Back at it

I know it has been a LONG time since I've posted anything. I stayed away because I wanted to work on being more positive, since job hunting can really bring you down. This Fall/Winter were tough, I often battled with self-confidence and my abilities. I am an extremely smart college educated woman with a great personality and a huge army of skills to present future employers, but no one that I really wanted was biting, and that was frustrating. I know its not easy to look at my resume, most people say 3-4 jobs in 4 years, she can't commit! I don't want to even give her an interview or chance! This has been my biggest hurdle, but when you break it down, I left my first job to re-locate to Southern California, I left my second job because after 2 years I realized accounting was not for me, I left the third because there was no growth within the company outside sales and I wanted a more creative/partnership role, and instead of taking a 4th job I traveled, I spent 3 amazing months in a foreign land, learning a new language, exploring and gaining new skills in marketing and student coordination, then I went to UK with my mom and when I came back to sunny CA I became a freelance contractor, while I passed the time looking for a full-time job that interested me and would keep me busy and satisfied.

I wish I could tell you I have found that job, but no I am STILL looking, I just have more positive feelings this time. I have thought about what I am good at, what I like to do, and what makes me tick, and I have done research, lots of research and reaching out. I have a feeling early 2011 will bring me that new job that I have been searching for, a position that I can grown in and stay in for 5, 10, 15 + years. I know its out there and it wants me.......

Why this happiness change? Well I took the Gallup Strengths Finder test, which opened my eyes to my strengths, we are so used to people pointing out our weaknesses, especially in interviews that we forget to evaluate our strengths, or in the worst cases, can't determine our strengths because you get brought down by the weaknesses. Learning about my strengths (I am Communication, Woo, Harmony, Learner, Achiever), helped me to realize that I have so many talents to offer potential employers and in the right position/environment I will really thrive, my past jobs really didn't appeal to any of these strengths, which is why I struggled and have changed jobs so many times in such a short period. Don't get me wrong, you learn a lot in accounting and are always learning but the social part is not there, in sales you achieve a lot but the learning and harmony is not there...... I had been in the wrong industries and jobs all along. By learning my strengths, I have started to apply them to my life and my job search, I am a great communicator and wooer and I love to learn so I have started reaching out, emailing people, calling them, finding them on social sites, people in jobs I like, asking to get coffee, or just chat, the more I reach out the more I find people are willing to help, I have been successful at getting informational interviews and I hope that in the near future these interviews/connections will lead to a job, and if not I have at least learned about a job/career/company/field and have a better picture of what I want and what I don't. This process has really helped give me more purpose and meaning and hope that that job will be out there for me this year.

To fill you in a bit on life, the end of 2010 wasn't all that bad, I was a bridesmaid in a college friends wedding in the fall, Nick and I made it to the central coast a few times to visit friends and family, we spent many happy weekends in San Diego and Newport, and even a great weekend in Palm Springs. Life was not terrible. Nick passed his PE exam. And I re-connected with some old friends. My ankle healed slowly but I was still able to compete in the 1/2 marathon in San Antonio Texas with my oldest friend, at a good time as well for no training (2hrs 17min). I will recommend training in the future.... Which brings me to tell you that in 2011 Nick and I and a few friends will be participating in the Olympic distance triathlon at Wildflower on the Central Coast. I am very excited for this, and have really enjoyed the training. It's been nice to get back in the pool as well, I'm not looking to win, but I am looking to be the top of my age class, whatever the outcome, I am glad to be training for something again.

Go Padres

Well, I'm going to admit, I've been a bit boring. Gym in the morning to rehab my ankle by cycling or swimming, then job searching, writing articles for the Examiner, cooking, grocery shopping, and cleaning (because when I don't have a schedule I get OCD and have to clean/organize/color coordinate everything to procrastinate). Boring I know, but job hunting is boring and it's hard to go on fun adventures when you need to be looking for a job and not spending money.
But I have had a few adventures. After going to a few "joke" interviews, you know the "we are a marketing company" but really we are a door-to-door direct marketing company and we think you are a dumb star-y eyed college grad and if we tell you, you can make 6 figures you will eat it up, believe it and join us, well that's not me, but, at least it was practice interviewing. I also attended a networking event put on by Linked OC a Linked-In group for professionals in Orange County. That was fun, who says no to free food and meeting people? I met a few good connections and learned that we don't know a whole lot about social media marketing (in a speech by Brian Solis who wrote Engage, a book on social media marketing), especially how to do it to full advantage and how to measure it's success. It was a successful event for me because I learned some great things, met some awesome people, and had some good food.
Now on to the fun.... the weekend was beautiful down here on the coast, since Nick had PE class, a friend and I had a nice lunch outside in Laguna Beach and then spent some time reading and laying out in the sand, very relaxing, and my second real day of summer. Yes I know summer is technically over, but really, to me it's just begun, now that I can enjoy it. Sunday it was down to San Diego for a Padres game with good friends, the Pad's didn't win but it was still fun, especially, heading to Altitude a roof-top bar near Petco Park for some after game drinks and general harassment of Philly fans, hey, if you are in SD and at a SD bar, wearing a SD hat, of course you get to cut the bar line, duh, the bartender is most likely a SD fan and would rather serve fans. That put some Philly's in their place, they may have won, but locals know how to have more fun.