In this enlightening discourse, we delve into the pivotal themes encapsulated in Christianne Meneses Jacobs’s book, "Professional Life Skills for Young Adults," which emerges as an essential guide for navigating the labyrinthine complexities of contemporary professional life. We commence with the notion that resilience and persistence are indispensable qualities for young individuals embarking on their career journeys, as Christianne shares invaluable advice imparted by her parents about embracing rejection as merely a precursor to eventual success.

Furthermore, we confront the formidable literacy challenges exacerbated by recent global events, which have left many young adults ill-equipped to decode the nuances of professional communication and etiquette. As we traverse the seven keys outlined in Christianne's work, we explore the significance of personal appearance in forging positive first impressions, the art of crafting a compelling resume, and the vital importance of social skills in fostering workplace relationships. Throughout our conversation, we interweave wit and wisdom, ensuring that our audience not only absorbs critical insights but also enjoys the journey of learning how to adeptly navigate their professional landscapes.

The discourse also touches upon the alarming trend of young adults feeling compelled to bring their parents along to job interviews, a phenomenon that Christianne deems detrimental to autonomy. This culminates in a well-rounded exploration of how young adults can enhance their professional appearance and interpersonal skills, emphasizing that first impressions are often the most lasting, and underscoring the importance of dressing appropriately for success in any professional setting.

Takeaways:

• The importance of persistence in the face of rejection cannot be overstated, as it often leads to eventual success.
• Young professionals must recognize that a negative response may signify 'not right now' rather than an absolute rejection.
• The literacy crisis among young adults significantly impacts their ability to navigate professional environments confidently.
• Employers increasingly expect young candidates to present themselves well, reflecting confidence and professionalism during job interviews.
• It is crucial for young adults to clean up their social media presence, as prospective employers often scrutinize online behavior before making hiring decisions.
• Effective financial management, including saving and understanding tax deductions, is essential for young professionals as they embark on their careers.

Links referenced in this episode:

• nicagal.com
• latinobookchat.com

As the conversation progresses, Christina elucidates the critical importance of social skills in a digital age, where face-to-face interactions have become increasingly rare. She articulates that the art of communication extends beyond mere verbal exchanges; it encapsulates the ability to engage genuinely with colleagues and superiors. The host expertly navigates this topic by prompting Christina to share insights from her book on how young adults can refine their personal presentation and effectively communicate their value in the workplace. This segment reveals the stark contrast between the casual demeanor often adopted in personal life and the professionalism demanded in the corporate realm, thus shedding light on the nuances of workplace etiquette that young professionals must master to thrive in their careers.

Mentioned in this episode:

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Christina, welcome to the podcast.

Hello. How are you? Thank you for having me.

Oh, I'm so good. This is a great topic. We always like to help young people out, especially as they're starting their journey and career.

So looking forward to the words of wisdom you have for our young audience.

Oh, of course, yes. Thank you.

I'm gonna ask you my favorite question and kind of get us warmed up. What's the best piece of advice you've ever received?

Oh, my parents have always told me, told me that I know that the answer to something I'm going to ask for is going to be no, but that I should always be persistent. And also don't give up too easily and wait for that not to become a yes.

I like that. That's really good advice. How do you apply that kind of daily in your life?

Well, usually, you know, people feel that when they get a negative answer that it means a definite no, but I think it means not right now, so I circle back later.

Yeah, that's always a good.

I don't take it personally.

Yeah, no, that's a good. That's a good approach to life because it could be not right now.

Maybe now is not the right time, but you ask later down the road, it could be the perfect time. So I like that.

Exactly.

So your book, Professional Life Skills for Young Adults arrives at a critical time when so many young people are entering the workforce feeling unprepared for unwritten rules of professional life. As a reading specialist, you see the literacy crisis firsthand.

We have young adults who can read words on a screen but struggle to comprehend professional, I mean, contacts with a clear message. So how does this gap in literacy impact their ability to execute the seven keys outlined in your book?

Yes, you know, it's really been very hard for teachers and educators because we're getting all those children that were learning during the pandemic. And the pandemic was extremely detrimental, not to just their social skills and emotional well being, but also in terms of literacy.

Yeah, we're getting students who are having a hard time comprehending what they read. And it's very difficult. We see it in schools every day. We're not over that hump right now. We're working very hard for them to be able to understand.

You know, they're growing up also in a time when social media is very common. They are not talking to people in person.

A lot of the young adults because of the pandemic didn't have the opportunities to have in person jobs or in person internships. And that has been detrimental to them becoming social, to their socialization.

You know, they don't feel confident talking to people in person or picking up the phone and calling somebody. But my book is very simple. It's written in very simple language. I'm not written in any academic language. It's very simple.

It has a lot of examples that they can follow, and it is written at such a level that a middle schooler can understand it. So I'm hoping that that makes it more relatable, the fact that it has a simple language that they can understand.

And also it would be good if the parents read that with them so that the parents can follow with them and guide them and probably give them more examples from their own lives.

It's funny you mention that parents, too, because I see a new trend happening in the workforce where even some young people now bring their parents along on the interview. Have you discovered that as well?

Yes. Yes. In fact, it was one of the reports that I read when I was researching for my book.

Intelligent.com said that 19% of college grads bring their parents to a job interview. And not only that, they also ask their parents to negotiate the contracts for them. So I ask, parents, please let your children adult, become adults.

You're not going to be with them all the time. So it's okay if you're going to drive them to the interview, but do not go with them into the interview.

But for me, if I were an employer, that would be a huge red flag. This student or this young adult cannot survive on his or her own without the parents.

So let's get into your seven keys. I love the fact that you have seven keys.

And the first one to me is really important because I grew up at a time when you might dress a certain way off, you know, off, off duty, not at work, but for work. You had a professional dress about you.

Yes.

So your first one is your personal appearance and how that affects your career.

So kind of walk us through some of the things you cover, because in this day and age of not wanting to offend people's individuality and their uniqueness, there's still a certain decorum expected and etiquette in the workplace. Kind of walk us through how you address that very sensitive topic in your book.

Yes.

You know, it is very important, of course, to have your own personal style, but there are protocols to follow, expectations, like you said, you know, a professional etiquette of how you need to dress when you come for an interview because you want to present your best self. You want to present somebody who, when you're dressed well, you feel confident, you feel good about yourself, and you reflect that.

You portray that to the employer or the future employer, you know, so it's very important to dress well.

So there are some ways, you know, that the young ladies can wear some basic slacks, make sure that it's not blue jeans and a nice skirt that is below the knee. So that's very important.

Not to wear something too short and a very nice blouse, which is not on a dark or neutral color and mostly solid colors, so that they are not very confusing or they're not very bright colors. And it's not something that is going to attract, you know, or make them feel uncomfortable. Attract a different kind of perception.

And I'll give you an example. There was a young lady who came to my daughter's job to ask for a.

To apply for one of the jobs, and she showed up wearing sweatshirts and sweatpants to the interview.

My daughter says that she looked like she just rolled out of bed, you know, so that is not what you should be wearing when you're going for an interview.

And even though this was not like an executive position or at a big company, still the perception is, and the expectation is that you're going to present yourself the best, you're going to look your best, so that you feel confident when you walk into that interview. So, of course, unfortunately, she left a very bad impression and she didn't get the job.

And talking about impression, that is one of the things that people need to be aware of, especially young adults, that you only have one opportunity to make an excellent first impression. That's it. And it takes seconds. And it's. It's very important to present yourself in a very good way. Yeah.

Another thing that I talk about in my book is make sure that you shower that day, that you go to an interview, and that you brush your teeth because you're going to be talking to people. You don't want to have bad breath. You don't want them to smell what you had for lunch or you had for breakfast or what, you know.

So I talk about those things. You know, you would think that is common sense, right? Like, it's. It's. But apparently it's not. So I talk about one other thing.

You haven't in one of your keys. And I think it's interesting because it's something I've noticed a lot more of tattoos and piercings. I know people who love their tattoos.

They're very proud of their tattoos.

But those tattoos and those piercings, especially Multiple piercings can be a turnoff because you gotta realize the generation of the people that are hiring you, they may not have gone to the tattoo parlor you went to or appreciate tattoos like you do. So how do you talk about that with people?

Yes, that is a very sensitive topic. Especially, you know, nowadays, like you said, there are a lot of people who have tattoos. So it depends on the company.

You know, they're not rules, they're not laws that say you cannot hire somebody because of their tattoos. You know, like there's no discrimination there. There's no law that says that. So it depends on the company.

And for that, you know, the young adults need to learn more about what is the company expectation and what do they say, especially about tattoos and piercing.

Because there are a lot of companies that they're okay with that, you know, but some that are not, and you have to maybe cover them up or remove the piercing during your working hours.

So we talk a little bit about that, how you as a young adult, you need to really know what is in the employee handbook so that you are not in violation of any of the expectations of that particular company. Because each company has their own employee handbook and their own culture too.

Some are more accepting of that kind of artwork, which is part, you know, is considered to be first Amendment right, you know, of self expression. But also you cannot tell somebody, I'm not hiring you because you have tattoos and piercing. That would be considered discrimination.

But the company has a right to say, these are the expectations. If you're going to work with us, you need to follow them. So that's a sensitive topic, that's for sure.

Yeah. So let's jump into key too, because a lot of key too, I think is important too. What's the benefit of a polished resume?

And I've heard all kind of people talk about they want their resume to stand out. So I know some people will put it on colored paper so it stands out.

And so, Gil, give us your thoughts on like the colored paper resume versus this kind of resume. Just a little bit about resumes.

Oh, the resume, that is very important. And like you said, you know, do not please use any color paper. Do not use any fancy fonts, especially because now AI is reading your resume.

So it's called the Applicant Tracking System. Like, there are no, not real human eyes that look at the resume anymore.

So AI, especially this Applicant Tracking System only can read simple font, nothing fancy and simple text. And also in bullet points, which is more important. Nothing. Like in the past we used to write like a Short paragraph of a description of what we did.

And it was mostly like a list of tasks that we accomplish. That doesn't fly. The applicant tracking system is now in.

What is doing is trying to match what is the description of the job with what the words are on your resume.

So my advice is that the young adults please take a very close look at the description of that job or that position and match, grab like three or four important words from that job description and match them with the resume to include them in the resume and to make sure that they are bullet points. And not just that. What he wants to also see is what you have accomplished.

Don't just say, you know, that you probably talk to people all day and you help them solve problems. Say something like every day I talk to a group of maybe 500 people and I try to. I also accomplish. What would they say something about?

I help them with their problems and I help them solve 90% of what they're asking for. You know, so that he wants tangible, documented accomplishments instead of just something generic. So that is very important.

It takes time because nowadays you, the young adults people, not just young adults, but everybody who's looking for a job, they need to tailor the resume for that specific company, that specific organization that they're applying for, you know, instead of using the same generic resume for everybody. So that's something to keep in mind about the resume.

Love it.

Yes, please. No fancy fonts, no pictures, no emojis, no nothing or no columns. It's just simple text. Really boring.

That's what the applicant tracking system is looking for. Really boring.

But that it tells a story, not just of what you have accomplished, you know, or listen of a task that you have done, but that you have accomplished and that you have something tangible to offer. So that's what's important.

Let's talk about the interview process. In my role, I have conducted in one year, probably three to 400 interviews just looking at helping a church find a pastor.

If you're trying to help someone prepare for the interview process, what are some key things they need to be aware of? And I even like you have to have like the day before, what do you do the day before?

I've had people walk into an interview, know nothing about the organization, know nothing about the company or the product that they're trying to sell or buy or, or where the, where they're located. So kind of give us some, some do's and don'ts in the interview process.

Yes, yes, something important, especially, you know, before you apply for a company or an organization, do your homework. Know what the organization does, what the company does. You know, find out.

You know, nowadays we can find anything on the Internet about what this company does and what is it that they accomplish for their customers. So be very aware of that. Also, do not go into the interview and say, what does your company do? That is a red flag.

It's like, no, you didn't do your homework. You know, they expect you to do your homework. Make sure that you practice also with your parents or maybe a mentor or maybe a teacher.

What some of the questions that they might ask. Some of the questions might be, what do you expect to accomplish in the next five years in this role? What are some of your weaknesses?

What are some of your strengths? And when I talk, ask you about weaknesses, do not mention a weakness. Actually turn what they would call a weakness into a strength.

You know, flip it around so that they are not, you are not, you know, saying, I'm weak in this, but mention, make it into that is a strength.

You know, like, for example, say something like, instead of saying, I take too long to do my projects, you know, or say something like, I am very, I am going something to the effect of like, I take a long time to accomplish my task only because I know, I want to make sure that I'm doing it right and that I am also very confident in what I'm doing and I want to present a very good product or a very good project or something like that that would turn it into something very positive and, and strong. Instead of like being a weakness, you.

Know,.

Make sure you know where you're going and that you arrive at least 10 minutes earlier. Because if you arrive on time, you're late, you know, so that is important. I, I make sure that you assess for traffic.

So I usually, you know, if I'm going. I haven't interviewed for a job in a long time. I've begun my school for many years and.

But I always made sure that I left my home like half an hour earlier. And sometimes I just sat outside until it was like, maybe if my, my interview was at 3, I sat outside.

If I arrive at 2:40, I would sit outside for like until 2:50 and then I would go, you know, inside, you know, 10 minutes earlier. That's very important. When you go into the interview, make sure that you have eye contact. Make sure that you shake hands. You're very strong.

You introduce yourself. You know, you present yourself very well. Do not interrupt.

Make sure that you listen very carefully to the question and don't start making, you know, answering the question in your mind while the person is asking you the question because then you lose track of what is happening. Make sure that you sit up, you know, and that you look confident, don't slouch, you know, like this.

You know that some just be confident, maintain eye contact and listen very carefully and make sure there is something important that somebody that I interview for my book, when I was doing my research, she told me that something very important is to send a thank you note to the person who interviewed you. This person, you know, he works in marketing.

And she told me that if a person she interviews, an interviewee does not send her a thank you, she doesn't pass the mom to the next level. That's it. She's done with that at that level. Why?

I said because then they're not showing their best, you know, she cannot trust somebody at a job if they cannot even show their best during the interview process. So it's just a quick note, you know, thank you so much, miss Is so and so for interviewing me.

I want to reiterate that I feel that I'm the best candidate for this position because of this X, Y and Z. And I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you so much for your time. Simple, very easy.

Send it through email or sometimes if you have the address, send it an actual note, letter, handwritten note, that's something different that will make sure that it stands out.

I love it. I like the last part of one of your keys. And resign with integrity. I always tell people whenever you leave a job or leave a position, don't leave.

Don't set the house on fire while you're still in it because people do talk.

And if you leave even a job you don't like, but with a good final impression, they may recommend you for the and they're going to contact your former employer. So if you left with a bad taste, left with a bad taste in their mouth, they're not going to say nice things about you.

Nope. Nope.

So it's very important you know, if you don't enjoy your job, if you find out that this is not the position you were expecting, you know that this is not what you were looking for. It's okay. Let your employer know and give them two weeks, at least two weeks. That's the minimum.

You should let your employer know that you're leaving the position. And it doesn't have to be anything, you know, like long, like.

Dear Mrs. Brown, thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to participate and be A part of your organization. I want to let you know that, that I will be leaving this position on such a date and give a date. You know, I appreciate it very much.

I have learned so much. But at this time, I feel that I need to leave this position. But thank you so much for your help. I learned a lot. Thank you. And that's.

It doesn't need to be very long.

But that instead of the quiet quitting that people talk about, that you just don't do anything and you're just expecting somebody to fire you or something. Don't do that, you know, just.

Just have some integrity, you know, and also respect for the organization that took a chance on you because like you said, people talk and then, you know, you're born bridges, and then you don't have a very good professional. People are going to think you have a very bad professional etiquette, you know, and you're not good.

And they're going to talk and say, no, don't hire that person. They're going to quit, you know, so you want to leave the organization in good terms and to make sure that they recommend you in the future.

So key number three, I think, is one that's really critical. Social skills. What are the keys, especially in today's digital society, of being likable, especially in the workplace and with coworkers?

Yes, this is very important. I tell young adults, you know, be approachable, be friendly, you know, smile, say good morning.

You know, sometimes I say good morning, and nobody answers. I'm like, okay, whatever. But I say, I feel good that I said, good morning. How are you? You know, and get to know your co workers.

Now, people nowadays, especially young adults, they don't want to talk to people, which is so such a weird thing to me, you know, so especially the people in the main office, they're the people. They are the gatekeepers of everybody else in the organization, you know, so make sure that you are very nice to them. You know, just because.

Not just because it's in your best interest, but also because it's just nice. Just be nice, you know, be friendly. Ask your co workers about their day or their weekend or about their children, if they have children.

You know, it's just being friendly and approachable and just establish that connection, that human connection.

You know, a lot of people just want to be on their phones all the time and scroll on their Instagrams or Facebook, but they're not establishing that human connection. That is very important, especially in the workplace.

Also, when you are talking to your coworkers you have to remember that is not the same way that you talk to your friends.

You know, when you walk into your job that you need, there's a line that you're crossing there between your life, as, you know, your normal life to a life of your. Especially your professional life. You know, that's what it is, your professional life. So your language has to switch.

You might be calling people Mr. Smith or Mrs. Brown, but don't call your boss or your supervisor by their first name unless they ask you. It's okay to call them by their first name, but it is important that you treat them with respect. You treat the organization with respect.

And do not treat your coworkers and your boss or supervisor, you know, the same way you treat your friends. That is, the language has to be different. Your language has to be more professional. And also your body language says a lot about how you feel.

You know, you have to match your verbal communication with your body language because you might be saying something, but your body language is giving a different idea, is sending a different message. So it's very important that those two, your verbal communication, verbal language masters your body language.

All right, so this next set of questions is going to be hot button questions, because this is. I've seen this. I've seen the pitfalls of this so much lately in the media.

With your background in media and your work with Nikagao Media, what is the biggest warning you give young adults regarding their digital citizenship?

Oh, yes, that is very important, you know. Oh, my goodness, yes. Please clean up your social media. They're absolutely looking at your social media.

Anybody who is hiring you, they're going to look you up, you know, on the Internet. They're going to find your Facebook, your Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat, whatever it is, clean it up.

I talk in my book specifically about topics you should not be talking about in your social media. Do not talk about drugs, do not talk about alcohol.

Nothing that has to do with pornography, nothing about guns or violence, nothing about discrimination against ethnic groups, because that's going to be seen by your prospective employer. You know, and so how do you clean it up?

You know, you have to make sure that you are portraying a professional appearance, not just in person, but also through your social media. Being professional is the most important. Okay.

Because if I were to hire somebody and this person comes in with me, a young man, and he looks presentable, he looks nice, he looks. He speaks really well. He answers very well. I'm excited about hiring him. But if I go into looking at Instagram or even X or Facebook.

And I see that this person is partying all day, all night, he's using drugs, and he's getting all excited about, oh, you know, these women that I'm with. I'm like, that is a red flag about the morals of this person. You know, what is this person's ethics? They don't match what I saw in this person.

So I'm going to be very cautious about that. And sometimes they have even employers have even withdrawn offers to people, to young adults when they discover who they actually are in real life.

So it's very scary. So clean up the social media.

Make sure you remove posts like that, and from now on, make sure that you're portraying somebody who is very professional. So that's very important.

I like that you said something I think is really important, too. Clean up your past, but also be very careful of what you put on social media going forward.

I've seen people lately, especially young people, who got upset with something politically and went on social media and had a rant, made death threats, and all of a sudden they got fired. And they're like, I don't get it. I don't get why I got fired for this. I'm like, do you really not understand why your employer fired you?

Because it's like they just seem totally oblivious to the fact that, well, this is free speech. Why are they mad about this?

Yes, exactly. But you have to think about the consequences of that free speech. The consequences are going to be bad if your employer sees that.

In fact, when Mayor Mandami was elected and he had, I think he was going to hire a person, woman he had known for a long time as a communications director. I think 12 years ago, she made a comment that was anti Semitic on X, and that comment came back 12 years later.

And Mandami didn't hire her because of that. Yeah. Even though she had helped him win, the campaign. He had helped him win, you know, was very good at what she does.

Twelve years ago, she made that comment and she wasn't offered the job. She got fired. She didn't even start. That was very sad. So we have to keep in mind that we need to make sure we know what we're putting out there.

It's very, very crucial for young adults to make sure that they clean up their social media, make sure that they look presentable, they're always looking professional. And like you said, none of these crazy rants because, oh, I have the right to say, whatever, that's fine, but don't do it on Social media.

Don't do it. Yeah, it's gonna come back to bite you.

Yeah, Emotionally, emotionally. Vomiting online is probably not a good idea. And let's talk about key number seven, money matters, managing your financials effectively.

Tell us a little bit about that.

Oh, my goodness. It's funny because I'll tell you a story. First time my daughter, one of my oldest daughter had a job and she got her first paycheck, she asked, what.

What happened to all my money?

Who's this f person? Why you take all my money?

Yeah, just like, I had to sit her down and like, guess what? We have to pay taxes. We have to pay federal taxes to Uncle Sam. They want a piece of your. What you earn. We have to pay state taxes, too.

They want a piece of what you earn. You know, because taxes are important. We have to pay for roads.

We have to pay for teachers and police and firefighters and schools and all the things that make our society better. So we all have to contribute to that. So there goes that. So. So she was a little bit, you know, disappointed about that.

And also Social Security, we have to contribute to Social Security. And all the different taxes and whatever you do, benefits are. All of that gets deducted.

But what you get is important because I would like young adults to start thinking about contributing to their future with their first paycheck. You know, maximize your 401k. If your employer is offering a 401k and they add to it, they contribute part to it, take advantage of that.

And not only that, also contribute to a Roth IRA, because by the time you are in your 70s, you know, that money is going to be tax free. And who knows, you might be in the millions back then.

So it's important also to maybe contact an accountant or also a financial advisor who can give you advice on how to invest your money. So a lot of people, you know, say, oh, I'm living paycheck to paycheck, you know, right now, it's very hard. Everything is expensive.

It's very hard for young adults to live on their own.

A lot of them have come back home to live with their parents, including my daughter, you know, so it is very hard to rent an apartment, even with a roommate, you know, it's very hard. But still contribute a little bit. Don't spend it all. Don't spend every single penny.

Make sure you have a cushion, you know, make sure you have a little bit of money set in a special savings account that you can draw in from if things become very hard or if you have an emergency with your car or a medical emergency, you have a little bit of money there to help you.

You know, I, sometimes I get very stressed out about that and I, I put a lot of money into savings or investing, you know, because I am, I get a little very stressed out about that. You know, it's like how much money you know you need to have. It's important that you have enough for your needs and a little bit for you. Wants.

Not everything that you see out there, you, you need, there's some things that are wants and you have to be make sure that you can differentiate between the things that you need in life to survive and the things you want.

So if it's something that you want that is very expensive, you need to think about it and maybe you need to save for a few months to buy that one thing you want.

I'm not saying, you know, don't give yourself, you know, something nice once in a while, but it's very important that you have enough money for your needs.

Don't be asking your parents, you know, for, oh, I can't pay the rent, you know, or your grandparents, you know, you're an adult now and you need to be responsible for your life and for what you're doing, you know. But if you live at home, you know, make sure you contribute a little bit to the expenses of the household.

So that is very important and that you help out. Don't expect your parents to be doing everything for you. So help your parents, that's what's very important. You know, they work all day.

You know, it's very stressful. The jobs that they do probably so help them out a little bit.

But the most important thing is to please make sure that you're young right now, you're in your 20s, think about the future. If you want to have a nice retirement, start saving now because time is in your benefit right now.

The longer you save, compounding interest is going to grow. Your money is going to grow higher and higher every year. The younger you, you start saving and investing for the future.

So I'm asking a couple lightning round questions. What's the most important habit for a young professional to start working on tomorrow?

Be on time. A lot of these young people think, oh, I'll get there, five, ten minutes to work. No, be on time. It's very important to get to your job on time.

And that means 10 minutes earlier, 20 minutes earlier. Because if you start at 8 o' clock or 9 o', clock, that's late already, you know, but also, you know, I would say, ask questions, too.

A lot of kids don't ask enough questions, and then they. They. They don't understand what they're supposed to do.

So listen very well to what your supervisor is asking you to do, and then repeat it and say something to the effect of what I understand you're telling me is that I should be doing X, Y, and Z. Is that correct? And if your supervisor says yes, then you understood what you are supposed to be doing.

But if your supervisor says no, you know, let's clarify. Just make sure you have clarification. Don't leave the office, you know, thinking, what was I supposed to do? What am I supposed to be doing?

Did I understand? Okay. You know, make sure that you ask questions. Please ask questions. That's something important.

Great. So, Christiane, what do you want your legacy to be?

That I would. That, you know, that's something. That's a very good question. I would like people to say, you know, she worked hard to make this world a better place.

I want to make sure I live this world better than if I wasn't here. You know, I know that. I try to do that with my students. I've been teaching for 27 years now.

And one of the reasons why I teach is because I transform lives. I change lives. My students become better people.

My English language learners learn English, and that offers them the opportunity to access the curriculum, to have more opportunities in this country. So that, to me, is very important to make the world a better place.

What's your favorite Spanish word for bridge building?

Creando vinculos, which means establish a personal relationship with people. Make sure that they. Yes, that's what it means. Establish personal relationships. I think those are very important.

So where can people find you? Where can people buy your book? Life Skills for young adults. 7 Keys to Empower Career Readiness.

Yes, I have my book right here, you know, and you can find that on Amazon, and you can find it on barsandnoble.com and [email protected] so I hope you know that now is the time. They know when people are graduating. They can find [email protected] n I c a g a l.com because I'm a girl from Nicaragua. Nicagal.com I like that.

I'll remember that forever now. Well, thank you so much for sharing your heart, your experience with us today. You are truly equipping the next generation to lead with courage.

And I want to leave you with this final thank you for being on the show and providing such great content for all of our listeners. If this show inspired you, we encourage you to do a couple things.

First of all, connect with [email protected] and listen to her podcast on latinobookchat.com subscribe to this podcast if this conversation brought you clarity, brought you ideas to start out your career right, subscribe to Becoming Bridge Builders and share this episode with some young person you want to mentor or student. Until next time, lead with compassion, stand in your courage and keep building those bridges. Thank you so much.

Thank you for having me.