On Monday, March 1, Scripps PRSSA met with A Step Ahead Consulting and Coaching’s Cheryl Procter-Rogers. Procter-Rogers is a senior consultant and executive coach who earned her bachelor’s degree from Bradley University, MBA at Keller Graduate School of Business Management and master’s degree in Leadership and Change Management from DePaul University. As a business executive and manager, Procter-Rogers has worked with DePaul University, HBO, Nielsen Marketing Research and Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Company. As a consultant, she has applied policies and created training for a multitude of clients, including Coca-Cola, Nissan, Allstate, McDonalds, Sears, McCain Foods, Academy of General Dentistry, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority and Magellan Corporation.
Through her 40+ years of involvement in communication and strategic business, Procter-Rogers emphasized the importance of having a solid career plan for post-graduation. She mapped out the vital steps in building a career plan and how to execute them by crafting great communication, leadership and expertise in your future field or work. “Effective communication builds trust, establishes credibility and lays the foundation for great leadership,” Procter-Rogers explained.
Key Takeaways
- Do your research. Know the strengths that identify your talents and how you can implement them within your field of work.
- Spend 20 minutes a week to work on the expertise of your desired industry. Stay ready and on your toes!
- Manage your emotions in communicating by building your emotional intelligence. Be self-aware, self-regulating, socially skilled, motivated and empathetic.
- Be consistent in giving and receiving feedback. Know the circumstance’s intent, what you’ve observed from it, what the impact is, ask for thoughts and move forward to solutions.
- Find the characteristics that make you the leader you are and run with them. Utilize your leadership strengths to move yourself further through your career path and develop success.
One of the most resonating points Procter-Rogers left us was the concept of self-awareness. To know what you want in life based upon who you are means everything in grasping career and life goals. Procter-Rogers gave a list of fundamental ideas that serve as the bedrock for bettering yourself for the future you desire:
- You are what you practice.
- Make sound judgement.
- Presence is key.
- Be a lifelong learner.
- Understand confirmation bias.
- Practice great leadership.
