Payson Maydew
- Director of Development ; Asst. Track and Field Coach ; Adjunct Accounting Instructor
- Emporia State University
School Information
School: Emporia State University
College Major: Business
Years at College Works: 2014-2017
Career Information
Working For: Emporia State University
Title: Director of Development ; Asst. Track and Field Coach ; Adjunct Accounting Instructor
Industry: Education
Brief Description of Duties / Responsibilities:
My role is somewhat of a hybrid at the moment. I help with connecting alumni back with university and fundraising for athletics and the business school. I also coach track and field at the college and teach accounting courses in the business school.
What Has Been Your Proudest Accomplishment Post-CWP?Becoming a father to my beautiful daughter Willow.
College Works Career Impact
In one sentence, what has CW meant to you?
College Works Painting has given me the ultimate experience I needed to truly differentiate myself from my competition and peers.
How did your CW experience impact your career? Immediately after graduation? Now?
When employers looked at my resume and saw that I had experience running a successful business, while involved with school and my various activities, I was able to garner a lot of initial attention. This ability to get my foot in multiple doors and then develop many relationships was a cornerstone in giving me a wide array of options to choose from before I had decided what I had wanted to do. Upon graduation, and when I had figured out what I wanted to do, I was able to use that relationship building to secure the job I wanted. My main takeaway my employer told me is that having the experience I had, even if it wasn’t accounting only, was important because it showed that I was a worthwhile investment and someone they could see move up in the company and be a leader, which is exactly what College Works helped to give me. College Works Painting continues to impact my mindset in all functions of my career I have had by helping me keep a big picture, managerial mindset.
What do you want to tell your clients about what it meant to work with them and how it has helped you get to where you are today?
One client, Liz Diers, was my tax professor at the Emporia State University where I attended. I have naturally stayed close with her to this day and now am getting an opportunity to teach her classes in the business school which is a huge honor. She was a great client, always asked how were doing and provided refreshments and snacks for everyone involved in painting her house.
What was the greatest lesson you learned from your CW experience?
Managing people is an art you have to continue to practice. If you want to move up in your field, this is typically a skill you have to develop.
How have the friendships and networks you built during CW affected you?
I have stayed in touch with quite a few of my College Works Painting friends, one of which I got to be in his wedding! We have taken numerous trips, engaged in happy hours, and connected our families. These friendships have been just as close if not more close then some of my other friendships from various aspects of life.
If you had to come up with a one line slogan for CW, what would it be?
College Works Painting is the ultimate differentiating experience to give you an upper edge on employment in any field!
Advice
What advice do you have for potential CW participants? Current CW participants?
This experience is absolutely worth no matter the field you want to go into. This internship is not easy, and will potentially be one of the hardest things you do up to that point, but the dividends it pays through all the skill and life development is worth while.
Many college students struggle to choose between an internship specific to their target industry or doing CW. What advice would you give them on this subject if they wanted to enter your career field?
This question has two folds in my opinion. In accounting, you do need technical knowledge which you should be acquiring through your degree and can obtain through an accounting specific internship to give you an edge. However, getting this type of experience in this field is huge because if you want to work yourself up to be in that CFO or higher up role, you need to develop some savvy in understanding how all parts of a business work together. Knowing these things from a financial standpoint AND an operational standpoint (which is what College Works Painting provides) gives you (and gave me) a massive step up on someone. You are always going to be retaught everything technical when you start your job. The soft skills and big picture experience from this internship will not be immediately taught.
What’s your best advice for someone interested in entering your career field?
I started off in tax accounting for Deloitte Tax, which I did really enjoy, but found myself back at the university. The best thing you can do in general is continue to create and build connections. I have had a few different jobs since graduation and none of them I had to apply for. I just talked with the people I had built relationships with prior who happened to be leading the institutions and was able to secure a job. Having the business savvy from College Works Painting was a great jumpstart as well!
What’s your favorite memory from CW?
The trip to Canada and Cancun were a ton of fun. Getting to wakeboard, paintball, and other fun activities all summer on Payroll Fridays really helped create a great environment.
Last words of wisdom?
Be intentional blocking your time in each activity you do because it is truly possible to be successful at many different things at once. This skill helps you to accomplish so much more in a shorter time frame then some accomplish in many years. Never be afraid to reach out and network to learn from others. A big part of life can be just as much about WHO you know versus WHAT you know.