I served on a panel at Northwestern a couple of weeks ago. Biggest. Honor. Of. My. Life.
Some background:
I could be the spokesperson for Northwestern University. No, really. I am the university’s biggest purple-wearing fan. Willy the Wildcat is, in fact, my BFF. I’ll share an embarrassing secret with you: one of the biggest disappointments / most heartbreaking rejections of my life came when the Admissions Office informed me that I was not selected as an NU tour guide. The shame, the agony! To lessen the blow and make myself feel better, I chalked it up to me being a theatre major and the competition between us theatrical attention-seekers was just too high. Why didn’t I major in chemistry? I know for a fact that there aren’t too many of those undergraduate chemists pointing at old buildings and spewing facts about Hugh Hefner and the Rose Bowl.
Back to the panel. The Council of 100 is a women’s mentoring organization, where the members are leaders in their chosen professions and willing to share their knowledge and experience to enrich the lives of Northwestern’s undergraduate and graduate women students and young alumnae. The esteemed members return to campus twice a year to participate in career advisory and life choice sessions with women students.
It just so happened that the Council was on campus April 1st (yes, two weeks ago) and I was a willing and completely flabbergasted panelist (how did they find me?) for a discussion on ‘How to Find a Fabulous First Job.’ Now, a week before said panel took place, I had a conference call with the five other panelists (my God, such impressive women – have I mentioned the word flabbergasted?). We came up with a list of questions in advance; examples: “What’s your definition of fabulous – as in a fabulous first job?”, “What was the most important task that enabled you to find your fabulous first job?”, “What are some tips on how to network well?”, “How did your major translate, if at all, into the work world?” and so on and so forth. I prepared my Willy the Wildcat-loving tush off. I sat at a nail salon (sadly, I arrived early in Evanston to get a manicure – amongst other things – at my favorite college nail-painting haunt, only to find that it had gone out of business. Damn recession) and read, re-read and re-read again the seven pages worth of notes I took. The perfectly peppy and all too accommodating manicurist actually flipped pages for me because my hands were too oily and wet with paint.
Anyway, to make a long story less long, I pulled up to Scott Hall and breathed a huge sigh. To be able to walk into my alma mater, an institution that changed my life for the better, and be able to give just an itsy bitsy teeny weeny bit back to a place that gave me more than I could put into words (and I use a lot of words), is indescribable.
I sat there in front of a lot a lot of students, hands shaking, before I kind of eased into my groove and declared that my definition of fabulous was being happy and, although I did not make a lot of money right out of college (ha, who am I kidding – I needed four jobs just to make ends meet), my position within the artistic department of the Lookingglass Theatre was fabulous…and then some. I continued down my notes, hitting on all pre-prepared questions: An internship was the most important factor in finding my first job; bring business cards to every networking event – c’mon; my major didn’t matter, just go to school and absorb all you can. I had a line of students waiting to speak to me when it was over.
I had every intention of stopping at my favorite Evanston restaurant (a steakhouse near and dear to my heart as I hostessed there throughout my NU career) to grab a class of red wine and let the pinot noir pat me on the back, but I spoke with these kids, shared some chocolate covered strawberries and decaf and drove home well past 11 pm. I stayed up for hours packing for my trip to Florida the next day and I didn’t even care that I turned the lights off post- 3 a.m.
I remember sitting in the audience during panels just like this one when I was a student. To have the roles reversed was an indescribable feeling unparalleled by any other. I was honored, overwhelmed and a bit choked up, if I must say. I was nervous and fearful and scared to death that I’d tell these early 20-somethings / late teens the wrong thing, that they’d actually listen to me. But I told them the truth and I think they appreciated it. If Northwestern asked me to speak every night of my life, or every day for that matter, I’d say yes, a resounding yes…and I’d do it for free. As I told the students that night – you’re not above doing anything. Working for little to no money in order to progress to the next level is not only fine, it shows guts and it builds character. And, really, that’s my definition of fabulous…first job or otherwise.
