Today, Ali and JoDee sit down with Amanda Minchella, a former teacher who’s now a career coach guiding others through the job search process. Together, they will discuss what a career coach can do for you, the importance of the elevator pitch, and how to improve and prepare for the interview process.
Links Mentioned:
Amy Cuddy’s Ted Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc
Connect with Amanda:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/butterbellebakery/
https://www.instagram.com/createmylifecoaching/
Connect with Ali and JoDee:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teachershift
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teachershift
Teacher Shift LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/teacher-shift
Ali’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisimon/
JoDee’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodeescissors/
Website
https://www.teachershiftpodcast.com/
Episode Transcriptions
https://www.teachershiftpodcast.com/blog
Today, Ali and JoDee sit down with Amanda Minchella, a former teacher who’s now a career coach guiding others through the job search process. Together, they will discuss what a career coach can do for you, the importance of the elevator pitch, and how to improve and prepare for the interview process.
Links Mentioned:
Amy Cuddy’s Ted Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc
Connect with Amanda:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/butterbellebakery/
https://www.instagram.com/createmylifecoaching/
Connect with Ali and JoDee:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teachershift
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teachershift
Teacher Shift LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/teacher-shift
Ali’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisimon/
JoDee’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodeescissors/
Website
https://www.teachershiftpodcast.com/
Episode Transcriptions
https://www.teachershiftpodcast.com/blog
Ali 0:06
Teachers are natural innovators, entertainers and problem solvers. They dream of growing old into the profession, teaching their kids kids. But sometimes career goals shift, and that makes opportunities outside of the classroom seem intangible questioning who am I if I'm not a teacher? I'm your host Ali Simon.
JoDee 0:29
And I'm your co host, JoDee Scissors.
Ali 0:32
And this is Teacher Shift.
JoDee 0:43
It's the beginning of the school year, which means that teachers looking to transition out of the classroom will be preparing for their career shift. Our guest today provides reasons for hiring a career coach to help with your resume, interview preparation, and career path identification.
Ali 1:00
Amanda Minchella transitioned away from the whiteboard to pursue work as a career coach, where she guides fortune 500 executives and new college graduates alike through the job search process. At the end of each week, you'll find Amanda, turning her kitchen into a micro bakery, Butter Belle Bakery, where she bakes sourdough bread and treats. Welcome to the show today, Amanda.
Amanda 1:25
Hi. Thank you all for having me.
Ali 1:27
Thank you for being here. And now you're making me hungry for sourdough bread and treats.
JoDee 1:31
Yes, for all of our listeners right before recorded she said she pulled out a fresh loaf right before this. So it is making my tummy growl a little bit.
Amanda 1:39
I know, I know. I'm going to be making some sandwiches after. So good.
JoDee 1:45
Well, like we were kind of talking about before we started recording, we've been excited to have you on the show for quite some time. We interviewed one of your friends, Destiny, earlier this year, and she recommended you. And you have a very niche profession that you've gone into post classroom. And that's really what we're here to talk about today. Because we know a lot of teachers right now are making a plan for their exit after this year. You know, they're they're going into this year, they're they're soaking in this last moment. But also that means preparation, because we know that you just can't exit and everything's gonna fall on your plate just as you would like it to. So let's start off with just one of the skills that you have that, we were looking at your portfolio, when it comes to coaching. How do you coach someone about their career without kind of compromising who they are and who they think they are? Because teacher identity is just so strong. And so what are some of your skills or tips for coaching someone that has such a niche profession, like being a teacher?
Amanda 2:57
Yeah, that's a really good question. And a very good point. As far as you know, you don't want to change the integrity of the person. Because even though, yes, teacher identity is huge. As teachers do look to transition out of the classroom, they're, they're gonna lose part of that identity. And that's a very real piece of like leaving teaching. But you find it in other new ways when you enter new jobs. And that's certainly something that I found. And of course, like, I'm in a very unique role. There's not a lot of folks who are full time career coaches. But I would say in my approach to working with them, one of the first things that I always tell my clients is, my job as a coach is to ask you questions to get you to the answer, not to tell you what I think you should do, because I don't know what you should do. And I shouldn't know what you should do. Like, you're not coming to me, because I have the answers. You're coming to me because I have tools and resources that I can give you to help you get there. And I think that that's kind of funny that I say that now because I know that was my least favorite things like that students would hear from me. Because I'd be like, no, no, no, like, I'm not going to give you the answers. But I'm going to like kind of give you a guide to get you there. And we're going to work on that together. So it's a very similar approach. But it does hold their integrity together and holds their intentions at the very center of what we're working on. Because only you as the individual can know like where you want to go and what you want to do. It's my job as a coach to call that out of you.
JoDee 4:39
I love that. I think that you just calling out some of the things you do and you don't do are some of the things that we want to know more about. You coach people you try to lead them to a certain direction, but what is it that you explicitly don't do that someone might be expecting if they're going to a coach. So there's like very tangible things that, you know, you help them understand like skill sets or refining a resume. But what if they come to you and they're like, I don't have any competence? Or I have impostor syndrome? Or I'm scared, what are some of the things that you specifically don't help them with?
Amanda 5:17
That's a good one. Because I would say, you know, imposter syndrome, that's definitely one that I've touched on because I have tools for that. I would say things that I don't get into are the, it's really like that therapy side that comes along, that socio emotional side. Like I can recognize that a job search is frustrating, but I'm not a therapist, right? Like, if you're really frustrated about your job search, I can give you tools. But I think I don't cross over into that overly emotional world, like I do not make job searches emotional, because we're dealing with so much of that already. That something in our life just needs to be practical. And so it's a very sort of like, gentle guide, but tough love kind of thing where, you know, we're not going to cross over into that realm. But as far as topics go, as long as we're within the realm of like, career focused things, we can touch on those. But we're not going to go into a place that's going to keep us negative. So that's something I would say, I don't do as a coach. Which maybe like kind of as a backwards way to answer your question. But I would say that's like, my gut instinct as a coach is just don't cross over that line.
Ali 6:31
I think that makes complete sense. You're setting some boundaries for yourself and for your clients. And you're saying, this is what I'm able to help you with. I'm career focused. You know, we're centered on your professional goals, your aspirations. And there are other types of coaches out there that are not career coaches that might be like, former therapists who are now providing services across state lines or something like that. So they're more of like a coach, as opposed to a therapist, or they could go to a traditional therapist. But I think it's healthy to understand who is going to provide what service to you when you're hiring someone. And while on the show, we've talked a lot about therapy and how it's helped, like JoDee and myself. This is a different type of counseling that I also think can be extremely beneficial for someone, particularly when they're moving into a new career or looking to move into a new career. They really need to harness like, skills that they have, they need to build that confidence, they need to understand what the world is like outside of the classroom. Because when you're in education, generally, that's all you've ever known unless you transitioned into it. And so it's so overwhelming when you start looking at jobs. And I don't know, what your experiences with clients, maybe if you've worked with former teachers. But I know for me, I had trouble kind of narrowing things down. Because I like so many things, that I'd be like, Oh, I could do this job, or Oh, I could do this job. Or I could do this. And they, none of them were like the same field or the same type of job. So then I'm like, overwhelmed, like how do I update my resume, if I want to go for four different types of roles, and I think maybe someone like you could help me harness that energy and excitement and put it into so mething more specific.
Amanda 8:17
Yeah, and that's a really good word to use this like harness, I kind of call it like following the energy because even if we have a lot of passions, there's always going to be something that's our energy, right. And that's like, for me, for example, that sourdough bread, like that's a huge energy factor. For me, that's something that brings me a lot of energy and a lot of joy. And I can like spread that out to other people. So I'm going to find ways that like I can harness that, right. Now, there's another side of that, though, that I think is important to say. And this is another thing that I don't do as a coach is I'm not going to hold your hand through the process because you're an adult. And I feel like that sounds a little harsh. So I do want to say that that's another one of those sorts of tough love things where you do have to be willing to put in the work to make those decisions and to determine like, Okay, now I've listed out all these five interests, 10 interest, 10 pathways that I have now that I'm leaving the classroom. It's not my job to tell you what your top three are. I'm not going to hold your hand while you decide that. I'm going to tell you, Hey, it sounds to me like when you're telling me about this, like I see your face starts to light up. And I see that like when you're talking about, I don't know going into accounting. Math was my least favorite subject to teach, I'll say. Right like, I don't want to go into accounting. I noticed that like your shoulder started to slump when you were talking about this accounting job that you have an interview for. Tell me about how that feels in your body and how can we, you know move past that feeling. Okay, now let's get back to that one that brightens you up, right? So it's about like reading their body language to. And that's why I think doing a lot of my coaching via zoom has been such a benefit. Because there's a lot of, when we want to follow the energy, our bodies are going to tell us most of the time, like where that is. So when we're thinking about harnessing the things that we're excited about, you know, not going to hold your hand through the process, but I'm going to notice what things excite you and what things don't excite you. And we'll talk about them.
JoDee 10:26
I like that. So you say you do some of your consulting via zoom. So that means that you could potentially meet with anybody of any region or state, because you have virtual services.
Amanda 10:38
Oh, yeah, yeah, I just worked with a client who works in Mexico City. I work with someone who lives in Germany. I work with folks who live here.
JoDee 10:45
So you're international, I like it.
Amanda 10:48
It allows me to touch a lot of people. And it's a lot of young folks, I would say. A lot of young professionals looking too, it's a lot of people transitioning. I mean, that's a really big need for folks, especially teachers, where it's like, what do we do when we're looking at this? The world is full of opportunity, right? What do you do when you're looking at all the opportunities that are there?
JoDee 11:09
Do you know what might be like a reason for someone to be reluctant to go into seeking coaching help. I'm thinking back to my experience and how I sought help with my peers, my family. And I really didn't seek any support from a professional service other than a counselor. I needed a lot of that emotional support. And the more tangible things like building out my resume, I'm looking back at some of the resume advice we've gotten and my experience on LinkedIn. And I look back, and I think I probably should have done some sort of career coaching, or resume support. So have you guys looked at why maybe someone's not seeking help?
Amanda 12:01
So yes. Yes, we've looked at it, I would say that most of the time, people are afraid to invest the money in themselves. And I think that it really is just as simple as that. It is really scary, when you're thinking about leaving a job that already doesn't pay a lot, to pay someone a significant amount of money. You know, could be hundreds or 1000s of dollars, depending on who you're working with, to get a full professional package pulled together. But it is one of the, I think, most important investments you could make in yourself. I'm a lucky person, because I get to do this as my job. So like, I got to learn a lot of this and get paid to do it. I mean, I'm lucky, but I am very freely sharing of that information. So I think that it's one of those things where like when I really look back on teaching. Okay, so when I left teaching, I left blind. I was not invited back to a school that I had been teaching at for a couple of years. That was a whole thing. I was super sad to leave those kids. And so I went on to remote teach through the pandemic, which was crazy. I can't believe I did that. But taught 90 kindergarten students online, which is crazy.
JoDee 13:19
Whoa,
Ali 13:20
Wow.
JoDee 13:21
That's crazy.
Amanda 13:23
Yes, it's insane. The structure of that was wild. But they all they all made it. You know, I mean, it was it was tough, but they're most of them are on campus. Now anyway, you get through all that, and you just get beat up as a teacher. And when you come out the other side, you know. It's really one of those things where you do feel at a loss because you have a lot of skills as a teacher. But when I got to the point of like, I literally can't go back. I cannot go back to the classroom because I can't serve the students well anymore. And I just like mentally, it's not good for me. I didn't have any resources available, but I had a ton of skills that I can use, right? So I was just up in the middle of the night. I'm sure we've all been there. I was up in the middle of the night like three o'clock in the morning like transferrable skills like furiously Googling, what are these skills, right? And it's one of those things where, just to your point, asking for that help initially would save you so much time and give you so much more sleep through the job search process, which you need to have the energy to take on something. I don't want to discount the emotional effort that goes into a teacher leaving the classroom and having to search for a job that isn't working with their first love, which is students. Like I get teary eyed even still thinking about it. Like I love my students and I think about them all the time. And I love when their parents reach out to me. So I really don't want to like discount how difficult emotionally the process is. But reach out. Spend the money. pPay that couple of thousand up front. You are going to do so much better in your interviews. You're going to do...you're going to look so much better on paper. Because there's so many skills, right? We're schedulers. We keep people on time. We make sure that they're learning skills. We make sure that they're actually performing. That translates as a KPI in the corporate world, right? A key performance indicator in the corporate space, right? There's so much like, I get so passionate about it, just invest the money. If there's one thing you take away from anything that I say, spend the money on yourself, when you are transitioning. You seriously will not regret it. And remember that when you're looking, you get what you pay for. So if you're gonna pay someone 100 bucks for your resume, you're gonna get $100 resume or $100 interview prep. So just think about that.
JoDee 15:50
I like that. I think that that is valuable information, because you're pointing out that it's okay to invest in yourself. And it's okay to invest more. Like, we don't want that imposter syndrome to get in the way of what our actual skills, the potential of our actual skills. So I agree. I wish I would have done that. I fortunately landed in the industry I wanted to be in, but it took a long time. And thinking back, I probably would have made a better decision and invested in myself.
Amanda 16:22
One, it's a thing too, is like teachers, how much we're pouring our little souls into 30 other little souls like all day long. You deserve that as one individual, like, you just, you deserve it. And if you need to hear it, like, I'll tell you. You know, that's something I will do as a coach. I will tell you that you deserve to have a job that you love as much as you loved teaching, right? You deserve to spend that money on yourself to find out what that next step will be.
Ali 16:48
And I think in terms of spending the money, teachers spend a lot of money being teachers. We spend money decorating our classrooms. I don't know about the two of you, but I've spent my own money on professional development, going to conferences. And if I added all of that up, it would just be like a fraction of what it would cost to have these professional services. So I think that if we can learn from people who have made these transitions, right? From a career coach who works with people like this, that investing in yourself is worthwhile, it might get hard to get to that point you might need to save up to do it. You know, might take you a little while. But actually what you said earlier really leads to another question that I had for you. So I've known several transitioning teachers who have made it to the interview stage for various jobs. And they do maybe two to three interviews. And it's going really well. Maybe they even get to the final interview. But they don't get the job, or they don't advance, you know, past maybe the second or third interview. And I'm wondering what advice would you give to someone who's in that position, right, who's made it that far a couple of times? What might they need at that moment?
Amanda 18:04
Yeah, that's a really good question. And I want to be careful about how I answer it, because it totally depends on so many factors. But I think generally speaking, some things that you could do as a person to reevaluate the situation, if you're in that point. Look at the materials first. Paper is always like, the resume is always going to be the first thing that a potential recruiter is seeing. Actually, even take a step back from that. You have to get past ATS, applicant tracking systems, before you get to the human. So yes, look at your resume first. But make sure that it's ATS compliant, okay? That's something that is just going to get you to the human faster. So reevaluate that and make sure everything looks good. Now, if you've been through a couple of the interviews, and you're not getting to that interview stage. I would evaluate the interview process,. I would evaluate what my answers were to certain questions. If I were going to take this top down, I would go home right after my interview. And I would write down any question that completely stumped me or I didn't feel like I answered well, and I would write out the answer. I wish I would have said, so now I'm already preparing myself for my next interview. Okay, without even thinking about it. Even if I get this job, I'm still preparing. It's always good to be prepared. The next thing that I would do is I would look at, I know it sounds kind of creepy. But if you can find out who gets hired into that position. LinkedIn is an amazing tool for that. I don't always recommend this, you know, but it's one of those things that like, check out their LinkedIn profile. Look at their background. Look at people in the company. You know, what do they have on their profiles? What types of certifications? Like do your research basically, is what I'm saying. Do your research on those people and on the companies and align your search materials. And let's say, you notice that Oh, wow, they all have this one Google certification that I don't have. Maybe that's the one thing that edge them out in the process. So now you could say, Okay, well, I noticed three people have that Google certification, I'm gonna go get that same certification. And now we're having a different conversation in the interview. So that's something that I would look for. And that's why I would say, it's kind of hard to give such a general answer, because it really does depend on the situation. So I would first you know, evaluate the situation. Second, do your research. Three, just kind of not compare yourself. Don't do it. We've all been there we tell our students not to do it, don't do it to yourself, you know, just use it as a learning opportunity. What do they have that is setting them apart? And how can I now be on that same page as them like it's giving you an advantage to know? So that's what I would say, would be my steps, you know, if you're getting through that process. And I think the most important thing, I know, this isn't a very succinct answer. But really just like, don't lose the confidence. There's a great TED Talk by Dr. Amy Cuddy. I think it's called the victory stance, the victory pose. If you Google those terms together, it will come up. And it's really cheesy, but it is super, super effective. It is really just one of those things where like, you know, when you have the student who wants to read off their note cards for the presentation, because they're like, absolutely petrified in front of the class. So like, I would use this on my students, and it totally worked. You just make them like, do their victory pose. So whether that be like, handle the hip hand or the sky, like you're doing a salute, you're doing like giving yourself a hug, whatever your victory stance is, like, do that thing. Feel a little bit silly for a second, and then own it. And it's going to totally change the way that you feel. The point of that is don't lose the energy through the process, because that will come through in an interview. So do the victory stance if you need to, to make yourself stay confident and positive through the process. Because if you're feeling discouraged about the search, that is going to come through in the interview setting. And that could also be a potential reason why, you know, maybe you're not getting that final offer.
JoDee 22:17
Do you help with different types of interviews. So I'm thinking back to one of my first interviews that I took outside of the classroom. And I had a one to one interview with the hiring manager, which went really, really well. And then I got to my next round, which was first, it was all the executives. And then following was the interview with my peers. And I spent all my time prepping for the interview with the executives. And I did great. I could feel the room, like liking me. I felt positive about everything that I said. And then I got to my peers, and I bombed. I totally bombed. It was like I had compromised, the person I was, if I was like, with my, my team, my fourth grade team that I was with, you know? I forgot to be who I was. I still went into that pier interview, as if I was with the executives. And when I left, I thought I really had that backwards. I had it backwards. Like I should have been there for the peers. The people that I would be like boots on the ground working with? And so do you do that type of interview support or coaching around types of interviews that they would be in?
Amanda 23:42
Absolutely. And that's such a good point. You know, like, this is what I always tell my clients about interviews. The interview is just as much an opportunity for you to determine if this opportunity is right for you, as it is for the company or person to determine if you would be a good fit for them. And I think when you think of it as just a conversation about your skills, which you could talk about all day, because you're you, right? Like, that is just what it is. Just go and be yourself. I've never been more of myself than I was in my interview at my current job. And I love this job. And I love the people I work with. So that's a very, very good point. But yes, to answer the question at hand, absolutely. I have definitely helped folks prepare for... I mean, I've helped executives prepare for board interviews. I've helped students prepare for like graduate school interviews. I've helped folks in nonprofit kind of prepare for like, Hey, I'm going to be working with major stakeholders, and we've got to go over this. You know, I would say one of the things that is most helpful for someone who's looking for help with interviews, is come prepared with questions that really stumped you the most. Because if you come unprepared to any session for like, really any session in life ever right but like especially a career coaching session, it should be driven by the things that you struggle with the most. Your coach can't possibly know that unless you share that with them. So again, like I said, write down those questions that stumped you in that interview and write down what you wish you would have said, and bring that to your session, and workshop that answer. So that next time you have it, you can like, you know, just nail it at that interview. But yes, definitely lots of lots of help in different interview settings. And it's something to the, you know, all research alongside clients, like if you know, if I don't know, I know, there's going to be resources on it. There's, there's always something that's changing in the hiring landscape. And so it's really important, you know, for me as a coach to just be on top of all of that. But yeah, so just come prepared. If you know that you're going to be having like a group interview or something like that, again, just doing your research. But yeah, absolutely. Absolutely could help with different interview settings.
Ali 25:56
I think that was fantastic advice about how to improve your interviewing skills by keeping note of the questions that stumped you. And even the questions that you think you answered, well, but they were challenging, right? I know, in my interviews, I've encountered similar questions, they might not be exactly the same. But there'll be something similar. So I think that was really great advice. For anybody who's made it to that point, or you're looking to make it to the interview stage, to to keep like a running tab or running list of those questions that either challenged, you are stumped you. And, you know, going back to your teaching days, I'm wondering, I say this a lot to JoDee, and we'll probably have a whole episode on it. But teaching was, for me the best first career and I'm wondering, do you kind of feel similarly? That was your first job as a teacher a great maybe first career for what you do now? You describe some similarities of like, working with different types of people, some things you did in the classroom with your students? Just kind of curious your perspective on that?
Amanda 27:02
Yeah, I'm smiling as you asked, like, I loved it. Well, let me let me rephrase. I love my students, and I love being in my classroom with my students. There were a lot of things that as being a teacher is so hard, but absolutely like, it is, especially when you're so young, like I was a very young first year teacher. It really was like my first job out of college. I learned so much that like, I grew professionally, more than I think I would have if I had started and restarted in other positions. I think that that comes just from like, there's so much structure that does come from being like at a school. You know, you're responsible for like little I say, I say like little people that you like kindergarteners because I was a kindergarten teacher. So you know, my my littles. Like being able to impact them. You know, that was just such a joy every day. Like there's so many beautiful things I loved about being a teacher. And then there's so many transferable skills now, like I can communicate wo well. Got an angry parent? Great. Let me talk to them. I know how to calm them down. You know, because I work with a lot people and they're not happy what you know, Oh, you didn't like what I wrote on the resume. Great. Let's Okay, let's talk about it. Let me let me see how I can help you. Right. That's a transferable skill. So absolutely. Hands down. Like there's nothing about teaching that I like regret. I think it's a very, very noble career. And I'm very proud to say like, I'm a former teacher.
JoDee 28:31
I think we all here, did it without regret. Like, I love being a teacher, hands down. But like you said, you kind of grow. And I think in my case, I grew out of what I was doing. But it led me exactly to where I want to be right now.
Amanda 28:48
Absolutely.
Ali 28:49
I think you said you started teaching really young and fresh out of college, same thing. It was my first full time job out of college, 22 years old, teaching high schoolers. So it was like a lot. But it's kind of like a sink or swim. And if you can swim, if you can make it work. And you can do all of the things that you were describing that you know, all the things that are put on teachers, which it's a lot. Chances are you're going to be able to transfer to a different career pretty easily because there's a lot of demands that are put on teachers immediately that like probably wouldn't be put on other professionals that early in the game. So I think that we learned how to deal with a lot on our plate. And I definitely see how you took your teacher brain skills and you bring them into your new profession as a career coach. And really, Amanda, that advice you gave today was fantastic. I think our listeners are going to learn a lot about why they might want to work with a career coach and really just what they can do in future interviews as they work on transitioning out of the classroom. So thank you so much.
Amanda 29:52
Yes, you're so welcome. And if I could just leave one parting word for the teachers who are interviewing. You know, have your L elevator pitch ready. That is the first question you're always going to be asked is, tell me a little bit about yourself. So get that ready. And if you can nail that answer, you're gonna feel so much more confident through the rest of the entire interview.
Ali 30:13
Love that advice. So teachers get your elevator pitches ready. And we look forward to sharing more advice with you on interviewing. So if you'd like to connect with Amanda, you can find her at Butter Belle Bakery AZ or at Create My Life Coaching. We'll link those in the show notes.
Are you interested in suggesting a topic for Teacher Shift? Being a guest or recommending a guest? Please see the episodes page on our website to make a submission. And if you'd like to write for us our blog page. If you liked Teacher Shift, give us a five star rating and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. Today's episode was written and recorded by me, Ali Simon and my co host, JoDee Scissors. Executive produced by Teacher Shift. Produced and edited by Emily Porter. Original Music: Emoji by Tubebackr.