These are examples of how emotional intelligence can impact the workplace, whether your workplace is an office, a restaurant, a store, or a factory. Very few people work alone. Most people work on teams or in other kinds of groups. So, employers are looking for people who can navigate those teams well and improve the team by being a member of it. For all these reasons, emotional intelligence is a huge plus for a potential candidate.

So, what exactly is emotional intelligence? The technical definition is that it measures the level of ability an individual has in regulating his or her own emotions and moods as well as understanding and considering the emotions of others. People with high levels of emotional intelligence are adept at adapting to stressful situations and having difficult conversations. They can regulate themselves emotionally and help others to regulate themselves by offering care or respect or positivity. Emotionally intelligent people are good at sensing what other people are feeling and knowing how to react to those feelings in order to reduce tension and conflict.

You can see why this would be a good quality to have with your friends and family, but why does it matter at work? Well, there are certain skills associated with high emotional intelligence that correlate to success at work, including social skills, self-awareness, self-control, and motivation. High emotional intelligence also coincides with the ability to manage stress. Work can be stressful, and employers want to know that their employees can handle that stress in productive ways. They also want to know that their employees are self-aware enough to know how other perceive them, including clients and customers.

How can you cultivate emotional intelligence? Treat your co-workers with respect and build relationships with them. Go to work with a positive attitude whenever possible, and if you’re having a bad day, let people know that you’re struggling. If you feel yourself getting angry or frustrated at work, take a moment to examine why before reacting. You will be surprised how often just thinking through a problem or conflict that is upsetting before you react will eliminate the power of the feeling associated with it. Try not to blame others for workplace mistakes but offer solutions to problems. Finally, in your interactions with your co-workers, be in tune with them, ask them how things are going, and actually care about the answer. There is nothing as frustrating as working with someone who only pretends to care. If you build caring relationships at work, you will build your emotional intelligence, and be able to exhibit this at work and in future interviews. With some luck, taking the time to care about those you work with will lead to other opportunities, through referrals and recommendations. There are many different kinds of intelligence, and emotional intelligence is a useful one to work on increasing.

Posted by Jessica Baron, Graduate Assistant Career Advisor at OSU

It’s almost Election Day, and that means that all across the nation emotions are running high. Sometimes it can be hard to navigate the murky waters of political discussion, especially in a work setting, so here are some tips for how to handle yourself at the crossroads of politics and your career.

Honestly, the advice you’ll probably hear the most is that it’s best to try to avoid the topic altogether. Making your political sentiments known can erode relations with your coworkers, drive customers away, and even possibly threaten your place in the company. It’s also important to note that Facebook and Twitter can count as workplace politics! If your colleagues can see your posts, or if you’re posting in a way that reflects on your company, you could face disciplinary action. Often it depends on the company’s policies and whether they think your private behavior is directly affecting your work performance, but it’s prudent not to risk it.

However, if you believe in being able to voice your opinions at work, there are a few tips to manage avoiding confrontations while discussing politics in the workplace.

1. Choose your audience wisely. To avoid unnecessarily straining relationships with your colleagues, be careful about who you start discussions with. Coworkers that are trusted friends are the best audience. Also, take a cautious approach to avoid saying something that may be seen as offensive to the other person; don’t just assume that someone shares your views on issues. It would also be good to take some time to figure out your workplace’s written and unwritten rules for topics of conversation like these.
2. Open dialogue and mutual respect. It’s important to remember that it’s highly unlikely you’ll be able to change someone’s mind about an issue, just like they probably won’t be able to change yours. Clearly showing your respect for other opinions and keeping it as an exchange of views rather than a heated debate will help all parties in the conversation keep their cool.
3. Try to find common ground. Mutual respect is a lot easier to achieve if you reinforce the values you have in common with others. In many cases you probably both want the same thing; you just have different ideas on how it will be accomplished. Common ground will help you see things from your coworker’s point of view.
4. Be aware of the situation. Obviously there are some situations that are more appropriate for these kinds of discussions than others. If your boss feels that the time you’re taking to engage in debate is affecting your job productivity, you could be in trouble. The best time for sensitive discussions with coworkers is outside of work time, either during breaks or outside of work altogether.
5. Disengage from confrontation. If confrontation does arise, maintain your neutrality. Try to diplomatically steer the conversation to a different topic. If that doesn’t work, gracefully withdraw from the conversation and let them know that you’re just not feeling comfortable with where it’s headed.

Politics is one of those topics that is very polarizing and subjective. If you’re cognizant of your language and attitude, and the mood of those around you, providing a safe environment for open dialogue should hopefully be fairly straightforward. And if you’re ever in doubt, avoid sensitive topics altogether.

Posted by Deirdre Newton, Career Assistant

One organization came together in 2005 to promote awareness of conflict resolution strategies and to help professionals work through disagreements.  It was titled the Association for Conflict Resolution and aims to support the following initiatives:

• Promote awareness of mediation, arbitration, conciliation, and other creative, peaceful means of resolving conflict;

• Promote the use of conflict resolution in schools, families, businesses, communities, governments, and the legal system;

• Recognize the significant contributions of (peaceful) conflict resolvers; and

• Obtain national synergy by having celebrations happen across the country and around the world on the same day.

2005 also saw the first Conflict Resolution Day on October 20^th.  It is celebrated on the third Thursday of every month.  The ACR coordinated efforts with other conflict resolution organizations and reached out to local, state, and international groups to build interest in holding celebrations in conjunction with Conflict Resolution Day.  In 2005, events were held in Canada, Portugal, and 22 U.S. states.

The ARC website has a long list of Conflict Resolution Day activity suggestions that include holding a Mock Mediation, creating a conflict resolution pledge, constructing a peace quilt, and recognizing conflict resolution leaders in your community.  Through the website you can download an app with a Conflict Resolution Activities Calendar, print Conflict Resolution buttons, or enter the fourth annual Conflict Resolution Day Peace Poetry Contest.

For a greater understanding of the various conflict styles and some valuable and effective steps to take in resolving conflict, check out the following article from the Mind Tools website, which provides “essential skills for an excellent career.”

Mind Tools Conflict Resolution:

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_81.htm

Association for Conflict Resolution:

http://www.acrnet.org/

Knowing how to work through those tough work place situations will help you persevere in any job environment you choose to pursue!

Posted by Casey Anderson, Career Services Career Assistant

In the small town of Creede, the arts are very important. So important, in fact, that in addition to the Creede Repertory Theatre, there is a local nonprofit arts organization that sponsors gallery shows, arts education, art in public spaces, and other arts related events. The Creede Arts Council’s director was leaving after many years of building a set of programs that added value to the community, events that people had come to expect and count on to sustain them year after year. The Council needed a new Director.

With my background in writing and theatre and because I had completed an internship in nonprofit development while in graduate school, I was chosen to direct this organization of very dedicated volunteers as they worked hard to provide arts programming for their community. This opportunity may not have happened in a big city, but the available candidate pool was small, so I got lucky! Because it was part time, I continued working in the real estate office while taking on grant writing, volunteer organizing, event planning, and marketing.

Some of these tasks were brand new to me. Some of these tasks were new facets of skills I was already comfortable with. All of these tasks were a challenge, so I learned as I went, asked the board and the previous director lots of questions, and tried things out to see if they would work. I learned so many useful skills in this job that there isn’t the space to list them all. Looking back on it, I’m so glad I took a chance in applying, and they took a chance by hiring me!

The most valuable skills I cultivated regarded working on a team while leading that team. A volunteer board hired me to manage them but also to serve their needs. I needed to balance my leadership style with the goals and purpose of my position, supporting everyone’s ideas and acting as a facilitator for conversations to decide the direction of the organization. So, many of the skills I cultivated in that job are skills I use today and skills I will continue to use in the future. However, I still knew I wanted to work in higher education. In Week 9, I will tell you about my next steps in achieving that goal. Have a great week!

Jessica Baron is currently a Graduate Assistant in Career Services at OSU and a full time student in the College Student Services Administration Program. Before making her way to Oregon State, Jessica worked as an actor, waiter, online tutor, receptionist, college composition instructor, creative writer, gas station attendant, nonprofit program director, writing workshop leader, high school drama coach, Hallmark card straightener, substitute teacher, real estate office manager, and SAT tutor, not necessarily in that order. Her “Confessions of a Career Changer” will focus on her wavy career path and the challenges and joys of wanting to do everything.

Working in real estate helped me to improve skills and abilities in different areas!

Welcome to week five!!! The Career Fair last week was a huge success, and we’re inching closer and closer to the end of this academic year.  As we do, I’m inching closer to the end of my story of a Career Changer. Or maybe not the end, but I’m definitely inching closer to my present moment, where my career path is right now; though it’s always a living and breathing thing that can morph and change.

Last time we talked, I had just graduated from my MFA program and realized that I didn’t want to teach; I wanted to advise. Because of this switch late in the game, I decided to take the summer “off” from thinking about the future by working as an actor at the Creede Repertory Theatre again. It was great fun to perform again, be with friends, and regroup.

As the fall and the end of the season neared, my time was taken up by wedding planning for a September date. After the wedding (A great party, you should’ve been there!), I started to ask around town for possible winter jobs. If I could find something, we could just hang tight, work in Creede for the year, and I would job search for my advising dream job from there. In a small town like Creede, it didn’t take long. A couple of people approached me about work they needed done. I got my substitute teacher’s license so that I could work at the school. I was asked to work part time as the high school drama club coach for a small stipend. Then, rumor had it that one of the local real estate offices was looking for an office manager.

Now, I’d worked in offices before, but not in a long time and never for real estate. But my skills in writing were unusual, as was my facility with different software programs. I brought a resume into Broken Arrow Ranch and Land Company and spoke with Anne, the owner and main broker. The following Monday, I started at an hourly wage.

One thing I want to stress was that I was able to sell my skills to Anne, letting her know that I would be comfortable with taking on marketing, writing up advertising, filing, phones, etc., and also that I would be comfortable learning everything I didn’t know about her business. She trusted that my previous experience as an instructor would translate to managing her office well. And although it took me some time to learn the procedures of real estate, I jumped in to learning about a brand new field with both feet. As you move into a new industry, it is important to acknowledge what you don’t know and what you need to know in order to do the job well. I spent much of my first week studying the file folders on the computer network, learning how to use Microsoft Publisher, and asking a lot of questions. Soon, I started offering small suggestions for streamlining some of her processes and improving her advertising. I was in a totally new field, and it was really fun!

So, all this is to say, be flexible, be open, be a learner, and you never know what doors will open. Although my job at Broken Arrow Ranch and Land Company was not in the industry I hoped to be in, I was learning skills and honing abilities that would help me get that dream job someday.

Have a great midterm season, and I’ll be back Week Seven with the next chapter in my Career Changer life!

Jessica Baron is currently a Graduate Assistant in Career Services at OSU and a full time student in the College Student Services Administration Program. Before making her way to Oregon State, Jessica worked as an actor, waiter, online tutor, receptionist, college composition instructor, creative writer, gas station attendant, nonprofit program director, writing workshop leader, high school drama coach, Hallmark card straightener, substitute teacher, real estate office manager, and SAT tutor, not necessarily in that order. Her “Confessions of a Career Changer” will focus on her wavy career path and the challenges and joys of wanting to do everything.

Me Near the Colorado Sand Dunes After Graduating

Welcome back, everyone! Can you believe that we are already in the third week of spring term? Hope your courses are going really well, and you’re enjoying warmer, sunnier weather every day.

So, I’m the Career Changer, Jessica, and I’ve been writing all year about my wavy career path to illustrate that the straight path isn’t always the right path to a rewarding life’s work. The last time I wrote, I told you about how I was teaching composition and creative writing in an MFA program, enjoying my students, and learning about myself every day. Although stressful and busy, these three years were an amazing period of my life!

As I was finishing my thesis, (a 120 page book of poetry!) I began to realize that the moments I most enjoyed with my students were one-on-one. As part of my writing course curriculum, I had several conferences set up over the course of the term with my students, and I loved when they would come into my office and tell me what was going on in their writing AND in their academic lives. It was exciting to hear about the diverse paths, interests, and goals of my students, almost like getting to experience all these things myself by learning about their strategies to find their way in the world. I began to provide my students with feedback and resources so that they could make more informed choices, and it was really fun!

When I graduated from the program, I knew that what I really wanted to do was advising of some sort. At first, this was disappointing because I had spent the past three years preparing for a career in writing instruction. But I valued the experience, and I felt that a lot of to skills I learned in those three years applied directly to advising. But since this was a shift in my plan, I needed some time to regroup. I decided to go back to the Creede Repertory Theatre to work as an actor for the summer again; I’d figure out what was next after that.

What was next was a wedding and a winter in a very cold house and a couple of new jobs that taught me a ton along the way. I’ll fill you in on these next time.

Jessica Baron is currently a Graduate Assistant in Career Services at OSU and a full time student in the College Student Services Administration Program. Before making her way to Oregon State, Jessica worked as an actor, waiter, online tutor, receptionist, college composition instructor, creative writer, gas station attendant, nonprofit program director, writing workshop leader, high school drama coach, Hallmark card straightener, substitute teacher, real estate office manager, and SAT tutor, not necessarily in that order. Her “Confessions of a Career Changer” focuses on her wavy career path and the challenges and joys of wanting to do everything.

Of course, sometimes conflict is inevitable. Stuff happens. But there are ways to minimize the likelihood of conflicts. If workers take responsibility to act professionally, conflicts are much less likely.

So, what does it mean to be a professional? How do you act like a professional if you’ve never had a professional experience? Or how do you determine what it means to be a professional in a new career field or industry? Here are 8 tips to consider as you move into the workforce, whether you are soon graduating and looking for full-time work, taking on a part-time or full-time job while you finish school, or starting an internship. Professionalism is central in order to make a positive impression on your co-workers and supervisors. Then, those people will become a helpful part of your network as your progress in your career.

Professional Tip 1: Be enthusiastic and passionate about the work.

No one wants to work with someone who doesn’t care about what they do. One way to show respect for your co-workers is through the interest and excitement you bring to the work that goes on in the industry.

Professional Tip 2: Keep learning and wanting to learn from others and on your own.

You will be seen as a professional if you exhibit the qualities of a lifelong learner, if you keeping developing yourself, and if you truly want to learn from all those around you. A little initiative goes a long way toward professionalism.

Professional Tip 3: Be humble.

Although you needed to exhibit your confidence to get the job and maintain that confidence to become a vital and engaged part of the team, stay in touch with your humility. Understand everyone starts somewhere, and we all have a long way to go.

Professional Tip 4: Be an agent for change.

Fresh ideas and creative solutions to problems are welcome in the professional world. Don’t complain when something isn’t working, offer a potential way to fix it. Your co-workers will thank you!

Professional Tip 5: Help others.

Does the office fridge need cleaning? Does the printer cartridge need to be changed? Then do it! Small acts of kindness show a sense of responsibility for the workplace as a shared venture. Everyone wants to feel like all members are pulling their weight.

Professional Tip 6: Be flexible.

Change happens; it’s inevitable. So roll with it! Your co-workers and supervisors will appreciate your adaptability to new conditions.

Professional Tip 7: Show up on time and work really hard!

People will be impressed with your professionalism if you take your work seriously, focus only on work related activities in the workplace (no personal distractions), and arrive early and stay late. This doesn’t mean become a workaholic; it’s important to maintain balance with your work and your home life, but devote the time needed to do your job really well. If that means coming in a half hour early to prepare for a meeting or working one evening to get a project done on a deadline, do it.

Professional Tip 8: Be honest.

Finally, when you are having any kind of workplace difficulty with a co-worker or a supervisor, the most professional way to deal with the situation is to respectfully tell them. If you need to, go through the proper channels – talking to a mentor or supervisor when you’re unsure how to handle the situation. Professional people are honest and transparent while being respectful.

As you move into professional positions and work to grow as a professional, these tips will help you avoid workplace conflict and, when conflict arises, handle it constructively. Although these tips sound simple, they are difficult to do every day, and workers who are consistently professional stand out. If we all want a little more peace in the working world this month, it would be a good idea to remind ourselves how to be a professional.

It's me on a good teaching day!

Can you believe it is week ten? This term has flown by for me; I wonder if it has for you too. Terms didn’t fly by like this in my previous graduate degree. We were on semesters! Sixteen weeks to delve deep into subject matter or get tired of subject matter that no longer interested you. In my last Career Changer post, I started my graduate program at Colorado State University in Creative Writing. My first year, I spent tutoring in a writing center, but I really wanted to get a teaching assistantship, so that I could teach and try out my chosen career path. So, I worked really hard my first year and applied for my second year. And I got one! A graduate teaching assistantship meant that I would teach one or two sections of college composition (similar to OSU’s Writing 121 Course) each term, and I would receive a tuition remission and a monthly stipend.

At the beginning of my second year, I went through an intense training course for two weeks to prepare for my first class. We were given a syllabus, readings, and lesson plans to follow. We gave practice lessons to each other and wrote personal teaching philosophies. This experience, I decided, was going to be great fun. And it was fun. Looking back on my first semester teaching college composition, I truly enjoyed the interaction I got to have with my students, learning their stories, and working with them on their writing. Each day I was teaching, I geared up to seem confident and act like I knew what I was talking about. That is the crazy thing: a lot of the information I was teaching to my students was information I was learning along with them. Not to say that I wasn’t a good writer, I was. But I hadn’t learned the rhetorical strategies, the structures, the genres, the ways to learn how to write. I just knew writing was something I was good at, but I didn’t always know the best way to teach it to others.

This fact became especially difficult in dealing with one particular student in my first semester. I had one older than average student in my class. He was in his mid-50s, and for most of his life, he ran a successful photography shop. He could see the direction that the industry was moving, however, with more digital and online media, so he retired and closed the store. Now, he wanted to begin again in a new career. But sometimes it was difficult for him to take direction from a teacher more than 30 years younger than he, and sometimes it was difficult for me to have the confidence to teach someone with so much more life experience than me. It was also tricky for him to have patience with some of the traditionally aged students in the class, who sometimes came to class late or fell asleep in the back row or didn’t turn their work in on time or didn’t come prepared for a peer review day. I learned a lot from this student, and this learning is why I most enjoy teaching and working with college students. I end up learning more than I end up teaching, about myself and about other people.

Happy Week 10, Everyone! I’ll be back in the spring term with more episodes about my wavy career path. Have a great finals week and spring break!

Jessica Baron is currently a Graduate Assistant in Career Services at OSU and a full time student in the College Student Services Administration Program. Before making her way to Oregon State, Jessica worked as an actor, waiter, online tutor, receptionist, college composition instructor, creative writer, gas station attendant, nonprofit program director, writing workshop leader, high school drama coach, Hallmark card straightener, substitute teacher, real estate office manager, and SAT tutor, not necessarily in that order. Her “Confessions of a Career Changer” will focus on her wavy career path and the challenges and joys of wanting to do everything.

Name: Loni Hartman

Major: English

Company: Consolidated Graphics/Bridgetown Printing

Position: Leadership Development Associate

How did you find out about the position?
I found my position by looking at the Career Services website before the Career Fair. I knew there were three employers I really wanted to talk to so I found them on the website, got the link to their company websites to research them, and then went into the Career Fair feeling great.

What does your job entail?
A Leadership Associate works through every part of a Consolidated Graphics Printing Company in order to understand the process before moving into a sales or management role. Currently I am learning how to estimate printing jobs in order to make sure our sales reps are competitive in getting jobs.

What advice do you have for others about the job search process?
Use your resources and ask questions. Knowing about the companies I was interested before I walked into the career fair made me feel confident when I walked through the career fair doors.

Posted by Loni Hartman, 2011 OSU Alum

Here I am in a musical called, "A Wonderful Noise" at the Creede Repertory Theatre

Hello, OSU Career Services blog readers. I’m back with another installment of “Confessions of a Career Changer”. I left off last time with the recent death of my mother, acting in a professional theatre company in Colorado, and wondering what to do next. The following winter I wanted to regroup, ask questions about who I was and wanted to continue to be, and plan my next move. I stayed in Colorado with my boyfriend (now husband) to reevaluate.

Of course, I still had to make a living. So, by virtue of the very small community I now lived in, which dwindled down in population to less than 400 full time residents within the city limits in winter, word of mouth quickly spread that I was looking for a job. But my situation was enormously lucky. We lived in a home owned by a good friend who charged us a miniscule amount for rent. Plus, there are very little opportunities to spend money in Mineral County, as the closest movie theatre is an hour and a half away and the closest shopping center even further. In Creede, Colorado during the winter months, people have potlucks and board game nights for their entertainment. So our expenses were very low, basically food and utilities. Also, my mother left me a legacy of support with her pension. She was able to will it to me, and I suddenly had a small but reliable monthly income, courtesy of my mother. So, I was looking for a part time job to help us fill the gap between the income I received through her kindness and our bills. And I found one at the Gifts & Gas.

The Gifts & Gas is the only gas station in Creede. It is more than a gas station; it is a hub of information sharing, community gathering, and social work. Most people who live in the county need to patronize the Gifts & Gas over the course of a week, and these people share stories and information as they come in to pay for their gas, their candy bars, their dozen eggs, or their lined notebook. Because there are so few shops open all year in Creede, the Gifts & Gas provided a lot more than just your typical convenience store fare. And the manager of the store at the time was a true local. A woman who taught me a lot about caring and communicating, Kris had lived in Creede most of her life. The wife of a retired silver miner, Kris ran the Gifts & Gas as the social institution that it should be. As my boss, she showed me how a community can use whatever means necessary to care for its members, including discussing the latest troubles of those who lived in the community, trying to get them direct help, and referring folks to the resources they needed (the health clinic, the sheriff’s department, the city council). She did all this while fulfilling her title as the manager of a gas station. I didn’t realize it then, but this is the kind of worker that I wanted to be in the world: engaged, compassionate, and interdisciplinary. We all need role models and mentors in our workplaces to see what is possible. I was lucky enough to watch and learn from Kris.

While I worked at the Gifts & Gas that winter, I began to apply to graduate schools, and I will tell you about this next step next time in “Confessions of a Career Changer”.

Jessica Baron is currently a Graduate Assistant in Career Services at OSU and a full time student in the College Student Services Administration Program. Before making her way to Oregon State, Jessica worked as an actor, waiter, online tutor, receptionist, college composition instructor, creative writer, gas station attendant, nonprofit program director, writing workshop leader, high school drama coach, Hallmark card straightener, substitute teacher, real estate office manager, and SAT tutor, not necessarily in that order. Her “Confessions of a Career Changer” will focus on her wavy career path and the challenges and joys of wanting to do everything.