Wendy Guillies Master Class

Wendy Guillies Author

03/30/2021 Added

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Wendy Guillies is CEO of the Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, one of the largest private foundations in the U.S. Hear her talk "Leading from the middle: Career Lessons from a Communicator-Turned-CEO".

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[00:00:00.150]It's near United States with 2.4 billion in assets,
[00:00:04.700]you also leads the foundation's work
[00:00:06.540]to boost student's achievement in Kansas city
[00:00:09.880]and to accelerate entrepreneurship across the country.
[00:00:13.400]Before becoming CEO she played an instrumental role
[00:00:16.220]in building the foundations local national
[00:00:18.360]and global reputation as a thought leader
[00:00:20.410]and innovator in its fields.
[00:00:22.770]Guild serves on the board of the greater Kansas city
[00:00:25.730]chamber of commerce, MRI, global St. Luke's South hospital,
[00:00:30.000]plans and the enterprise bank advisory board.
[00:00:33.310]Quite the list, heck yeah good for you.
[00:00:35.941](laughs)
[00:00:36.774]She is a member of the Kansas city civic council,
[00:00:39.740]the Kansas city business journal has named her
[00:00:43.120]to the annual power 100 list since 2016,
[00:00:46.650]and she was selected for the business journals women
[00:00:49.140]who mean business program in 2017.
[00:00:51.840]I'm super excited to chat with you today Wendy
[00:00:54.207]and we love to have a female leader in our midst,
[00:00:57.864]so we'll definitely kick it off over to you now.
[00:01:01.480]Great thank you Lauren.
[00:01:04.420]Hello good afternoon everyone,
[00:01:06.720]I really appreciate you having me,
[00:01:08.910]especially on a Friday afternoon spring to show up for this,
[00:01:12.896](chuckles)
[00:01:13.729]I appreciate that and it's a real privilege
[00:01:15.690]to talk with you.
[00:01:16.920]I have such fond memories of my time at UNL,
[00:01:20.930]I'm not sure I'd want to take advanced reporting again
[00:01:23.550]but time has faded those memories and so all good.
[00:01:28.430]But really my experience and my education at UNL
[00:01:31.012]I think were, have been big contributors
[00:01:33.690]to my success and I'm really grateful for it.
[00:01:35.980]So I thought beyond what you heard from Lauren in my bio
[00:01:39.330]I thought I'd give you a little bit of background
[00:01:40.510]about myself before I share a few lessons that I've learned,
[00:01:43.330]in my career and in my life.
[00:01:45.379]So obviously as she said I graduated 1986
[00:01:49.140]with a degree in journalism,
[00:01:50.370]I took the news editorial track.
[00:01:52.220]And those were in the days before there were options
[00:01:54.740]like strategic communications, the public relations
[00:01:57.400]or things like the yacht club.
[00:01:59.910]I realized in my junior year that working for a newspaper
[00:02:03.910]wasn't going to be a fit for me.
[00:02:06.530]I actually grew up in that environment
[00:02:07.720]my dad is a long retired newspaper publisher
[00:02:11.400]so I grew up around it
[00:02:12.500]and that's not the reason.
[00:02:13.970]The reason is I was in advanced reporting
[00:02:16.530]and I was covering a session as the Nebraska legislature,
[00:02:20.580]in a camera roll and the session went long.
[00:02:22.980]And so I had to film the story in
[00:02:24.840]and I was absolutely terrible at that,
[00:02:27.490]I panicked, I couldn't think that fast
[00:02:30.520]and so I realized that's probably not
[00:02:31.993]your that kind of instant thinking and more of a processor.
[00:02:34.930]Wasn't a fit for me so I totally admire
[00:02:37.680]those of you who can do that, I think it's amazing.
[00:02:40.670]But I took a different path,
[00:02:41.730]so I went into marketing communications
[00:02:44.990]and the communications field.
[00:02:47.180]I ended up getting a summer internship between my junior
[00:02:50.010]and senior year in college at Mattel Toys in Los Angeles.
[00:02:53.720]And then I followed that up with a post-graduate internship
[00:02:57.730]at IBM also Southern California.
[00:03:00.410]And really spent my whole career until recently
[00:03:02.930]in the marketing communications
[00:03:04.260]and corporate communications field.
[00:03:06.600]For the past 20 years as Lauren mentioned,
[00:03:09.190]by the Kauffman foundation where we're at about $3 billion
[00:03:11.950]in assets right now the market's been good.
[00:03:14.940]And during that time I worked my way
[00:03:16.950]up to vice president of communications,
[00:03:19.269]and then I had the opportunity to be the interim CEO.
[00:03:22.910]And I competed for that job in a national search
[00:03:25.780]and then was awarded that position in June of 2015.
[00:03:30.770]I wouldn't have ever thought that journalism school
[00:03:33.730]would be a natural pathway to becoming a CEO,
[00:03:36.650]but the more I'm in this job the more I believe
[00:03:38.970]that the training and skills that I used at UNL
[00:03:42.580]and in my communications career,
[00:03:44.050]have absolutely positioned me to do this role
[00:03:47.020]and I'll get, I'll touch on that
[00:03:49.010]as we go a little bit later on.
[00:03:50.700]So that's my history,
[00:03:52.700]about four years ago I was in a CEO role
[00:03:55.330]and I was asked to give a TED talk in Fargo North Dakota.
[00:03:59.570]And when the organizer invited me to do so,
[00:04:01.980]he said I don't want to hear Mr. Kaufman story,
[00:04:04.520]he's the founder of our foundation.
[00:04:06.540]He said, I don't wanna hear the foundation's story,
[00:04:08.880]I wanna hear Wendy's story.
[00:04:10.550]And I was like, I sort of panicked
[00:04:13.100]I was like, what is my story?
[00:04:15.060]I never really thought about that.
[00:04:17.194]And so it really prompted me, to think about who I am,
[00:04:19.690]and what has shaped me in my life.
[00:04:22.130]And I really all just, always thought of myself
[00:04:24.410]as a pretty regular ordinary person.
[00:04:27.150]And I kind of realized that that's my story,
[00:04:30.000]and that's okay.
[00:04:30.833]So the result was a TED talk called,
[00:04:32.870]the middle is the new edge.
[00:04:34.740]And it really centered on my story as being a middle person,
[00:04:38.710]which I define as both being from the middle
[00:04:41.240]of the country, where I spent most of my life
[00:04:43.070]as well as how I approach things in my life.
[00:04:45.960]So today during our time, I'm going to attempt
[00:04:49.090]to share some wisdom with you, based on five lessons
[00:04:53.000]that I've learned from my own experiences,
[00:04:55.890]as a leader in the middle some of which or most
[00:04:58.150]of which I've actually had to learn the hard way.
[00:05:00.520]So hopefully we'll find a few things that resonate,
[00:05:02.430]a few tidbits that might make sense as you're thinking
[00:05:05.470]about your careers and your futures,
[00:05:07.320]and most importantly, your happiness.
[00:05:10.060]So with that, we'll start.
[00:05:11.990]So lesson number one is make the middle, your advantage.
[00:05:16.360]So I'm gonna have Nicole share with you,
[00:05:18.570]a short video sketchbook, that's based on the TED talk
[00:05:22.280]that I just mentioned, because I think
[00:05:23.360]it really sums up what I mean, when I say making
[00:05:26.250]the middle your advantage.
[00:05:27.350]So Nicole, with that, if you can launch that video
[00:05:39.427](pen scribbling)
[00:05:45.780]I'm Wendy Gullies, president and CEO,
[00:05:48.470]of the Kauffman foundation.
[00:05:50.490]Here's what comes to mind, when we think about the middle
[00:05:54.600](plane engine roars) fly over country,
[00:05:55.460]vanilla ordinary.
[00:05:56.872](cock crows)
[00:05:57.705]Well it's time we scrap those old labels,
[00:06:00.310]because the middle is the new edge.
[00:06:02.835](upbeat music)
[00:06:05.560]The makers, doers, and dreamers who live in an approach life
[00:06:10.629]from the middle, are solving today's big problems
[00:06:12.946](rocket blasting off)
[00:06:13.779]and launching tomorrow's new ideas.
[00:06:16.640]I might know a thing or two about this,
[00:06:18.850]because I've spent my life in the middle,
[00:06:21.180]and that's not just about geography.
[00:06:23.565]Middleness is also a mindset, a temperament
[00:06:27.660]and a perspective on life.
[00:06:29.730]And it can be a real asset to our communities,
[00:06:32.830]and to our country.
[00:06:34.180]So what does this middleness really mean?
[00:06:37.870]First, It's about being centered.
[00:06:39.770]People in the middle, don't get too carried away
[00:06:42.640]by extreme emotions.
[00:06:44.275](woman yells)
[00:06:46.010]Second, middle grounders tend to be practical,
[00:06:50.080]rather than banking on the silver bullets.
[00:06:52.580]We're more interested in what works,
[00:06:55.150]which is often a mixture of many approaches,
[00:06:57.600]that guide us to an uncommon way forward.
[00:07:00.610]Coming from the middle also means
[00:07:02.300]having a healthy sense of humility.
[00:07:05.250]We have egos, but instead of feeding them
[00:07:07.750]by drawing attention to ourselves,
[00:07:09.880]we try to draw others in to collaborate,
[00:07:12.960]and create solutions with us.
[00:07:15.570]Finally, we're resilient.
[00:07:18.490]Teddy Roosevelt once said, "Do what you can,
[00:07:21.457]"with what you have, from where you are."
[00:07:24.860]If we have a setback, we don't make excuses.
[00:07:27.620]We work with our friends, colleagues and neighbors
[00:07:30.370]to make it better.
[00:07:31.860]This spirit has re-emerged in the middle and powerful ways.
[00:07:36.360]Kauffman foundation research
[00:07:38.110]shows that while startup activity in the US,
[00:07:40.680]is half of what it was a generation ago,
[00:07:43.070]entrepreneurs are making a comeback
[00:07:44.930]and the mid country states, are playing the role
[00:07:47.000]of the comeback kids, of the 10 Metro areas,
[00:07:51.070]with the biggest jumps
[00:07:52.220]in entrepreneurial activity last year.
[00:07:54.650]Six are in the middle of the country.
[00:07:56.524](upbeat music)
[00:07:58.510]We're seeing everyday people, attacking everyday problems,
[00:08:02.170]and creating uncommon solutions.
[00:08:04.930]Proven you don't have to be extremely gifted,
[00:08:07.890]extremely famous or extremely anything
[00:08:10.870]to make a big difference in the world.
[00:08:12.906](upbeat music)
[00:08:23.064]Thanks Nicole.
[00:08:25.290]A month after I graduated from UNL, as I mentioned,
[00:08:28.970]I moved to Los Angeles and I started
[00:08:30.750]a post-graduate internship.
[00:08:32.010]I ended up living out in Southern California
[00:08:34.210]for about seven years.
[00:08:36.010]And I'm gonna admit something to you
[00:08:38.170]that I'm not proud of, but I remember being embarrassed
[00:08:41.140]of my Nebraska roots.
[00:08:43.240]So when people would ask me where I'm from, I'd tell them
[00:08:45.880]I'd get the usual comments, at least, I don't know
[00:08:48.540]if it still happens, but it happened back then
[00:08:50.590]they'd say like, do you have running water?
[00:08:52.870]Or is there anything to do there besides Nebraska football?
[00:08:55.960]And so, I got kinda tired of it,
[00:08:57.830]so I started to kind of sweeping
[00:08:59.430]my Nebraska roots under the rug.
[00:09:01.660]And so when people would ask me where I'm from
[00:09:03.470]I'd be like, Oh, I'm just, I'm from...
[00:09:05.550]I'm gonna look very Midwest, no big deal doesn't matter.
[00:09:08.410]And I wish that I had known then what I know now
[00:09:12.270]and that's that me bidding from another country,
[00:09:14.600]me being from Nebraska is my secret sauce.
[00:09:17.520]It's what has made me,
[00:09:19.830]and it's something to be proud of,
[00:09:21.710]for all the reasons I mentioned that video.
[00:09:25.000]My best friend still lives in Lincoln,
[00:09:27.310]and she has a son who took on alternative pathway,
[00:09:31.250]alternative pathway out of high school.
[00:09:33.100]So about 10 years ago, he applied for
[00:09:35.070]this new national entrepreneurship apprenticeship program,
[00:09:38.470]where he'd go to New York city and live there
[00:09:41.220]and work in a startup company for a couple of years.
[00:09:44.170]So there were 500 applicants, ages 18 to 24
[00:09:48.200]for just 12 slots in this new program.
[00:09:51.180]So I was giving Ethan that's his name
[00:09:52.650]I was getting Ethan advice, because our foundation
[00:09:55.350]is really involved in the entrepreneurship at space.
[00:09:58.050]And during one of the conversations, I told him something
[00:10:00.580]that I never would have told myself at that age.
[00:10:02.850]And I said, Ethan I think Nebraska
[00:10:04.620]is your comparative advantage.
[00:10:06.930]I bet there are no other applicants from the state,
[00:10:09.180]and so you're unique, so go with that,
[00:10:11.860]make that your advantage, tell your story, be proud of it.
[00:10:14.615]He was selected, fortunately and years later
[00:10:17.320]he has made a great career in New York, as a proud Nebraska.
[00:10:21.630]Using the middle to your advantage,
[00:10:23.170]as you heard from that video,
[00:10:24.590]also goes beyond where you live or beyond geography.
[00:10:27.880]And so I think of the middle, I think of people
[00:10:29.890]who are centered practical, humble and resilient.
[00:10:34.230]What I don't mean by the middle is boring, or bland,
[00:10:37.320]or not able to take risks or being unimaginative.
[00:10:40.030]In fact at quite the opposite,
[00:10:42.050]people with a middle mindset, regardless of where they live
[00:10:44.740]in this country, or world
[00:10:45.950]are getting important things done every day.
[00:10:49.530]And I think too often, we think about and read about
[00:10:52.480]these unicorn people, right?
[00:10:53.840]That are just like, have some extraordinary talent
[00:10:56.710]or they've gotten advanced degrees,
[00:10:59.370]from the most elite universities
[00:11:01.637]or they're famous or rich or what have you.
[00:11:03.360]But the world is largely made up of everyday people,
[00:11:06.400]who are solving everyday problems
[00:11:08.420]and doing amazing things in their communities.
[00:11:10.950]The reason I love Teddy Roosevelt's quote so much,
[00:11:13.967]"Do what you can, with what you have, from where you are,"
[00:11:17.380]is because I think it speaks the power that each of us has.
[00:11:20.700]So each of us can use our hands, we can use our hearts,
[00:11:24.080]of our voices and our minds,
[00:11:26.010]to make a big difference in the world.
[00:11:27.350]So as you are preparing to leave college
[00:11:29.510]and go out in the world,
[00:11:30.343]just remember that you each have special gifts.
[00:11:32.560]And that being in Nebraska, whether you grew up here
[00:11:35.190]or just came here to go to college, is an asset.
[00:11:39.120]My second lesson is if you really want it, show it.
[00:11:43.500]So you might've heard the famous quote from Thomas Edison.
[00:11:48.147]"Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration."
[00:11:52.470]I think there's a little something to that.
[00:11:54.670]So your education, your training, your ideas,
[00:11:58.420]your experiences, they all matter a lot
[00:12:00.930]but so does hard work and effort.
[00:12:03.350]And if you really want something
[00:12:05.740]you have to demonstrate that.
[00:12:07.610]And sometimes you have to go the extra mile,
[00:12:09.770]to stand out from the crowd.
[00:12:12.120]Going back to Los Angeles, I'll tell you another story
[00:12:15.690]I've been out there for a couple years in a job.
[00:12:18.260]And I applied for a new position at a big hospital,
[00:12:21.197]and as a marketing communications specialist.
[00:12:25.000]And so they were pretty far along in their research,
[00:12:27.440]they'd already interviewed probably half a dozen candidates,
[00:12:30.120]but I got a break,
[00:12:31.790]so they brought me in for an interview.
[00:12:34.240]So I really wanted this job, it was gonna be more money,
[00:12:37.290]and it was gonna be more responsibility.
[00:12:39.550]And I also knew the competition was stiff
[00:12:41.441]they already had candidates in the pool, and I was kind
[00:12:44.230]of this last minute addition.
[00:12:46.240]So as part of the interview,
[00:12:48.010]I had to interview a hospital staff member,
[00:12:51.240]and write a profile piece about her
[00:12:53.480]as if it was going to be in their employee newsletter,
[00:12:55.500]and so it was a take home assignment.
[00:12:57.440]So I wrote the piece, got home that night wrote the piece,
[00:12:59.650]felt pretty good about it.
[00:13:01.210]And then I'm like, you know what?
[00:13:02.350]I really want this job, and I want them to know
[00:13:04.910]that I want this job.
[00:13:05.880]So I took it a step further,
[00:13:08.240]and I laid the story out in columns,
[00:13:11.490]and I kind of matched the font to the font
[00:13:14.020]in their employee newsletter.
[00:13:15.840]And I'd wrote a headline, and I let the face for photo
[00:13:20.010]and what a photo caption.
[00:13:21.330]And you have to know this is before you were born,
[00:13:24.170]this is the late 80s and I hadn't learned desktop publishing
[00:13:27.670]which is what we call it at the time.
[00:13:28.860]So I was literally cutting out scraps of paper,
[00:13:31.320]and piecing them together to create
[00:13:32.910]this like really crude layout, but it worked,
[00:13:35.943]I submitted it and fortunately I got the job.
[00:13:39.060]And the hiring managers cited that, that story,
[00:13:42.280]but the most of the way I presented it,
[00:13:44.350]as something that really impressed them.
[00:13:47.150]So that story is a small example,
[00:13:49.130]I realized that, but my point is, you shouldn't assume
[00:13:52.350]that people know how much you want something,
[00:13:54.610]just because you put it in an application,
[00:13:56.410]nor since you assumed that your resume fully speaks to your
[00:14:00.770]all your capabilities and your work ethics,
[00:14:02.960]so you need to find ways to distinguish yourself.
[00:14:06.420]A big part, I think of standing out from the crowd
[00:14:08.760]is to get as much what I call real-world experience
[00:14:11.280]as you can while you're in school, both in high school,
[00:14:13.710]but certainly in college and things like apprenticeships,
[00:14:17.260]internships, client projects, volunteering
[00:14:20.570]for service projects to taking on student committees.
[00:14:23.380]These are all things that give you a better sense
[00:14:25.980]of how things are gonna work, once you get out of school,
[00:14:28.490]and helped you build those leadership skills
[00:14:30.760]and other essential skills.
[00:14:33.240]The yacht club here, for those of you who are here
[00:14:35.605]in the yacht club, I'm so jealous,
[00:14:37.340]I wish we'd had that when I was in school,
[00:14:39.870]but the real projects you're working on
[00:14:41.427]and the real problems you're solving,
[00:14:43.871]those experiences are golden,
[00:14:46.040]and they're going to set you so far ahead,
[00:14:48.260]when you leave school, then if you hadn't had them.
[00:14:51.000]So I encourage you all to look for ways, that you can kind
[00:14:53.100]of get those real world experiences
[00:14:55.230]and set yourself apart.
[00:14:56.330]And then, whether you're interviewing
[00:14:59.140]for that first job, right out of college
[00:15:00.980]or 10 years from now if you're vying for promotion,
[00:15:04.530]let your inspiration and your experiences shine through,
[00:15:07.650]but don't forget the perspiration part.
[00:15:11.278]Lesson three is throw your 10 year career plan,
[00:15:15.550]into the trashcan.
[00:15:17.350]So I have never had a career plan,
[00:15:19.460]I'm not embarrassed to admit that.
[00:15:21.685]I love planning vacations, I love time vacations almost more
[00:15:26.810]than I like going on vacations,
[00:15:28.160]but I have never had a career plan,
[00:15:31.090]which is weird for me because I like
[00:15:32.360]to plan almost everything else (chuckles) in my life.
[00:15:34.830]Instead, all along throughout my career,
[00:15:37.390]I've asked myself two questions.
[00:15:38.970]First is, am I making a meaningful contribution in this job?
[00:15:42.857]And the second one is,
[00:15:44.290]am I having a good time while I'm doing that?
[00:15:46.940]After that, I just let things unfold,
[00:15:48.790]and I think in the process, I've opened myself up
[00:15:51.280]to a lot more opportunities.
[00:15:53.450]At the coffee foundation where I am right now, for example,
[00:15:55.910]I started as a communications manager, worked my way up
[00:15:59.350]to communications director,
[00:16:00.620]and then vice president of communications.
[00:16:02.810]And then I ended up taking on some new teams,
[00:16:05.230]and some new big initiatives,
[00:16:07.010]and then obviously the CEO job opened up.
[00:16:10.420]And I can tell you being the CEO would have never ever,
[00:16:14.530]been part of my plan if I'd had one.
[00:16:17.510]So my advice is don't try to predict,
[00:16:19.950]don't try to over plan.
[00:16:21.640]I think if you have your head down or trying so hard to,
[00:16:24.610]I need to do this step by next year,
[00:16:26.910]and this step by the year after that,
[00:16:28.430]I think you can miss those unexpected opportunities,
[00:16:32.050]that might be on the side or on the corner,
[00:16:34.540]and I think sometimes those are
[00:16:35.650]the most interesting opportunities.
[00:16:38.010]So, I'm not saying don't have goals,
[00:16:40.900]you should have goals, but keep them high level,
[00:16:43.320]and then really be clear on your values,
[00:16:45.410]and making sure that you stay true to those values.
[00:16:48.560]For those of you who are in journalism programs,
[00:16:52.220]I just, I wanna add to this and say that your skills,
[00:16:56.050]and your experiences here in J school,
[00:16:58.270]are so powerful and they're so transferrable.
[00:17:02.010]When I think about what has helped me
[00:17:03.880]to become a better CEO, it's the things I learned,
[00:17:07.970]and experienced while I was in the communications industry.
[00:17:10.920]Things like being a good communicator, both written
[00:17:14.280]and verbal, and also just knowing what to communicate when,
[00:17:17.900]I think that is the most essential skill,
[00:17:20.090]any leader can have.
[00:17:21.460]And you are already a step ahead here,
[00:17:23.830]those of you who are in your journalism track training.
[00:17:26.980]Another important attribute is the ability to take in
[00:17:31.320]complex facts, and information and make sense of them,
[00:17:34.950]and provide context for people.
[00:17:36.800]Again, those are skills you're honing here at UNL,
[00:17:38.850]they're gonna be great assets in your careers.
[00:17:42.240]Finally, I'd say curiosity.
[00:17:44.140]I'm guessing that you were all likely curious anyway
[00:17:47.820]most young people are, but the thing is,
[00:17:50.790]you're never gonna know everything you need
[00:17:52.540]to know about everything.
[00:17:53.780]So you have to ask lots of questions,
[00:17:56.700]don't ever ever stop asking questions
[00:17:59.200]'cause that's when you get into trouble.
[00:18:01.360]So whether you end up going to a media outlet
[00:18:03.320]or taking a different path like myself,
[00:18:05.980]again I'd say just don't try to over plan it,
[00:18:08.080]or over predict it, just be open to new opportunities
[00:18:10.690]because, the kinds of experiences and training
[00:18:13.090]you're getting here are certainly, gonna make you successful
[00:18:15.870]in so many different things.
[00:18:19.060]Lesson four (clears throat) is be a leader
[00:18:21.600]in all that you do.
[00:18:23.470]I think there's this myth that, leaders are only executives
[00:18:28.680]with fancy titles or professionals who are further
[00:18:31.970]along in their careers.
[00:18:33.210]And I can tell you that some of the most inspiring,
[00:18:36.740]and impressive leaders I've ever met, have been interns
[00:18:39.730]or people who are, new in their career.
[00:18:42.660]So matter...
[00:18:43.493]No matter what your role or level is
[00:18:45.407]and the hierarchy of any company you go to, you can lead.
[00:18:49.040]And so what do I mean by that,
[00:18:50.720]first I'd say solve problems.
[00:18:53.820]Everyone loves problem solvers and trust me,
[00:18:57.780]we don't have enough people who can solve problems.
[00:19:00.020]So if you can solve problems for people,
[00:19:02.540]I promise you you're gonna go far.
[00:19:04.780]I'd also say always find ways to improve,
[00:19:08.530]think to yourself, how can I do this job better?
[00:19:11.200]Is there any professional development,
[00:19:13.230]that I can take advantage of?
[00:19:14.390]Is there any self work that I need to do?
[00:19:17.220]Think about how you can help your organization,
[00:19:19.520]take initiative and learn about your organization.
[00:19:21.870]Please don't don't expect information
[00:19:24.650]to always be fed to you, 'cause it won't be.
[00:19:27.040]You need to take initiative, and be a learner,
[00:19:29.320]and if you have ideas, don't be afraid to speak up.
[00:19:33.410]You can also step up to volunteer,
[00:19:35.310]if there's special task force in your company
[00:19:38.190]or committee opportunities sign up,
[00:19:41.720]you can even take the lead in organizing, social activities
[00:19:45.340]or civic activities with your fellow colleagues.
[00:19:48.110]Finally, as you advanced in your career,
[00:19:50.590]you might have the opportunity to manage people.
[00:19:53.310]And this is really important, because I hate to say this
[00:19:56.730]but there's some really bad managers (chuckles) out there.
[00:19:59.480]And I experienced one of them.
[00:20:00.780]So earlier in my career,
[00:20:02.030]I had two very different experiences with managers.
[00:20:05.360]One gave me a lot of autonomy,
[00:20:08.320]And let me some feel
[00:20:09.990]let me figure some things out by myself,
[00:20:12.540]which mean I made a few mistakes,
[00:20:13.950]but I also learned.
[00:20:16.330]The other manager was totally opposite.
[00:20:20.800]Hypercritical, micromanager, prescribed my every move
[00:20:27.190]and I literally felt suffocated, and I felt like
[00:20:29.692]the creativity just draining from my body.
[00:20:33.190]So, those two experiences help me to find,
[00:20:35.871]what kind of manager and leader, I want to be when I had
[00:20:39.290]the opportunity to do so like this, and not like that.
[00:20:42.873]So, if you want to manage people someday, and I hope you do.
[00:20:46.770]I'd say, watch and learn from your own experiences,
[00:20:49.140]and then seek out people who think do it well,
[00:20:51.650]and get advice from them.
[00:20:53.670]And then when you have the opportunity to be a manager,
[00:20:56.480]you just have to practice.
[00:20:58.010]You have humility, be vulnerable, show grace
[00:21:02.440]when one of your direct reports makes the mistake,
[00:21:05.160]and most important own your own missteps
[00:21:08.990]and your own mistakes,
[00:21:09.860]'cause I guarantee you're gonna have them.
[00:21:12.370]My fifth and final lesson is a short one
[00:21:15.200]and it is simply this never stop laughing.
[00:21:18.827]There is so much to be sad about,
[00:21:21.430]and angry about in this world
[00:21:22.840]and I think, last year was unfortunate a testament to that,
[00:21:28.260]and there's always gonna be bad things,
[00:21:30.010]and it can easily consume you.
[00:21:32.100]So sharing a light moment or having a laugh,
[00:21:35.065]with a colleague and your colleagues to me is one
[00:21:38.320]of the best ways to connect with people,
[00:21:42.090]on a very human level.
[00:21:44.630]I host a holiday dinner, every year for my senior team.
[00:21:48.960]And after dinner, I read each of them a personalized letter
[00:21:52.210]that I've written to them,
[00:21:53.710]and it I thank them for their leadership
[00:21:56.387]I give examples of their accomplishments,
[00:21:59.750]and then I do a little bit harder ribbing, right?
[00:22:02.930]I mean, I mention some funny moments,
[00:22:06.310]and I poke fun of myself as well,
[00:22:08.000]and I know how much those letters mean to my team.
[00:22:11.800]The reason I think that humor is so important,
[00:22:15.250]is because it makes the bad times more manageable,
[00:22:18.550]and it makes the good times more joyous.
[00:22:21.890]And I'm going to insert a caveat here,
[00:22:23.880]especially in these times,
[00:22:25.490]because humor can be dangerous too.
[00:22:28.550]And I'm not talking about laughing at someone,
[00:22:30.740]I'm not talking about making insensitive or offensive jokes
[00:22:35.600]or using humor to avoid serious situations or conversations.
[00:22:40.223]What I'm talking about, is finding appropriate moments,
[00:22:43.280]to share a laugh with a colleague,
[00:22:45.100]with whom you have a trusting relationship.
[00:22:47.670]Life is hard.
[00:22:49.210]Work can be fun, but also hard
[00:22:52.030]so just don't forget to lighten up along the way.
[00:22:55.950]So that is, I'm a fast talker
[00:22:58.060]that's all I have (laughs) for my formal remarks.
[00:23:02.760]I know we have quite a bit of time for questions,
[00:23:05.710]so I'm happy to take any questions you have,
[00:23:07.520]I'll do my best to answer them.
[00:23:08.930]But thanks for listening.
[00:23:13.813](audience clapping)
[00:23:15.145](laughs)
[00:23:17.780]Thank you so much Wendy.
[00:23:19.210]Yes thanks.
[00:23:22.450]Nicole, are you gonna be managing questions, zoom
[00:23:25.610]or how would you like to go about this?
[00:23:28.830]Yeah, if you guys want to start,
[00:23:30.580]if people just want to jump on,
[00:23:31.610]and I can take them from the, part two.
[00:23:35.470]Perfect.
[00:23:37.170]Alright, anyone from yacht on the zoom feel free
[00:23:40.540]to send your questions in the chat.
[00:23:42.890]Anybody here have a question to start?
[00:23:44.760]Yeah, Lauren.
[00:23:46.028](indistinct).
[00:23:46.861]Yeah will just have our people come up here
[00:23:49.140]and ask (laughs) since we have a big space.
[00:23:57.460]I guess my question is kind of like,
[00:23:59.760]how do you get your foot in the door, when you wanna go
[00:24:02.550]to like a bigger city, like Los Angeles
[00:24:05.120]or New York or something like along those lines?
[00:24:08.400]Thanks.
[00:24:09.470]Yeah that's a great question.
[00:24:12.750]I think, obviously I was super lucky,
[00:24:16.350]to get my internship in Los Angeles, right.
[00:24:20.449]'Cause I get, and then once I was there,
[00:24:24.380]I came back, and I knew people, I had sort
[00:24:26.610]of a little network, and was able
[00:24:28.140]to kind of feel my way.
[00:24:29.710]So that I'll tell you when I was out there for 70 years,
[00:24:34.410]and knew I was got married, during that time,
[00:24:37.640]and knew that I never wanted to live there forever.
[00:24:41.260]It was just a fine place to be in my 20s, I loved it.
[00:24:45.230]But so when I moved back here, I had,
[00:24:47.870]what five years, six years of professional experience,
[00:24:52.750]so like still sort of, new in my career,
[00:24:55.303]but I had experience.
[00:24:57.500]But I couldn't find a job in Kansas city,
[00:24:59.780]from out there right?
[00:25:00.810]So, I mean, I was too far away, I didn't know anybody.
[00:25:03.040]So I started like make the leap
[00:25:05.120]we didn't have kids at the time,
[00:25:06.880]we moved back here, and neither of us had jobs,
[00:25:09.520]and I worked at a temp agency,
[00:25:11.030]and I just started pounding pavement, applying everywhere
[00:25:14.597]and ended up getting something.
[00:25:15.710]So, I did reached out to
[00:25:20.550]I did a lot of cold calling cold resumes, back in the day
[00:25:23.250]when you did that, a little harder to do now.
[00:25:26.820]So you can get some informational interviews,
[00:25:28.560]with a company you might admire,
[00:25:30.020]in a city where you wanna go, get some advice.
[00:25:32.610]I had done that too.
[00:25:34.960]And if you can't line up something,
[00:25:37.040]you might just make the jump.
[00:25:38.160]I'll tell you that, this is one
[00:25:40.450]of the most free times of your life.
[00:25:42.784]There's always gonna be time for work
[00:25:45.390]this is the time when you can like,
[00:25:47.500]you may not have a lot of routes,
[00:25:48.930]you may not have a lot of obligations you might.
[00:25:51.060]But if you don't, take advantage of that,
[00:25:53.180]and just pick up and go.
[00:25:55.100]And start working in a part-time job
[00:25:57.930]or doing something and just start meeting people.
[00:26:00.300]I think networking is super critical,
[00:26:02.510]and just eventually it hopefully will work out for you.
[00:26:09.340]Awesome, Hunter does that mean you have a question
[00:26:11.670]is your hand (chuckles) raised?
[00:26:13.090]It does it's so funny that you can do that virtually.
[00:26:15.870]But first, I wanna say thank you so much
[00:26:17.740]I really enjoyed how you broke down,
[00:26:20.090]those five different kind of how,
[00:26:22.110]you like learned in those lessons.
[00:26:24.266]I wanted to touch back on kind of like,
[00:26:27.210]the long-term trajectory of like careers.
[00:26:30.710]And so my journey looks a little different than most.
[00:26:33.510]First of all, I'm a part
[00:26:35.210]of the startup ecosystem here in Lincoln,
[00:26:37.010]and the Kauffman foundation provides, great resources
[00:26:41.820]for us to be successful.
[00:26:43.170]So, I wanted to touch on how as an entrepreneur,
[00:26:46.170]can I handle like ambiguity and like the next steps, right?
[00:26:50.370]'Cause it can be kind of lonely, it can be like isolated.
[00:26:53.986]So, and it's not necessarily guaranteed,
[00:26:56.790]and so like as a young person,
[00:26:59.410]looking to the next I guess.
[00:27:00.990]My core question though is,
[00:27:01.990]do you think from your experience, maybe working
[00:27:05.150]with entrepreneurs and being in that environment,
[00:27:07.530]do you think it's better to, just get in there
[00:27:10.010]and roll up your sleeves, at a young age
[00:27:12.310]and learn and absorb, actually by taking action?
[00:27:16.090]Or do you, would you recommend going out into the industry,
[00:27:19.025]and learning and experiencing that?
[00:27:21.790]What would you say your?
[00:27:24.320]You know what?
[00:27:25.153]I don't know that I have,
[00:27:25.986]like this is the right way and this was not.
[00:27:28.320]I think there's value in both.
[00:27:30.210]So, I told the story of Ethan earlier, he is now working
[00:27:35.580]for Blake Lawrence's company open endorse, yeah.
[00:27:40.440]But he's living in New York doing that.
[00:27:42.250]So, he was one who started right into
[00:27:43.880]this startup sector, right?
[00:27:44.970]And you can get valuable, practical experience
[00:27:48.240]in doing that.
[00:27:50.500]I will say like based on our data,
[00:27:53.130]the majority of entrepreneurs,
[00:27:55.890]then why majority entrepreneurs
[00:27:57.310]when they first start their company
[00:27:58.480]or the average age is 39.
[00:28:00.510]So most do have some kind of industry experience,
[00:28:03.908]that they've kind of gotten on the belt
[00:28:06.310]or they might be at a point in their career where,
[00:28:08.270]they can take a little risk, maybe they've got kids
[00:28:11.231]and they're a little more stable in their lives,
[00:28:13.995]who knows the reasons,
[00:28:15.410]but that's what we see in the data.
[00:28:17.460]Doesn't mean now there are an awful
[00:28:19.420]lot of younger people trying to do this.
[00:28:20.847]There are a lot more programs now where you can,
[00:28:23.780]be exposed to startups, and kind of go work for them.
[00:28:27.950]So I'd say whatever makes sense for you
[00:28:30.437]I don't know if there's a right or wrong way.
[00:28:33.830]Good for you.
[00:28:35.030]We need more entrepreneurs.
[00:28:36.437](laughs) Okay I wanted to follow
[00:28:37.640]that up with, do you see a rise in the youth focusing
[00:28:41.110]on entrepreneurship?
[00:28:43.282]And like that kind of, especially like now that we've lived
[00:28:45.830]in such a disruptive timeframe,
[00:28:47.380]with kind of like the whole COVID,
[00:28:48.970]and everything kind of got flipped over.
[00:28:50.070]So do you see that young people are starting
[00:28:52.280]to gravitate, more towards working for themselves?
[00:28:55.910]Well, so we actually just put out some recent data,
[00:29:00.210]and the number of startups that happened
[00:29:04.220]in the United States last year during 2020 was way up.
[00:29:07.820]However what I'd say is most of that
[00:29:11.430]or a good part of that was because our entrepreneurs
[00:29:14.710]or people were starting businesses,
[00:29:16.145]almost out of desperation.
[00:29:18.830]Like they didn't have other options.
[00:29:20.460]So they had got they got laid off, they had to work,
[00:29:22.560]they're like, I don't know what else to do,
[00:29:24.081]I'm just going to do my own thing.
[00:29:25.700]That's not necessarily a bad thing
[00:29:27.210]I mean a lot of great companies started that way,
[00:29:28.920]when people didn't have other options.
[00:29:31.800]So we still see though that, the biggest spike
[00:29:35.430]in peoples starting businesses are over age 55.
[00:29:38.830]People are living longer, they're retiring earlier,
[00:29:42.400]and they want to do that second or third career.
[00:29:44.500]So that's pretty much what we see, but also saying,
[00:29:49.816]you might know about our (mumbles) program Hunter,
[00:29:52.500]but a lot more young people doing it too.
[00:29:54.700]So that's encouraging.
[00:29:57.770]Awesome, thank you so much for your answer thank you.
[00:30:00.973]Looks like we have a question
[00:30:02.610]in the comp in the chat box.
[00:30:04.230]It says, can you talk more about using Nebraska roots,
[00:30:07.420]as a competitive advantage for opportunities.
[00:30:10.440]What are some specific things that students can say
[00:30:12.970]or do, to leverage that advantage
[00:30:15.490]when seeking opportunities in larger markets?
[00:30:19.590]So the first thing I say is,
[00:30:20.890]it's really more of an intangible,
[00:30:22.770]it's like be proud of it.
[00:30:25.760]Like people can tell when you're proud of something, right?
[00:30:27.820]Like don't minimize it, and I think there are
[00:30:31.707]I think there's a perception out there,
[00:30:33.740]I think it's a true perception,
[00:30:36.300]I think it's reality.
[00:30:37.890]That there's this work ethic in the Midwest,
[00:30:41.420]that people are like, good hearted working people,
[00:30:45.230]and I think that like, you can take advantage of that.
[00:30:48.807]And so I think you have to make it your own,
[00:30:52.004]I just think it's nothing to shy away from,
[00:30:55.670]and to enter and just to be proud of it.
[00:30:58.330]I think people gravitate for people with confidence,
[00:31:02.960]and who are proud of who they are ,
[00:31:04.840]and where they came from.
[00:31:05.920]And so that's, that'd be my best advice.
[00:31:11.877]So we have another question in the yacht space from Moana.
[00:31:15.100]Oh (indistinct)
[00:31:17.360]Can you hear Moana if she chats from there?
[00:31:20.430]Do you wanna say hi?
[00:31:21.420]Hi, are you able to hear me?
[00:31:23.590]Perfect okay.
[00:31:24.650]So my question is, what are some things, that you've
[00:31:27.610]seen your peers, kind of earlier in your career do
[00:31:31.170]that you think really helped them to be successful,
[00:31:34.718]and just made a good overall impression
[00:31:38.410]on the older members of the industry
[00:31:42.100]or like people that are more experienced around them?
[00:31:46.417]Yeah ill go back to a couple
[00:31:47.890]of things I mentioned in my remarks.
[00:31:52.010]I think the one thing that drives me crazy,
[00:31:57.077](laughs)
[00:32:00.470]is when people like expect, everything to kind of come
[00:32:04.960]to them like, information and they don't seek it out.
[00:32:07.830]So, I'd say the number one thing is,
[00:32:10.020]take initiative to learn.
[00:32:12.040]Take your, like, if you don't know
[00:32:14.630]what another department is doing, go to the website,
[00:32:18.020]ask someone read about it.
[00:32:19.842]I think that's, being self-directed is super important.
[00:32:26.200]I also think that people who can deal with ambiguity,
[00:32:29.910]Hunter you mentioned ambiguity, is really important
[00:32:32.910]because you're never gonna get all the rules,
[00:32:35.160]and you're never getting all the steps.
[00:32:36.710]And sometimes you to like figure stuff out.
[00:32:38.765]You might make some mistakes, but that's how we grow
[00:32:42.810]that's how we get better.
[00:32:43.940]So I'd say like being comfortable with ambiguity,
[00:32:46.270]asks some questions to guide you,
[00:32:48.140]and then just trust your instincts and do the best you can.
[00:32:53.267]I'd also say asking questions, like again this kind
[00:32:59.630]of relates to the the last thing is,
[00:33:01.920]you understand something, get clarity, be curious,
[00:33:06.460]if something doesn't go right, if you make a mistake,
[00:33:10.060]ask how you could've done better.
[00:33:12.430]So I think it's really it's...
[00:33:14.480]You notice that nothing I said in there was like,
[00:33:17.660]you need to be a good writer
[00:33:18.850]or you need to have like this certain skill,
[00:33:21.120]this technical ability, those are all important,
[00:33:23.150]but I consider those things cost of entry to get into a job.
[00:33:26.780]It's the other things it's your essential skills,
[00:33:28.890]it's your interpersonal skills.
[00:33:30.830]Those are the things that I think are critical,
[00:33:32.580]and you can see it in people,
[00:33:34.960]and some people you don't.
[00:33:50.132]Alright I'll ask you a question then.
[00:33:52.300]I know it was equal payday the other day,
[00:33:54.770]and so I'd love to know from your perspective Wendy,
[00:33:57.380]of just being a female leader in the industry obviously
[00:33:59.610]there's quite a difference,
[00:34:01.179]in numbers of female versus male leadership.
[00:34:04.750]So do you have any kind of insight,
[00:34:07.220]on things may be changing?
[00:34:09.750]Are you optimistic for the future?
[00:34:11.320]What is it like being kind of the minority?
[00:34:17.650]Yeah I mean, there's still a pay differential,
[00:34:22.800]obviously between males and females.
[00:34:24.440]There's still unfortunate pay differentials
[00:34:27.740]between people of color and white people.
[00:34:31.410]And so, yeah it's disturbing, I do think,
[00:34:35.790]I think we're kind of at a pivotal point in this country,
[00:34:38.620]for some serious change.
[00:34:40.830]And so I'm hopeful for that,
[00:34:43.700]I think more companies are being held accountable,
[00:34:46.550]and you'll come in the spotlight for this.
[00:34:48.390]And so, we are undertaking a whole bunch of equity work
[00:34:53.380]at the foundation,
[00:34:54.300]and doing pay equity studies,
[00:34:56.640]and really looking through that lens of equity.
[00:34:59.810]And I think more and more companies are doing that now,
[00:35:03.000]which is if there was any positive outcome that came
[00:35:06.650]out of last year, maybe that's it.
[00:35:07.830]I hope it sticks.
[00:35:09.070]So yeah, I see hope I've
[00:35:14.430]I don't really think that,
[00:35:15.990]I don't have a lot of great examples,
[00:35:18.010]of where I feel like I've been held back
[00:35:19.780]because I'm a woman.
[00:35:21.660]I do think if there's one thing I'd say is that,
[00:35:25.030]I've had to prove myself more,
[00:35:27.530]than a man would in my position.
[00:35:29.730]I think my rope was a little bit shorter
[00:35:33.210]with my board at first, until I kind of proved otherwise.
[00:35:36.460]So I think there's still a little bit of that.
[00:35:39.080]But I think the more, women leaders we have,
[00:35:44.440]the more we sort of chip away at that, sort of old way
[00:35:47.620]and so I'm hopeful for the future.
[00:35:50.030]It's a great question.
[00:35:51.830]Thank you.
[00:35:54.470]We have a question in the chat
[00:35:55.680]it says you mentioned networking, being important.
[00:35:58.110]Can you share tips and tricks, to use going into an event?
[00:36:03.410]Yeah so I am, I'm sort of a...
[00:36:07.790]I'm like a four and the extrovert scales,
[00:36:10.270]So I'm barely an extrovert (chuckles)
[00:36:12.360]kind of in the middle of that too.
[00:36:14.210]So like being in a large room, I don't love it.
[00:36:16.982]But you have to network.
[00:36:20.520]And so I guess the way I go into it,
[00:36:22.550]and what my advice to you would be.
[00:36:25.200]Don't go into situations, thinking what can I get out
[00:36:28.660]of this for myself ?
[00:36:30.070]Go into thinking, how can I help someone else?
[00:36:33.440]Right.
[00:36:34.273]If everyone was thinking that it'd be great, right?
[00:36:36.610]So if you meet someone, think about how you
[00:36:40.160]can contribute to their success, and how you can help them,
[00:36:43.041]and at least think about it in that way.
[00:36:47.630]And I also think, follow up, if you meet somebody,
[00:36:53.460]you get their business card, you say,
[00:36:55.820]hey let's get together.
[00:36:57.070]Like actually follow up.
[00:36:58.890]And don't just collect the business cards for no reason.
[00:37:03.610]There are many seasoned professionals
[00:37:05.710]or people at all levels, that really love
[00:37:08.330]to help young people.
[00:37:09.360]I love meeting with, this is like the fifth most fun thing
[00:37:11.656]I've done all week.
[00:37:12.540]So like, if you're ever in Kansas city come see me.
[00:37:15.410]I love me with young people and mentoring them,
[00:37:18.090]and there's a lot of people my age, that like that too.
[00:37:21.010]So don't be afraid to reach out and say,
[00:37:22.700]hey I'd just like to get know more about you.
[00:37:26.150]So those would be a few tips that I have.
[00:37:35.340]There's another one of the chances or chat.
[00:37:37.610]My experience in California, is that you're competing
[00:37:40.790]with some of the brightest, well-educated ambitious people
[00:37:43.840]from all over the world.
[00:37:45.130]What tips would you give our students
[00:37:46.670]to thrive in those conditions?
[00:37:50.070]Yeah John, I kind of felt like that too.
[00:37:52.420](laughs)
[00:37:53.610]Once upon a time, I can't...
[00:37:57.370]I'm gonna go back to.
[00:37:59.370]You just have to do what you can,
[00:38:03.296]to try to set yourself apart.
[00:38:05.578]What is my value proposition?
[00:38:08.070]What is my competitive advantage?
[00:38:10.620]What kind of experiences do I have?
[00:38:12.090]And then, I guess find creative ways to showcase that.
[00:38:16.083]My internship that I got at Mattel.
[00:38:21.390]I remember I...
[00:38:23.430]This is no dig on the journalism school, but there weren't,
[00:38:25.860]you had your three tracks.
[00:38:27.190]The dues add, you had advertising, you had photo J,
[00:38:31.210]I think there was one PR class
[00:38:32.560]so there wasn't, it was just a different time.
[00:38:34.360]So when I wanted to do something different,
[00:38:37.190]I had to kind of go out on my own.
[00:38:39.240]And so I wrote, I sent packets of my news clips,
[00:38:45.260]from the news college newspaper and my resume.
[00:38:48.380]And I sent it to like 25 biggest companies in the country,
[00:38:51.080]like Mattel, Frito-Lay, Wendy's international,
[00:38:54.370]has a funny story about that one.
[00:38:56.340]And like I know, IBM, what have you.
[00:38:59.240]And I got a call back from Mattel,
[00:39:01.540]and I think it's because I just didn't send my resume.
[00:39:04.130]This is back when we mail things.
[00:39:05.713](chuckles)
[00:39:07.330]I had a packet, I had like gone to Kinko's,
[00:39:09.980]and got like a really nice way to bind it,
[00:39:12.020]I can make it look special.
[00:39:13.960]And so, it's a little thing, but I think sometimes like
[00:39:17.490]that shows that like, huh! this person
[00:39:19.480]took extra effort to do that.
[00:39:22.120]And it ended up working for me.
[00:39:24.950]So those, I guess that'd be one thing that.
[00:39:28.720]And I also I'm just go back to saying like,
[00:39:30.574]don't let that voice in your head, tell you
[00:39:33.960]that you're not good enough,
[00:39:34.793]just 'cause there's other people from different universities
[00:39:38.170]or there's more people out there seriously.
[00:39:41.650]I mean, take advantage of what you've experienced growing up
[00:39:46.160]in the middle of a country, because it's,
[00:39:51.000]It pays off I promise.
[00:39:59.050]So when I applied to a Wendy's international,
[00:40:01.350]my maiden name is Thomas, and they thought it was hilarious,
[00:40:05.420]because Wendy Thomas was applying for an internship.
[00:40:09.250]That's the founder, that's the Dave Thomas,
[00:40:12.400]that was his daughter's name, Wendy Thomas.
[00:40:13.730]So they sent me like this reject letter,
[00:40:16.060]but like at this whole story about what Wendy
[00:40:18.950]was doing those days, that was pretty funny.
[00:40:21.332](laughs)
[00:40:22.290]That was almost perfectly aligned.
[00:40:24.105](laughing)
[00:40:25.070]Dang it.
[00:40:27.320]We have another question in the yacht space, from Towel.
[00:40:31.100]I'm gonna have here come up here.
[00:40:36.270]Hi, okay can you hear me from here?
[00:40:39.300]I can.
[00:40:40.580]Awesome.
[00:40:41.990]So I heard you talk a lot about being in the middle,
[00:40:45.196]and how to balance everything.
[00:40:48.040]So do you have any tip for that?
[00:40:49.780]When a person was like very lean into one side,
[00:40:55.240]like one is like don't care very positive,
[00:40:58.200]and others like very overthinking about,
[00:41:00.810]the path that they taken.
[00:41:02.450]So how would you.
[00:41:04.540]what would the advice you give for to balance that out?
[00:41:10.820]You mean in terms of like, having really strong desire
[00:41:15.590]to go a certain pathways?
[00:41:16.830]Is that what you (mumbles)
[00:41:18.480]Yeah. (audio breaks)
[00:41:20.310]Yes, 'cause I haven't mentioned any about like,
[00:41:24.064]take thing one thing at a time and everything like that
[00:41:27.130]and yeah so what advice would you give,
[00:41:29.380]it's a person who was really worried
[00:41:31.640]or worried that like maybe their path,
[00:41:34.050]will not get them they're like (mumbles)
[00:41:37.660]Yeah now, you gotta follow your passion, right.
[00:41:41.830]So I'm not saying like, you need to do, what you wanna do.
[00:41:47.230]And you just, I think just keep at it, until you don't think
[00:41:50.853]you can keep at it anymore, right.
[00:41:53.343]There will be times when all of you, will flounder.
[00:41:58.798](chuckles)
[00:41:59.631]You're gonna have some setbacks.
[00:42:01.870]I certainly did it's going to happen.
[00:42:04.400]The key is like ,kind of picking yourself back up,
[00:42:06.330]and keeping at it.
[00:42:07.163]'Cause it does in the end workout.
[00:42:09.180]I wish I could like wave a magic wand,
[00:42:11.620]over all you and say like, 15 20 years from now
[00:42:14.260]you'll look back and say like,
[00:42:15.640]it was hard at times, but I kind of found my way
[00:42:18.260]so you do what you wanna do.
[00:42:20.464]I guess what I meant by like not trying
[00:42:23.260]to over plan things is,
[00:42:25.324]if you just...
[00:42:27.930]If you're on a particular path and if you just stay open,
[00:42:30.630]to new opportunities that may not be in your job description
[00:42:33.750]or may not be like exactly how you think you'd go,
[00:42:37.750]say yes sometimes because you might be happy you did that.
[00:42:40.250]I don't, if that answers your question but.
[00:42:42.351](laughs)
[00:42:43.470]Yeah.
[00:42:44.318](indistinct)
[00:42:45.725]Thanks.
[00:42:48.277]Anybody else in the out space have question
[00:42:51.364]Had one question as well Wendy, I'm curious.
[00:42:55.800]What is one thing that you did that really scared you,
[00:42:58.900]but you like it really pushed you
[00:43:00.280]outside of your comfort zone?
[00:43:07.650]Applying for the CEO position was terrifying,
[00:43:12.320]because I spent my career like, almost 30 years,
[00:43:19.980]in communications and marketing, and I knew it was a risk.
[00:43:25.050]I knew that if I didn't get the job,
[00:43:28.080]I couldn't go back to the farm right.
[00:43:29.770]I had to like, I would have to leave,
[00:43:31.590]and I got to something else.
[00:43:33.460]And if I did get the job,
[00:43:35.210]I would be doing something completely different,
[00:43:37.270]than what I'd spent my whole career doing.
[00:43:39.680]So, it was the scariest thing I've ever done.
[00:43:44.680]It was a crazy time
[00:43:45.864]I was doing the job in the interim CEO,
[00:43:48.810]but also competing for the job, and it was that.
[00:43:52.270]But it lasted almost a year, but I'm glad I did it.
[00:43:57.435]I'm glad I did that and so I think as you get older,
[00:44:00.850]you tend to be more risk averse.
[00:44:03.950]It's just, I think that's human nature,
[00:44:05.370]you've got more to lose.
[00:44:07.960]I certainly had a lot to lose there,
[00:44:09.440]but I did it and it paid off.
[00:44:11.930]So, don't squander your risk taking at young ages,
[00:44:16.760]because you tend to like lose that, (chuckles)
[00:44:18.787]as you get older.
[00:44:22.118]Awesome awesome, thank you.
[00:44:30.700]I'd like to hear from, some of you who
[00:44:33.220]are in the yacht club, tell me about that.
[00:44:35.180]I just sounds, tell me about some of the,
[00:44:37.200]how it works, and like a project you're working on,
[00:44:41.620]and who do you do projects for?
[00:44:45.110]Is it a lot of me to ask questions?
[00:44:47.212](laughs)
[00:44:49.020]Of course, maybe not to put Katie and Jamie on the spot,
[00:44:53.210]but (laughs) you guys want to talk about,
[00:44:56.600]we added a PR department this year,
[00:44:58.747]previously we were just like advertising focused,
[00:45:02.190]so they can maybe speak, to some of their experience
[00:45:06.290]of just building that department out
[00:45:08.230]obviously that's a little bit more internal,
[00:45:09.630]so maybe we get somebody who's done some external work too,
[00:45:12.170]but Jamie or Katie.
[00:45:13.598](indistinct chatters)
[00:45:14.431]Do you guys wanna come up here and chat?
[00:45:18.085](laughs)
[00:45:20.540]Yeah so, like Lauren said, we just had the PR department,
[00:45:24.390]I'm gonna kneel (laughs)
[00:45:25.880]It was just added this semester,
[00:45:27.510]I worked with another account executive last semester,
[00:45:30.267]to get everything solidified.
[00:45:32.400]We actually just got nationally affiliated
[00:45:35.060]through a PRSSA national, which is a huge honor
[00:45:39.190]and we're super excited for that.
[00:45:41.120]But primarily this semester, we've just been working
[00:45:43.410]on planning a pretty large stakeholder donor event,
[00:45:46.690]to just kind of continue building relationships,
[00:45:49.820]with those professionals in the Lincoln community
[00:45:52.810]and industry, to just make those beneficial relationships,
[00:45:57.050]and how they can help us grow.
[00:45:59.470]In the future, hopefully we'll have a bigger pipeline
[00:46:03.170]of PR focused clients, in the future
[00:46:05.750]to help with any campaigns, events, things that they need.
[00:46:10.000]But I think it's super exciting to just,
[00:46:11.780]get us more national recognition,
[00:46:13.670]and help us grow as an agency.
[00:46:16.200]Great, congratulations.
[00:46:18.102](laughs) Thank you.
[00:46:19.456]Hunter, I know you are
[00:46:21.800]a resident business development specialist with T here.
[00:46:27.090]So maybe, would either of you, like to chat about
[00:46:29.660]some of the clients, that we've got
[00:46:32.050]to work with this semester.
[00:46:35.690]Yeah, I can kind of fill in.
[00:46:38.382]Yeah, I think it's been really fun,
[00:46:40.980]'cause I'm completely outside of the journalism school.
[00:46:44.600]I'm a college of business student, I'm a marketing major,
[00:46:47.330]and so transitioning into like the new business role,
[00:46:49.890]It was kind of a learning curve.
[00:46:51.471](clears throat)
[00:46:52.440]But this semester we're really working with,
[00:46:55.202]what I do, is kind of like meet with clients,
[00:46:57.257]and like kind of get them for the next semester,
[00:46:59.610]and work through what those look like.
[00:47:01.260]But right now we're talk in talks with,
[00:47:03.113]the Nebraska Association of bed and breakfasts,
[00:47:07.980]which this is a really cool client,
[00:47:10.840]because they're actually like a family, like these,
[00:47:13.330]like it's like an organ.
[00:47:14.190]Like Airbnb is demolishing their industry right now.
[00:47:17.250]And so, they're looking for ways to set themselves apart,
[00:47:19.950]and competitive advantage.
[00:47:21.210]But it's been really fun to like listen to these clients,
[00:47:24.530]and hear their problems and really help them solve
[00:47:26.510]like you said, problem solving.
[00:47:28.510]That's what I really been enjoying.
[00:47:30.060]And we've had to, we get to work with them,
[00:47:32.540]a couple of other clients, that are really making
[00:47:35.835]like a clear impact, in like the community
[00:47:37.770]we've got like a, I think it's a first generation students,
[00:47:42.351]we're kinda of helping them, put together some content,
[00:47:45.420]to highlight first generation students
[00:47:48.660]we're also doing some really cool things.
[00:47:51.510]A future client is a, the citizen scientists.
[00:47:54.260]It's a part, it's a program in the college of engineering,
[00:47:57.060]where they help test like nitrate levels, in like the water.
[00:48:00.790]So it's like a super specific and technical thing that,
[00:48:04.460]but it actually like, they're measuring that actually
[00:48:07.440]sometimes it counts for like cancer, and other rises,
[00:48:10.550]and so like, they kind of want to come to us,
[00:48:12.720]and like help, increase their impact.
[00:48:14.820]So, I mean, that's kind of a little bit about,
[00:48:16.740]what I've experienced them.
[00:48:17.950]If Tau was on here, I'm sure tau would love
[00:48:21.250]to talk about kind of what, how she's seen it, or not
[00:48:24.914]or (mumbles)
[00:48:26.817](indistinct chatters)
[00:48:28.306]I gat, yeah Tea she's with.
[00:48:31.600]I thought she was in the same seminar,
[00:48:33.654]I don't think I see her on there.
[00:48:35.630]Do you wanna talk? That is.
[00:48:37.020]That's so awesome.
[00:48:39.090]Alana wanted to share a little bit about, her experience.
[00:48:42.300]She's our inaugural on diversity inclusion specialist so.
[00:48:47.540]Hi, so I've been working to make sure,
[00:48:49.950]that Yacht is an inclusive, happy, and great space
[00:48:52.910]for obviously everyone in our organization,
[00:48:55.920]and I guess working with us as well.
[00:48:58.491]But I've been working on an accessibility campaign,
[00:49:01.440]to bring awareness to web accessibility issues,
[00:49:05.610]because that's an area of DNI, that a lot
[00:49:07.940]of people never really think about.
[00:49:09.970]And then I've also been working just internally,
[00:49:12.100]with everyone in yacht, to make sure
[00:49:14.120]that we're very knowledgeable about issues,
[00:49:17.090]surrounding DNI topics, and just making sure
[00:49:19.410]that we are the best we can be,
[00:49:21.090]so that everyone feels valued.
[00:49:23.085](chuckles)
[00:49:24.450]Yes.
[00:49:25.283]That's important, thank you for doing that.
[00:49:27.790]Yeah Alana is the woman for the job,
[00:49:30.550]she's been amazing so.
[00:49:32.080]Yeah, quite the obviously (chuckles) diversity of offerings,
[00:49:35.030]and just kind of specialization that we have here at yacht.
[00:49:38.130]So I'm, definitely happy to explain a little more,
[00:49:42.270]We have some, I mean, design, graphic designers,
[00:49:45.530]copywriters, social media strategists do video work so,
[00:49:49.100]the whole lot.
[00:49:49.933](laughs)
[00:49:50.965]That's great.
[00:49:52.050]Well, I'm just thinking like some my daughter,
[00:49:54.470]my younger daughter had to, she's just turned 24,
[00:49:57.770]and so she's returned to KU, both my girls went to KU,
[00:50:01.130]I'm sorry to say.
[00:50:02.120]I couldn't get them to Nebraska.
[00:50:04.060]Her name is (mumbles) and she was a journalism major
[00:50:07.651]in strategic communications.
[00:50:09.600]And so she's doing social media, for in a company right now,
[00:50:13.810]and going back to school to get her,
[00:50:16.940]she wants to be a therapist anyway.
[00:50:19.570]When she graduated, getting that first job is tough, right?
[00:50:23.350]'Cause like they wants experience,
[00:50:24.960]but they won't give you the experience.
[00:50:28.580]So she had some interns fortunately lined up,
[00:50:31.750]but I kinda gave her some advice,
[00:50:33.706]on how to structure her resume,
[00:50:35.670]because like the whole like linear, like I was in this job,
[00:50:38.280]for this many years, and then I did this,
[00:50:39.680]and here's my internship is kind of boring.
[00:50:41.900]And so like she, she organized it,
[00:50:44.780]so she had real-world project,
[00:50:46.409]since she listed three projects that she'd done,
[00:50:49.130]one of her capstone project in, the day school,
[00:50:52.110]and one in internship, and she described this project
[00:50:54.500]for what she did.
[00:50:55.580]And one was real-world experiences,
[00:50:57.360]where she was a student abroad,
[00:50:58.790]unless she kind of talked through that.
[00:50:59.790]And then she listed sort of the here's my work history.
[00:51:03.890]So again, just thinking about how you can position
[00:51:06.430]those experiences, that you're having at the yacht club,
[00:51:08.204]and I think you're doing right up front.
[00:51:10.400]'Cause that's what will grabbed people.
[00:51:12.380]Sounds like you're doing amazing stuff there.
[00:51:14.949](laughs) I'm jealous.
[00:51:15.868]Thank you. I'm jealous.
[00:51:16.701](laughing)
[00:51:18.060]We appreciate that piece of advices,
[00:51:19.870]a very good chunk of us here are graduating in May.
[00:51:22.070]So thank you for that.
[00:51:24.050]Great.
[00:51:27.419]I think we are out of questions out here,
[00:51:31.960]in the yacht space.
[00:51:33.873]I don't think I see any new, questions in the chat either.
[00:51:37.710]So maybe final call, all around for questions
[00:51:41.190]or Nicole there's anything else that you had planned,?
[00:51:49.070]And does any faculty have questions?
[00:51:50.740]We've got some other, we've got some grad students on,
[00:51:53.050]and advisers and it's kind of everybody today.
[00:52:00.690]I'd love to know who the faculty is?
[00:52:02.230]I don't, I wouldn't know any of.
[00:52:03.535](laughs)
[00:52:05.310]No.
[00:52:06.239](chuckles)
[00:52:15.316](clears throat)
[00:52:17.640]Yeah, hi Wendy?
[00:52:19.690]I'm sure you don't know me.
[00:52:20.810]I came to UNL about four years after you graduated, but.
[00:52:25.434]Okay
[00:52:26.267]I worked with a couple of faculty,
[00:52:27.680]and I'm sure you remember to extract this.
[00:52:30.097]Yes (mumbles)
[00:52:31.310]Yes.
[00:52:32.143]If you went through advanced reporting,
[00:52:33.330]I'm sure you know them.
[00:52:34.428](laughs)
[00:52:35.261]I do know them, I love them
[00:52:36.560]I mean I yeah they were great.
[00:52:38.325](laughing)
[00:52:40.387]Is Tuck still around or stuck?
[00:52:44.857](sighs)
[00:52:46.130]No, he retired, and I got some bad news about him,
[00:52:51.758]he's not doing real well.
[00:52:54.460]Sorry about that.
[00:52:55.293]But yeah, he is alive,
[00:52:57.085]but not a real good shape right now.
[00:52:59.570]Yeah.
[00:53:02.700]Well, thanks for joining.
[00:53:05.070]Hi Wendy. It's very interesting.
[00:53:06.027](laughs)
[00:53:08.630]I'm Adam Waggler, I'm in Adbri.
[00:53:10.920]I came here in 2006, so yeah.
[00:53:15.160]Great.
[00:53:17.676]Hi Wendy, I'm John Schrader.
[00:53:20.830]I actually graduated from that journalism school,
[00:53:24.868]before it was the College.
[00:53:26.513]I was here well, before you were, so thanks,
[00:53:29.848]did spend most of my adult life,
[00:53:32.790]and my career in California.
[00:53:34.274]So that's why it prompted that question.
[00:53:36.482]And I do find that,
[00:53:39.320]our students are well qualified in terms of training,
[00:53:44.913]but sometimes we have to make sure,
[00:53:46.740]that they have the confidence to,
[00:53:48.550]look around the room and say, I heard that person's
[00:53:51.760]from Beijing, and that person's from Berlin,
[00:53:54.770]and that person's from Buenos Aires,
[00:53:56.950]and look at all those degrees they have.
[00:53:59.150]I can do the same job they can.
[00:53:59.983]Yeah.
[00:54:01.160]So have some confidence so,
[00:54:02.460]but thank you for being here.
[00:54:03.340]Yeah.
[00:54:04.173]I appreciate it all your remarks.
[00:54:05.510]Thank you.
[00:54:08.470]Yeah and just again, I appreciate you all joining.
[00:54:11.920]I haven't been up to Lincoln.
[00:54:14.960]Well, I got it all last year obviously,
[00:54:17.460]but I'd get back there from time to time,
[00:54:19.640]I always love to walk the campus,
[00:54:22.960]see my old house and things like that.
[00:54:25.210]So anyway, I, fond memories,
[00:54:28.380]and I wish you all, success in your careers, and your jobs.
[00:54:33.920]But mostly I wish you happiness and meaning in your life.
[00:54:37.080]And I think if there's one thing that last year taught us,
[00:54:40.340]it's relationships, and those little things,
[00:54:43.320]like taking, getting outside, taking a walk
[00:54:45.690]during a pandemic that sometimes been the most.
[00:54:47.759]So again, come stop by, and see me if you're in Kansas city,
[00:54:52.180]but I wish you all well.
[00:54:57.970]Thank you.
[00:54:58.810]Wish you well too. Thank you.
[00:55:00.176]Alright.
[00:55:01.091]Thank you. Thank you Wendy.
[00:55:02.195]Have a wonderful rest of-- (mumbles)
[00:55:03.800]Have a good weekend.
[00:55:04.950]Thanks you too.
[00:55:07.550]Thank you Wendy.
[00:55:08.820]Thank you.
[00:55:11.239](mouse clicks)

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Wendy Guillies Master Class

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