Dave Cook, Career Counselor

Northeast Minnesota Office of Job Training

The sign above my desk reads “Impact One Person Every Day.” Some days this is not as easy as it sounds. Days which stick out in my memory are those days when the little impact you may have had is obvious.

At the 2018 Northland Job Fair, I was talking to people and came across a booth with many people around it, including a client of mine. I asked her who she was there to see. “Wait a minute,” she said; she came back with her business card. She was not at the fair as a job seeker, she was there looking for employees. The pride in her eyes when she handed me that card was palpable.

There is nothing better than that. Knowing you played a small part in someone taking a step forward.

Seeing their self-confidence, the spark in their eyes, the pride they have is worth all the phone calls, emails, and reports which come with the position I currently hold.

This person is different than the one I first met a year ago; she is more able to navigate the obstacles that will come up. There will be bumps in the road. The job may change, and the company may change. Statistics say most people change jobs every three years – so this job is probably not forever. Now this client has seen success – her own.

My client is different than when we first met – I am as well. Through her success, I feel successful.

To my client I say, thank you. My goal of “impacting one person every day” was met that day.

DC

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