journalman's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Beginning - Life and Career Transition It feels good to start fresh; there�s no history to recall upon, no expectation to reach towards, and for once I am confronted with that intimidating thing called �the blank page�. Yet these steps I�m taking... new job, newer friends, and new life & career goals are the ultimate in the proverbial blank page. I�ve shaken things up in every imaginable way because quite simply I�m bored with life the way I�ve led it to date. THE CAREER MOVE I�ve been bored at work because my job didn�t challenge me. It was a fine career, and in time I would have made a �good to great� living, but the time came for me to realize that I was relying on a safety net. My then-career burst with the dotcom companies in May, 2001, and it was then I made the choice to help my father�s business take root in Manhattan. It was a �bricks and mortar� small & growing firm in lower Manhattan that was started by a blood relative. In pre-9/11 2001, that was the textbook definition of �job security� and I was happy to help. Well, I did help. Our company has flourished under our reign together, and it is very well poised for additional growth. It was not a small feat, yet it was not a big deal. After all, it is a company full of hard-working, educated professionals. After my initial work was done and sophisticated processes were in place, I effectively demoted myself to the person who maintains the processes instead of the one who designs them. We�ve enjoyed growth, and my busy-work increased while the indisputable fact remained: that I could train any number of specialized assistants to do exactly what I do. I�d become withdrawn, professionally. I shifted from wearing suits every day to wearing business-casual in the office. For 4 years, I haven�t once gone out with co-workers for drinks after work. Not once; we�re just �not that kind of firm�. For 4 years, I haven�t once looked over at a co-worker and rolled my eyes at something the boss said. The boss was dad; I wouldn�t dare to do it. So I decided its time for a change. I am both grateful for and proud of the safety net I�ve help build myself, but I should recognize it for what it is. It�s a safety net, and I have no business being on it for more than a few moments. Now that it�s there, now that I can go back to it any time I want to, I do myself a total dis-service by not going out into the world and jumping as high as I can jump. I�m a trapeze artist with a safety net, an education, a metrocard, one helluva resume, and �contacts all over this industry, if not town�. Higher is better; more is more. I want to go as high as I can go, and I just received my father�s blessing today to go out and do it. I�m proud of that, too. There�s so much I want to accomplish that I can hardly wait to get started. 9:16 p.m. - 2005-09-26 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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