the saga of my career
JOBS I HAD AFTER COLLEGE:
Glorified Camp Counselor ➡️ Paralegal ➡️ Real Estate Law ➡️ Knocking on Doors ➡️ Server ➡️ Tech Sales ➡️ Cyber Security Sales ➡️ Influencing + More Sales!
Anyone else been in an identity crisis their entire life? Just me?
I want to dedicate this blog to all the people out there that still don’t know what they want to be when they grow up. A grown-up… is that even a real thing anymore?
We all have that defining moment in our lives where we take a step back and realize that our parents never REALLY had it figured out. We don’t wake up one morning and suddenly become an adult. We’re all walking around like Sandra Bullock in Bird Box -- blindfolded and scared. YET, we pretend that we can see.
Since when did we start pretending to be so put together?
I’ve had nine jobs since graduating college. Nine jobs in five years. Sounds really stable, right?
I started my journey as a glorified camp counselor. You’d think that was like my first job ever, right? Wrong. That was my first job out of college. Yep. I was a camp counselor at Fordham University for high school kids that wanted to learn about college. It was more of an “internship” that I accepted so I could move to New York and not have to pay for housing. Nonetheless, I served lunches, handed out bandaids, consoled homesick kids, and made sure none of the kids were sneaking away to make out.
I wanted to be a lawyer my entire life. I did it ALL. I majored in Criminal Justice, I did all the internships, I clerked for a judge, I took the LSAT, I applied to schools and then I said, “wait this makes me miserable”. After being a glorified camp counselor, I got a “real” job as a paralegal at a personal injury law firm in Manhattan.
Here I was, this bright-eyed kid ready to take on the 9-5 lifestyle, make her own money and become a REAL adult. After my second week, I realized this whole “adulting” thing was not what I expected. Why does no one tell you that 80% of people who graduate will start a job that requires you to sit for 8 hours a day and not really do anything? I was miserable.
Oh, and it’s not like I was making money. I thought I was going to be able to do all these things and then I realized that taxes suck, living is expensive, rent is way overpriced and food costs a lot more than I thought… fuck being an adult. Take me back to college.
“This is what people do, honey. You’ll be fine”... is what my mom would say. Well, if this is what people “do” no wonder everyone’s on antidepressants and fat.
At the personal injury firm, I had other paralegals my age so I could at least run away from my desk and talk to them. It was fun seeing the lawyers work because they were all so… money-hungry. Slimy. To paint a picture, I was working for a law firm that aired those commercials that play late at night --- “If you or your loved one have been affected by Mesothelioma, call this number”. I was the number to call. That was my job
So I quit and went to real estate law. TO SAY THAT IT WAS WORSE WOULD BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT. I went from working in a packed office to working on a team of fewer than 12 people. 9 men and 3 females. One of the females was at least 70 years old and the other was 10 years older than me. ALSO, the floor we worked on was EMPTY. Imagine this HUGE floor filled with empty desks and then 9 offices (one for each attorney) with 3 cubicles for the ~ladies~. I walked in my first day and wanted to run RIGHT out the door. But I stayed… the job paid 15k more.
Instead of doing actual ~legal things~, I was printing paper (so much paper) and redlining legal documents. I was truly miserable. It was the worst job ever. Okay, pause. It wasn’t the worst job ever. At least I was employed, I had money (kind of), I had insurance — things were just fine. It was more so… really lonely. There were some days I didn’t speak to anyone.
So I had to re-evaluate. Did I really want to go to law school? I couldn’t even get myself to apply to schools. I threw away the idea of law school (literally threw away all my books, it was great) and decided on sales. I’m a natural-born seller and honestly, lawyers are the best sales people 😉. My dad was in sales and I always told myself I wasn’t going to do it, just because he did. Then I realized, it’s in my blood.
I moved back to The Windy City and got myself a sales job. There I was, 25 years old, and my first sales job was…. knocking on doors. Making barely any money, living at my brothers house and going into work every day to KNOCK. ON. DOORS. I canvased neighborhoods and knocked on thousands of doors trying to promote the company’s product. Now that’s gritty wouldn’t you say?
I would say I hated it but honestly…I was just happy that I wasn’t at a desk for 8 hours. I actually woke up HAPPY and somewhat EXCITED to do it. I would rather have people slam doors in my face than have to sit at a desk printing paper. Does that make me insane?
I moved my way up into the sales department (knocking on doors was called “marketing”) and quickly realized that I did not like outside sales. Also, can you picture me going to someone's home and trying to sell them a roof? I don’t even know how to work a screwdriver let alone try to convince someone that I’m an expert in home construction. So I quit. At this point, I was feeling like the epitome of a quitter. I hated it.
Then I worked at an Indian restaurant for 4 months until I figured out what the hell I wanted to do. This was a tough time. I felt lost and unsure. I almost moved BACK to New York. I was a mess. Looking back, it’s hard to re-write, but I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for allllll of that.
I found a job at a tech company. To this day some of my closest friends came from that job. It was a great experience but I wasn’t making enough money. Tech jobs tend to pay you in perks. THAT DON’T PAY THE BILLS HUNNY. At this point in my career (and even now…) I hadn’t kept a job longer than a year. I felt so discouraged because I couldn’t figure it out.
Why were people able to stay at companies for YEARS and I couldn’t hold onto one for more than A YEAR!?
I started wondering if I’d ever be happy at a job or if I just liked the thrill of starting something new. I didn’t want to be the person who got bored after the “newness” wore off.
THEN THE PANDEMIC HIT…
From March 2020 - September 2020 I had 3 corporate jobs. Let that sink in. I was also unemployed for 3 months and not working. I had to hire someone to do my taxes this year because there were forms from so many different places. All of my jobs were in tech and still in sales but because of the pandemic, things were so up and down. I’m not going to write much about this because it was such a unique experience.
1st pandemic job closed (April)
Unemployed (April-July)
Started Influencing (May)
2nd pandemic job was for health insurance and I was cold calling all day and wanted to die (July-September)
3rd pandemic job is where I am now!
NOW I’M AT A GREAT WELL KNOWN COMPANY WHICH IS WHY I WON’T TALK ABOUT IT BECAUSE I’M CONSTANTLY SCARED TO GET FIRED FOR SAYING SOMETHING I SHOULDN’T LOL. You can look me up on LinkedIn though.
So currently I am doing sales AND running a side hustle and it’s getting exhausting BUT it really is amazing. I want to do both for as long as humanly possible because honestly… the money is pretty good. But… I don’t feel like I’m performing the best at my corporate job and I know I could do more with my side hustle. I also have this complex of not wanting to quit something after a year… AGAIN. I’m lost… AGAIN. Will I ever figure it out?!
No. Probably not. AND THAT’S OKAY! I am so happy doing my Instagram side hustle and I’m so grateful to have a job with a great company. I am trying to see the beauty in all of it and remember where I started… a camp counselor. Every job is a learning experience and I like to think I’ve learned A LOT and gained A LOT of experience.
My biggest piece of advice: stop thinking you’re not where you want to be.
You are EXACTLY where you’re meant to be. If it wasn’t for the cold-calling job that I hated, I wouldn’t be where I am now. If it weren’t for the pandemic, I wouldn’t have become unemployed, which would have never lead me to influencing! If you’re not happy where you’re at, change it. If it doesn’t work out — change it again.
You know what’s more scary than change? Complacency.