Friday, March 24, 2017

an interesting twist in the career path

You know, it's funny how things can change at the drop of a hat.

I had recently accepted a position with a company I considered a dream company of mine. One that is a well-known and prominent fixture in the publishing world. The position itself was not quite where I wanted to be, but it would have been a foot in the door to possibly where I would want to get to. I wasn't quite sure if it would have been the best role for me, but I wanted to give it a chance, with the understanding that there would have been growth within the company.

When I first began my job search, I immediately jumped at the chance to apply for the position with my former company that stood out and made me excited and hopeful. At the time, it was a position that had not been created yet, and I wasn't sure if it would be. For months, there was no news and while budgets were still being decided upon, as it goes when companies create positions.

Once I knew things were not progressing the way I needed them to for my own personal life, I amped up my job search, my follow-up became persistent to a fault, and my phone was consistently in my hand, applying to every job I could and reaching out to as many contacts as possible. This is where my contact with the 'dream company' came into play. After months of connecting, we finally got to a point to where I was offered a role.

Literally a few days later, my former recruiter with my former company phoned, with the unbelievable offer I had been waiting for. Doing the pros and cons, I came to the difficult decision that my best choice, professionally and personally, was to accept the offer that came from my former company. It offers great work-life balance, the pay makes my life much easier and much more stable, and the job itself does offer a more independent and social aspect that I feel I will really enjoy and do well at.

Throughout my career search, I have come to the realization of the intersection of my interests and goals quite often. Part of me still dreams that one day I will be some phenomenal editor of a publishing house or magazine empire, crafting publications that impact and offers pieces that provoke conversation. And a big part of me is coming to the realization how much I love helping people, communicating with them and making them feel that they can depend on me. I ADORE that feeling. It was one of the most enjoyable parts of my last position, and I loved every time I would be reaffirmed that my work ethic was coming through.

I graduated college barely less than a year ago. I know I am still in the infancy of my career choices, and I have plenty of time to figure it all out. But right now, I'm so excited to tackle this next hurdle. It's quite a curious thing when you go to school for one thing, and once you're out in the professional world, those goals can shift. And that's perfectly ok. You never know what amazing opportunities might happen when you start looking beyond the comfort and limits of your degree. Taking that job that might not necessarily be in the field you went to school for could end up being just as much of a dream, if not, better than what you originally thought it would be.

I hope I'm not the only one who thinks this way! Let me know if anyone out there has had a situation like this!

Thursday, March 16, 2017

filling in the blanks / 002

Since my time being unemployed with a wide-open schedule is coming to an end, I figured why not have some fun and do a post of some good ole fashioned fill in the blanks.

1. Something near and dear to my heart is the desire to do something good, whether it be for a person, an animal, or an organization.

2. A promotion, a beautiful day, or even just because is good cause to celebrate.

3.  The most fun I ever had was studying abroad in London for a summer semester, experiencing the places I've always wanted to go and seeing all the art I could have dreamed of seeing in person.

4. True friends are the kind of people who, no matter what's going on, you can call up even if it's been a while and they'll be there for you as if it's been a minute since the last time you spoke, the kind that let you be your messy self and yet still think you're amazing, and definitely the kind of people who you can pour a glass of wine for and share a laugh with always.

5. Something that makes me terribly happy is when I get to spend time traveling and adventuring with Ashley, bonus points if it's a beautiful day and I get to be creative at some point.

6. A good way to spend a sunny day is having a beer with friends outside on a patio somewhere, be it a restaurant with a rooftop deck or a brewery with dogs and cornhole. I advocate for sunny days to be celebration days.

7. My favorite celebratory food is pasta and wine, particularly anything with bubbles. I've been on a rosé kick lately, and I have to say it is a delightful and splendid way to celebrate anything!

8. When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I do is look at my phone. It's awful, I know, but if Ashley isn't awake yet or she's already left for class, I like to catch up on the news and my notifications. When I have work in the morning, however, I usually hit snooze once or twice before hopping up and quickly getting ready for the day.

9. I can hardly wait for my sister's baby shower next month and my wedding in October! It keeps getting closer and closer and while we have a lot of things accomplished, we still have a lot to polish off in terms of contracts. Hopefully within the next month or so, we will have everything signed, sealed, and ready. My sister, on the other hand, is due at the end of May, and I've been a busy bee over here trying to finish making her decorations and presents.

10. The quickest way to my heart is by making me laugh because I feel laughter is absolutely the best medicine. Of course, sharing similar world views is also important, but having someone who can brighten the room with a laugh, good mood or not, is key.

11. A little known fact about me is the fact that I've broken my left thumb before. The day of 2nd grade orientation I stuck my thumb in our faulty dryer (it would still spin if the door was open), looking for a towel for our above-ground pool (we were really cool in the 90's, guys) and my grandmother's Japanese quilt caught my thumb, wrapped around it, and I completely destroyed my nailbed and broke it in three places. I had to have reconstructive surgery on it, including having a pin put in it, I wore a cast for 6 weeks from knuckles to biceps, and then had to undergo PT to regain mobility in my thumb. All because I wanted to grab a towel to go swimming.

12. Something I just couldn't live without is music. I've been to numerous music festivals, plenty of concerts, and I maintain a subscription to Spotify. It speaks to my soul in ways other things just don't do. It's the motivation that gets my creative juices flowing easily. And there is still nothing better than driving somewhere with the windows down and the music way up.

13. Something useful I wish I knew how to do is speak a second language fluently, or have the talent to successfully cook a grilled cheese sandwich without burning it. My timing is awful. As for the language, I took many years of Spanish, and I understand it enough to get me by somewhere, but I'm not fluent in the least.

14. If I had to classify my interior design aesthetic, it would be eclectic with hints of rustic and modern. My brother-in-law made our coffee table, it's stained reclaimed wood with black pipes for the legs, and I adore it so much, I want to design our entire household around it. But I also love IKEA, those clean lines and if it's grey in any way, done. Ultimately, if Joanna Gaines and Jillian Harris could design my house for me, I'd be sold.

15. If I had an extra $100 to spend on whatever I want, I would buy a bottle of rosé, an item or two off my closet wishlist to wear to work, and probably spend the rest at Target buying myself whatever sounds wonderful.

So there you go! I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and enjoy your St. Patrick's Day weekend! I know I'll be having a cold Guinness tomorrow to celebrate :)

finally, good news

I have to admit, I wasn't sure this day would come entirely, but I had hope it would work out for me.

Throughout my college career, I often was reminded of just how exclusive and uniquely selective my field can be. Never have I been more aware of the phrase, "cannot get a job without experience, but cannot obtain experience without a job," than attempting to job search in the English field. The market is saturated with writers, bloggers, editors, copywriters, and more, and few are eager to take a chance on someone fresh out of college with the right degree but lacking in years of experience. It's been trying.

However, if I have learned anything from this job search here, it has absolutely been the value of connections. Early on in my search, I connected with someone in HR at the company I dreamed to work for. I maintained contact, I followed-up, I was persistent to the point of borderline annoyance. But this all showed my determination to become part of the company. It showed my persistence to show my passion and my skills.

Lo and behold, this position did in fact come through, much to my extreme happiness, and I am now happily employed! And within my field to boot! I cannot describe how wonderful this feeling is to finally feel I have purpose here. I am beyond excited to roll up my sleeves and get to work.

I plan to update some more when I can, so please be on the lookout for more to come!
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