Perry Binder's Blog, page 28
March 24, 2015
February 24, 2015
10 Tips for Picking a Career Path in College
In the sage words of Yogi Berra, "if you don't know where you're going, you'll be lost when you get there." Picking a career path boils down to a cost benefit analysis and a gut check. It is a game of reality versus passion, and you can start blazing a meaningful path in college.But hopefully you can appreciate that every career has an arc, and you are at the beginning of the curve. Don't be surprised if your career direction changes significantly a few times before and after you reach the peak.With that message in mind, here are my 10 tips for picking a career path in college:1. Don't let anyone crush your dreams. However, the riskier your dream, the better your backup plan must be.
2. There is a huge difference between a childhood dream and a dream job. If you dreamed of being a lawyer since the age of twelve, you better make sure you know exactly what attorneys do on a given twelve hour work day. Did You Know: In a survey of 800 attorneys, only 55 percent reported being satisfied with their career.
3. Make sure your dream job is not an avocation (a hobby). An avocation is a vacation from a vocation, because the pay ranges from little to nothing.4. No matter what your part-time jobs or summer jobs are, always be thinking about how those experiences will enhance your resume and work skills.5. The most important thing for deciding on a major or career path is to get out of the classroom and into an internship which exposes you to the day-to-day ups and downs of that profession. "Learning by doing" will give you a better appreciation of the job than learning through textbooks.6. Do what you love but don't let your career choices jeopardize anyone you love. Including yourself. Translation: Take care of others but don't forget to take care of yourself, sometimes before others. Listen to our airline flight attendants: "Put your own oxygen mask on first before assisting others with their masks."7. Determine whether you are driven to be your own boss or if you crave the stability of a steady paycheck. Assess your personality traits and the risks inherent with both paths. (e.g., the risk of putting up your own money as your own boss versus the risk of losing a job in a company you work for) Did You Know: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists occupations with the largest job growth projected through the year 2018, starting with registered nurse.8. Rather than casually asking career advice from parents or other relatives, set up a time to interview them, with prepared general and specific questions. This approach will make them think more thoughtfully about their responses, and may reveal their personal career challenges and triumphs.9. Don't rely on luck or fate in your career. Professional success is about putting yourself in a position to create numerous opportunities.10. Over the course of your lifetime, there may only be a handful of impactful career opportunities. Assemble an inner circle team of advisors now, so you'll be able to act quickly to objectively assess the pluses and minuses of future opportunities.And finally, clean up your social media presence online! What's publicly available might not bode well for your future employment. Did You Know: In 2011, the Federal Trade Commission approved the practice of employers conducting social media background checks going back seven years for job applicants.10 Tips for Picking a Career Path in Collegec 2013 Perry Binder, The Huffington Post College section(Excerpt from 99 Motivators for College Success)
January 8, 2015
Jesse Friedman's Case and the Appearance of Impropriety
This is the third article I've written in The Huffington Post about the Friedman case:The Friedman case continues to be defined by delay. Two years after I posed the question, Is Actual Innocence “Capturing the Friedmans”?, the frustrating answer is: We still don’t know. Below is a tangled story of: evidence withheld by the Nassau County District Attorney’s office from its own case advisory panel; a panelist’s subsequent modification of the panel’s original recommendations; a defamation lawsuit filed by the defense against the DA’s office; the recent election of DA Kathleen Rice to U.S. Congress; and a judge set to hear Friedman’s case, though she worked as an Assistant DA with DA Rice for years.
In the above 2012 article, I summarized the case background:
On November 25, 1987, I was sprawled out on my parents' couch, when my favorite high school teacher appeared on the TV news. Arnold Friedman was a retired NYC instructor who taught computer classes in his home for local kids. I watched as he and his 17-year old son, Jesse, were handcuffed and hauled away for horrific child molestation crimes occurring in their basement. I fell off that couch in disbelief. Arnold and Jesse Friedman each pled guilty to avoid a trial, and Jesse learned of his father's prison suicide in 1995. Since his release in 2001, Jesse has attempted to clear his name, so he no longer must register as a Level 3 violent sexual predator. In 2003, new facts about his case emerged in the Oscar-nominated documentary, Capturing the Friedmans, which examined the evidence against the Friedmans and questioned whether any of the allegations against them were truthful. On August 16, 2010, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit found"a reasonable likelihood that Jesse Friedman was wrongfully convicted" and that "the police, prosecutors and the [trial] judge did everything they could to coerce a guilty plea and avoid a trial." That November, the Nassau County District Attorney appointed a panel of four experts to review the evidence against Jesse.
Click here to continue reading in The Huffington Post
November 22, 2014
Five Ways to Ace College Exams
I published this piece in The Huffington Post College Section:
Wouldn't it be great if college classes were pass/fail, and students could focus on learning rather than competing for grades? Let's get back to the real world for a second, as I propose what I would do as a student to prepare for college exams...
Click: Five Ways to Ace College Exams
The Huffington Post College Section
c 2010-2015 Perry Binder
Click: 99 Motivators for College Success book in paperback/Kindle
August 12, 2014
May 15, 2014
College Graduation Speech
Your Graduation Inspires Me
When I participate in graduation ceremonies, I often imagine delivering my own speech to the graduates, as if I were the commencement speaker:
Good morning chancellor, president, deans, faculty members, staff, students, friends, and family members. And to the graduates:
Every one of you is special.Every one of you is a productive member of society.Every one of you is what inspires ME - because…Every one of you has a story to tell.I just wish I had the time to hear every one of them, and to be there as your career paths unfold.
You have already accomplished a huge milestone on that journey. The biggest step though was just showing up. That’s it. The secret most people don’t get until it’s too late. Just showing up as young freshmen was a threshold event. Trying something which may be hard for the first time. Experiencing new things, even if it’s unknown whether the objective is attainable.
To me, the greatest barriers to success, however you define that, are a fear of the unknown, a fear of change, and a fear of failure. But you need a game plan, and hopefully you can lean a little on what you learned in school to figure out that route. No matter what you do in life, you always will have your education.
I hope you made some lifelong friends here. Frankly, I learned more about life from my peers than from my professors. And I hope you got more than knowledge from your profs because you can get that from a book. I’m hoping you gained insight on whatever subject, and then stamped your own original perspective on how to resolve issues and solve problems.
Many times the things you do won’t work. And you will fail at some things you try. That’s just a fact of life. Abraham Lincoln once said: “My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.”
And you will make mistakes. A lot of them! Both in your careers and your lives. That’s just another fact of life. But that’s okay. The trick is figuring out how to deal with setbacks. Your family and friends will always be there for you. And your education will continually serve as a foundation to get you back on track.
Franklin D. Roosevelt said: “We are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of our own minds.” Graduates, each of you must unlock your mind and blaze a path built on reason and purpose. Life is too short to spend it bouncing around like a random and aimless ball in a game of Pong.® And whether you are 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, or 80 years young, it is never too late to test the boundaries of your dreams.
Finally, I want all of you gathered in front of me to please lose the title of “former” student, because you will be my students for many years to come. And I expect in return that I can become your student, as I learn about your professional successes, trials, and tribulations.
Every one of you is special.Every one of you is a productive member of society.Every one of you is what inspires me – because...Every one of you has a story to tell.
What will your next journey be?
Excerpt from 99 Motivators for College Successc 2009-2013 Perry Binder, LLC
May 14, 2014
The Best High School Graduation Gift Books
What's the lamest high school graduation gift you've seen? How about a good book instead, for college prep or just for pure fun. Hey, I had to sneak my book onto this list.
The Best High School Graduation Gift Books
via Amazon Lists
May 1, 2014
Never crush anyone’s career dreams
Dr. J at the James L. Knight Center in Miami, before an exhibition game to attract an NBA teamCAREER PATH MOTIVATOR#4Don’t let anyone crush your dreams. However, the riskier your dream, the better your backup plan must be.
QUICK STORY BEFORE PICKING A CAREER PATH
Never crush anyone’s dreams.When I was a little kid, I dreamed about playing professional basketball. In third grade, we had to write an essay on what we wanted to be when we grew up. I wrote that I wanted to be 6’10” and play in Madison Square Garden. When the teacher handed back my paper, she laughed out loud and said: “You can’t do that!”That was the first time someone had crushed my professional dream. The teacher may have been right about the 6’10” part, but this molder of young minds lacked the understanding of what negative reinforcement can do to little kids. She also lacked the understanding that height isn’t everything for a basketball player. Teachers, especially in the impressionable K-12 years, are my personal heroes. Yet they need to be dream builders, not dream destroyers. It’s healthy to discuss rational backup career plans, but why spoil youthful exuberance which could flower into the unexpected? Postscript: When I was 25 years old, I met the great Dr. J and got to play one-on-one with 7’4” center Mark Eaton of the Utah Jazz, that year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year. I’ll leave the game results to your active imagination.This story is the basis for Motivator #4
April 24, 2014
The 5 Best High School Graduation Gift Books
What's the lamest high school graduation gift you've seen? How about a good book instead, for college prep or just for pure fun. Hey, I had to sneak my book onto this list.
The Best High School Graduation Gift Books
via Amazon Lists
March 31, 2014
NEW: Pinterest & 99 Motivators
Everyone - Please take a moment and visit my Pinterest board, forward to others, and pin an item (if you use Pinterest). Thanks!http://www.pinterest.com/99motivators/
Perry
Perry Binder, J.D.Author: 99 Motivators for College Success
