Two of my favorite activities! LUNCH AND LEARN Two of my favorite activities! by Kathy Schwalbe www.kathyschwalbe.com PMI-MN Oct. 12, 2017

Building a successful career using a variety of project management skills Summary of my career path Examples of project management skills that help in building a career and balancing it with your personal life

I didn’t talk until I was 3!

I was often bored in school

When I was 16, I told my parents I wanted to go to college When I was 16, I told my parents I wanted to go to college. My dad said, “What do you want to go to college for? You’ll just get married like your sister did!” Avon, MN 1982

But I decided I was just as smart as other kids, and my dad’s “motivation” strategy worked! Notre Dame, 1981 Notre Dame, 1981 University of Minnesota Ph.D. 1996

Personal experiences motivate people First dental visit Sports School games Remembering my Uncle Pete’s advice Taking advantage of opportunities Helping others who needed more confidence and knowledge

The Air Force helped me a lot, financially and in gaining leadership experience and confidence. Basic training, 1979 Hanscom AFB, 1983

Leadership examples Learning to delegate Boss’s boss’s reaction to inappropriate comments Seeing that boss’s boss screaming at people Experimenting with different styles Being yourself

After the Air Force We had two children before my husband got out of graduate school – off to St Louis McDonnel Aircraft Company (now part of Boeing) was the place to be Practiced more skills in communications, technology, and teamwork Shocked to be on the “lay off list” after several rounds of layoffs

Communications skills Being “astute” Developing empathy Practicing speaking skills Being noticed for good writing skills

After Boeing Took a risk and became an independent consultant at an oil company Spent more money and got more projects done in 9 months than the previous 10 years! Developed more skills in leadership, negotiating, stakeholder engagement, technology, mentoring, and entrepreneurship Was also yelled at by my boss for the first time!

Move to academia I always told my students I could afford to go into teaching after being an independent consultant! Envied the lifestyle, learned pretty quickly how to focus on student learning and knowledge transfer versus just teaching, discovered my knack for writing Taught at Augsburg College for 24 years (adjunct at the U of MN for 7 years) Wrote my first book in 1999, now working on the ninth edition of IT Project Management; self- published the sixth edition of An Introduction to Project Management in Sep 2017; working on second edition of Healthcare Project Management Retired from teaching to have more time for writing and my personal life; found my passion and purpose

I never imagined I’d end up being a teacher or a writer/publisher. Last PM class at Augsburg, May 2015

So, What Words of Wisdom Can I Share With You? Take advantage of opportunities Necessity is the mother of invention; reason I started writing books! Don’t be afraid to take risks; it’s never too late to try something new

Learn From Others, and Keep Learning My Ph.D. program included a course called Teaching and Learning in Higher Education What part of learning is really in a teacher’s control? Structure of the course Clarity of presentation I continue to learn by taking Master Classes, reading a lot, and connecting with others

Life is precious; take time to enjoy it!

Questions? Feel free to contact me at schwalbe@augsburg.edu www.kathyschwalbe.com (pmtexts.com) www.intropm.com