2.0 Career Basics Course: Summer 2025, Day 6

"Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it."

– Pirkei Avot

“No nation, whatever its power, can be called great when it imposes tyranny upon its citizens—worse, upon people it claims as its citizens, not”―

~ Ada Palmer, Too Like the Lightning

TODAY's Exercise

Record Yourself in a Stressful Situation

Do you know that "in over your head" moment, when your heart starts to race, you begin to sweat, and your mouth dries up as you try to form words you only have believed? This exercise prepares you for that moment.

The Exercise

1. Choose a situation that makes you feel nervous, afraid, or concerned about how it will go.
2. Turn on your phone and record the conversation or interaction.* You will be the only person who will be using it.
3. Don't listen to the recording. Hearing one's own voice in a stressful moment is unsettling.
4. Get the recording transcribed or pair up with a friend and transcribe each other's recordings for free.
5. Review and analyze. Rewrite sections you don't feel good about.

When did you act defensively, switch tones, or speak when you should have been listening? Simply paying attention will transform how you come off in interviews or any situation where you need to be performing at your best.

Note: This is either ...

• Way 39 (Record Yourself in a Stressful Situation), if you reference the 50 Ways to Get a Job: An Unconventional Guide to Finding Work on Your Terms, or
• Way 36, if you reference the 2018 version of the book, which I have.

*Also, if you're making a record of a conversation -- via your phone or some other device, I strongly suggest that you request permission from the other individual(s).

Gerald's Notes.

For me, as I looked around, several other colleagues were steeped in this practice for much of their careers. For instance, in theatre and dance, performers are often given "notes" after a rehearsal or performance; if you're an art student, you're regularly participating in "critiques" with your peers and instructors; if you're an athlete or learning an instrument, you're receiving constant -- and specific coaching and guidance; teachers are reviewed by their peers and advanced teachers -- and their are dozens of other examples of this.

However, as a long-time administrator in higher education, the feedback was often provided in annual performance/HR reviews; there wasn't the same culture or mechanism for feedback, coaching, critique, and improvement. In hindsight, this elevated the level of stress at times because I had not been practicing at receiving -- nor had I been requesting -- feedback and critiques on a regular and more frequent basis. Once I began to understand this, I shifted how I both delivered feedback and coaching, and how I requested feedback from supervisors, from those I supervised, peers -- within and beyond the institution, and others more randomly with questions about, "how did that go, what could have been better, what did I miss."

Initially, I was both defensive and recognized that I had much to learn about giving and receiving feedback; and while I've gotten better at both, as I've learned, this is an ongoing process of evolving and unfolding.

Since 2018, I've worked -- more or less -- as a part-time Business and Entrepreneurship teacher at Wolcott College Preparatory High School , on smaller consulting projects, or as a team member supporting larger projects. Overall, the work is far more independent and entrepreneurial than at other periods throughout my career. Stressful situations arise when I find myself misaligned with my WHY, which leads to distraction, self-doubt, an inability to bring a project to a close, and a hurriedness that situates itself within my daily activity. Working more on my own, I have needed to establish accountability partners and routines to check myself, which is absolutely necessary to remain grounded and focused.

If you're working remotely or more independently, you will need to establish the guardrails and milestones, and mile markers that will work for you. This is especially true during job transitions and job searches, where time, if not well organized and planned, will just drift by -- days into weeks and weeks into months.

There are a few important lessons for me from Dev's exercise:

1. A recording of your work is very helpful to review.
2. Learn to invite folks to give you feedback and critiques of your work; you will learn a great deal, and you will model good learning.
3. When you've gotten something wrong, admit it -- and, if necessary, fix it and make it right and good;
4. Give yourself a break; we're always learning, and we might get it wrong or incorrect more often than when we might get it right.
5. Breathe -- and look to reduce stress in your life -- and in the lives of others.

Good luck with this exercise.

All the best to everyone; thanks for accompanying us on this journey.

Gerald, Al Nunez , and Parian Hatami

P.S. I'm very pleased to be joined in this process by my good friend and colleague, Al Nunez , and Parian Hatami .

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Give Blood, if you are able.

Appendix:

The Career Basics Course was originally offered across 10 Weeks, beginning in February 2023.

Here's a link to the companion article from two years ago:

• Career Basics Course: Week 2, Day 6