Kathryn Minshew Quotes

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Kathryn Minshew

Profession : Businesswoman

Birth : October 30, 1985

Take the time to match your application to the company and the role you're applying for. Even if it means you're sending out fewer applications overall, I think that can be really powerful.

Kathryn Minshew

Networking doesn't have to be all about talking shop over appetizers and bad chardonnay - do it in a way that works for you.

Kathryn Minshew

Know your career values: Not your parents' values, not your friends', but what you personally value in work. For me, it's things like moving quickly and scrappily, ownership and authority over my work, and flexibility.

Kathryn Minshew

I grew up thinking that I would be an ambassador secret agent. From age 14 to right before I graduated college, I was really interested in the foreign service and the United Nations. I learned to speak French, Turkish, and all these things.

Kathryn Minshew

Something I've learned is that when people tell me I can't do something, I immediately wonder why and then think it through. It only makes me more motivated to prove them wrong.

Kathryn Minshew

I work late nights catching up on emails, and then, in the mornings, I just hop on my laptop right away. Then, every other day, I'll hop into the shower! My husband is horrified that I don't shower every day.

Kathryn Minshew

Don't let that nagging fear - that feeling that being different automatically qualifies you as being wrong - eat away at you.

Kathryn Minshew

Previous experience, key skills, and education. They're undoubtedly all important things you consider when filtering through applicants in order to make a new hire. But, what's another major determining factor of whether or not that hopeful interviewee deserves an offer letter? Cultural fit.

Kathryn Minshew

It's all too easy to forget that cultural fit is a two-way street. Yes, the candidate needs to gel well with your company's vibe and mission. But, you also need to fit in with her desires, goals, and long-term career vision. It's not a one-sided relationship.

Kathryn Minshew

You don't hire for mediocrity. Instead, you bring people onto your team because you know that they'll make a valuable contribution and turn in amazing work. But, in order to have that expectation, you need to make sure you're fostering an environment that allows them to do so.

Kathryn Minshew

Employees don't need to be best friends, but there does need to be a level of mutual respect and understanding.

Kathryn Minshew

One classic mistake is when people give the impression that they just want a job, not this job or this company in particular. From a hiring manager's perspective, you're looking for someone who is excited about this role or this company.

Kathryn Minshew

It's not just hours and pay that are important anymore. People want to know what the company is like, what the culture is.

Kathryn Minshew

Being able to hear someone say, 'I found an incredible job on The Muse,' or 'It gave me courage to make a career change,' that's the motivating factor.

Kathryn Minshew

As a general rule, most recent university graduates know far more about U.S. economic history and 'The Lord of the Flies' than about how the modern workplace functions and how to succeed in it. Yet come senior year of college, it couldn't be more important or more timely to learn the basics of getting a job.

Kathryn Minshew

For many people, the hardest thing about job-seeking is figuring out where to start. All through college, I heard my friends asking themselves, 'What do I want to do with my life?' And guess what? After college, and after that first job, people still ask the same question.

Kathryn Minshew

As you move through the application process, keep refining the way you present yourself. Like any skill, you'll only get better with practice, and you'll only hurt yourself if you get discouraged too early. This is one race that's definitely a marathon, not a sprint.

Kathryn Minshew

You won't be exiled to permanent unemployment just because there's a picture somewhere of you holding a red Solo cup and looking underage. But, your Google results tell a story: Have you been in the news? Authored articles or blog posts? What types of topics do you frequently tweet about?

Kathryn Minshew

I didn't even know that there was a startup culture, that there were events with people who built businesses. When I started meeting those people and going in to that world, I felt like I was among my people for the first time in my life.

Kathryn Minshew

When I was still a bright-eyed McKinsey consultant, I remember hitting a point where I didn't know what to do next, and someone gave me the book, 'How Remarkable Women Lead,' and I read it and scribbled in it, and it felt like a guide in helping me figure out my career.

Kathryn Minshew