Faithful readers, I am back! I apologize for disappearing. Moving and setting up has proven more time-consuming than I had anticipated. Onward to the blog post.
This is a blog about making magic and in this blog I will be talking about the magic of the moment.
Recently, I have started to actually focus on a career rather than a job. I graduated from Campbell University in 2006 with a degree in Biology, minoring in Computer Information Systems. One would think I had the whole world spread out in front of me, just waiting for me to pluck the right opportunity. Sadly, however, between fate having other plans for me, and me having my head firmly planted up my ass, this did not happen. I worked 2 part time retail jobs simultaneously for a few months before getting a temp gig at a biotech company in Durham, NC. After some contemplation and in light of at the time recent events and revelations in my life, I chose to move to Western Washington after hearing about the South Lake Union biotech hub in Seattle. I had job interviews lined up and I was ready to roll. That is until the economic downfall crashed squarely into the West Coast. I was falling into (more) debt and clung to the first job I got, which was in a call center. I worked there for a few months then went on to work for TSA. Yes. Those security screeners at the airport. That TSA. That experience was bittersweet. I met a lot of interesting and amazing people at that job, but at the same time I was spinning my wheels. I didn't seem to be able to advance and I really just wasn't cut out for the job. Being a snarky, aloof academic is apparently bad for customer service. I quit the job and was unemployed for 4 months before taking another temp gig at a biotech company in Seattle called Dendreon. This reignited my desire to work in the biotechnology field. Now, it was very easy for me to sit back and say that I'd effectively wasted the last four and a half years, and that thought still nags at the back of my brain. However, I came to a conclusion this week. The past is the past. That is just time wasted. Waste needs to be thrown out to make room for good stuff. It's time to cultivate the good in my life and yours. What waste are you holding on to? How is it stopping you from making magic?
Welcome back! Moving is always a pain the ass.
ReplyDeleteI think the thing about having work/events/and situations in our lives where we feel like we aren't living up to our own magic are actually good for us. It's next to impossible to make magic all the time, but having periods where we just aren't at all helps us to narrow and define our focus. That way, when we're able to, we can discard all the bad stuff and move on with our lives. (A friend of mine referred to this stage as "Taking out the trash".)
Also, the skills I've learned at one job I can sometimes apply to another one somehow. I never thought that, as an artist, I would need to use things I learned about basic (very, very basic) HTML would come in handle. Or that having worked as an administrative assistant would make me such an efficient production artist. But they've helped tremendously!
At the moment I would say what's holding me back would be fear. Fear of failure, fear of wasting my time, fear of rejection, etc. Looking at my fears objectively helps me see that they really are...stupid. ha! So I try to keep that in mind as much as I can. It's a work in progress. ;)
Hey! I'm right there with you. Getting situated (already moved but getting situated is an on going process) is serious. For me its easy to look back and say that the past was a waste but I have to remind myself that even if I was not doing then what I want to be doing now... that "wasted time" helped to get me to the places that I ultimately want to be... so its not really wasted. I've been trying to look at the bad stuff in a different light (like: "stuff not to do again" or "fodder for stories" ) Once it's re-categorized (like say filed under "H" for "Toys" or under "F" for "Good Riddance") I can, as Lucy said, move on with my life.
ReplyDeleteMy fear(s) that sometimes hold me back? Success and Failure in equal amounts.