Playing To Your Talents

I recently had the opportunity to read a book that helped valdiate some of my experiences in my career over the years. I wanted to share a few of these thoughts with you. First, the book is The Algebra of Wealth by Scott Galloway. If you want to read a “self help” book this year, honestly this one is a great place to start. It wasn’t too long and provided some great insight into navigating your career path and then also managing your finances to set you up for success in the years to come.

For the purpose of this blog post, I wanted to focus on the topic of career path. Specifically in the world of dietetics. There are SO many opportunities and jobs for Registered Dietitians. The first part of the, above mentioned book, focused on navigating a job and a career. Focusing on interests you have and also passions, but realizing that perhaps your passion might not be best suited to be your career. Considering what talents and skills you have leading you to understand the power in those skills.

I am going to use myself as an example. I grew up I did lots of public speaking for a kid. I was a 10 year 4-H member and competed in Public Speaking competitions from the age of 9 through 18 on local, state and even national levels. This time and practice cultivated talents in me surrounding communication and public speaking. Fast forward through high school and college and I always enjoyed doing presentations in classes, teaching and creating educational materials. I graduated from college and looked to pursue a job, jumping into my career! I got a clinical nutrition job working in a hospital. This job description didn’t not really align with these talents that I had in public speaking and communications. For years, I would incorporate these areas of interest into my job. I would do presentations for groups, I would conduct TV/radio interviews, I volunteered to review/create educational content for conferences and I even started this blog! I always got the most joy and fulfillment from using these talents surrounding my communication skills. Now I am working in the field of communications and I am finally using these talents as a main focus of my full time job.

To identify your talents you have to understand:

• talents are skills that make you unique

• talents are skills that come naturally to you and innately are strengths

We all have different talents and sometimes we look at other’s talents and wish we possessed those skills. Embracing these differences is important. Part of growing up and succeeding in your career is realizing your talents and aligning your job role with those innate skills your possess.

I hope that sharing this concept of pursuing your talents will help empower your to reflect on your career and guide you in future job opportunities!

Career Pivot

As many of you may know, I have worked in the field of clinical dietetics since I graduated from Purdue University in 2011. I didn’t necessarily start off wanting to work in clinical, but due to limited job opportunities during a recession I took a full time job that was available. It ended up being a great starting point for me for a clinical dietetic career that lasted for 13.5 years. After starting in August 2011 at a small hospital in Lafayette, IN I moved to two other institutions and ended up at Cincinnati Chilren’s Hospital Medical Center in the NICU. In 2024 it was ranked the #1 NICU by US News & World Report. I was so honored and priveleged to have the opportunity to work with such phenomenal people.

Working with these amazing RDs has been so wonderful!

Fast forward and in December of 2024 I had another opportunity come my way that I was not anticipating. Much like me ended up in clinical in 2011 I have now stepped into a communications role to wrap up 2024. I am so thankful for the network, friendships and experiences I have had working in clinical. I am now taking my love and interest in nutrition communications and made it my full time job. I am now working as a Nutrition Affairs Manager for the American Dairy Association Mideast (which covers Ohio and West Virginia). I am the RD working in Ohio and providing education and communication work to thought leaders while promoting consuming dairy. I am not walking away from my interest and passion in pediatrics and support breastfeeding, but instead pivtoting and moving this focus into another area of dietetics.

For some people this seems like a big pivot and kind of out of the blue. For those that know me well and are familiar with my resume, this is not surprising. This is an area and interst of mine from the beginning. The whole reason I have this website is for sharing nutrition content on this blog and then also videos that were filmed on local media stations where I have lived. Here is a snapshot of some of those opportunities over the years:

• TV segments with local news markets in Lafayette and Indianapolis, IN from 2011-2020.

• Radio interviews and standing segments in Lafayette and Indianapolis, IN from 2011-2016.

• Newspaper interviews in Lafayette, IN from 2011-2014.

• Newsletter/print media in Lafayette and Indianapolis, IN from 2011-2019.

• Work with some social partnering with Feeding Matters and Reckitt Mead Johnson.

• Contract writer and speaker for Reckitt Mead Johnson to share research and scientific evidence surrounding infant formula.

• Co-author for the Academy in Nutrition and Dietetics book Communication Nutrition: The Authoritative Guide published in 2020.

Starting off on a new adventure in December 2024 with the American Dairy Association Mideast.

Happy Dietitian Day!

What better way to pick back up my blog than with celebrating Dietitian Day and International Women’s Day. Did you know ~92% of all Registered Dietitians are women? Now, I do have issue with this statistic, but since it is a reality we live in as a RDN today we are going to lean into it and embrace the amazing women that are Rockstar Dietitians.

I became a Registered Dietitian because I wanted to help people and work with people to be the best version of themselves. I found the niche area of neonatal nutrition, because I loved being able to have a meaningful impact on my patients and see the changes that nutrition plays in their tiny lives. Babies grow, adapt and overcome adversity and seeing those changes in such a short period of time is truly a miracle.

I have ad the opportunity to work with some amazing women over the years in the field of dietetics. Each job I have held, I have had more senior RDs teach me what they know and impart that wisdom to me. I am thankful for each one of them and for them taking the time to help me become the RD that I am today.

As I look back on my 11.5 year career as a RD, I wanted to share some thoughts with you about my journey.

• I have worked at three different hospital institutions that were three very different sizes. I covered adult CICU, labor/delivery, high risk OB, NICU (inpatient and outpatient), pediatrics (inpatient and outpatient).

• I have somehow managed to be responsible for high risk OB patients at each hospital I have work at over the last 11.5 years.

• I covered NICU Follow Up clinic at my very first job and at my current job.

• I have had the chance to do countless radio, TV, newspaper and written publication work over the years. My favorite thing is writing and then TV appearances. Radio work was much harder than I imagined and I really preferred in person media education.

• As specifically a NICU RD, this last year with COVID supply chain issues and formula recalls it has been SO challenging to work with families on what formulas are available and what works best for their child.

I am incredibly thankful for this career journey and for all the experiences and people I have met. It has been such an amazing ride and so better than I ever imagined. I wish that I could change some things and have RDs make more money and have more diversity and be a career that more people have access to, but I will continue to work to support our profession and work to move us in that direction. So for today, Happy Registered Dietitian Day and thank you to ALL the amazing RDs who work tirelessly to take care of their patients/clients.

Creation of a CV

I am not sure if you have written a CV (curriculum vitae which is Latin for course of life) or if you have a resume, but I put together my first CV in the last month. It has been quite the experience. Let me tell you there is something so amazing seeing all the things you have done during your career come together in a document that is highlighting YOU!

Over the last year, I have definitely struggled with my confidence in my new job, managing the stress of a global pandemic, trying to get re-certified for a specialty exam and then of course caring for my family. I just felt like I wasn’t doing any of it well. Going into a large medical institute where no one knows you is hard. It is challenging to share your expertise and feel confident with what you know. Being at other institutions is extremely valuable, but sell that to others is tough as the new person.

So now 16 months after starting this new job, I feel like I have found my confidence again, got that certification done and I now have a CV put together. Spending time going back through my career really helped to remind me that I bring so much value to my job. I needed that boost.

I wanted to go over how I put together my CV. It was definitely overwhelming at first to think back through all the years of work I have and then project/publications that I have done. Your CV serves as a document used in academic purposes to highlight your career accomplishments. There is a flow to how your CV should be organized:

1. CV header containing contact information

2. Personal profile containing your CV summary/objective

3. Work experience

4. Education

5. Skills

6. Additional Sections of things pertinent to your field

I started with googling, because isn’t that how most of us start trying to figure something out. Obviously write up this document in a clear and easy to read font. There is going to be a lot of information you are compiling here so make it easy to read. Set margins to 1 inch on all four sides. Commit to one style for how are you going write out dates and follow that format throughout the whole document. Keep your CV clean, script and not extra graphics. Keep photos off your CV as well.

How to Write a Curriculum Vitae (CV) for a Job Application (zety.com)

I knew that I needed to work to put this document together so I basically just jumped into a template that I found online. Then I started modifying it, adding in my information and came back to it several times to add to it. As I was thinking through and adding things, I realized that there are so many little things I should include, but I was struggling to remember dates.

Words of Wisdom

• Write down all your projects, awards, accomplishments, etc with the dates. Take note of those things. You want to include those highlights in your CV, but if you don’t keep a record of them it can be challenging.

• Just start and save this document. Maybe you feel like you don’t have lots of put in a CV. That doesn’t matter. Start the document, save it and add your accomplishments in there as things happen and you complete projects.

• This is a living document that you need to save and update as time goes along.

• Be proud of all the hard work you have put into your career! This is a showcase of you and you should be so dang proud!

Never Give Up

It has been TOO long since I have updated my blog. I would be lying to you if I said that this year hasn’t been challenging. I have been working hard on studying for the Certified Specialist in Pediatrics Exam. I realized that between the pandemic, starting a new job and then having some test anxiety that this equated to the perfect storm when it came to figuring out how to properly study for that exam. If you don’t know, the Commission on Dietetic Registration has specialty exams for RDs in certain areas. You have to apply take these tests and pay money and then if you pass that credential is good for 5 years. I took this exam 5 years ago, but at that time I was married and had no children. I read lots of books and I had some more free time to devote to studying. The test was also graded on a curve, which played to my benefit. Fast forward to this last year and I now have two children + a new job + pandemic stress = recipe for a challenging disaster.

I share this with you, not have to have you feel sorry for me, but instead realize that sometimes that image you see of someone online isn’t the full story. Sometimes behind the scenes that person is working their tail off to make something look easy. That has been the story of my life over the past year. I also wanted to share with you about a resource that changing my viewpoint on studying. My amazing husband had read this book in graduate school and it helped him achieve a 3.9 GPA in graduate school. The book is “Make It Stick” and I would highly recommend it. This book helped me understand a method of how I could actually learn the material I was trying to study and review.

The idea from the book is that you would make flashcards during your studying time and then review those each time you sit down to study. Then you organize them in categories like: 1) I know well, 2) I know somewhat, 3) still need to review. Then you spend more time reviewing those cards in the “still need review category” and then when you have mastered those topics, you shift them into the “I know well or somewhat” categories. This make studying manageable! With my life now I wake up and have to start dealing with children around 7am and then out the door to work no later than 8am. Then home by 5-6pm and bedtime for the children at 8pm + my own bedtime at 10-11pm. That basically leaves a small window in the morning + after 8pm for me to study. Each day, I would spend 30 minutes- 1..5hrs studying and reviewing flashcards. This practice and continual recall of information was very empowering.

Again, I wanted to share this with you, because we all have to learn and study throughout our lifetime. That can be challenging and as we get older, we have so much more competing for our time. How can you accomplish those goals with the limited time you have? You have to be efficient and productive. If you find yourself struggling to review material and not feeling confident in learning new information - check out the book “Make It Stick.” I hope it helps empower you like it did me to accomplish those goals, finally that I set for myself. In the end I passed the test, I didn’t give up and all the hard work paid off!

A New Challenge

This last year has been quite the adventure and obviously challenging in SO many ways. I have had lots of positive changes in my life. I didn’t end up doing a Year In Review post here in 2020, but to be honest I have felt kind of lost. I changed jobs this year, moved and I have been working to try to figure out this new version of myself. Before we moved a friend told me “you get an opportunity to redefine yourself.” That is true and it is extremely overwhelming!

We moved and I took this new job in Cincinnati, because I wanted a new challenge with more opportunities. That is what I got! But if you have ever left a job where you were familiar and comfortable it is hard to now embrace a challenge. Plus it is lots of hard work! It is challenging to push yourself in ways that you aren’t confident or comfortable. Day in and day out you have to work hard to learn new things, meet new people and then try to gain new skills. It can be exhausting and then you find yourself longing for being confident and comfortable again.

This move and a new job really did push me into feeling uncomfortable. That is what I signed up for, but it is hard. I feel that my confidence has been shaken in ways, but I am working hard to learn more and build that confidence up. I want to actually improve skills for my work that needed attention and I am excited to reach that end goal of new found proficiency.

With all that being said, I have been reflecting on RD Anna - this website and blog. I have always loved having this outlet for my creative side and putting my viewpoints out into the world. I think that RDs should be on social media sharing evidence-based nutrition information and serving as a resource for people. During 2020, with all the challenges I felt personally and things that were happening in the world, I didn’t always feel like my voice on this platform was making a difference. I haven’t posted as much as I had in the past and I wasn’t always sure what to say.

After talking with my husband and a dear friend, I realized why I was holding myself back. Being challenged so much at work and left me not having much energy to try to put into this blog. Previously, I have needed a challenge/outlet and this blog/website gave me that. Now that I am working hard to push myself in a new job it leaves me tired and just lacking that drive/motivation.

Well 2020 has come and gone! 2021 is now here to stay and I am eager to brush myself off, pick myself up and provide some more content for you on this website in the year ahead. I am wanting to be real with you all and give you content to support you, provide you with evidence-based recommendations and encourage you to be the best version of yourself! I think after the rough year we have had, we all need to know that we can handle whatever 2021 throws at us and we can do it together.

Stay tuned for some more posts this year focusing on the dietetic profession (ways to change to embrace more diversity), feeding recommendations for children, and involvement with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics!

Redeveloping Yourself

I wanted to continue to talk about this topic of loving yourself and finding ways to reinvent yourself. I feel like this is a great theme for 2020, because this year is just not going how any of us anticipated. This has been so hard for so many people and has left so many of us just throwing our hands up in the air and wondering what to do next.

As you all know this last year my family has moved, I have started a new job, worked to navigate a global pandemic and then left kind of questioning myself. I am so thankful to be employed full time … so this totally ends up being more of a first world problem. So please, recognize that I understand my privilege in this regard.

With all of this change, being up rooted from our close friends and professional networks has really left me feeling like I have been drifting in regards to my career. I knew what I have wanted to do and worked so hard the past 9 years towards reaching my current position. Then now that I am here, I am starting from square one in terms of building relationships and seeing where I fit in here. That has been tough to figure out what I want to continue to move toward and where I want to see myself in the next year, next two years, next five years. I have vague ideas, but with the state of the world and things changes, I am kind of left wondering if my expectations will be reality.

I wanted to share these feelings and emotions with you, because maybe you can relate. This year has been so hard on families and on people’s careers. If you are feeling like you are just floating and not sure what is on the horizon, don’t give up paddling. Stick with small, attainable goals. I am trying to consider larger goals, but working to understand that maybe things will change. So what are your little goals for yourself? I am working towards taking a nutrition exam here in October. Then I want to look at putting together a presentation with some other amazing RDs for a conference in the spring. I am slowly working on building back up my self-confidence and pushing forward on my career path. It feels good to focus on things I can control and work towards meeting those little goals. None of these goals are huge or life changing (I have had enough of those changes for a this year), but it is forward progress and that should be celebrated!

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Finding Your Way in Clinical Dietetics

I felt like I had to write a blog post on this topic of clinical dietetics, because it has been where I have been working for the last 9 years. Plus being in a hospital was not a place I thought I would be. For those of you that aren’t as familiar with the world of dietetics a vast number of RDs work at hospitals and are clinicians. These RDs see inpatients and outpatients and provide nutrition recommendations/education on various disease states. Throughout school you learn that there are variety of jobs and places where RDs can work, but you are prepared that you will most likely find yourself working at hospital, some where along the line. I didn’t think that was where I would end up, but now we are 9 years later and I found that I love NICU nutrition and I really hate not being in that specialty area.

I share this with you, because there are lots of RDs who are on the flip side of this coin and worked in clinical and hate it and are unhappy in that area. That is ok, but I wanted to take a moment and try to encourage/prepare you … if you are a RD who has found a specialty area that you love in clinical dietetics … don’t give up and fight like hell for that dream you have.

So let’s say you find that you enjoy working at a hospital. Lots of RDs enjoy working to care different types of patients in different areas of the hospital. You tend to have two groups of clinical RDs - adults and pediatrics. Then within those age groups you have different disease states where people start to specialize. Clinical dietetics managers are under pressure to staff these various areas of the hospital with the minimum number of staff possible, because helps the bottom line. So more often then not you are asked to cover multiple areas/units/or populations within the hospital. So you are pushed towards being a “jack of all trades” and that is ok for some people. For some of us that is not what we want. For some of us, we have very specific goals and aspirations. I wanted to write this post to push you to never stop fighting for that specific dream you have. If you have a niche and an area within dietetics you love … do everything you can to put yourself in that dream job. I was feeling compelled to write this, because I haven’t heard this enough. Instead I have heard “oh well I have to be flexible and do something else for awhile” or “you need to sometimes do things you didn’t originally expect” or “we all need to be part of the team.” And I do agree with those statements, but not when those statements are used to keep me from my clearly stated objective. I have worked too hard towards a specific goal to be derailed from that dream. So never apologize for having a passionate dream and knowing where you want to go. No one should make you feel that your drive should be something you apologize for, but instead should be harnessed to propel you forward.

With all that being said …if you find yourself working towards a dream you have (if it is in clinical dietetics or not) … never let anyone stand in your way. Go after that dream with all that you have and don’t let people who lack that drive make you feel bad for your desire to succeed.

Big Changes and a Pandemic

I realized that it has been over a month since I have had the opportunity to write anything on this blog. Our life, everyone’s lives have been crazy in these past several weeks. If you read my last post, we have had some big changes in our lives. We moved, I started a new job, Chas is working from home, children changed daycares and all this amongst a pandemic. Yep, the one thing I didn’t think would happen and the biggest thing I can’t control. This has rocked our world! We are so thankful to both still have jobs, but we are trying to figure out how to take care of two children and then also work. As a Registered Dietitian I am considered essential staff at the hospital. Learning more about how this virus is affecting children. I have colleagues who are adult ICU RDs and working hard to care for these sick adults who have COVID-19. That list of essential staff includes RDs, just like RNs, MDs, RTs, techs and others needing to be at work during the week. I am also training and let me tell you, trying to train and figure that out in during a pandemic is kind of crazy. Waiting on computer access and lots of other things that are just taking awhile. Chas has been working from home, which is wonderful and we are so thankful for his flexible job. We now are having to balance all this with watching both of our kids during the day at home as well.

As a healthcare working, it is stressful to have to go into work. I am obviously not in the front lines (not in the ER and not providing direct, hands on patient care), but I am interacting with people and in a facility where there are sick people. I am thankful and appreciate each and everyone of you who are staying home. That is helpful, because there are lots of people who can’t do that. Those essential employees have to go out and interact with others and working to prevent the spread of this virus is SO important! I know it has been an adjustment for so many of us, but making these changes will help to save so many lives. To those of us who are wearing scrubs, changing in the garage and trying to keep our families at home safe …. you are doing an amazing job! To all my healthcare co-workers, colleagues and friends … you all are phenomenal and keep up the good work. You are doing an important and vital job and I know it can be stressful. Stay strong and we can do this together!

New Job and a New Chapter

It is crazy that I am writing this blog post about this next chapter in my career. It is kind of hard to believe that this time as come. I have worked at Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis for about 6 years now and then I have owned and been doing my private practice job for just over 2 years now. It has been a good place for me. I have been able to do a large variety of projects and I have enjoyed being able to push myself. I have started my own business, seen clients outpatient, I have presented a national conference, published an article in a national publication, I have give talks for various infant feeding companies and I have had the chance to work with amazing physicians, practitioners, nurses and therapists. Moving from Layette to Indianapolis was exactly what I needed to do to sharpen my skills as a NICU dietitian and now I am excited to announce that I will be moving to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. I will continue to work in the NICU and I will be 1 of 5 NICU dietitians there. Their NICU is expanding and this expansion is opening in the next year. I am over the moon to be starting this job at one of the best children’s hospitals in the country.

So you are probably wondering what this means for me and my family? Well we are moving! We are leaving Indianapolis and moving to the Cincinnati area. This is a big transition, but so far things have come together beautifully and we are so excited for this next chapter. We have lots of new challenges ahead, putting together a new normal and fitting a move in there, but it will all be worth it! When someone offers you were dream job, you take it! You drop everything and you run towards that offer with everything you have!

I wanted to share that with you, because it can be scary. It can be intimidating to leave the familiar and go out into the unknown. I feel like most of us, prefer to stay put. Why would you want to leave something that is fine? Life is too short to live in a space of being “fine.” Lots of us want to stay in that safe bubble and not venture out where we don’t know what will happen or to a place that makes us feel uncomfortable. Well, I encourage you to never that your fear stand in your way. If you have a dream or a goal, then run towards that goal. Don’t let anything hold you back and you can accomplish whatever you put your mind to!

So stay tuned for more exciting happens with my job and RD Anna. This blog isn’t going anywhere. I am moving to Ohio and this website is coming with me. RD Anna might look at little different over the next year, but I will still share nutrition blog posts and other information here and on social media.

2019 Year End Review

Each year I like to take a moment and type up a blog post on my yearly goals and how things have gone in the last year. It is now that time, to pause and look back over 2019 and all the amazing things that were accomplished. I went back to my blog post from this time, last year and pulled my goals. I was curious to see how things went and if I accomplished what I set out to do at the beginning of 2019.

Goals from 2019

• Continue with weekly blogging. Well this didn’t go perfectly. There were several weeks that I didn’t get a blog post put together. I also decided this year that I wanted to make sure I had quality posts put together, with minimal spelling errors and that takes more time. So I didn’t hit my goal of 52 blog posts in the last year, but that is ok. I managed to type up 37 blog posts in the last year. That is not too shabby.

• Continue to serve as a media contact for St Vincent and do TV, Radio or Newspaper interviews as needed. I ended up doing a couple of TV interviews and a couple of radio interviews for Ascension St Vincent in the last year. I didn’t do as many as years past, but that is ok. I was still busy and I was available, when asked to provide media pitches and maintained a good, working relationship with our PR department.

• Continue to grow my contracting outpatient nutrition counseling business with Mini Minds in Carmel, IN. I was able to see a hand full of clients during 2019 through Mini Minds in the last year. That has been an amazing experience and I have learned SO much about outpatient, pediatric counseling. I hope to be able to see some more clients in 2020 and help more families with nutrition questions they might have.

• Work to complete additional hours towards a Lactation Counselor certification and renew the Certified Specialist in Pediatrics Exam. I took a court to become a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) and I passed. So that was accomplished and I am so excited. I am going to work towards renewing that CSP certification in 2020.

• Run as a national candidate for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Ballot as a At Large House of Delegate in the category of 30 years and younger. I did this! I ran for a national ballot position. I wasn’t elected, but I am so proud that I put myself out there and I went for it. It is hard thing to do and I am happy with taking the time and making the effort. I will definitely run again, for another position and hopefully I will get elected in the future.

Goals for 2020

• Work to publish > 30 blog posts in the next year. I am wanting to do some more specific blog posts on various pediatric nutrition topics. If you have any questions or have suggestions, let me know!

• Renew my Certified Specialist in Pediatrics certification. I have been a CSP for 5 years and that means that I need to get this certification renewed in 2020. I will get to study some more and sit for another exam!

• Advance my knowledge in neonatal nutrition and work on some research projects. I am not sure quite yet how this will unfold, but I am excited for some neat opportunities this year!

FNCE Recap

Just got back from Philadelphia and attending the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo (FNCE). It was a great conference and I was so excited to get to attend. I don’t have the luxury of getting to attend every year, but I have been able to now go three times and each time is a fantastic experience. If you are curious about my trip in 2017, CLICK HERE for a blog recap of my one day at FNCE in Chicago.

I wanted to give you all a recap of some of the exciting things that I was able to see and do. If you are a RDN, I hope this encourages you to try to attend FNCE in the future. If you are not a RDN, but still reading this, then I hope to be able to share with you some neat experiences and a glimpse into the world of dietetics.

Each year the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics hosts an annual conference. It is in different locations around the country each year. In 2020 is will be in Indianapolis. I am so excited about this and possibly being able to be involved in the planning process. It is such a big conference and so much work is done behind the scenes to pull off a successful event.

I wanted to go over some of my highlights from FNCE 2019 in Philadelphia with you and get you excited for FNCE 2020 in Indianapolis next October.

Educational Sessions

One of my favorite parts of FNCE is the wide assortment of education sessions. There are so many different sessions that you can attend Sunday-Tuesday. Most of the sessions are 1.5 hours and you get 1.5 continuing education credits (CEUs). I was able to attend 7 sessions over the course of 3 days and earn 10.5 CEUs. The fun thing about all the sessions offered is that the topics are so varied. You can find so many different topics that apply to your area of expertise, something you want to learn more about or something that you find super interesting. Then you have the freedom to attend however many sessions as you want.

The Expo

The exhibition hall area for the vendors is another really neat part of FNCE. There are vendors from all types of businesses, they bring samples, hand out goodies and have people available to talk with you about their business/products to answer your questions. I didn’t spend a ton of time this year in the expo area, but it was fun to be able to talk to a couple vitamin companies, snap some fun pictures for social media and grab some free samples. There are also cooking demonstrations that happen in this area as well as poster sessions that are on display.

Opening/Closing Sessions and Member Showcase

Each year the Academy brings in some big names for the opening and closing sessions and the member showcase session during the conference. I wasn’t able to make it to the opening session due to flight delays, but I was able to attend the member showcase and listen to Abby Wombach speak. She did an amazing job explaining her life as a professional soccer player, describing her journey to find her new calling after retirement and empower women to fight for equality. I was impressed with her and the message that she shared with a room full of dietitians. The Surgeon General of the United States even came, which was really neat to see that support for our organization.

Networking

With a conference this large it is sometimes hard to get to know people on a personal level. With so many people it is easy to get lost in the shuffle. Thankfully all of the Academy practice groups have networking events and things going on throughout the conference so it gives you some time to connect with others in your speciality area/area of practice. I was able to attend the Pediatric Nutrition Practice Group (PNPG) breakfast. I was hoping to get there earlier, but I made it for the last part, but was able to meet several RDNs and had a chance to introduce myself. The other neat part of these practice groups, is their executive boards and the opportunities to network, run for elected positions and be able to help support the Academy through your area of practice.

As you can see there is A LOT going on at FNCE and there are tons of things to see, do and learn. Since FNCE is in a new city each year, there are lots of opportunities to go do some sight seeing as well. When you all come to Indianapolis next year, make sure you take the time to walk along the Canal downtown, you will have to try Long’s donuts, check out the War Memorial on the Circle or eat at The Nest restaurant that rotates above the city. There are lots of family, friendly activities in the city as well - we have the largest Children’s Museum, an amazing zoo and a fantastic art museum (Newfields). If you are a RDN here in Indiana, make sure you ask your employer about supporting you to attend FNCE next year. If you can’t attend for the whole conference, come for even 1 day and check it out. It is a great experience and as so much to offer to you as a RDN. If you are a member of the Central Indiana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (CIAND) make sure to jump over to their website and apply for a $200 scholarship to attend FNCE next year! CLICK HERE for the link to that application!

The Hardest Part of Running Your Own Nutrition Business

This blog post idea came to me while I was reading a Facebook post written by a mother asking about infant feeding advice. She was asking about a trendy formula item and asking for feedback about what she should do. Her child is an ex-premie with issues with reflux and has been exclusively breast fed. I had to replay and say something, because I couldn’t not offer a nugget of knowledge on this topic. But that leads me into one of the hardest things I have learned about owning my own nutrition business. She then appreciated my feedback and responded with more questions. That was great engagement, but the advice she was asking for “free nutrition advice” is how I make money for my business. That is my wheel house and I feel like I would do a disservice to myself and my profession. Plus, giving out nutrition advice online is dangerous in terms of a liability perspective.

I don’t sell a physical item. I provide people with knowledge on a complicated topic, nutrition. The interesting thing is that this complex topic involves food and the act of eating, which we all do multiple times a day. Everyone thinks they already know about food and they don’t need an expert on that topic. Unlike a physical therapist who is working with clients to help them move in a certain way to get stronger, my skills are providing information/knowledge with clients to help them overcome certain food-related issues.

It is incredibly hard to convenience people that is worth paying for nutrition advice. Sometimes I think it would be easier if I sold some product. Anyone will purchase a physical item from someone and then they to keep that item, but when you pay for nutrition counseling services you aren’t always getting a physical item. I’m empowering you with knowledge about a certain topic that you get to take with you and use from here on out. The thing I have found challenging is not just handing out nutrition advice for free. That information is my “income” for my business. If you want those recommendations, then you need to pay for that advice. Embracing that idea has been tough. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to help ALL the people and spread all my nutrition knowledge for free to everyone, but that isn’t helpful for me or my profession. You don’t see doctor’s prescriptions for people for free. That knowledge that they possess is their lively hood. The same holds true for Registered Dietitians. Our knowledge lies in knowing how food impacts your life and your well-being.

I don’t want this to come off in a negative way, but instead to help encourage and empower other Registered Dietitians to stand up for what they know and feel confident in asking people to pay for the information they request of you. You don’t have to feel pressured to just give away that knowledge for free.

When You Go For It ... It Doesn't Always Work Out

I have shared over the years lots of encouraging words on this blog, lots of successes and positive things that have happened in my life and with my career. That is definitely exciting and I am so thankful for those positive parts of this journey, but I also wanted to share with you that things don’t always go according to your plan or what you imagine.

I have always been of the mindset to pursue every crazy dream that I have and to just say “YES!” and go for it. The worst that happens, is that you fail and that thing you wanted to do doesn’t happen. But putting yourself out there is important. It takes courage and guts to try something, knowing that you might fail. Well as you can probably guess … I ended up falling short and failing in something that I pursued recently. I decided to apply for a National position within the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. It was kind of on a whim. In fact, I had a co-worker ask me why I was applying and I said “because I can and I want to!” It was an opportunity that I went after and decided to go for!

I was honestly super surprised when I got the call saying that I was one of the finalists that was going to be put on the National Ballot. I didn’t really think I would actually get chosen. I was excited and then to learn that there was only two of us going for this Delegate-At-Large position, I was even more excited. I had this “good feeling” about this situation and that this had to work out! Well the election process came to an end and I got a call saying that I wasn’t selected. I had not received the most votes to win that position. I am not going to lie to you, I was disappointed. I had gotten my hopes up and felt like this crazy goal I had for myself was attainable and this was right time to do this! Well that wasn’t the case. That position wasn’t meant to be mine. The other girl that ran against me, will do an amazing job. She was very qualified and I hope that she enjoys and values that experience.

I wanted to share that this opportunity didn’t go in my favor this time. That is ok. Yes, I am disappointed, but at the same time, I am proud of myself. I went for something that I never dreamed I would do! I put myself out there (on a national level) and I am proud of pushing myself to apply and for making it to the ballot. Would I have done an amazing job if I had been elected … heck yeah, but this wasn’t my time and that wasn’t the position that I was suppose to be elected to. Am I going to let this most recent failure keep me from pushing myself and applying again in the future ? No! I am going to apply in the future for another position. I want to someday be elected to a position within the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics on the national level.

I don’t know how your week is going or if you have felt like a failure in a certain area of your life … I want to remind you that you never succeed with things you never try. Be proud of yourself and for putting your best foot forward and never stop pursuing your dreams!

Your Vote Matters!

Are you a member of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND)? Have you voted in elections in the past? The answer to those questions should be YES! If you are a member of AND, but haven’t voted then this is your year to let your voice be heard. Just like with political elections, you have a right to let your opinion matter and to put that opinion out there. We are nearing election time for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, which will run February 1st-15th, 2019. That means you have about 2 weeks to click through and vote for the slate of candidates on a national, state and local level. In 2017, 12.8% of Indiana AND members voted in the national elections. That is above 10%, but not quite 20% of members. I think we can work to improve those numbers! If you are paying dues to AND then you take an active role in voting and choosing the leadership that assists with the goals/focus of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Are you wondering who all is on the national ballot? There are a list of candidates available now online and then biographical information available on the candidates as well. Each candidate has their biographical information available online and then also a video that they had to submit with the application. Take the time to read through these candidates and when you see an email in your inbox announcing the start of elections … take the time and cast your vote!

Are there state and local elections as well? There are elections for the Indiana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics board and then also the local organizations, including the Central Indiana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. These list of candidates will be sent out starting February 1st as well and so watch your email for those announcements and take the time to support and vote for these local RDNs who are volunteering their time to serve.

How long does it take? There will be three emails that you can anticipate receiving in regards to elections - one for the national election, one for the state election and one for the local election. It may sound like a lot, but it doesn’t take that long. It takes a few minutes to click through the list of candidates and make your selections. Keep an eye on your email and then work to get that ballot filled out as soon as possible!

2018 Year End Review

It is crazy to think that 2018 has now come to an end and we are getting ready to embark on 2019. It has been such a great year filled with so many neat surprises and I am eager to look forward and see what 2019 holds for myself, for RD Anna and for my family.

Wrapping Up 2018 Goals

• Weekly Blogging - Successfully accomplished. I was so excited to be able to write and share with you all 52 blog posts in the last year! Also posted daily nutrition information on the RD Anna Facebook page almost every day to share a variety of nutrition information with followers.

• Media Contact for St Vincent - Successfully accomplished. I was able to do 6 TV media interviews and then 1 Newspaper interview as well over the last year in the greater Indianapolis area.

• Writing a chapter for AND’s Nutrition Communication book - Successfully accomplished. This was such a neat project and an amazing process to be a part of. I am excited for the publication of this book in 2019 and to get to see the chapter that I helped to write!

• Test Question Writing Committee for CSPCC (Certified Specialist in Pediatrics in Critical Care) - Successfully accomplished. This opportunity came my way unexpectedly, but was a neat process to be a part of and I learned so much about how standardized tests are created and written.

• Wrote article for the Building Block Newsletter for the Pediatric Nutrition Practice Group on RDNs working to create separate breast milk and formula preparation areas. I was excited to get this draft sent off at the end of the fall and eager to make edits and have this article published in the spring of 2019.

Goals for 2019

• Continue with weekly blogging. I have really enjoyed putting together various nutrition content for the blog and sharing that information with you all. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please feel free to Contact Me and let me know what you would like to learn more about!

• Continue to serve as a media contact for St Vincent and do TV, Radio or Newspaper interviews as needed.

• Continue to grow my contracting outpatient nutrition counseling business with Mini Minds in Carmel, IN. This undertaking has been quite the learning process. I am hoping to pick up more clients and do more outpatient counseling as the year goes on and continue to do some class education as well for families.

• Work to complete additional hours towards a Lactation Counselor certification and renew the Certified Specialist in Pediatrics Exam. I am always working to learn more and advance my nutrition knowledge. I am hoping to continue to do this through completing the necessary coursework and obtain some additional certifications.

• Run as a national candidate for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Ballot as a At Large House of Delegate in the category of 30 years and younger. I decided to give this a try and just go for it. Elections will be held at the beginning of February.

I always think that is fun to take a moment and look back over the last year and see some of those analytic data that I can get from running a website. It is so fun to see more people being exposed to the content that I provide and hopefully increasing that impact that I am able to have!

Blog Statistics

• In the last year, RD Anna has had 2,025 page visits which is an increase of 26.2% from last year (that is any where from 121-218 page visits per month).

• During the last year, 1,924 unique IP addresses were looking at my content, which is an increase of 35.9% from the year before.

• The vast majority of readers are in the United States (84%), but there were about 3% from Canada and 1-1.5% from India and the Philippines.

• When it came to popular content the most popular blog post was “Always Say Yes!” which had 166 page views, then the Pregnancy Glucose Test post that had 157 page views and in third was My Nutrition Journey which had 110 page views.

Thank you for taking the time to read and support this website, my blog and my business. I have appreciated all your comments, you taking the time to read what I write and give me your feedback. I really enjoy having this outlet and using this platform to help provide nutrition education to people around the world! I am so thankful for a wonderful 2018 and excited for more wonderful opportunities in 2019.

AND National Preceptor Month

Here in April the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is celebrating all of the preceptors that help dietetic interns during their year long rotation. You may not know, but to become a Registered Dietitian you have to complete a year long, accredited internship. This process involves an application and matching process. So not all of the applicants who apply will get matched to an internship rotation site. It is a competitive process. During that internship year, you participate in different rotation sites and gain a variety of different experiences working with a variety of dietitians. All those people who help to teach future dietitians are an amazing group of preceptors. I have been impacted by such great preceptors during my internship back in 2010. I am still friends with some of those dietitians and I am so thankful that they were willing to take the time to teach me. 

Most professions now that internships or other similar programs where professionals work to students to help teach them. I think this is such a great way to learn. As a professional, in any career area, I encourage you to volunteer and take a student. Work with them and encourage them as they go through schooling. Your work and time teaching these students help to create great employees in the future. 

I included this graph above of the supply and demand of dietetic internships since 1993 until 2015. The yellow line on top is the dietetic students that are graduating from college. The blue line is the number of dietetic internship applicants. The green line is the number of dietetic internship applicants who are actually matched. I thought it was helpful to see that there are lots of students graduating with nutrition degrees, but a far less number actually become Registered Dietitian. In terms of the job market and preventing over-saturating the market, I am ok with this, but I think it is that much more important to work with these students and help create the best dietitians in our work force. 

I have enjoyed working with the Coordinated Program in Dietetics through Purdue since I completed my internship back in 2011. I have been a preceptor for the last 7 years. I have also gotten to work with some IUPUI students and Ball State students over the years. It is rewarding to get to see these students learn and gain confidence. It is also exciting to be able to teach them about my passion for nutrition. I also love seeing these students apply and land their first jobs. It is neat to get to be part of that process and stay in touch with those students. 

If you work in an area where you can serve as a preceptor and help teach students, take advantage of those opportunities. Thank you to all those Registered Dietitians who have served as preceptors over the years and for those who helped me get to where I am today as well. You all are amazing! 

My Experience at FNCE 2017

I had to the chance to go to FNCE this year in Chicago for a day. For those of you that don't know FNCE is the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo. It is the annual national conference hosted by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. I haven't been since I was an intern back in 2010 when it was in Boston. I was very excited to attend this year, because it was in Chicago (3 hours north of Indianapolis). Even with having a small (10 month old) child, I wanted to try to go. Shout out to my amazing mother, who came up with me and watched William for the day. That was such a huge blessing and really made it possible for me to go.

I was actually given a scholarship to attend FNCE this year. The local Dietetics Association that I belong to - CIAND (Central Indiana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics) gave out a $250 scholarship. I thought I would apply and I was so excited that I was chosen. With this scholarship I took a day off work and headed up to Chicago for the conference. 

If you haven't had the chance to attend FNCE, then mark the upcoming dates on  your calendar, save some money and try to go! It is worth the time and money. It is such a HUGE conference and there are so many neat speakers. You have the chance to earn SO many continuing education units and network with amazing dietitians.

I wanted to share with you some of the highlights from my 24 hours at FNCE. 

Purdue Alumni Reception 

I was able to get up to Chicago on Sunday evening and attend the Purdue Alumni Reception. I was so glad that this event was sponsored by the Department of Food and Nutrition and by the Alumni Board. There was a great turn out and such a fun chance to see old classmates and professors. I was able to bring my Mom and baby with me so that was neat to show off my little guy and have some help watching him. 

Networking Luncheon

On Monday there was a luncheon at a hotel near the conference for the authors of a book that Barb Mayfield is leading. It was so great to have a chance to network with some other amazing dietitians. This nutrition communication book will be such a great resource for dietitians and I am excited to see it come together and so thankful to be included on this project.

Educational Sessions

I love being able to go to continuing education sessions and I wish I could have attended more of these. I had fun though attending three of them during the day on Monday. My favorite had to be the main speaker on that day, which was Kimbal Musk. He is such an interesting person and it was so neat to hear him talk about his philosophy with food. Plus his mom is a RD! Another interesting session was one on Type 1 Diabetes in Africa. Very neat and made me want to go on a medical mission trip. 

If you haven't been to FNCE before,  mark your calendar and try to go next year. Some other fun parts to FNCE is the Expo Hall, the awesome networking events with the DPGs and of course the main speakers. It is such a neat conference and I am so thankful for being able to go this year!