Diary of a New IDOL-Day One

The day we have been waiting for has finally arrived. It is the first day in our role as an official IDOL! 

Kristi:

My first day was pretty chaotic. I went into the office for orientation along with at least 90 other temp workers. Every two weeks, my company holds a new hire orientation. This week was especially large because they are hiring in preparation for the open enrollment that will begin in October (I work for a health insurance company). 

Once I got in the building, mask and all, I was escorted by my one and only fellow ID on my team to our floor. She set me up with my computer and showed me around the building. I was so excited to see where I would be sitting every day (the view!!) and to see all the extra amenities that the building had (a gym, a cafe, work treadmill rooms). 

Then we sat down and tried to get me set up with all my logins and such to prepare me to go to my home office until January. That is where the...

Hello, this is Kristi Oliva and Veronica Reed. We each come from different backgrounds and have taken different paths to where we are today, but we have both worked hard and are now proud to be starting new roles as IDOLs. Through this blog/vlog we will be sharing with you what it is like as new IDOLs. We will shed light on our journey from the first day to day 90 and tell you what happens behind the scenes when you land your first ID role.

We hope that our experience can help others have the confidence to apply for and land that IDOL role without doubting their abilities.

Kristi:

I come from a teaching background. After 12 years of teaching, I knew that it wasn’t what I wanted to do anymore. Even though I wanted to switch careers, I didn’t know what I was qualified for. I honestly thought my only options were to either become a school administrator, or get my PhD and teach at a university. Neither of which really got me excited. 

While doing a job...

Teachers in Need of a New Career Path:  Think Instructional Design

Are you a teacher that seeks a new career?  Are you unsure where your skill set will be valued? Have you considered Instructional Design? If you haven’t, I encourage you to do so for many reasons. 

Hi there! I am Melissa. I am a learning designer and educator. I have been teaching for approximately 14 years but found I needed a new venture. I reflected on my teaching experience and discovered there were tasks I performed in my role as a teacher that I really enjoyed such as design and content development. 

When I started researching careers for teachers outside of the classroom, I discovered the instructional design field and fell in love with it. Now I want to teach you what I have learned in this journey.

Why Instructional Design is a Good Fit

Instructional design is a good career path for teachers because teachers possess many transferable skills. Furthermore, the...

The New Year has just passed yet again in the blink of an eye, or at least it feels like it. As a child, the years never seemed to move as fast as they do in adulthood. So here I am reflecting on where I have been in the last few years, and how I want to grow in 2020. Self-reflection is an essential part of growth and really assessing what we want out of life.  So, what do you want to achieve in 2020? 

I have been working on a personal ID project.  It really has been a labor of love, but it isn't moving as fast as I would like, but it is moving forward, and, in the end, it will be completed. Luckily, I am not in this project alone.  Through the IDOL Academy, I have met Molly Parsons, who has jumped on board to help with my project and has become my accountability and project partner.

Whether you are working on your portfolio or building your own LMS in my case, finding someone to hold you accountable keeps you on track.

I am excited to...

Published: July 1, 2019

Episode: 08

From Valet to a Six-Figure Instructional Designer

Guest: Cameron Brown

In this episode, I’ll be chatting with Cameron Brown who is an instructional designer for Cox Enterprise. I am Cameron’s mentor and I helped him become an IDOL. You won’t believe his story.  It’s amazing to see how far he has come and where he came from.

If you are a new listener to Become an IDOL, we would love to hear from you.  Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

In this episode we discuss:

• How Cameron and I met at Shorter University
• How Cameron went from a valet who parks cars to a six-figure instructional designer
• Cameron's advice for anyone who wants to become an IDOL
• Mentorship and how it was crucial in Cameron's development and successful career

Subscribe & Review in iTunes

Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that...

Published: May 28, 2019

Episode: 06

How Christy Tucker Became an IDOL

Guest: Christy Tucker, Syniad Learning

In this episode of Become an IDOL, I’ll be chatting with Christy Tucker about her experience transitioning from secondary education to instructional design and eLearning development. We’ll be sharing tips for switching careers and landing your first job even if you don’t have a degree or experience. You’ll also learn how Christy Tucker became a name brand in the field of instructional design.

Christy Tucker is a learning design consultant at Syniad Learning with over 15 years of experience helping people learn. She specializes in using scenario-based learning to engage audiences and promote the transfer of skills to real-world environments. She has created courses for clients including the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, Cisco, and the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation. Christy has been blogging about instructional design and eLearning for...

Published: May 13, 2019

Episode: 05

Become an IDOL without a Degree or Experience: One Former Teacher’s Story

Guest: Tommy Sealock, Net Cracker

In this episode of Become an IDOL, I’ll be chatting with Tommy Sealock about how his background in education proved to be a vital stepping stone into transitioning to Instructional Design.

 If you are a new listener to Become an IDOL, we would love to hear from you.  Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

In this episode we discuss:

• How his experiences as an educator translated into training for instructional design
• What to look for in a mentor relationship
• The one offering tool to focus on when you’re just starting out to avoid overwhelm
• What hiring managers are really looking for when hiring new instructional designers
• How to use lesson plans to learn instructional design & beef up your portfolio
• Challenges of adult learners versus teaching children

Transcription of  Become an IDOL without...