S2, Ep. 1 - Bri Harvie & Matt Markin - Emerging Voices

🎙️ Season 2 Is Here 🎉

Matt Markin and Bri Harvie kick off Season 2 of Emerging Voices  by turning the mic on…each other! In this behind-the-scenes opener, they focus on professional growth in academic advising through involvement in NACADA and the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP). Drawing from recent conference experiences and their own leadership journeys, Matt and Bri discuss how advisors can use professional associations to build community, strengthen skills, and identify pathways for greater engagement. 

*Apologies for the audio issues in this episode!

Along the way, you’ll get:

• A mini travelogue of Vegas side quests (Wizard of Oz at the Sphere, kaleidoscope-level trippy exhibits, and the heartbreak of a missed Backstreet Boys moment)
• A peek into Matt’s world of podcasting, poster sessions, and pop-culture-powered professional development
• Bri’s honest take on being “the Canadian voice” in U.S.-centered spaces and how leadership feels from the inside
• The real tea on mentoring: imposter syndrome, connection-building, and why “learning partners” might be the better title

This episode sets the tone for Season 2: less polished podium and more hallway conversations. Welcome back!

*Emerging Voices is a spinoff of the Adventures in Advising podcast!

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Transcript

Matt Markin  
Hello and welcome to Emerging Voices, an Emerging Leaders Program podcast series. And guess what? It's Season Two of the podcast. If you can believe it, this is Matt Markin here, and I don't know, did she return for season two?

Bri Harvie  
I think she did. I think she's here. I'm Bree Harvey, and I'm excited for season two. 

Matt Markin  
Bri, how are you? 

Bri Harvie  
Oh my gosh. It has been a wild ride. It's, it's great. How are you?

Matt Markin  
Same thing. It's been a wild ride. Now, of course, anyone listening to this, it's 2026, at some point, but Bri and I are recording this in December. And before we started recording, of course, I was like, Yeah, I thought things would slow down in December. Happens every December. You think it's going to slow down and it doesn't. So it's wishful thinking.

Bri Harvie  
Never, it never does. It's every year, it's a surprise when it doesn't slow down. Yeah.

Matt Markin  
And then we were also talking about, when was the last time we saw each other, and it was at the Nakata annual conference in Vegas in October, which to me, seems like it was so long ago.

Bri Harvie  
It does. It feels like it was like months ago, but it was only six weeks ago, and it also feels like it was yesterday all at the same time.

Matt Markin  
What did you have going on during annual conference? Because I only saw you one time in passing, and we had to have, like, a quick conversation, and then we had to move on with our day.

Bri Harvie  
It's, you know, that's the trouble, I think sometimes with annual and I think, I mean, I love going to annual conferences, and I love getting to see all the people, but I think it's one of the perks of the regional conferences, is annuals are huge. And the venue, this time around, we were at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, and it was so giant. Felt like, if you saw somebody in passing, they were often running to the other side of the complex. And it was, it was a lot this year. And I know it's not just me, but anybody involved in the cut it too. Like we have to go a couple days early because we have meetings for a few days. So I find often, by the time the conference starts, I'm, I'm tired for it to be done. Like, Oh, stop opening reception. Great. It seems, it seems like I'm ready for this. You're tired.

Matt Markin  
And then, and then the the people who are like, new to annual conference that fly in, maybe that that day or the day before, they're all energized. And they're like, why are you?

Bri Harvie  
Yes, they're like, I need a nap. I need I need a nap, and I need less stimulation. And I am a very introverted person, so I need my battery recharge time. And it's, it is a hilarious thing to start a conference and be like, Listen my social battery. That's great. And I mean, I love getting to see everybody, and I I love getting just to reconnect and and hang out with all my people, right? Like, these are my people, and I belong among them. And I love getting to see them, them all once a year, all together in the fall. How is yours? Because I yours is, must be crazy with the stickers and the pins and everybody, like, you're like, NACADA famous.

Matt Markin  
Oh, my God, you're NACADA famous. I am not. I decided I was gonna go a day or two early because I was like, my partner. I was like, You should come to Vegas. Because once I told him, I was like, you know, Tears for Fears is in town. Hey, I want to do the Grand Canyon tour. I want to go to the sphere and see Wizard of Oz. He was like, oh, because he wasn't playing the go with me, because he's like, that's Vegas. It's like, four, you know, four and a half hours away from where we are. So he decides to go. And we just spent, like, the whole day, you know, doing fun stuff, ending it with like, a fancy dinner. And then the following day was the Grand Canyon tour, and I thought I planned it correctly. I was like, Oh, I'll make it back for the opening keynote. Nope. Did not like, no, yeah, but I will say Wizard of Oz at the spirit was amazing.

Bri Harvie  
Oh, I'm choking. You didn't go. It was there's just so much. It's the thing with Vegas, right? There's so much to see and so much to do. And I didn't go, and I've been kicking myself since I got back, especially in like wicked mania right now, and the whole wide world getting to see in the sphere, I haven't seen anything in this beer yet. And I was first, I was disappointed because the backstreet boys weren't going to be there when we were there. And I was heart broken. And then I just it was like, I saw that. It wasn't them. It was just like, Well, I'm not interested in anything. Just kept hearing about people seeing the Wizard of Oz. It was so sad I didn't go.

Matt Markin  
Oh no to see Backstreet Boys. Like, when, when they said it was going to be in Vegas. And I was like, oh, bash boys has a residency. I was like, Oh, let me go on the dates. Let me get tickets. I was like, Oh no. Their residency ended.

Bri Harvie  
Like, three weeks before. It was so fast. We did go. There was a really cool place I've never been before, and I think it was called the Infinity Museum, and it was like off the beaten path. We ended up in the craziest Uber rides where we were being driven down like terrifying alleys, and I was convinced we weren't going to make it back to the hotel alive, but it was just where this place was, and it was totally fine, but it was like a walk in Exhibit, and there was all these different rooms, and like the one that was the most wild was you walk into a life size kaleidoscope, and everything kind of moves around you. And I was like, only in Vegas, right? Like, where else would you find a human size colitis. There's one room that had all these, like, giant inflatable balloons and balls of different sizes that you could like, they were, they weren't helium filled, but they were filled with something that made them kind of buoyant, but not all the way buoyant. And I don't know what gas it was, but I was, like, I could spend days in here, like, it was just so relaxing, just to, like, watch them all float around, and it was that was very cool and, like, off the beaten path. And so there wasn't a lot of people, which was great. But I didn't get to see Wizard of Oz, which is also kind of a trippy experience. But I did get my own little trippy experience at the Infinity newsroom.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, you still got to have some fun. I mean, conference wise, I don't feel I was as busy as I've been in the past with the annual conferences, but it was still like how it was scheduled, with sessions and things like that. I didn't get to really see many folks, so like people like Michael Cersosimo from Region Nine and Thomas Shelly from Region Eight, like I had like we were texting was like, we're gonna meet up and same with you, like we're gonna hang out, you know, enjoy ourselves. And it just didn't work out. Schedules just did not align. And next year, we have to make it work.

Bri Harvie  
Well, obviously, next year, did you so? Did you present at this one at all? I didn't even ask you.

Matt Markin  
Yeah. So Ryan Scheckel and I had a poster session about using comic book characters to discuss imposter syndrome.

Bri Harvie  
God, you have the coolest presentations. Well, that sounds awesome.

Matt Markin  
And well in our proposal, I cited you because you've done an at article about it. Yeah, so I don't think I ever told you that. So thank you.

Bri Harvie  
Listen. I am very important. Oh my gosh, that's awesome. How did it go? I've never done a poster.

Matt Markin  
I love posters. I think if I could just do poster sessions, I do that. I just like how informal it is, and people walk up to you, and if they have questions, they'll ask, or you can engage them some just kind of walk by and take a picture your poster. But it's like, you do all your prep and it's on your poster versus, like, going to a good current session. Now it's like, I gotta present for an hour. So it was almost like you're having these mini conversations with individual people during that one hour for the poster. So it's a lot of fun.

Bri Harvie  
That's awesome. I feel like I love going to see them. I just I've never done one, and maybe it's because I would probably bust out the light poster board like I was in third grade. 

Matt Markin  
With a tri fold?

Bri Harvie  
Yes. And like, sit down with my magazines. And, like, hodgepodge, I don't even know what to do, but they're always so cool. And I love the variety that you get. And I like that it can be more intimate communication, right? So it's not just listening to somebody for an hour, even if they have discussion built into it and whatnot. There is, it's, it's just not the same. So I love that for you, and then I feel like you did one with Kyle and Melinda.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, so Cheri Souza, who's at the Stupski Foundation. She was a previous region nine chair and conference co chair we co facilitated a panel with Melinda and Kyle, kind of bringing in past and current Executive Directors of NACADA. And it was kind of like the state of NACADA. And here's these questions that probably a lot of people want to know answers to. And it's like, Well, who else to ask? Then here's the past and current Executive Director. So we had the easy job of just like, here's the questions people want to know you have the tough part. 

Bri Harvie  
Like that would have been really interesting. Especially given, like, pre and post pandemic world, right? Because Melinda was like, in the thick of it, right as we were coming out of the pandemic, and now Kyle is like, what does post covid NACADA look like? That would have been, yeah, really interesting. And was it so? Were those? The only ones you did? I feel like you usually be like.

Matt Markin  
If anyone's interested, like, Oh, I missed that session, or I didn't even go to Vegas, go to one of the Adventures in Advising podcast episodes. We did a recording of it, and you can listen to it there. And that one also has Charlie not on that one, because he wasn't able to make it to annual conference. But literally, right after that, I had to run to another session. So Craig McGill and I did one on the adventures in advising podcast as a case study in terms of, like, what do people think of the podcast like? Is it professional development? Does it lead to public facing scholarship? And that was kind of really my first, I think, real entryway into actual research writing. And so Craig, it was great, because he's he was very patient with me, because I was like, I've never done stuff like this before, so he really, kind of had to really spell it out for me, like you should this and this and this. And kind of taught me in a very fast pace, what research really is.

Bri Harvie  
do you think you'll do more like, Did you love it? Did you get the research bug? Or were you like,

Matt Markin  
We'll see, because I will say like, it was my first understanding of the IRB process. And so we went through Craig's institution at K-State, and I still had to do like two trainings and submit my certificates that showed I completed it. But over a two week period, it was like nine hours worth of trainings that I had to do. And Craig was like, even if this, you know, even once we submit this IRB form and answer all their questions, and even though you go through all this training, this still may get denied. And of course, he tells me this halfway through my, you know, hours of training I'm doing, and I'm like, now I feel like, even worth it.

Bri Harvie  
Yeah, it's IRB. Is. It's a wild ride. It is. I think it's what stops a lot of people from doing research. And I get it because it's so aggressive, but important, like, it's you got to do it. It's necessary. But what would you Okay, so now, can I ask you a question? What would you recommend to somebody starting research for the first time. What do you think, other than IRB, like, what kind of challenges did you come up against while you're going through this as somebody who's not really living in that space day to day?

Matt Markin  
Yeah, I think what I've learned is, like, you really have to take the time to focus on it, and it's not something you can be like, Yeah, I'll take 15 minutes here and then 15 minutes here throughout the day. It's like, you really have to, like, zone in on it, and it's a lot of the double and triple and quadruple checking everything. Like, we analyze, like, the first 100 episodes of the Adventures in Advising podcast. And it was kind of going through the transcripts, listening to the episodes we interviewed, avid listeners. And then it's trying to see, what are the kind of connections between all of this. And then it's trying to find, are there certain themes? And then once you do have themes, can you narrow it down to, like, four or five, and it just felt like it was this, like, repeating process, and I'm like, at some point, I'm like, this is getting very tiring, but is it going to be worth in the end? Hopefully, was it worth in the end? I think so. I mean, it's still what at the time of this, like, we're hopefully we can get this published somewhere, but just to go through the whole process and to be able to present on it, and here's the work we've done, and for other people to listen to it and be like, Oh, this really sounds great. Or, you know, this motivates me to do, you know, start my own podcast, or do my own research. It's like, okay, I think, I think in the end, it definitely was worth it.

Bri Harvie  
That's awesome. That's it's especially when it's something that's so personal to you, right? Like, it must have been hard to, kind of to dig into it and be like, Oh, dear God, I hope I don't learn that this is actually all for not.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, and especially too, like, interviewing and seeing, like, Okay, what do people really think of the podcast and trying to take off? Like, my podcaster had be like, Okay, now, now I'm here. I'm as a kind of research unit, as a writer. So yeah, so that took some getting used to.

Bri Harvie  
So a question about podcasting and and you. Matt Markin, how did you get into podcasting? Because you have Adventures in Advising, and you have Emerging Voices, and now you're helping out with The Pickup Meeting and how, first of all, how did you get into it? Also, where do you find time for all of these things?

Matt Markin  
Well, and I guess I do a listening that's like, aren't you supposed to be interviewing a guest? So with this being season two, in the first episode, Bree and I are actually interviewing each other. We're just having a nice well, the podcast thing started in 2019 so I was at the International, I think, the last NACADA international conference, which was in Belgium. And I just remember I was at the reception. I was about to leave, and Charlie Nutt is like, hey, I want you to meet this other person. Colum Cronin. And he says, Okay, you guys should talk. And then he Charlie, literally just, like, turns and walks away and leaves. Like, love that. Very Charlie. Yep, very Charlie. We're like, oh, I guess we need to start talking. And so we just talked about advising our kind of interest and in media, and then we're like, Well, Charlie wants us to talk. Maybe we can think of some ideas and bring it back to him. And so a podcast idea came up, and he was like, You know what? Just wait on it, you know? Because I think there was potentially another group that was thinking about doing a podcast. And so we all were at the same conference later that year in Louisville at the annual conference and call him. And I went up to Charlie said, Hey, what about that podcast idea? And he said, you up, go for it. And he was like, I know nothing about podcasts, so you all figure it out. And Colin are like, we don't know anything about podcasts either. Very Charlie, yeah, we didn't think we were going to be the ones to do. We just had the idea, and he's like, No, run with it. So yeah, we were like, YouTube and Googling and trying to figure it out. I will not go back and listen to, like, the first, you know, 20 episodes of the podcast I was forced to. Wouldn't have to work with Craig on the research on the case study, but it that was painful, just as you know, hear where you started out like, oh, okay, I'm glad I've grown up a little bit.

Bri Harvie  
That's fair. We found our groove.

Matt Markin  
But yeah, I mean, I've just enjoyed it. And then, you know, I was like, knowing you, I was like, I got to do something with Bri. And so I'm glad that this worked out for emerging voices. And then the pickup meeting. Was like, Kevin and Brody are just awesome, awesome guys. And so I was like, they have some wonderful conversations. I would love to produce something for them.

Bri Harvie  
How do you find time for this? Is this something that you find like it doesn't so when I think of like, outside of your regular job stuff, there's things that drain your battery and things that fill your cup. Is this a cup filler for you?

Matt Markin  
It depends on the day. You know, I don't get paid for this. You don't get paid for this either. And so it's more for fun. But to you know, we, we know it's important job to get these stories out, and we know people listen to these podcasts, and we know people are learning from it. So it's like, Let's keep it going. And I think that's kind of like the drive for me to keep doing it, but I am very conscientious of like, okay, my I want to make sure I still have my time to have my mental rest. But I also kind of think of like when I when I'm editing episodes and the audio and all of that. It's a little bit therapeutic for me as well, because it lets me kind of focus on one thing versus having my brain think about 1000 other things that I got to do. But yeah, so right now, everything's good, but I always tell people, like at the at the point I know, like, I am burnt out, then I know that's the time to quit, or at least take a risk.

Bri Harvie  
Yeah, that's fair. That seems like a good boundary to set right up the case.

Matt Markin  
But I want to ask you, because you know, you've been doing heck of a lot of things in NACADA, like a lot of leadership stuff, like you could, like, after even cycling off as region chair. You've continued on in the leadership role, and then even going into the consulting portion of things for NACADA. So I'm interested to kind of learn from you more about how that's all gone.

Bri Harvie  
It's, you know what? It's had its ups and downs, if we're gonna be totally honest. It has its challenges, for sure, and I mean, I'm still doing it, and like podcasting, I don't get paid for it, so it must be going okay, because I keep, I keep signing up for more. But it's so I started on the steering committee in 2017 on the region eight steering committee as an interim over the liaison. At that point. It was 2017 in November. Was my first meeting. So right after the annual conference, I don't remember where it was. I didn't go that year, and I was, like, 400 months pregnant and starting off the steering committee, and then used NACADA to kind of keep my foot in the advising world while it's on my maternity leave. And I'm going to rub this in just a scooch, but being from Canada, we get a year. And so I really, I really value the work that I do, and I didn't want to lose it entirely for a year. So NACADA gave me that kind of, that just, just a little window into what's going on in the advice coral while I was off with my tiny human. And then it just one thing kind of morphed into another. And I ended up staying on a second term as provincial liaison, and then I ended up as region chair. And it's just it's been wild. And I think being region chair, first of all, I started region chair during covid. So that was a lot just at the end of covid, but it was, it was a hard time to be in a professional development world, because we, there was not a lot, a lot of people really got you the in person connection, and you couldn't do it. And so it was trying to get as much of the same good things out of virtual offerings, which is never as great, but it was fine. And then at that same time I spent I signed up to be an emerging leader. I was a mentee in the Emerging Leaders Program, right? That was literally that started in 2020 and then I became region chair about a year in, which was also hilarious, because I was having trouble goal setting in covid, and we were at all ELP meetings, and I was sharing that I was having trouble, having trouble coming up with some goals. And somebody was like, Well, I'm just going for Region chair. And I was like, Yeah, right. And then and then I did, and it was great. It was wild. It's, it's I learned a lot. And then coming out of being region chair, I wanted to kind of keep my foot in that, in that world, in the cattle leadership, and so that's when I ran for the regional division rep on the NACADA Council, and that's where I am right now. And I think it the ups and downs that come with it are that I really value the work and I love the people, the people that get involved in the kind of leadership aren't there for any reason other than being passionate about the work that we do. Where the downs come in is that it's tricky being the only Canadian on the NACADA Council and kind of trying to balance not being the token Canadian and not being the person that's just always like, but also making sure that Canadian members have a voice, and that is, it can feel like a lot at times, being both of those things, depending on, depending on what we're discussing, like, which hat do you have to wear? There's a lot of bouncing back and forth, and I, I value it, but it is challenging at times. And through all of this, I'm now also a mentor in the Emerging Leaders Program, which has been a hoot as always. And then, you know, just this last year, I was like, I should do this consulting thing. I really, I really like so you like your clusters. I really like doing, like your concurrent lecture style presentations. I like the research that goes into them. I love presenting, which is a hilarious thing for an introvert to say, but I do, and I was asked to do the keynote at last year's Region eight, nine conference in Alaska, and just had the best time. And I was like, Well, this is something I really enjoy doing, and I got decent feedback on it, like, definitely some room for improvement, but people seemed to like what I had to say. I was like, Really, I should do this more. And so I applied for NACADA consulting, and was accepted kind of early summer this year. And so there hasn't been a lot that's come out of it since then, but I'm excited for the opportunity to me to go do some reviews with some folks. I've done reviews in my in my day job before, and see, see what kind of speaking gigs come up. Yeah, it's, it's great. I love it. It's kind of my, like, little side hustle gig that I really it gives me a lot of, a lot of joy.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, and I don't know how it works with like, the administrator assessment Institute, but I could see you being a faculty member on on those for NACADA.

Bri Harvie  
I have no idea how that works, yeah.

Matt Markin  
I mean, if you want something else to add to your plate, yeah. I'm just thinking. At the time of this recording, I just been seeing a lot of like social media posts from NACADA about the institutes and some of the faculty now that they're highlighting, and I'm like, I could totally see Bri on this.

Bri Harvie  
Oh, interesting. Well, now I have to look into it. I think you do. It's and I don't even know where to start, so I'm gonna have to ask somebody, because I've been seeing those on LinkedIn too. A lot of people being like, this is why I'm faculty. I.

Matt Markin  
Let me ask you this as an introvert, you know, because, like, you like to present. I like to present, but I'm one where, like, leading up to it, that's when I start getting the nerves. And I'm like, you know, so, like, the day of even, like podcast recordings, like, I'll do a little prayer in the corner, like, I hope that, you know, the Wi Fi cuts out, and then we have to reschedule. Like, how are you let me go up on stage for the keynote, or let me go up to do my concurrent session? Are you just, like, I just got to do it and I built up my energy for it? Or there's still, like, the I wish I could back out at the last second.

Bri Harvie  
You know what? It's the one thing that I don't get that I wish I could back out in the last second for anything else. Like, there is nothing better than canceled dinner plans on a snowy day, like, I just want to stay home, and you're like, Oh no, that's so sad, and I'm already in my sweat pants and put my slippers on and get ready. But I don't get that before speaking. I just love doing it. And I don't get the nerves I get, like the anxious energy, but it's not a nervous energy. I think it comes from I grew up dancing. I did a lot of performing and competing in that world, and then my undergrad was in vocal performance, and so I think I just learned the tools early to be able to kind of master those nerves and channel them into energy. And it's, I don't know, it just it's a hilarious thing to experience, because I get so much energy from doing it, and I really feed off of the energy of the audience. And then as soon as it's done, I'm like, now I need to go hide in a dark closet for like, an hour, and that'll be fine again, but it's like a roller coaster of, like, I get such a high out of it, and then I just crash hard after so I don't get the nerves. It's more of an after effect. It's interesting seeing, kind of where people are at when they're at conferences, and where different people's energies kind of at a low. Like, I know a lot of people don't like the morning sessions because people are still just waking up. I love doing morning sessions because I like to wake people up. And some people really like doing those smaller sessions towards the end of the conference. And so it is. It's interesting from a presenting perspective, but also interesting from an attending perspective, just to see kind of where where people are sitting. I did. I went to one, yeah, I was in Vegas, and it was hilarious, and it was great. And it was towards the end of the day, and it was Halloween themed. And it was the only Halloween themed presentation I saw the entire time. And every like they commented. They were like, we expected everybody to be doing Halloween, and I think even having like, it was towards the end of the day, they were coming at it with a very vulnerable like. We thought everybody was going to have like, and nobody did. So we're the only ones, and sharing even that energy of like, oh my god, can you imagine the lead up to your presentation when you're seeing no ghosts, knowing that you have all ghosted Hopkins? Towards the end of the conference, and just being honest, if they were like, This is throwing a throw loop, but we're gonna do our garden list, and it was great. And just, I think having them share too, like this isn't what we expected, made the audience and the attendees feel more like, okay, so I can be who I need to be right now, I can just go, or I can engage, or whatever. So I say talk about it too, if you have that room, but five people be like, Whoa. This is not at all what I prepared for. So let's bring it together and see what happens.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, and you just got to adapt on the fly, speaking of, you know, presenting and maybe tying into collaborations and kind of like our friendship and how we've been able to collaborate with our similar interests and have fun at the same time. And that was when at the region eight, nine conference in Alaska with Thomas Shelly and we got to chat about what else pop culture, Star Wars and Star Trek and how that connects to academic advising.

Bri Harvie  
This is it was one of my favorite presentations I've ever done. When I think about and I talk about the bajillions of presentations I've done over years, over the years, that one always comes to mind because it was just so niche. It's so wild, and I love telling the story of how it started, and so I'm going to share it now, but I it's just oh my gosh. I could talk about that one presentation for days. We were in Orlando at annual conference, and there was this random cage full of tiny hinges, and it was where Thomas and I always met, because Thomas and I, I was finishing up as region chair. He was coming in as region chair. He'd been an organ liaison and heading our mentorship program. And we just, we got to be really close through Nakata, and we were hanging out. And I think we had just gotten back from we went for a walk trying to see if we could find any animators. And we've been. Um, you're just hanging out with the bird page, and you came by and I knew who you were, this is. And Thomas was like, what was bad? You should chat. And Thomas said something about how you were also a Trekkie, and that just like, launched me into a tirade, and we ended up standing there talking forever about Star Trek and Star Wars, which is hilarious because Thomas doesn't know them, and so he wasn't just standing there like, I don't, why am I here? This is ridiculous. And then we joke about how, what if we did a presentation, and that led to the presentation, and I, I love getting to do it. It was also like, wasn't that one at like, 830 in the morning one day, like, that was so early.

Matt Markin  
Oh yeah, it was like, first session the morning.

Bri Harvie  
Yeah, so gross. But you want to get me really excited. Let me talk about advising and start, but all at the same time that will wake me up. But like sharing something so niche with a room full of people that are like, You know what I get what they're saying. And this is really awesome, and it was so much fun and hilariously moderated by Thomas, who was like, I don't know what any of these words are, and I think some of them might be made up. And it's, oh, my God. It was great. And it's like that brought us closer together, and now we're doing a podcast, and we have a presentation that we proposed for this year's eight, nine. Look, it's it's crazy, and it's so great how collaboration can happen through presentations and like across the continent, and we can still present on the same stuff.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, yeah. Or even going further to say, like, just randomly running into one another and then having a conversation, and that sparks. Oh, pop culture. Oh, we have that in common. Oh, how can we make this a presentation? Yeah, we're healthy, but now we're serious at the same time. So this is advice to anyone, yeah, just run with any ideas, throw all your ideas against the wall and see what sticks, and have absolute fun with it. And even if you think it's something niche, who cares? There's probably other people at a conference that are going to want to whether they want to learn about advising, if they just want to talk about Star Trek or Star Wars. Hey, you have people that are going to it absolutely.

Bri Harvie  
And it's we, I feel like, as we feel like a lot of what we like is niche, but there's, there's a lot of really niche people.

Matt Markin  
I mean, I think we proved that in Alaska, pretty decent showing up at eight, eight something in the morning.

Bri Harvie  
Yes, I did. And I love getting the feedback and hearing what other people learned from that particular one. My favorite piece of feedback was the one that was just like, I didn't know anything about Star Trek or Star Wars, so maybe this wasn't the session for me, and I laughed when you read it probably wasn't that what I think you don't like solid threes across the board, 305, myself, that's fine, but also a hilarious choice for somebody who doesn't know anything about Star Trek or Star Wars and doesn't really want to, but lots of great feedback about, like, how you can make it into a paper, or how we can make it into another presentation. Like the learning that comes out of it, from a presenter's experience is also always, always really amazing.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, well, I mean, of course, by the time this episode comes out, I mean, annual conference proposal deadlines are already passed, but this could be something, whether we want to submit it as a poster or as a concurrent session for annual.

Bri Harvie  
Oh, my God, we should totally do as a poster. That would be the most. I would totally cut things out and and put them on my trifle,

Matt Markin  
perfect, perfect. What? So, of course, is this being emerging voices? You know, we were both emerging leaders and now finishing up our last year as mentors. What? Made you originally apply as an emerging leader?

Bri Harvie  
I, you know, I feel like to a certain or at a certain level or to a certain extent, I really just, I knew I wanted to get more involved in leadership, and I didn't know how to do it. I felt like, and this is I know something a lot of people see in NACADA, but it's a lot of the same people, like, you know the people that are on the board, and you know the people that are on the council, and so you know kind of who's heading into which positions, and I didn't know how to get how to get my name out there, and how to become more known, or if that was the right place for me. And so it really, it came from an interest in trying to understand more about how NACADA leadership worked. Now, what made it hilarious was when I was applying, they have to write a letter and talk about your NACADA experience. And I was like. I'm already super involved, so do I need to do this? And I was like, I'll throw my name in, and was accepted. It was great. And I think that's one of the great things about the ELP program, is I was already very, very involved in the region level, but I didn't know anything about the administrative division, the advising communities division, and so it helped me kind of see where I could fit in those places as well. And I think that was, I don't know if it was conscious or subconscious, but I definitely think I just needed to learn more about what NACADA leadership looks like. And it was a very last minute especially, just threw my name into the hat. Was like, I don't know. We'll see what happens. But How about how about you? Because you were before me. You were the, yeah.

Matt Markin  
I was 20 the 2017 cohort. 2017 to 2019 Yeah. I feel like mine was a little opposite. Where I applied, I applied early, but I originally thought Nakata was just conferences like that. That's what they did. You go to conferences, you learn, or maybe you present as well. And so I got, like, the presentation bug in like 2015 when I did my first poster session. And I was like, I got to keep coming back to these conferences. And then at some point, my now director was like, is that all NACADA does is conferences. You know that that's great if they do, but because I would always keep asking, if I go to the next conference, can I go the next conference? And I would always, you know, get accepted for presentation. And he's like, this is great, you know, but I feel like you've, you've kind of mastered this already, you know, there's always something to present on, but, you know, go on their website, go look at see what else NACADA has to offer. And then I kind of stumbled upon the Emerging Leaders Program, you know, then I sent it to him. I was like, What do you think about this? And he was like, yeah, why don't you apply for it? And then I was like, Oh, really, should I was hoping he was gonna say no. And so then I, you know, I submit it, and I get the email going, like, congrats, you got in. And then that's where it kind of hit of like, Oh, crap, okay, I'm really doing this. I felt the imposter syndrome, not just then, but it really hit when I went to orientation. And it was at the was that no whatever 2017 conference was, but we go in there and it seemed like a lot of the emerging leaders knew each other and also knew some of the potential mentors. And I didn't know one person. I knew some of them, like you had Jennifer Joslin. I was like, Oh my God, that's a star in NACADA.

Bri Harvie  
Oh my god, yeah, legend.

Matt Markin  
Right, exactly. And it's like, Oh, my God, these could be potential mentors. I know I like, when we had we had to do, I don't know if you ended up having to do this, but it was like, kind of like the dating game kind of thing, where, yes, yes, you have, like, five or 10 minutes with each mentor, and you're basically, kind of sell yourself. And I remember John Sauter was one of the potential mentors, and I had, like, Googled before going to the conference, like, what? What could be questions to ask potential mentors? And one of them was like, How can I help you with maybe something you're doing? And so I asked that question to John, and he was like, I don't think that's how it's supposed to go. And I was like, died inside. John's one of the nicest people ever is just like, when you meet him and kind of like that, you It was like, ooh.

Matt Markin  
But yeah. I mean, I know, looking back, I kind of regret not trying to get as more involved getting to know a lot of the other emerging leaders and mentors. But that was just, I think it was just me, just being super shy and just feeling like I'm not I shouldn't be here, because everyone had these goals of like, I want to be chair, I want to be president, or I want to do this, and I'm like, I'm just happy to be a NACADA. I'm just trying to figure out what NACADA has to offer, and then I'll try to find, like, what interests me. And that was, like, a year and a half journey, kind of figuring all that out. So I feel like I was a late bloomer, like a lot of stuff happened after emerging leaders was done.

Bri Harvie  
done, but it probably still happened because of, in some ways, not all absolutely, right, yeah. But I think that's the, one of the great things about NACADA, about the Emerging Leaders Program, is, even if you don't see the benefits while you're in it, you'll still benefit afterwards. And it's, I know, it's a critique then, like, how to get sometimes about being kind of clicky. And I don't think that it's clicky. I think it's just that people really care about other people. And if you're willing to kind of have your name thrown out there into the wind, people will champion you and support you and figure out how to keep you involved in whatever way makes no sense for you. And it's, it's one of my. Favorite things about ELP, and I encourage everybody to do it, but it's, it's just about meeting those people.

Matt Markin  
Oh yeah, and, but I yeah, I definitely feel like there was still the connection piece. Like, as much I didn't you know, get to know everybody, like Wendy Schindler was one of the emerging leaders in the cohort I was in, and she introduced me to Craig McGill. And, I mean, and that has spawned various, you know, projects with him, in a friendship with him. So, I mean, that's, you know, one example. But, yeah, I feel like it was definitely still worth it. I wish i i was not as shy and tried to, you know, do more things during my time as an emerging leader, but, but I think it gave me the foundation to kind of help me be brave, to do things afterwards, which is kind of why I think I ended up applying as a mentor, because I felt like I wanted to go full circle. And, you know, yes, as much as I've tried to give back within Nakata, like this could be another way to give back within the Emerging Leaders Program, as much as it helped me as an emerging leader.

Bri Harvie  
What has your being a mentor experience been like? I know we're like, a year into it now, but how has that been for you?

Matt Markin  
Oh, it I feel it's been great. So, you know, they I still trying to figure out how to describe the pods kind of thing. I just look at it like, look, we have six mentors and 12 emerging leaders. And each mentor is assigned to two mentees, two emerging leaders. So I got Brandon Lewis, who's an online academic advisor at U Albany, and Jing Yao an academic advisor at the University of British Columbia. And however, Joan and the team kind of designate who is connected to which mentor, whatever formula they use. I feel like it works, because I feel like I've been able to connect with Brandon and Jing. We feel like as a group, we meet monthly or try to meet monthly, but there was still kind of like that imposter syndrome of like, okay, am I really? Should I really be a mentor? Because I don't have, like, the title, like, I, I'm not an administrator of any sort. I don't want to be. But I've just been in the game for a long time, and it so far. I mean, yeah, a year in, I feel like it's, it's been a great connection with them. One thing we've been doing over the last few months is we have our monthly meeting, but about half of the time in the meeting we bring in, like, I'll bring in a guest speaker for them to kind of build network, yeah. So they get to learn from someone else that's within NACADA or NACADA adjacent. They get to ask them questions, and then at the end, it'll be like, hey, and then are you okay if they connect with you on LinkedIn? So now they can kind of build out their network, not just with the Nakata, but also, like, officially on social media as well. So yeah, I mean, so far, they've had Brody Broshears and Kevin Thomas talked with them, Quentin Alexander, which, that's actually a great example for Brandon, because Quentin spoke. He was our first guest speaker. And both Brandon gene connected with with with Quentin, and Quentin was talking about the pre conference he was going to do at the annual conference. And Gene was like, I would love to have that PowerPoint after you do it. And, like, the next day after Quentin presented, emailed it to Jing, and then Brandon connected with Quentin, and they ended up working together to create a men of color social at the annual conference. Oh, I saw that, yeah, so cool. And the pictures I saw they had, they end up having like, three or so tables full of individuals for that social. And by far, from what I understand, it was the largest of the socials that went on during that time.

Bri Harvie  
Awesome. So good. It's, yeah, it's, I think that networking piece is amazing, and I love that idea, and I'm totally gonna steal it as well. We have been not as consistent in meeting, which is 100% finished, and I have found that imposter piece is huge, right? Like it is wild. I sit down so the two mentees I have in my talk are Carol Erwin and Sarah Davis, and I sit down with them, and I'm like, about all of these things. And I like the last time we met, and maybe this is just a Canadian in me coming out, but they were talking about very us things in advising. And I just like, sat there and was just like, this is fun. I am definitely helping you a lot right now, but we've had opportunities to connect to other people and do some of that networking, and they both want to get a little bit into writing, which I have some experience in. And so like, this is this? Still great to have, but like it is, I didn't feel impostery is a mentee, I feel so impostery as a mentor. I'm just like, I don't can I? Can we switch roles? Like, could one of you please? Because I feel like I want to be you when I grow up, not the other way around.

Matt Markin  
No, I still feel like that imposter syndrome. But I think for for me, what's helped has been having those guest speakers. Because I was like, I may not have all the all the answers, or, you know, have been in similar situations as Brandon and Jing, but I've been in this game for a long time. I know a lot of people. Why don't I just bring them, bring their voice, and have them chat with them. One of them we actually had was Maria, who's one of the current emerging leaders. And I was like, why don't you, yeah, come to our meeting. You could be our guest speaker, but also Jing and Brandon can share their knowledge of being a year in the program. And so they kind of got to mentor Maria for a little bit during that one hour meeting. Very cool. Yeah, so it's a great way. I was like, Yeah. As much as you're learning from from these guest speakers, you have something to say too, so you can now share this information with them.

Bri Harvie  
I think that's really valuable. And I know that's how Thomas, when Thomas Shelly was building up our the region eight mentorship program, that's why he ended up calling it a learning partner. A learning partnership, because it's not actually about a mentor and a mentee, it's we can all learn everybody. And I think as much as the Up program isn't structured that way, it still happens 100% at the time. But I think there's something valuable, especially in a regional level mentorship program where it is a little bit smaller, it's a little bit less formal. I having it developed and structured as a partnership program. You don't have to feel like you have to be the expert. Is a great like a gateway drug into mentorship programs, right? Like it's the easy start of gentle start into now I can feel like I can do ELP, because I know what's expected, and it's I mean, being a mentor, I've learned more from the mentees than I ever would have imagined, and from the other mentors too, right? Like it's, it's just a great way to make connections. I I just, I think everybody should do it. 

Matt Markin  
And whether it's like, you know, let maybe I don't feel I want to jump into ELP yet, like, maybe your region has a mentoring program, and maybe you can be mentored for a year by someone, and then maybe you feel like, okay, now I want to learn more and expand NACADA and be part of the leadership in NACADA. Yeah. Then jump on board for emerging leaders. It's funny, like, you know, we keep mentioning Thomas Shelly. He was one where, like, a couple years ago, I was like, you know, we both were suggesting, like, apply for the Emerging Leaders Program. I think at this point he'd be good as as a mentor, yeah, no longer Emerging Leader, apply as a man. 

Bri Harvie  
That man does more of his own volition than anybody else. I know he Yeah, because he the first time you talk about joining, he hadn't been in a kind of member long enough, and so he's like, Well, I'll just give it a year. And in that year, he became a liaison region chair. He's the chair of the community. Like, he just, like, took over the world, right? Like, okay, well now maybe don't be a mentor for mentee. And it's, I mean, I think that's the, one of the really great things about in general, too, though he can just jump into things and go figure it out, and like, you didn't have to go through being a mentee to be able to do all these great things. And there's, there's so many different opportunities, and I feel like a lot of people say no or don't put their hand up because they're worried, well, what if I don't know what to do? Like, let's be honest, none of us know what we're doing ever you should ask to ask the right people and or ask somebody, and they will find you the right people.

Matt Markin  
Well, I think we're two good examples, different stories of like, we both decided to apply. I applied early. You applied towards the end, before the deadline, but you kind of already had an idea of things that you may have wanted to throw in. And I was like, I'm just still trying to figure things out. But we both did it. Luckily, we both got accepted. And look where we're look where we're at now, mom, you know, right, look what I did. Oh, 100% and I think our journeys too, it's like, you know, at this point too, like, you're, you're doing more with the NACADA. I've kind of stepped back. I kind of, and that's where I kind of got burned out from a few things within NACADA leadership. Loved the experience in it. But I'm like, You know what? I kind of need to step back. I'll kind of be NACADA adjacent and do stuff, and that's gonna, you know, keep my cup full. Maybe at some point I'll go back, but who knows?

Bri Harvie  
And that's the great thing about NACADA. You can't step back and then jump back in again. And it's like using the two of us as an example too. We both started in the same place, in. Being like, let's let's do ELP. Mine was literally like, 11 o'clock. That's just who I am as a person, but we both went through the exact same program, and are the categories have been so different, careers have been so different, and we can still connect and talk about, like, I feel like I could talk to you for years, and it would be the world's longest podcast, and we could still connect and chat because of that shared connection of NACADA, right? Like, that's what the kind of free for is. It does. It connects people, even if they have very different, different lives, different careers, different dreams, different everything.

Matt Markin  
Yeah, wow. I feel like this actually coming up on time. This actually is a great way to end this episode. And so anyone listening and you made it this far, congrats. Season Two of the podcast. It might be more like this. So we're actually for season two, interviewing the mentors in the 2024 to 2026 cohort. Maybe there's a few other surprises, but for sure, this will be a shorter season. Please go to Season One. Listen to all the mentees. 11 of our mentees are emerging leaders in the 2024 to 2026 cohort. But yeah, you get to hear from the mentors. Hear our stories, and we got plenty more coming up. But Bree should be great. This has been fun.

Bri Harvie  
This has been so much fun for the best.