Welcome

"The beginnings and endings of all human undertakings are untidy."
- John Galsworthy (1867-1933)

There are those who look forward to their first meeting with me with all of the anticipation of visiting a dentist. This much I know. I’ve been working as a career counselor for the past ten years; and have met less than 20 people who enjoy writing cover letters. A very small number, particularly when you consider that I’ve met with over 2,500 clients.

The work that I love is painful for some. And so I’ve decided to make it easier for both myself and for others by doing more of it.

After spending the majority of the past decade working as a career counselor in academia, I now have one foot inside the ivory tower and the other in Manhattan where I am establishing my own private practice. Why? Because I'm an incurable optimist and believe that there's no better time than a recession to spread such sentiment around.

Welcome to the roll-out of my new blog. My goal is to provide you with tips and strategies for finding work opportunities that “sustain” rather than “drain.” As a graduate student, I first read of the late career theorist Donald Super’s definition of career as the “total constellation of roles that you play in your life.” In other words, your career isn’t just what you do for work, but also encompasses your life outside of work—and all of the roles that you play (e.g. spouse, partner, friend, and leisure-ite, tennis player, etc.). This is the goal of my work—to provide you with tools you can use in thinking about and pursuing opportunities that fit into the overall context of the life that you want to live. Thus, “Careers in Context.”

I hope that you’ll subscribe and visit this site regularly for news and commentary on employment trends, job search strategies, and a bit of humor and encouragement.

Thanks for stopping by!