Time to WORK! in These Foolish Things

I’m heading out for my first day of work in a bit and it occurs to me that I haven’t written anything about it! I’ve had so many other big things happening with the apartment flood and the move and the power going out and settling in and my houseguests, but now it’s time to actually get down to the real reason why I moved to [my new city]: work!

So…I told you a while back that you might be surprised by where I ended up.

A long, long time ago - nearly a year ago - I interviewed with a company that I called “The Cutie Pie Company”. I interviewed several times via phone, video chat and then I took a drive to interview in person.

At that time I was mad because they didn’t offer me lunch or reimbursement for my mileage and I didn’t want to move. But I was so serious about the prospect and so were they, and they ended up calling all of my references, offering me a job and I was able to negotiate $20K higher than their first offer.

Honestly, the bottom line was that I wasn’t ready to go back to work yet. I’d just been laid off after spending a whole year going through cancer treatment and working full time during chemotherapy, and to be honest, I wanted a rest.

A good, long rest.

And so I turned down the job as graciously as I possibly could. I really liked the idea of this company (even though I was very nit-picky about them), but I wanted to take my rest.

And so I did. I was able to take my time during the spring and summer, but by the time fall came around, I was ready to get back into the swing of things. And that’s when I started interviewing with a much more serious mindset.

Lots and lots of interviews, but nothing was quite right. Video chats and phone calls and even a trip to a faraway place to interview, but nothing was working out and I was getting very anxious. I’d run out of all of my severance and unemployment money!

Lo and behold, at the end of November/beginning of December, I got a LinkedIn request from the CEO of Cutie Pie and I wondered what was happening there. And the very next day, I got an email from the President telling me that a Design Director role became open and that I was the first person they thought of and would I be interested in talking about this role?

And at this point, I was ready. Not only to talk to them, but to discuss a better position, with better pay and way more along the lines of my passion!

To make this quick, I consulted with many people I trust and I talked with my family about it - everyone was positive beyond my expectations!! They all told me to GO FOR IT (!!!), and so I did!

After some more negotiations, it was determined that I’d move to [my new city] and start work on February 15th.

So here we are! Funemployment ends TODAY! And it’s now time to walk the dog and get myself out there!

Wish me BIG BOSS BITCH LUCK!!
GS