Mondays song of the week.

Now Playing- "The Waiting" by Tom Petty

 I have a love for the simplicity and catchy music of the yesteryear.  Three times a week, I pick a song that aligns with my attitude and helps me realize the end goal.  The song could be anything from a throwback 70's tune to a current dance or hip hop track.  Eclectic is what they say...

One of my favorite songs is Tom Petty and the Heart breakers'   "The Waiting"

Every Monday for the last year, I have played this song before I start my day.  One of my weaknesses is I am quite impatient.  Higher Education doesn't move as fast as a transaction at Starbucks.  Everything is calculated and seen through to the final decision.  I have grown to appreciate that.  My job has helped me understand how important patience is.

This Tom Petty song sums up my feelings.  Sure, his meaning is a a rock star having to wait until he can share "moments" with a female.   The lyrics can be interpreted multiple ways.

"The waiting is the hardest part
every day sees one more card
You take it out in faith, You take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part"

I came up with my own parody.

"Waiting for Bids is the hardest part.
Every day it seems so hard
I take them in good faith, don't take it to the heart
Waiting for Bids is the hardest part."

Update 4-16-2015:  I still listen to this song every Monday before I start my day.  I strongly encourage people to pick a few songs that describe their situation or mood.  IT helps your grind easier during the early part of your work week.

If online and traditional had an elephant baby

They could save the thousands of students not attending college due to rising costs and lack of preparation.

Seriously, there's a huge elephant in the room.



Everyone knows the problem but is afraid to move away from it.  They just stand there contorting their body to move around the elephant.  It's taking up space yet everyone acts as if it's not there.  No one wants  to get in the way of it because well...it's an elephant.  Of course I'm not talking about an actual elephant.

The rise in student tuition and lack of preparing students for the workforce has led to default rates increasing.  There is also problems with retention and graduation rates as you have students that are leaving school for the workforce early.  These students who could be college graduates, now compete for jobs with those that only have a High School diploma.

There are some that complain while tuition costs are higher,  schools are not preparing their students for success; particularly in technology and research fields. I can give personally give 2-3 examples of people who went to college only to do something completely different than their major.

The problem is technology changes so fast and its forcing institutions to keep pace.  Some traditional institutions are teaching dated material that does not prepare a student who enters the workforce.   Online institutions are becoming more creative in how students learn but face the stigma of being "online."

Couldn't traditional institutions borrow concepts from online institutions?  My opinion is that education becomes more elastic where a school's curriculum becomes as responsive to trends as students are.

Wouldn't it be nice?

An article I viewed that helped explain the differences and challenges in Higher Ed.

 http://hechingerreport.org/content/higher-education-produce-happiness-college-focus-jobs-productivity_14976/

Music is my lifeline

As a sales consultant, it can get pretty intense when talking with prospects and even facing rejection.

I have always found solace in music.  I could probably not say a word for 10 years and just let the music express what I wanted to say--It's that deep.  I learned about sales through performing music and going to different conferences.   The music supervisors were the program managers. My job... to sell myself first and then my music ( product)  If the music supervisor liked what they heard, I would get to the creative director or licensing director. ( executive director)  From there, I either got a yay or nay.  I received a lot of nays before I got my first Yay and that was a placement in "Nike Training" by Xbox Kinect.

That experience prepared me when talking with directors about their organizational goals.  I learn something new everyday and I apply music to every situation.

What type of private college are you?

This article may make some VP's of enrollment uncomfortable because it forces them to ascertain what their college may be telling prospective students.

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2014/03/10/3521427/college-costs-rising-more-rapidly.html

The most telling part of the article is:

At private research universities, including many of the nation’s most elite, the net price rose by an average of $2,700 for the poorest families – those with incomes under $30,000 a year – compared with $1,400 for their higher-income classmates. Those averages are also adjusted for inflation, and the sample is limited to students who received any federal aid.

Experts and advocates concede that, as tuition spirals ever higher, even more affluent families need help paying for it, making the situation far more complex.

Wealthier students still pay more for college educations, on average. But to help colleges maintain enrollment numbers, keep revenue rolling in and raise standings in annual rankings, these students are getting billions of dollars in discounts and institutional financial aid that many critics say should go instead to their lower-income classmates.

“Schools are talking out of both sides of their mouths,” said Stephen Burd, a senior policy analyst at the New America Foundation, a nonprofit think tank. “They say that they support access, but in general they’re giving more and more of their aid to higher-income students.”

Burd calls the practice “affirmative action for the rich.”

Thoughts...

Read more here: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2014/03/10/3521427/college-costs-rising-more-rapidly.html#storylink=cpy

Underachiever to sometimes Overachiever

I never thought I would get into this...

I was the classical "underachiever."  I did enough to get by and surpassed expectations when I was passionate about something.  I disliked school- I felt I could be doing more.  I didn't graduate in the 4-5 years like typical students.  It took me 6.5 due to procrastination and my love of playing and performing music. (Super Senior)

A year ago everything changed.  I got a job in dealing
with colleges and foundations to help them with their scholarship processes.  I started to understand the various needs and the importance of education.  I never thought someone like me would get back in Higher Education when I was so excited to get the hell out of school.

I have since become a sponge of the scholarship process and how the ways a scholarship can impact students.  I've realized from some of you directors, program managers, and VP's that scholarships impact donor retention and prestige as well.

This blog is not a sales blog.  I may provide a salesmen insight but it's not for you to feel tricked into buying anything.  This blog will be a way for you to to receive information that is valuable with a little of my insight for good measure. This blog will also host my thoughts in marketing and sales alignment, and how people perceive what is marketed toward them.

-Gabe