Blog #1 - The Empathy Map

After the readings this week it seemed most appropriate to see what persona a dear friend of mine who is in a much different place than I might be. J is a 26 year old Caucasian woman who recently graduated from Rutgers University with an MA in Education. Apart from being born in the same state and having the same alma mater I doubt we could be more different in segmentation. Reading through the list of personas given to us from cohorts.com I would believe that she resides somewhere close to the Educated Working Woman persona due to multiple similarities and few differences (the biggest difference, as I’m sure she would be glad to know, is that she is 7 years younger than the median age of this group). I worry about making sure I do my readings, wake up on time for class, and getting my blog posts done before they’re do. How different is that from what’s on her mind?

To J the most important thing is balance. It’s what really counts. Family, work, and play all should get equal amounts of time and effort. That balance is what helps her deal with her major preoccupations. J takes her days one at a time and focuses on what she has to do that day, any finances that need to be handled, and getting enough sleep. Without sleep J might find herself having a rough day as a 6^th grade English teacher because as we all know, children are a handful. That being said J is really content with her life. Her main worries at home are simply to make sure rent and utilities get paid which also fits her in with the 60% of educated working women who do the same. At work she has a bit more to prove as a new and untenured teacher. “Everything I do is under extreme scrutiny,” she says. In 5 years she will be able to hopefully achieve her goal of being a tenured teacher. “I’m coming in and doing my best every day.” As long as J can maintain her balance she is content.

J’s environment at work is very high stress. “You have to be on your A-game all the time.” She is currently working on getting everything ready for back-to-school night. Unfortunately J has a slight very of speaking in front of a large group of people. A lot of people can mean a lot of judgment. Her home life however, is her Zen space. J lives with her boyfriend of 4 years and 2 kittens (educated working woman lifestyle alert!). When she is stressed at home (which isn’t too often these days) she can give anyone of them a hug although she admits that 2 of her 3 roommates will most likely want out of that hug ASAP. J likes small gatherings of people during her free time. These allow her to talk to her friends about the goings-on of their lives as well as play video games and discuss current events. She claims to not have a large amount of time for a social life and when she does have time would rather not spend it out partying or getting too wild. It has never been her style. When questioned about the friends that she does go out of her way to keep in touch with she describes them by saying “They would be the people I invite to my wedding.” Luckily for her boyfriend, he needn’t worry about that pressure yet as J does not want to begin talking about marriage until she makes it through this school year. Although he may want to consider getting her that iPad she has been wanting as her birthday approaches. She is very appreciative of her position at Linwood Middle School. New Jersey has what some might consider a very dismal job market for teachers. That goes double for English and history teachers. J is in the rare position of being hired before she had finished earning her master’s degree which I might add fits her in with 65% of the educated working woman persona

J values people’s first impression highly. Therefore she is very open and welcoming and tries hard not to come off as standoffish. She is very professional in public and never dresses below business casual at work which means heels, accessories, make-up, and hair done. That isn’t to say that she doesn’t cut loose when she’s home. Outside of the work place J is a jeans and tee shirt(as well as anything pink) kind of gal who prefers to save her make up for workdays while she reads comic books and the classic literature that drove her into her profession.

J’s social circle of friends can be divided into three parts according to her. There are those who she loves to hang out with but would never work with in a professional setting, those that she works with professionally but could never see herself having a drink with, and those who fall into both of those categories. Her bosses on the other hand can be very intimidating due to their strict and blunt nature. She get’s by it though. J’s influences are her step mother, mother, and father. Her morals are based on what her stepmom, who she affectionately refers to as Bug. Her parents taught her strong sense of right and wrong to her as well. Both work for local PD departments. Her father is a detective and her mother a dispatcher. These influences are what helped shape J into the person she has become today.

J fears very little, I have seen this in person. Seeing the intimidating loads a college student can be given, especially while double majoring, working nearly full time, and graduating in three years, may have shaken my boots but J has always remained unphased.  What does frighten her is the thought of losing anyone she loves whether they are family, friend, or cat.  Her biggest frustrations are when people are not organized. “I’m anal like that” she proclaims proudly. She admits to using her credit card a large amount of the time but will never use it to buy anymore than her paycheck affords her. In fact, she plans on getting rid of all her debt (student loans excluded) by the end of the month. The current main obstacle in her life is getting her students to grow. Most of J’s current aspirations and focus are on her career.

J’s current short-term wants are similar to many young professionals. The newest apple iPad to go along with her iPhone and Macbook that she can use at home and possibly share with her class. J can be considered a gamer and anything the falls within that category is desirable. On a more serious note, J is at that point in her life where she wants to start living better. A new apartment with a dishwasher as well as her own washer and dryer are high up on her wish list. Finally, she would like to meet eye to eye with her boyfriend about when would be a good time to get engaged. J has almost reached the goals she had set out to complete once she started college. “All I’ve ever wanted was to be a teacher and be a good one at

that...oh, and to be married.” Getting through this upcoming school year will allow her to achieve her first goal. It is her bar for success. “It feels like I am where I should be and am on track compared to some of my friends,” she said hopefully not including her interviewer in that sentence.

Overall J accurately fits into that educated working woman mold better than any of the other personas although in order to get the full picture one must consider her love of comics and video games, dislike of dishonest media of any sort, and love of her Dallas Cowboys. J believes that order and serenity will get her through most issues and a level head will keep her sane in what is the busiest time of her life so far.