July.

Don’t be surprised that I didn’t write in July.  It’s been a crazy summer.  Not that I’ve done anything incredibly amazing, really.  Long story short, I spent almost all of July going back and forth between a couple of different job possibilities within my company.  Through the experiences I re-learned a couple of things.

    1)  If you want something, you have to speak up and do something about it.

   2)  There is a plan for everyone.  Sometimes it isn’t what we expect.  At all.

 For a while now I had been toying with the idea of applying for some different jobs.  This wasn’t because I hated my current situation.  In fact, I’d had things so good that I couldn’t even fathom venturing out for a while because I was so comfortable.  I’ve said this all before.  When I got back from my Maryland trip at the end of June there was just something inside of me that sparked and gave me the courage to start looking into the Event Coordinator position I’d been contracted to work on all summer on a temporary basis while they tried to hire someone new.  For a couple of weeks, everything seemed great.  I was ready to switch job roles, make some more money, and bust out of the comfortable spot so that I could learn more and grow in my career.  But then life threw me one of those little curve balls.  

My current boss caught wind that I was thinking about switching to another team and he wasn’t having it.  He seriously is the best.  He pulled me into his office and we sat down and talked about what I wanted to do, what I liked doing, and where I see myself a few years down the road.  Not many bosses do that.  We talked about reforming my job to take on a lot more responsibilities and that he would be able to match the raise I would be getting with the other job.  It was nice having people kind of fight for me.  Like my supervisor said, “WOW, you have two dates for the Prom.” That’s kind of what it felt like.  It’s not a secret that I’ve never had two guys fight over me. [Actually, I take that back.  There was this one time I had two friends get jealous over my relationship with the other person, but that was just because I was super cool.  And humble, obviously.]  But it felt really good to be recognized for my hard work and talents. 

Once the offers were on the same level I knew that I would be crazy to leave working with such a great boss who would be willing to work with me to make my job roles fit my talents and what I like to do but to also give me a push and a challenge so that I would be learning more and expanding my resume.  It really only took the walk from his office to my desk to realize that I was going to turn down the Event Coordinator position.  Even though they came back later offering me a little more money for the EC job, I just felt so at peace with staying with my current team that I instantly turned down that extra chunk of money.  I felt a little dumb about that at first.  I mean, people struggle these days and would love to have that extra money. I realized through it all that money is important BUT, it’s not everything.  Sometimes you have to trust your gut (AKA the spirit) and have faith that everything will work out just the way it’s supposed to.  I know that’s true.  I’ve had many times where something like this has happened in my life and I always look back and am so grateful for the way things worked out because it always points me in a good direction.  You guys, God really does have a plan for everyone and is watching out for you and wants to see you succeed.  On the other side of it, too, I know that he will be there to lift me up if and when I fail.  It’s a good feeling.

So that’s where I’m at right now.  I’m a little bummed that the EC position didn’t come with a team that was more organized and that it wasn’t a right fit for me in the end because I know I could have rocked that job. I mean, we know that’s what I like doing.  Event Planning. That's always been the direction.  But sometimes a job is a job.  It’s not everything.  I’ve honestly never really had big dreams set on being a doctor or a teacher or anything like that.  But I know that’s OK.  I’m really just living my life the best that I can.  I feel good about where I’m at.  Yes, it’s good to have dreams but I’m a firm believer that ultimate dreams and successes in life don’t always have to be about jobs and future careers.  Just keep challenging yourself and be happy :)