Meet Sarah Miller | Director of Strategic Partnerships for International Justice Mission

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarah Miller and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
I used to think of work life balance simply as the amount of hours I worked in the day verses the amount of free time I had for my personal life. However, over the years I’ve started to change my view on this because it doesn’t feel 100% right. For instance, I have had jobs where I was able to easily clock in and clock out without bringing any work home at the end of the day, which, by my previous definition, means I had great work life balance. However, I didn’t feel fulfilled or like my work had meaning in several of these jobs, and I always felt drained at the end of the day. This feeling bled into my personal life, too. A quote from Adam Grant, an Organizational Psychologist, changed my perspective on work life balance:

“Work-life balance sets the bar too low. No one grows up dreaming of a job that doesn’t interfere with their life. We hope to spend our waking hours doing work that enriches our lives. A toxic job drains you. A decent job sustains you. A healthy job invigorates you. Work-life balance sets the bar too low.”

This feels more true to me. When I’m passionate about a meaningful job, such as the one I’m in now with International Justice Mission, my work is life-giving and energizing, and this brings me more energy both during the work day and in my personal life.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I began my career as a Director of Strategic Partnerships for International Justice Mission after many years of twists and turns that ultimately brought me to my dream job. I learned about the reality of modern day slavery, and the fact that there are more slaves today than any other time in history, back in college. The second I knew, my heart broke, and I couldn’t look away. I knew I needed to figure out how to help, and how to pursue the fight to end slavery as a career.

Immediately after college, I moved to Washington, D.C. to intern for International Justice Mission (IJM), the largest anti-slavery organization in the world. It was an incredibly impactful experience, and I knew my dream would be to work for IJM full-time one day. However, I wasn’t sure exactly what my specific career would be yet, so I went down a path of learning what I’m good at, what I enjoy, and how I can best serve others. This took me to graduate school at Notre Dame where I earned my Master’s in Education and also taught in an under-resourced school for several years. Then, I worked for six years in educational technology sales which ultimately gave me the experience I needed to transition over to IJM full-time in the Director of Strategic Partnerships role.

In my role, I get to walk alongside our generous partners in Houston, Austin, and surrounding areas who are passionate about social justice and generously fund our operations. Because of them, we are able to continue to rescue and protect people on a global scale from forms of slavery like sex trafficking, the online sexual exploitation of children, and forced labor. Basically, I get to meet with world-changers every day who are faithfully stewarding their funds to save lives. A dream job, indeed!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Oh wow, what a fun question! Well, I love Tex-Mex, so we’d definitely grab food at Escalante’s, El Tiempo, and/or Ninfa’s. Caffeine would also be necessary for a busy weekend, so we’d stop by one of my favorite coffee shops like A 2nd Cup, Paper Co. Cafe, Siphon, or Antidote. If it was baseball season, we’d absolutely have to go to an Astros game and then celebrate the inevitable Astros win at one of my favorite bars like Spring Street, Eight Row Flint, or Heights Bier Garten. Another favorite hobby of mine is going to Theatre Under the Stars shows at the Hobby Center, so I’d make sure to add that to our itinerary, too. If we were lucky, a festival might even be going on downtown that weekend. My personal favorite is the Bayou City Art Festival! The opportunities for fun in Houston are limitless, so I’ll stop there but could easily talk all day about all of the exciting things to do here.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’ve always been passionate about pursuing a career in social justice, and my family is a big reason why. For instance, my dad was a formidable lawyer who always fought for those in need, and my mom is a licensed therapist and school counselor who has a compassionate heart for all. My grandparents were all forces to be reckoned with, too. For instance, one of my grandparents, “Gra Gra”, was an activist for several causes such as women’s prison reform, and I loved hearing her stories growing up. I would be remiss if I didn’t also thank my brother for inspiring me to pursue social justice as a career and helping talk me through any doubts or worries I had along the way. Those are just to name a few, as the people who’ve inspired me to pursue social justice as a career, and helped me in my path along the way, are endless!

Website: https://www.ijm.org/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahmiller224/