There are people out there with life plans, lists of goals and how they'll get where they want to go. That has never been me - I've taken an opportunistic, it'll-all-work-out-somehow approach to my life's unfolding. Of course I have desires and worries, hopes and fears, and ideas on how to achieve the first and... Continue Reading →
At my Peace Corps swearing-in ceremony I gave a speech in Russian in front of the ambassador. I had written the speech, painfully, at the end of two months of language immersion. It was one sheet of paper long, written out phonetically in Roman script because I couldn’t yet read in Cyrillic. When I got... Continue Reading →
Job descriptions are written in code. They aren't meant to be cryptic, but to describe a job in its entirety in plain words would overwhelm (or terrify, or bore) a reader. How should I tell someone what I do all day, the roiling, ever changing mix of problem solving, writing, advising, delegating, head-banging, and discussing?... Continue Reading →
Halfway through my most difficult trip I called my boss for guidance, and the moment I heard his voice through the crackling line I burst into tears and couldn’t talk for crying. I was sitting in a hotel room in Kharkiv, Ukraine, in the middle of winter and I was cold, exhausted, and in over... Continue Reading →
People of my generation and older have a thing about Millennials. We see these striving, impatient young people and think: patience, grasshopper. All in good time. We paid our dues and so should you. But then I remember myself before my hair went gray and I realize either this isn’t a generational thing, or I... Continue Reading →
I’m not sure why we talk about career ladders. Most career paths don’t look like ladders. Mine doesn’t, anyway. Career paths often look more like one of those ropes courses where you climb trees, walk on wires, crawl through hoops, and take zip lines. Hopefully all while harnessed. The path isn’t linear, and it doesn’t... Continue Reading →
Open Door Policy 