Jacob, Me, James II, the woman of my dreams, and Jackson. Who I am
I'm the Founder, CEO, and Head Coach of Hire Level Coaching. I'm also a husband and father of three. I take pride in being born and raised in Detroit and I love everything about it. I graduated from the University of Michigan and played football there so I'm somewhat fanatic about my alma mater. I like to read a little bit of everything. I hate writing but I love having written. I am a follower of Christ. I look for the beauty in everyone and everything. I need to continually develop my mind in order to survive. At the end of the day, I'm really just trying to make my mama proud. I started Hire Level Coaching so I can help people find their dream job. What I want for myself, I want for others.
I've had my dream job ever since I graduated college. At 23 years old, I began working as an International Recruitment and Marketing Coordinator for the University of Michigan at Flint. I got the opportunity to travel the world to recruit international students, attend conferences, and develop new partnerships. I've visited China, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Mongolia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, India, Sri Lanka, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Oman, Ukraine, Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and a few other countries. I didn't have to pay for a thing except for souvenirs. We stayed in five-star hotels and dined at the finest restaurants the country had to offer. While abroad, I've had awesome experiences like meeting US Ambassadors, riding horseback through the mountains of Mongolia, floating in the Dead Sea, and tasting bizarre foods like Stinky Tofu, sautéed Black Fungus, grilled Cow Heart, Ox Tongue, and Mutton Soup. I got the opportunity to visit the Great Wall of China, Mt. Corcovado, and Petra. Most importantly, I got to meet great people from all around the world. Being an International Recruiter wasn't my dream job only because I got to travel the world, but because I got to help young people reach their goals of living the American dream along the way.
I'm the Founder, CEO, and Head Coach of Hire Level Coaching. I'm also a husband and father of three. I take pride in being born and raised in Detroit and I love everything about it. I graduated from the University of Michigan and played football there so I'm somewhat fanatic about my alma mater. I like to read a little bit of everything. I hate writing but I love having written. I am a follower of Christ. I look for the beauty in everyone and everything. I need to continually develop my mind in order to survive. At the end of the day, I'm really just trying to make my mama proud. I started Hire Level Coaching so I can help people find their dream job. What I want for myself, I want for others.
I've had my dream job ever since I graduated college. At 23 years old, I began working as an International Recruitment and Marketing Coordinator for the University of Michigan at Flint. I got the opportunity to travel the world to recruit international students, attend conferences, and develop new partnerships. I've visited China, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Mongolia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, India, Sri Lanka, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Oman, Ukraine, Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and a few other countries. I didn't have to pay for a thing except for souvenirs. We stayed in five-star hotels and dined at the finest restaurants the country had to offer. While abroad, I've had awesome experiences like meeting US Ambassadors, riding horseback through the mountains of Mongolia, floating in the Dead Sea, and tasting bizarre foods like Stinky Tofu, sautéed Black Fungus, grilled Cow Heart, Ox Tongue, and Mutton Soup. I got the opportunity to visit the Great Wall of China, Mt. Corcovado, and Petra. Most importantly, I got to meet great people from all around the world. Being an International Recruiter wasn't my dream job only because I got to travel the world, but because I got to help young people reach their goals of living the American dream along the way.
Great Wall of China
Dead Sea
Petra
Horseback in Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia, with Frank
I was fortunate enough to realize my purpose in life at an early age, which is to help people reach their full potential. I am qualified to be in this business because I was able to realize my dream job almost immediately after graduation, and I've perfected my career coaching and consulting skills throughout my career. After about three years and 30 countries, I decided to make a career change. Traveling taught me a lot about myself, the world, and other people, but I desired to know more. My sons were getting older and I wanted them to know their dad. So I retired my passport for a while and found a new job that would challenge me in new ways and allow me to continue to work in my purpose.
High School in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam.
After my first job as an International Recruitment and Marketing Coordinator, I took a job as the Outreach Program Coordinator at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, one of the best business schools in the world. I knew I would learn a lot simply by being in the mix. I didn't know exactly what I would learn, but I knew I would learn invaluable information that will help me in my career and life. I also wanted to help young people reach their goals of being admitted to the university and the business school. In this role, I coordinated outreach initiatives for the undergraduate business program, primarily for students from underrepresented backgrounds. I personally advised a number of first and second-year students on course load, study skills, and life in general, while helping them gain admission to the business school. I loved going to work every day because I knew that I was adding value in young peoples' lives.
Why I’m blogging
Not many of my friends are unemployed, but most are underemployed. Most have jobs, but they're not fulfilling. I feel badly for them because they are devoting their time and energy to a job that's neither mentally nor emotionally stimulating. They go to a job every day that doesn't bring out the best in them, instead, it brings out the worst. A bad job is like a cancer; it spreads throughout your life and before you know it, it's sucking the life out of your life. If you're going to choose to spend your time anywhere, it should be in an environment where your opinion and ideas are welcomed and valued. You should spend your time on a job that's challenging and rewarding. You should be excited to go to work because it presents new challenges and opportunities and because it brings out the best in you.
I started this business and blog for young professionals who want to find their dream job now, like I did. I want to teach you what I've learned over my career so you, too, can be in a position to land your dream job. In essence, I want to teach you how to communicate more effectively throughout the entire job search process.
As a young professional, I can relate to your struggle. I graduated with a BA in Sociology in 2008, in the middle of the economic downturn, no one was hiring and everyone was firing. I didn't believe I stood a chance in the job market with such a general degree. After all, employers wanted three years of experience for an entry-level position, and I had none. Immediately after graduation, I took a job as an admissions intern in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions making about $28k a year. When my internship ended, I was applying to a job a day for three months straight. I applied for secretary jobs, entry-level sales jobs, grocery store manager positions, truck driving positions, and anything else I could find. I was willing to take whatever I could get. The jobs forecast was bleak, and even more dismal for a Sociology major with a sub-par GPA. I ended up getting an interview for the International Recruitment and Marketing Coordinator position and the rest was history. I'm writing this blog so you can gain some insight as to how to convince employers to pay you for what you would do for free.
I will blog about my past experiences, insights, and stories from my clients – given their consent of course. I will also answer recurring questions in my blog post. I will write about broad topics covering the entire job search process, and I will also go into detail with regard to specific scenarios you may face. As I mentioned earlier, I'm a coach, so I will also blog in hopes to motivate you to act. I will post a blog at least once a week. I want to keep you engaged with what I produce and will always aim to add value in your life; therefore, I promise to be my best.
Keep in touch
I welcome and value your feedback. Be sure to leave a comment on any given blog post. I would appreciate your immediate reaction, good or bad. I will also rely on you to tell me what I should write about. This blog is for my readers, and if you want to hear my opinion about something related to the job search, I will be more than happy to write about it. This blog is as much yours as it is mine. As much as possible, I will keep this blog relevant to information about careers and becoming a better professional and individual.
If you believe the information shared in any of my blogs is valuable, please share with your network. Please tweet, re-tweet, ‘like’, download, upload, backload, sideload, and whatever else you consider appropriate in sharing the information found here. My purpose in life is to help others reach their full potential, and you can help me do that by sharing anything you think is valuable with your family, friends, and loved ones. I look forward to sharing this journey with you. Thank you for your interest, time and attention, it is greatly appreciated.
Why I’m blogging
Not many of my friends are unemployed, but most are underemployed. Most have jobs, but they're not fulfilling. I feel badly for them because they are devoting their time and energy to a job that's neither mentally nor emotionally stimulating. They go to a job every day that doesn't bring out the best in them, instead, it brings out the worst. A bad job is like a cancer; it spreads throughout your life and before you know it, it's sucking the life out of your life. If you're going to choose to spend your time anywhere, it should be in an environment where your opinion and ideas are welcomed and valued. You should spend your time on a job that's challenging and rewarding. You should be excited to go to work because it presents new challenges and opportunities and because it brings out the best in you.
I started this business and blog for young professionals who want to find their dream job now, like I did. I want to teach you what I've learned over my career so you, too, can be in a position to land your dream job. In essence, I want to teach you how to communicate more effectively throughout the entire job search process.
As a young professional, I can relate to your struggle. I graduated with a BA in Sociology in 2008, in the middle of the economic downturn, no one was hiring and everyone was firing. I didn't believe I stood a chance in the job market with such a general degree. After all, employers wanted three years of experience for an entry-level position, and I had none. Immediately after graduation, I took a job as an admissions intern in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions making about $28k a year. When my internship ended, I was applying to a job a day for three months straight. I applied for secretary jobs, entry-level sales jobs, grocery store manager positions, truck driving positions, and anything else I could find. I was willing to take whatever I could get. The jobs forecast was bleak, and even more dismal for a Sociology major with a sub-par GPA. I ended up getting an interview for the International Recruitment and Marketing Coordinator position and the rest was history. I'm writing this blog so you can gain some insight as to how to convince employers to pay you for what you would do for free.
I will blog about my past experiences, insights, and stories from my clients – given their consent of course. I will also answer recurring questions in my blog post. I will write about broad topics covering the entire job search process, and I will also go into detail with regard to specific scenarios you may face. As I mentioned earlier, I'm a coach, so I will also blog in hopes to motivate you to act. I will post a blog at least once a week. I want to keep you engaged with what I produce and will always aim to add value in your life; therefore, I promise to be my best.
Keep in touch
I welcome and value your feedback. Be sure to leave a comment on any given blog post. I would appreciate your immediate reaction, good or bad. I will also rely on you to tell me what I should write about. This blog is for my readers, and if you want to hear my opinion about something related to the job search, I will be more than happy to write about it. This blog is as much yours as it is mine. As much as possible, I will keep this blog relevant to information about careers and becoming a better professional and individual.
If you believe the information shared in any of my blogs is valuable, please share with your network. Please tweet, re-tweet, ‘like’, download, upload, backload, sideload, and whatever else you consider appropriate in sharing the information found here. My purpose in life is to help others reach their full potential, and you can help me do that by sharing anything you think is valuable with your family, friends, and loved ones. I look forward to sharing this journey with you. Thank you for your interest, time and attention, it is greatly appreciated.
RSS Feed