunteering

• GoVolunteer.ca -1000s of volunteer opportunities, searchable by location, activity, organization type, etc.
• VolWeb.ca – event volunteer opportunities – create an account and get notified of positions that match your interests
• CharityVillage.com – volunteer opportunities around Vancouver and across Canada
• Craigslist.org – user-posted volunteer opportunities
• Urbantastic – a focus on microvolunteering
• University sites (for current students/alumni):
  • Capilano University Student Employment Services
  • SFU Volunteer Services

Networking

• Net Tuesdays – a place to meet those interested in social media for social good and learn about current initiatives of local peeps
• Next Leaders Network – inspired by YNPN in the US, this network includes discounted workshops, newsletters, a private LinkedIn group and social events for the nonprofit sector’s next leaders

Professional Development

• Cheap(ish)
  • CharityVillage.com
  • Volunteer Vancouver
  • HR Council for the Voluntary & Non-profit Sector – a database of nonprofit training offered by the HR Council and other organizations
  • Enterprising Non-Profits – for nonprofits considering social enterprises
  • Volunteer BC’s training calendar – a list of nonprofit training events around BC
  • The Centre for Non Profit Management
• Not-as-cheap
  • BCIT Associate Certificate in Nonprofit Management
  • SFU Certificate in Dialogue and Civic Engagement

Learn More About the Sector (by browsing for free!)

• CharityVillage.com
• HR Council for the Voluntary & Non-profit Sector
• Imagine Canada
• Volunteer BC
• Volunteer Canada
• Voluntary Sector Knowledge Network
• Blogs
  • ABCD Network by Joey Rudichuk (asset based community development in BC)
  • Miss 604 (specifically her nonprofit tagged entries)
  • Trina’s Nonprofit Blog (disclosure – that’s me!)
  • Volunteer Vancouver Vantage Point

Social Media

• Take advantage of LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook to increase your online profile
• Connect with Vancouver nonprofit organizations and professionals on Twitter (are you one? @ me or email me to be added)

Mentorship Programs

• Association of Fundraising Professionals Vancouver chapter (fundraisers)

Credit: This resource was inspired by Rosetta Thurman’s slideshare about nonprofit professionals in Washington, DC.

Business lingo. In both interviews and cover letters, hearing my organization being referred to as a company sends chills up my spine. This may not be offensive to some nonprofit hiring managers, but to stick on the safe side, it’s better to use a term like “organization.” I’ve also been in an interview where the candidate (attempting to move from the private sector to nonprofit) spoke of goals of being a senior VP in 5 years. That’s great and all, but nonprofit senior VP roles are few and far between. Plus, it made her sound corporate, and not in a positive way. Understanding the common use of “ee dee”, or Executive Director, vs the less common CEO is also an important distinction. (I blundered my first nonprofit interview by asking what they meant by “ee dee”. Thankfully, I overcame and still got the job.)

Missing the mission. I want to know that you are a fit for the organization. Memorizing the mission statement is a start, but truly getting “it” could be incredibly important for the organization, depending on the role. As is true for most jobs, skills are only one part of your application–fit is just as or even more important. I usually throw in a ‘toughy’ in an interview that links back to the mission. In my current role where community-campus engagement is important, I often ask candidates why they think it’s important for the university to be engaged with its greater community, and what challenges might arise in doing so. It’s not a question than can easily be prepared for, and the answer can make or break a candidate. Usually, if I can’t find someone with the skills and the mission fit, I wait for someone else to come along who truly is the right person to be on the bus (a la Jim Collins).

Buying into nonprofit myths. If you’re new to the nonprofit sector, talk to friends in the sector, or do some informational interviews. As Rosetta Thurman mentions in a separate post on being clueless in the nonprofit sector:

You can’t be clueless about the nonprofit sector if this is the field you want to work in. There’s more to this line of work than handing out food and bell ringers for the Salvation Army. As a future nonprofit leader, you need to know the unique facets of nonprofits, from their business structures to legal requirements to specific training available. All of the information is out there for you to learn, so there’e no excuse for being a total ditz.

Trust me, no one wants to hire a ditz.

What have you come across in your hiring experience? Or have you made a blunder yourself in a nonprofit application process?