Talking Stick - March/April 2017 - 53

Talking Stick: You all began your
careers in the same fashion that we
assume most readers did: starting out
at a college or university working in
student affairs. Along the line you made
the switch to an aligned career. What led
you to the career you're in now?

Amma Marfo: During my time on
campus, I was doing research and
writing a lot about a handful of topics
- most notably, introversion. As more
and more people started asking me
about it, conference presentations and
books followed. I realized how much
I loved speaking, between doing it at
conferences and trainings that I got to
offer on campus, and I finally realized
that if I hustled a bit harder it could
be the only thing I did. It should be
noted that the decision to jump, so
to speak, was a calculated one. There
was a lot of saving money and taking
classes on how to run a business
effectively. While the jump ended up
happening sooner than I thought it
would, it was important that I made
that leap with as much information as
possible.

Paul Gordon Brown: I went back
for a Ph.D. in higher education full
time, with the goal of becoming a
faculty member. As I progressed
through the program, however, my
goals changed. To make ends meet as
a graduate student, I started speaking
about my research at colleges and
universities. What started as a
side gig almost became my career.
Ultimately, however, I was a bit
uneasy with the instability of working
solely for myself. Since I was
researching technology's influence
on student affairs work, this also
opened up the possibility of working
at a private higher education
software company.

Tara Singer: Decades ago, I moved
with my then-husband to a new
community where the local university
did not have any open positions in
student affairs; however, there were
part-time opportunities in institutional
advancement. My experiences at that
institution allowed me to eventually
apply for a full-time position in
advancement at my alma mater, which
led to my subsequent higher education
career as a professional fundraiser.
Along the way, I also served as an
advisor to the honor society which
I now direct. When the executive
director's position opened, I thought
it was a wonderful opportunity to
combine my passion for supporting
students with my association
management and fundraising
experience.

Charles Boone: Honestly, the initial
move was a matter of fortunate
happenstance and timing. At the time,
my partner and I were a dual-studentaffairs couple. We were relocating to
the Washington, D.C., area because
of a job change for her and the desire
to be closer to family. I knew and
had worked with the company, and
they were looking to expand. I had
often joked that I was never going to
program computers for a living (my
B.A. was in computer science), yet
I was given a unique opportunity to
combine that skill with my student
affairs experience.
TS: How did you go about seeking out
other positions not in the traditional
mainstream job pool?

Brown: I've always seemed to
have luck getting jobs through
my professional involvement
and networking. I've also been
incredibly lucky to have supervisors

who recognize my strengths and
have been willing to create new
job positions for me that capitalize
on those. Ultimately, my current
job found me. I placed a "Job
Searching" flag on my LinkedIn
account, and my future boss reached
out to me. The company's needs and
my goals aligned, and we created
a position that capitalized on my
experience in residence life and on
my professional involvement and
research on social media, technology,
and college students.

Marfo: "I just did it" doesn't really
sound like a satisfying answer, but
that's most of it! I will say that I
recognized the need for help and
sought it out with an agency that I
was familiar with and that knew my
work. Seeing others who had made the
leap, and their willingness to be open
about their experience, made a world
of difference. I explored the landscape
of speakers, how they marketed
themselves, where they were working,
and how they structured their work
days and schedules long term.
Singer: Actually, my current position
was posted on higheredjobs.com. It
was identified under both student
affairs and services as well as alumni
associations and services. Other honor
societies have listed their opportunities
on this jobs board, largely because
of the desire to recruit individuals
who understand and value higher
education.
Brown: Higheredjobs.com is a
great place to start. I also found luck
with LinkedIn's job board. Good
old-fashioned networking also helps,
as you can have more eyes looking
out for jobs that may be a good fit for
you. Occasionally other professionals

MARCH + APRIL 2017

53
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Talking Stick - March/April 2017

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