I, Panelist

When I was asked to be on a panel at the Urban Institute to discuss my career path with college kids, I laughed at the extreme irony and then scrolled to the bottom of the email invitation to see if it was a practical joke. It was not.

In order to prepare for the talk, I was sent a PDF document and was asked to read it ahead of time in order to participate in a dialogue with the students. I printed the 17 page document out during work, and when I went to the laser printer to pick it up a supervisor was starting at me. I hesitantly picked up the stack of papers and read the title, “Sources of Power of Lower Participants in Complex Organizations”. I walked back to my desk with my metaphorical tail tucked betwixt my legs.

During introductions, we were asked to tell everybody what we’ve been doing since we graduated from college…

“I sat on the couch at my parents house for a while… watched reruns of West Wing… worked during the 2004 election… fascinated by the intersection of democracy and technology… worked in a bakery… was a bouncer at a bar… I think my boss fired me, but I’m not sure because he said it in Spanish… walk around Georgetown in bunny rabbit costume… deliver subpoenas to Alzheimer’s patients… and now I write for a non-profit.”

The girl sitting to my right is a consultant. She brought typed-up notes for her introduction.

To my left is a good friend who graduated three years before I did. He now works on Capitol Hill and protects the world from a Nuclear holocaust. He used to be an active member in Student Government.

The students ask us questions about our career paths: “What’s the worst question you’ve been asked in an interview?”

“Probably the time I was told that they didn’t have a job available, but would I be interested in painting the guy’s house? I answered, ’sure, as long as I can write on my resume that I was performing an internship’. Also, one time I was told to get a haircut by a Capitol Hill staff member”.

The guy on my left starts laughing. I tell everybody that I used to protest the work he did on campus with Student Government. I’m telling the truth. I also tell them I don’t usually wear a suit to work, I just did it to impress them. Once again, I’m telling the truth. Little do they know, I’m wearing Reebok socks with my dress shoes.

The students ask, “Does what you’re doing now fit in to your career path?”

I reply, “Have you been speaking with my mother recently?” I then answer the question sincerely. I speak of my passion for democratic mediums and my hopes for transparency in information. I hint at a return to academia in the near future, but I also try to convey that I’m learning so much right now in the real world (while trying not to sound too sophomoric). “Graduate school isn’t going anywhere anytime soon”.

I felt momentarily detached from the last sentence. Listening to my own advice and speaking simultaneously, the Brooks Brothers suit felt foreign on me. I hoped I was right.