Talking Stick - March/April 2019 - 57

as many directions and deadlines for
things as I could, and I would ask if I
was not sure. This meant that I also
had to tap into my own self-motivation
to get things done, which at times was
certainly difficult. I haven't talked to
other first-gen professionals about
this, but I often felt a sense of being
alone, which meant finding things out
on my own. I think there were great
support systems around, but I might
not ask for assistance because I didn't
want people to assume I didn't know
what I was doing. This carried through
into graduate school and my first professional position.

Margarita Malagon: James, I totally
agree. My mantra was a bit à la Tim
Gunn's "make it work" or Diana
Nyad's "find a way." At the time I kept
saying to myself "Sí se puede," which
were words embraced in my home.
This is the thread that was present
throughout my undergraduate experience, and it was certainly something
I carried into my professional career.
Fun fact - after graduating, I worked
in the private sector, mainly in the finance industry, and I certainly needed
these anchoring words to carry me
through a tumultuous time, when I
realized I was not in the right career. I
was very lucky to have developed deep
connections at Santa Clara University,
my alma mater, and when a position
in the housing and residence life office
became available I didn't think twice
about applying, bringing me back
to a community I loved. As first-gen
students we are often encouraged to
follow career paths that traditionally
make more money, and we hesitate to
follow what makes us hum, but that is
a topic for another day.

TS: What life lessons did you learn
as a first-gen student that you took
with you into your first professional
position?

Alex Belisario: Read all the things.

Belisario: True. True. I think over

Because my parents did not go
through the educational system in
the U.S., they were not familiar with
processes and deadlines. It was incumbent on me to read and ask questions
so I didn't miss out on scholarship and
financial aid opportunities (in particular). I could not have afforded to attend
without them. I also learned to seek
out answers to questions and not to
expect someone to come by with them.

time colleagues and supervisors
learned that they could hand me a
project and not worry about whether or
not it would be completed because it
would be handled.

Smith: If anything, my hyper sense
of independence really kicked in.
In my first professional position, I
was often left to make decisions on
my own pertaining to my residence
hall community. For instance, when
the outlined plans for residence hall
move-in fell apart two days before I
was told to make it happen, I devised
my own plans and worked with my
staff to outline new strategies. My colleagues didn't have to experience this,
so I didn't ask for their opinions or
ideas; I just felt I had to do it, so I did.
My supervisor and the director were
pleased with the plans, and everything
just worked out.

Malagon: I often found myself coming up with Plan A, B, C, D . . . Z.
I learned that, more often than not,
Plan A would not work, so it was always good practice to have at least two
additional plans on the back burner.
I cannot tell you how much this has
helped in my work with assignments.
There are some years when outside
factors impact the work we do, and
working through the unexpected is a
great life skill!
Smith: I agree, Maggie - having at
least two or three ways to get something accomplished helps tremendously. Even if Plan A works, Plan Z might
be better in the long run.

Malagon: #handled!
TS: What would you tell first-gen students today to pay attention to (in their
college career) that will help them
attain their first job?

Smith: Deadlines. Make a chart or a
calendar for deadlines, not only for
class exams and readings but, for
instance, the last day to file for FAFSA
(financial aid) or housing payment
deadlines. While sometimes reminders
are sent out, you have to act as though
reminders will not be sent. Having
a handle on when everything is due
really helped me in my career.

Malagon: Preach, James, preach!
Having a clear and accurate snapshot
of your day, week, month is critical.
One item I would add is to integrate
your personal commitments also. I
would actually recommend to first
place your self-care days, family/friend
commitments, conferences, etc. and
then add all of the additional deadlines
or reminders. This will give you a truly
accurate picture of your life. I think of
it a bit like when I worked with clients
on their budgets as they worked on
paying off debt. The very first step was
to be crystal clear about their income
and expenses. It was about standing in
their truth and acknowledging the reality of their current situation, so that we
could work together on their goal of
being debt free. Similarly, adding any
item that will claim part of your time
is super important, so that you have a
better grasp of when to gather paperwork to fill out that FAFSA form. Does
that make sense?

MARCH + APRIL 2019

Talking Stick - March/April 2019

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