Tri CosaÍ in A joint invitation [Undergraduate or graduate program]
In a world overflowing with opportunity‌.
‌ where many still find it very hard to feel included or to discover their own abundant place, to feel that they are realizing their unique, abundant potential‌.
How can we best help our young aspiring professionals and leaders... ... to discover and bring to life ... ‌ through learning, creative expression, service - abundant and fulfilling work...
...a sense of their own unique inspiration?
A hypothesis: three strands, or Tri Cosáin ● Tri Cosáin: three paths in Irish Gaelic ○ One: Invitation, resources and support to discover and bring to life a sense of personal inspiration ○ Two: Inspired academic advising, resources for learning now and as a life-long learner ○ Three: Inspired career coaching and resources for career awareness and development
Strand of Inspiration ● What does it mean to feel, to be, inspired? ● What pathways to inspiration exist? ● Which ones appeal to the individual? ● Support and resources to learn about, choose and explore pathways to inspiration and personal leadership ● Support to capture the illuminations that arise
Elements of inspiration ● Identity: who am I? who are my communities? ● Intention: what do I want? what do we want? ○ Purpose ○ Values ○ Mission ○ Vision ○ Non-verbal, non-linear inspirations (images, art,
Elements of the Inspiration journey ● Discovering identity and intention ● Holding journeys of inquiry
● Holding spaces for dialogue ● Levels of maturity and awareness ● States and qualities of mind for personal leadership ● An ethos of design: the maker instinct ● Holding a systemic perspective
Strand of academic advising ● What fields of inquiry exist? ● Where does aptitude and experience lead? ● Where does inspiration lead? ● What does career exploration, opportunity suggest? ● What pathways, patterns and resources for learning exist? ● How to develop, execute and refine ongoing lifelong
Strand of career coaching ● What roles does the marketplace offer? ● What qualities and skills are demanded? ● What are the current skills of the client (student)? ● How does inspiration play in? ● Where are the gaps? What career-focused skills does the client choose to develop, offer and pursue? ● What career-related learning is needed? How to
Strand of career coaching, continued ● How can the student (or client) present and advocate for him/her/their self in the most effective way in the marketplace? ● How to successfully secure placements, roles and appointments ● How to create one’s own roles and contexts as an architect, a designer, an entrepreneur, etc.
Why Tri Cosain? We help people discover and engage in great, productive careers… … informed by skillful, continuous learning for professional and personal stimulation and growth … all guided by a powerful sense of personal inspiration We avoid the imbalances caused by absence of any one of the three strands.
If inspiration is missing, we risk... ● The work being soulless and without passion ● Merely following in pathways defined by others or “the system” - not being ourselves ● Missing most of our creative potential ● Missing much of our joy and satisfaction in life
If support for learning is missing, we risk... ● Getting stuck in old patterns of action ● Missing opportunities for growth ● Missing opportunities for personal enrichment ● Failing to profit from history, the experience of others
● Failing to learn fast, grow fast
If support for career is missing, we risk…. ● Living in ivory towers, not bringing inspiration to life ● Failing to be makers, but thinkers and dreamers only ● Failing to scale and spread into the world the abundance called forward by our inspiration and our learning ● Failing to create wealth to reinvest in creative,
Measuring success What are your own goals? Let’s adopt them, quantify them, track them, and exceed them. The results can be huge, as expressed (quantitatively) through, (e.g only): Rates and timing of employment
Employee engagement
Initial and lifetime earnings
Employer engagement
Job satisfaction - as surveyed
Alumni engagement
Life satisfaction - as surveyed
New ventures founded
How do we start? ● We suggest small working groups: faculty and staff within the [school or department], and career services ● We will build a container of trust ● We will build incrementally in small steps
● We will operate a rapid, iterative cycle: “plan - do learn”
The Team ●
Local faculty and administration
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Academic advisers
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Career services
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Jerry Doyle, Vice Provost, Illinois Institute of Technology
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Scott Downs, SASDI Fellow, IIT & VP, Temenos + Agility