How to Build a Career Plan with Alexis Scott
Today, I am blessed to be joined by Alexis Scott.
Alexis Scott is the Manager of Employer Hiring Partnerships @ Aspireship. Alexis builds partnerships with dynamic technology companies, supporting them to hire Aspireship graduates and individuals looking to start careers in software sales. We talk all about finding what it is that makes you happy and how to create a plan to get there.
“If you can show that you're both capable and coachable, we will help you get a job for free" – Alexis Scott
Listen on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube https://www.daniellecobo.com/dreamjobwithdaniellecobopodcast
Highlights
💫 1:44 A little about Alexis' career journey
💫 5:20 How Alexis was able to find what makes her happy
💫 14:30 Think about what you've liked about past jobs
💫 19:55 Is your career really a priority for you?
💫 21:33 Do you have a plan in place to achieve your career goals?
💫 24:53 A small act of kindness can go a long way
💫 28:04 Three takeaways from today's conversation
Let's Connect!
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I'm a mom. I'm a wife. I'm a dog mom. I'm an avid deal hunter and shopper. I actually grew up in San Francisco and spent the majority of my time in California. But recently moved to Boise, Idaho about three years ago and that actually played a big part in my career journey. The majority of my career was actually in hospitality sales. So I started my sales journey on a golf course and transitioned into catering sales at their clubhouse. And so I learned all the ins and outs of that side of sales, moved into hotel sales, did that for some years, and was actually working at a hotel when my family decided to relocate to Idaho.
Silicon Valley is very expensive and the irony is not lost on me, that it took me to leave Silicon Valley to get involved with technology companies. So a little bit interesting how that worked out. But I moved here and I took a job with an online media company. I thought that digital marketing sounded really interesting. So I took a job with the crazy coupon lady. It’s like the largest coupon aggregate site here in America. It's a massive site and I quickly learned that digital marketing was actually not my forte. And so I only stayed about six months, but I ended up taking a job back where my heart lies and that is in travel.
I'm an avid traveler. My husband goes crazy because all I talk about is the deals that I find in all the places I wanna go to and so I took a job with a company called Picasa. They’re based here in Boise. They have one of their main hubs here and I was back in technology meets hospitality sales. So I did that for about a year and a half and then I lost my job due to COVID. So it took some time during that and really figured out what it is that was motivating me and driving me. I found it during that really hard time what got me going in the morning was all of these connections that I had made on LinkedIn and helping people find jobs and connecting people which led to me finding my role at Aspireship. So kind of an interesting winding path, but really happy with where I ended up and I feel like it was meant to be.
Accept An Offer That Is Worth What You're Worth
I was leading a very large team and that was new to me. I had accepted responsibility for that and was learning as I went and learned how to onboard and train people and come up with compensation plans. And like, it was this crash course in sales leadership that I was really excited about. Like, I was so excited about it and I loved my team and I loved working with them, but I really didn't love the leadership above me and the support that I wasn't getting from them, and so it was a really stressful time for me. So I was having this kind of internal battle as COVID started off. Is this where I'm meant to be? Should I start to kind of put my feelers out for a new role? Like, I wasn't really sure. But I had kind of resigned myself to let this play out and see what happens. And then the decision was made for me. So I think that's like an internal indicator of like, you kind of know something. Like your intuition is telling you something is not right.
So in retrospect, that was actually a blessing in disguise. So during COVID, you know, what did I learn? I learned that I felt very taken advantage of and so I know this is a question coming up, but I think that when responsibilities are placed upon you that was not in your original job description, because again, what is it they say, like, if you're doing a great job, that's great. They're just gonna continue to pile more and more on you because you just keep handling it and you keep taking care of it. And great. Let's give you some more, but at some point, your title and your compensation should reflect that. And so that was what I kept thinking is like, Well, wait a minute. I did X, Y, and Z, and I never saw a penny extra, not one penny. I remember, when COVID hit, it was mayhem and I was essentially an agent, right? Like I was dealing with all the customers. I was no longer the lader. I was in the mix of it and working just hour after hour. And it was never recognized. Instead, I just got to let go. And so just like in retrospect, when you look back at how you're treated, I think that it's really important.
Find Work-Life Balance
Number one, make sure that you're on the same page as your leadership team as to what it is. Your job is what their expectations are. Number two, finding that work-life balance, like that was critical. I was barely sleeping. If you ask my kids, I mean, they would even say like, Mom, are you okay? And so I just refused to live like that again. So COVID was like my big reset of what I want. What makes me happy? What drives me?
I'm a big proponent of online communities. I belong to women's finance groups, travel groups, women in sales groups, just sales, and general groups. I mean all these things because when you have the opportunity to share with like-minded people, you can learn so much. So through this, I actually got my next job, which is Aspireship and it satisfies my love for sales and my passion for that. And then it also satisfies that need to help people. And so I just feel so grateful it was like this, this magical meeting of the world where I get to do everything that I love and compensated well, and I'm happy. And I love our leadership team and it really is my dream job. I feel so lucky.
Random Acts of Kindness Have The Power to Change The World
You can sit and talk about doing something all day long, but if you're not planning and actually following through with those steps, you won't get there. And I think the other thing is don't be shy. I think that people would be shocked at how many of their friends and acquaintances even want to help them, there's a saying that closed mouths don't get fed. And so even just asking, asking for referrals, asking for connections, asking for advice, any of that people are nine times outta 10, more than happy to give you even just a small bit of their time if they can, so don't be shy.
There was just a LinkedIn post about this yesterday. I had done kind of like a random act of kindness this past weekend and I was on a high the entire day after I did it. And this person didn't even ask me, I saw something happen and then stepped in and helped and whatever. And I just, my heart was so full. I could tell that this person was so grateful and just kind of shocked and whatever. And I'm like, this is better for me than even hers. It just feels so good to be able to lift a burden off someone's shoulders or to help them get a step ahead or any of that. It's like random acts of kindness should be like practice or not practice, but like, part of our habits.
I grew up in San Francisco, which is the major metropolitan area. People are not generally friendly, they don't say hi. I mean, it's everybody's going, going, going, going. It's a high cost of living. You're living to work, working to live, whatever the saying goes, right? But you're not really living your life. You're just so focused on getting your things done and moving to Boise has been the best thing that ever happened to our family. But I thought about this when I did this act of kindness, I was like, I feel like I've learned something being here three years, because this is not out of the ordinary for someone here, like I've seen so many acts of kindness that I was just like, Wow, that was so nice. And they happen in front of me. I'm not even involved, but I'm like so impressed by the big open hearts of the people that live here and it's like lessons as you watch. And as you learn, you know, even like little things that are silly, like returning your shopping cart back to the thing, or letting someone go ahead of you in line or things like that, that they take nothing, they cost you nothing, but they make someone else's life easier.
Three Things You Need to Speak Up for Yourself
No matter what role you're looking to get into, it's really important to accept an offer that is worth what you're worth.
Take advantage of the power of community connection and help others in turn.
Find work-life balance
