This Is Not The Career I Ordered™ Blog
Savvy Professional Career Wisdom by Caroline Dowd-Higgins
This is Not the Career I Ordered is read by thousands of careerists around the globe. With savvy tools, inspiration, and resources, this timeless book empowers you to enjoy your career, and love your life!
It’s Time for a Mid-Year Career Refresh

My article was originally posted on Medium. My grandparents were faithful Christmas Club savers at their local bank. Starting in July, they would deposit money in a special account each month, so they could have savings ready to go for the holidays. While many retailers are now having Christmas in July sales, it’s also a […]
Achievement Intelligence is the Essential Guard Rail to Humanize AI

The benefit of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is taking shape with the aim of improving the lives of every person on the planet. In the world-of-work, AI is empowering users in every industry to increase sales, efficiency, and productivity. While there are clear business wins in doing and achieving more, the relentless focus on more is […]
Salary: 7 Tips To Help You Ask for What You Want

Salary negotiation…it’s right up there with root canals and tax audits in the minds of many. There’s no doubt, it can be challenging to be in the negotiating “hot seat”. In a recent study conducted by PayScale.com, 31,000 people were surveyed about salary negotiation, and over half responded that they had never asked for a raise. […]
Career Lessons from Kai Kight

Recently, I participated on a panel for the Council of Alumni Association Executives in Scottsdale, Arizona. A highlight during the event was a presentation by Kai Kight who identifies himself as an innovator, speaker, violinist, and entrepreneur. Kai created an experience for the audience that was steeped in music and visionary thinking. He believes in […]
Tempted to Take ANY Job: 4 Strategies To Help You Think Twice

Have you ever been at a point where you’re ready to take any job out of desperation – regardless whether it’s the right fit? There’s no doubt that job-hunting in this economy can be challenging and bills must be paid, however conducting a job search from a place of fear rather than strength doesn’t always […]
Sitting Is The New Smoking and A Hazard to Your Career Health

You’ve heard it before, we spend most of our waking hours at work and many spend the majority of their time at a desk in front of a computer. Not to mention the hours we commute to work in a car, plane, train, or bus – sitting. The sedentary lifestyle is a hazard to our […]
5 Reasons to Think About a Career Change

I’m delighted to share this guest blog post by Michael Davis who runs a website and blog called www.resume samples.net which is a great resource you may find helpful on your career development journey. Thank you for sharing your career change wisdom, Michael! Lots of people eventually realize that they’re stuck in a job that just […]
Be Your Own Valentine

It’s the time of year for cards with red hearts, chocolates, and flowers as Valentine’s Day approaches. It causes anxiety for some who are seeking affection and bliss for others who are celebrating their love with someone special. This Valentine’s Day I encourage you to see it through a different lens. By all means celebrate […]
Are You a Career Perfectionist? Part I

In my coaching practice as well as in my travels for speaking engagements, I regularly meet women who are terrified of change. They’re afraid to change careers, jobs, or even pursue a promotion for fear of making the wrong move or not measuring up. Many women are standing in the way of their own success, […]
Join Me and The Career Disruptors in San Francisco on February 10th

It’s time to break the rules or create new ones to forge innovative careers in the new normal of this job economy. The Indiana University Alumni Association is doing just that by featuring a power panel of rock star alumni to discuss disruptive innovation, the art of failure, and being entrepreneurial – whether you are […]
How To Recharge, Reignite, or Reinvent Your Career

According to The Conference Board Job Satisfaction survey less than half of US workers are satisfied with their jobs. Now is a great time to ramp up your career reinvention efforts and reflect upon what would gratify you in a career. If this is not the career you ordered, it’s time to jumpstart your professional reinvention […]
How Personal Brand Impacts Your Career: Guest Post Maegan Watson

In my continued quest to empower women with great resources, it gives me great pleasure to introduce Maegan Watson, a personal branding expert who has helped me greatly. Maegan is a wife, sister, yogi, personal branding guru and the founder of My Dear Watson. She has nearly a decade of experience supporting professionals by building […]
Handling Personal Issues On the Job: 4 Tips To Help

In a perfect world, we’d be able to do our jobs without personal issues ever causing a ripple. Our work life would stay neatly in the work compartment, our personal life would stay perfectly in the personal compartment, and each area would behave itself and not cross the other’s boundaries… Of course that’s not the […]