I sometimes find it difficult dealing with people enquiring as to why I am not putting my qualifications to use. Ms Koenig puts it rather eloquently on her ‘F I’m in my 20s blog‘
I recently listened to an old Podcast on This American Life titled Plan B.
Just this morning, I was giving a talk to some people – there were about 100 people there. And knowing I was going to be talking about this on the radio today, I asked them to remember back to when they first hit adulthood. What is it that they thought their lives would be like? What was their Plan A back then? And I asked them, OK, how many of you are still on Plan A? Out of 100 people, only one person raised her hand. Just one. The youngest person in the room. Just 23 years old.
Everybody else in the room was like, Plan B? What about Plan C and D and F? – Ira Glass, This American Life
This program spoke particularly loudly to me at this period of my life where things are not going quite as planned. My Grandfather once said to me when looking back on his life he is often astonished at the amazing things he has done – did I really do that?! This thought pops into my mind sometimes when I think about moving to an entirely different country away from everything familiar.
2011-2012 were certainly a big period of change for me. I completed my Masters achieving the highest mark possible, a Distinction, during the first half of 2012 the New Zealand’s economic recession. After finding work back in insurance in Wellington my then partner and I saved hard, sold up everything and moved to Brisbane to start over. After moving over here he called it off between us after five years together. We went our separate ways. So I went out, I worked, I travelled – profusely. I found a sister in my best friend. I found something else I enjoyed doing at work: websites and events organisation. I packed up again in September to do a long stint of travel across Australia, New Zealand, Asia and Europe. This I can say is the best decision I have ever made and the first thing I have done for just me.
The job market had tightened up by the time I returned to Australia. I had a few interviews at different places, including two for the ‘dream’ research job working in a team doing breast cancer research in Queensland (down to the last two but unfortunately missed out) and got offered my new role in the Teaching and Learning team at the Business School at QUT.
So here I am world, Plan B… Plan C, D, E… BRING IT
Ms Bombshell XX
