Featured Career Coach: Zuleika Cuevas

An HR change agent, career coach, and training/leadership development strategist, Zuleika is a passionate champion of unleashing the workforce potential of a diverse environment. She is the CEO and Founder of EDIE, where training includes: Diversity & Inclusive Excellence; Performance Management; Change Management, Feedback Conversations; Women in Leadership; Women in Leadership-Breaking Barriers; Mentoring; Succeeding as a Professional; and more!
 
Get in touch with us to get in touch with Zuleika. She can’t wait to meet you! Email members@thesecondshift.com for more information. 
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Featured Career Coach: Supriti Bhandary

 

Supriti has 25 years of experience in talent leadership. Her coaching goals are related to Executive Presence, Leadership + Interpersonal Effectiveness, and Managing Career Transitions. Her coaching model is eclectic, integrating cognitive and somatic approaches, so as to enable lasting changes in mindset and behavior for all of her clients. She leverages a personal, energetic and positive coaching style to support her clients as they explore the changes they wish to make.

 

Get in touch with us to get in touch with Supriti. She can’t wait to meet you! Email members@thesecondshift.com for more information. 

 

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Featured Career Coach: Karen Finckenor

 

 

Meet our featured Career Coach this week, the lovely, Karen Finckenor!

 

Karen’s goal is for her clients leave to the conversation with actionable steps, confidence, and a new, inspired perspective on their career. Her areas of focus include Pivot Strategies, Resume and LinkedIn Development, Job Search Strategy, Interview Skills, and Negotiation.

 

Get in touch with us to get in touch with Karen. She can’t wait to meet you. Members@thesecondshift.com

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Featured Career Coach: Erin Grau

 

Meet Featured Career Coach, the fabulous, Erin Grau!

Erin is a proven talent and operations leader with 15+ years of experience in global organizations and startups. She helps increase the effectiveness of people and teams, optimizes performance to drive business outcomes, and creates the conditions that enable people to bring to life the best work of their lives. Her unique background enables her to serve as both strategic thought partner and executive coach. Her areas of focus include people strategy, organizational development, DEI, strategic operations, change management, and business transformation.

Get in touch with us to get in touch with Erin. She can’t wait to meet you.

Email us at members@thesecondshift.com

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Featured Member: Ashley Mann

 

Tell us your work story : Who are you and what do you do?

I’m a publicist and marketing pro that specializes in telling brand stories in a way that’s authentic and genuine. No sales lingo here! Most importantly, I’m a wife and a mom to two great little kids, Remi (2) and Canon (1).

 

What is your proudest professional accomplishment?

There are so many client highlights – from getting placements in the New York Times to securing Today Show spots, but my proudest accomplishment overall is how I’ve managed to create a career for myself that allows me to pursue my professional aspirations while reserving space for my number one priority – my family.

 

What is the hardest challenge you’ve faced, work-wise? 

 

I was the director of marketing at a fast-growing biotechnology company and traveling every week for work. I had just had my daughter six weeks before and was still recovering from an emergency c-section – already back from maternity leave, in full career mode. I have this vivid memory of sitting in one of those tiny pods at the airport, trying to figure out how to operate my breast pump, dead tired and attempting to catch the last flight home so I could make it back in time to nurse my daughter before bed. In that moment, I asked myself “WHY are you doing this?” and I couldn’t come up with a clear answer. That moment was really the catalyst for me to put a plan in place to step out on my own. It didn’t happen overnight – in fact, it took a few more years and another baby for me to feel confident enough to take the reins. But, from that moment forward, I started laying the bricks and gathering the experiences needed to take the leap. Sometimes our hardest experiences are also those that positively impact our future the most.

 

 

What advice do you have for other women looking to make a career change but are afraid or lack confidence? How is it on the other side?

As women, I think lack of confidence is our biggest cumulative issue! Getting over the imposter syndrome and believing in yourself and your abilities is the hardest part. But, as someone once said, if you won’t bet on yourself, who will? Dive deep on the parts that make you the most anxious – either by learning things yourself, or outsourcing them so you can eliminate the blind spots. Hiring a good accountant is a great first step, no matter your industry.

 

Do you have any advice on how to craft a winning pitch?

Own your personal brand! What makes you unique and different than everyone else pitching the same opportunity? Lean into your experience and relate it to the client’s needs. Also – be engaging and friendly. No one wants to read a blanket pitch –  I never use the same one twice.

 

What is the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever received?

Start the laundry first. It sounds boring and not career-related at all, but my very first boss gave me this advice and I still think about it when I plan out my day. Basically, it means do all the tasks that require a response from someone else, first. In my industry, that means getting my media pitches out first thing in the morning, because I can be writing a CEO profile or penning social content while I wait for responses to roll in. Optimize your time as much as possible.

 

How do negotiate the balance between life and work when you are the one setting the boundaries?

You need to set boundaries early and often. My family is my number one priority, full stop. I book my client work around my family needs, which includes a lot of calendar blocking, up-front planning to make sure I’m getting all of my hours in for each client, and support (childcare). Set yourself up for success early by being completely transparent and up-front about your time and how much you have to give to each project. Also, you have to have focused, uninterrupted time to dedicate to your work. It can’t be a half and half thing (at least for me).

 

How do you make work work for you?

By having clearly defined values, setting expectations up-front and not over-committing. I’ve learned that planning things out ahead of time and keeping my workload manageable is the greatest gift I can give myself!

 

You can be our Featured Member! Fill out this survey to tell us about yourself, your work and how you shine!

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Feature Career Coach: Gabrielle Garofalo

 

Meet Career Coach, the lovely, Gabrielle Garofalo!
Gabrielle is a certified life coach who helps individuals and companies bare their truths, discover what’s stopping them, and live their wildest dreams. With Gabrielle, clients learn how to activate their desires in the areas of their lives that matter most: health/wellness, joy, sensuality/sex, work-life balance, body image, building wealth, peer pressure, school and career concerns, smashing goals and so much more. She works with businesses and executives to unlock hidden or blocked potential, expose blind spots, discover areas for growth, and overcome challenges with integrity and focus. “Your life is happening every second and I want you to live life fully right now,” she says. 
Get in touch with us to get in touch with Gabrielle. She can’t wait to meet you. Email members@thesecondshift.com to #makeworkworkforyou!
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Featured Member: Amanda Wong

 

 

Meet Featured Member Amanda Wong! 

 

Amanda, tell us about yourself:

I’m a senior advertising and marketing executive who leads strategy, develops content, and drives sales for premium brands.  Most recently I was at WarnerMedia creating award-winning campaigns for advertising clients across all categories, including Amazon, Warner Brothers, PepsiCo, MillerCoors, Geico and P&G.  With 360 expertise across all platforms – TV, digital, social, mobile, experiential, and promotions – I help brands connect with fans, while also driving buzz and revenue for clients. With seasoned experience in managing stakeholder relationships and multi-platform execution on the agency, brand, and client sides, I like to wear all the hats, and get it done from pitch to post.

 

What is your proudest professional accomplishment?

I have two: 

1) I created a cross-platform promotional campaign for the release of WONDER WOMAN! I was ecstatic to promote a movie with such a positive message about what it is to be a strong, powerful, brave woman. 

2) I saw the need for diversity and inclusion at my company, so I launched a leadership development program called R.I.S.E – Recognize, Invest In, Strengthen and Empower. It was an initiative that provided new employees with access to senior management and mentorship, and it has since been implemented company-wide as an annual event.

 

What is the hardest challenge you’ve faced, work-wise? 

Due to a merger, there were massive layoffs at my company, and my entire team was eliminated except for me.  I managed to do the job of 6 other people because we still had to meet our client’s expectations.  It was challenging mentally and physically, but the show had to go on.  In the end, our clients were thrilled, so it was worth the sleepless nights.  Being on lean teams has taught me to be scrappy, resourceful, focused, and persistent.

 

What advice do you have for other women looking to make a career change but are afraid or lack confidence? How is it on the other side?

I would say do the research – network and set up informational interviews to understand the ins and outs of working in a different industry or changing careers.  If you’re passionate, determined, and you’ve done the work, you can make it across any finish line!

 

Do you have any advice on how to craft a winning pitch?

Use active listening and empathy to truly understand the problem in order to generate a winning solution.  Identify the unique selling proposition, whether you’re pitching an innovative ad campaign or attempting to land a job – what is it about you/your idea that is different from the rest? Also, stand in front of the mirror and practice your pitch!

 

What continues to draw you to your chosen field and what do you hope to accomplish in the years ahead?

I am passionate about creative that evokes emotion or inspires action.  Marketing is not rocket science, but it can speak to the head and heart.  And being in the world of entertainment media, I’ve seen how enthusiastic fans can be.  I myself am a huge Game of Thrones fan, which led me to travel all over the world to every single filming location! In the years ahead, I want to be a part of a brand that has cultural and social impact. I want to contribute my creativity, passion, and drive for results to a seasoned team of advocates and collaborators.

 

What is the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever received?

“Choose your boss, not your job.” This is easier said than done, but if you can find a trusted leader who supports, encourages, empowers, and advocates for you, the job will be easy.  Seek out mentors and allies who are good human beings, and build a network that lifts you up so you can pay it forward.

 

How do negotiate the balance between life and work when you are the one setting the boundaries?

I always find time to exercise.  I set a time every day to turn off the computer and MOVE! Movement can be a run in Central Park or a calming yoga class, but it’s non-negotiable.  Taking care of physical and mental health leads to a successful work / life balance.

 

If you could tell your younger self one thing about what this professional journey would be like, what would you tell her?

I would tell her: 

1) if a situation, job, or relationship isn’t working for you after you’ve tried to make it work, then gracefully exit. 

2) whenever a door closes, a window opens!

3) girl, invest more in your 401K!

 

How do you make work work for you? 

I look for inspiration everywhere, practice gratitude often, and find something to be passionate about every day.  Even in the chaos of this unprecedented year, there is goodness in the world!

 

We want you to be a Featured Member of The Second Shift! Fill this out and tell us all about yourself. 

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Featured Member: Jennifer Owens

 

Tell us your story : Who are you Jennifer Owens?

I am an editor, writer and producer focused on women, wellness and work. Currently, I co-host The Breadwinners podcast and produce Turnaround Time for the Turnaround Management Association. I also founded thePause newsletter, focused on women’s health. I previously served as SVP of Digital Strategy of HealthyWomen.org and launched Spring.St, the place for smart women. Before that, I served as editorial director of Working Mother Media, and founded the Working Mother Research Institute, home to the Working Mother 100 Best Companies. In 2013, I launched National Flex Day, an annual spotlight on the benefits of flexible and remote work policies for all employees.

 

What is your proudest professional accomplishment?

Helping to organize the Summit on Working Families with the Obama Administration during my tenure as editorial director of Working Mother Media.

 

What is the hardest challenge you’ve faced, work-wise?

I think the hardest challenge is the constant hustle to stay upright and moving forward even as the media industry tries its damndest to bring us down!

 

If you could change one thing about how your given field operates, particularly with regards to women, what would it be, and why?

I would stamp out the rampant ageism that impacts all forms of publishing, especially when it comes to women.

 

What advice do you have for other women looking to make a career change but are afraid or lack confidence? 

Come talk to me and then get hustling. I think the key is to think “side hustle” at first and to take any opportunity that comes your way to explore a career change, whether it’s through volunteering or consulting. (Keep your day job to pay the bills!)

 

Do you have any advice on how to craft a winning pitch?

Put yourself in your listener’s shoes. What do they need to know about you and what you do in order to solve their needs?

 

How do negotiate the balance between life and work when you are the one setting the boundaries?

Right now I’m a big fan of timeboxing to help prioritize and organize how I’m using my time and for what. 

 

How do you make work work for you? 

I make work work by focusing on the people, topics and formats I’m most interested in. I am most jazzed when someone takes an idea of mine and makes it better — and visa versa. Collaborating in truly supportive fashions to encourage our best selves at home and work is how I like to roll — and it’s the role I like best to play.

Do you want to be our Featured Member? Fill out this survey!! 

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Featured Member: Courtney Seard

As we launch our new 1-1 coaching platform we are highlighting expert career coaches in our community. Courtney Seard is expert in career consulting and leadership training. She’s successfully booked jobs through The Second Shift and led a popular webinar about manifesting the career path you desire. Here she gives us her tips and insights. If you are interested in hiring her to do 1-1 coaching please reach out to us at members@thesecondshift.com
Tell us your work story : Who are you and what do you do?

I’m a performance coach and mindset and leadership trainer. I assist people and businesses get from where they are to where they want to be. This is done by tapping into the unconscious mind, removing blocks that are holding you back from success. Then by activating strategies, actionable tasks, and tools for success my clients create the results and outcomes they desire.

What is your proudest professional accomplishment?

The fact I’ve been self employed for 9 years. Creating, developing, and producing my product The Rise: Vision|Action|Planner. Giving my TEDx Talk on Mindset Matters: The Art of Playing The Game To Win, and my featured articles in Essence and Forbes.

What is the hardest challenge you’ve faced, work-wise?

Being a single self-employed business owner without capital and connections. Being a bit ahead of my time in regards for the needs of executive coaching and leaderships skills on an unconscious level. Being a black woman in a white dominated field.

If you could change one thing about how your field operates, particularly with regards to women, what would it be, and why?

There would be more women in the technical and mind science coaching space. We would be featured more than the same run of the mill guys who teach mindset and leadership from their perspective and an old set of norms and ideas.

What advice do you have for other women looking to make a career change but are afraid or lack confidence? How is it on the other side?

Plan, start small, and GO for it! You only live once, and we tend to regret and think about the things we didn’t or wished we’d done, rather than the things we did do and either were successful at, or found wasn’t for us. Slow and steady wins the race and get in the game.

Do you have any advice on how to craft a winning pitch?

Practice, practice, practice. And be confident in you. See yourself breezing through the pitch, even stumbling a few times, and making graceful pivots. See yourself confident, happy, and secure.

What continues to draw you to your chosen field and what do you hope to accomplish in the years ahead?

This is what I was put on the planet to do. I can’t imagine doing much help. Helping people get over their self imposed blocks and create wins for themselves and their teams, is whats it’s about.

What is the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever received?

Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it burned down in one. Slow and steady wins the race, be patient, consistent, and do it with integrity. It takes forever to built something and one false move to break it. Do your best.

Who has been your biggest cheerleader // supporter // mentor? 

Gina Hadley, at Second Shift really has been a huge champion and friend. Deseriee Peterkin Bell- She’s also been an advocate, mentor and inspiration.

How do negotiate the balance between life and work when you are the one setting the boundaries?

I have a set schedule that I adhere to. I’ve been doing this long enough to have burnt out, and to realize a sunk cost. I make them and I stick to them.

If you could tell your younger self one thing about what this professional journey would be like, what would you tell her?

It’s going to look crazy and be wild. It will be harder than you think it will be, and worth every single second. Save more, invest more, even when you think you don’t have it. Become financially savvy and fall in love with yourself, and money.

How do you make work work for you? 

I work on projects that I care about, with people I respect and admire. It’s a top value of mine. I’m flexible in my behavior and open to new ideas and opportunity. I know who I am, the incredible I offer, and that it’s required in the new era of work.

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The Pandemic is Driving Women Out of Work

 

 

Pleased to share a wonderful article in The 19th News (a wonderful media platform focused on women and politics) about how this pandemic is overwhelming working mothers and forcing them to make really tough choices about balancing work and childcare (if they are fortunate to have choices). Our co-founder Jenny was quoted as a representative of the women in our member community:

“Jenny Galluzzo, co-founder of the Second Shift, a platform that matches professional women with freelance and consulting projects, said the site has seen four times as many applicants since February as women try to make up lost work hours with part-time consulting work.

Beyond that, most women tell her they’re just waiting.

“You can’t plan ahead in any concrete way. And that stress manifests itself because you don’t know how to interact with the workforce. If you’re out looking for a job, how can you know what job to take because you don’t know in two months what your kids’ school situation will be?” Galluzzo said. “I worry for women because we’re taking an undue burden of all of the care and the invisible labor. I worry about all the strides we’ve made just being set back.”

 

One of our members, Mara Geronemus, a working mother of  3 young children and wife of a front-line doctor, is also featured because  the weight of her work and responsibilities forced her to turn down clients and take a step back right when her practice was taking off. It’s a relatable story and one that really captures the anxiety, stress, helplessness and disappointment many of us feel right now.

On the positive side, Jenny sees a silver lining if we can just hold our breath and make it to the other side…

“In many ways, though, coronavirus has served as a magnifying glass, bringing into sharper focus issues like child care that have long been ignored — and employers are responding. Companies that once resisted flexible work set-ups, and particularly remote work, are starting to embrace the idea. 

“We have been fighting for the ability for women to work remotely and flexibly for years. It’s the number one thing women want for employment and companies have now been forced to see that that model works,” said Galluzzo, from the Second Shift. “And when the economy comes back and jobs are more plentiful and our kids are in school, I see this as ultimately a benefit because you don’t have to convince people any longer that [flexibility and being remote] works.”

#makeworkworkforyou

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