Category Archives: Getting Shit Done

Sleepy

I’ve been feeling super tired lately. The last time I was this damn tired, I had a gas leak in the house. Haha, yeah, I suppose I should get PGE out here again just to double check for that, huh.

The more likely story though, is that I have been doing a lot. Stepping up at ProMatch has demanded a few extra hours per week. A friend of mine, who is a leadership trainer and coach, just launched a virtual “mastermind” class so I’m now reading John Maxwell’s book, Becoming a Person of Influence (and I’m a super slow reader) plus participating on weekly group calls. You know me, anytime I hear about some opportunity to learn about leadership and shit, I get sucked in. Never mind that I hate interactive, small group learning formats. The first class was Wednesday night, and there was the whole “go around and introduce yourself and tell why you are participating” exercise. I want to support my friend, but I have done similar setups before, and I dunno, it’s just not my thing. Can’t quite put a finger on it. I know I’m super candid and open about sharing personal junk in my blog, but there’s just something about the two-way exchange, talking about personal growth with strangers. Whatever. It’s only four sessions, so not a huge deal. But yeah, I’m up late tonight staying on top of the readings and such. I know, it’s the nerd inside me: I take my assignments seriously.

Oh, I forgot to mention that at ProMatch, I also joined a “Success Team,” which is essentially a group of six people who meet every week to check in on their job searches. Frankly, I’m pretty motivated and driven solo: I don’t really feel a need to have accountability partners, but the experts say there are a host of benefits to these groups. I’m hoping I’ll gain additional feedback or insights on my job process techniques. Maybe they’ll be able to help me optimize, or they’ll introduce me to contacts. I dunno. In the very least, the people are self-selected, meaning people mutually choose who they want on their team. So I jive with my peeps pretty well, and all of them seem really motivated. We’ll see how this goes for me.

This morning, I was so pissy. I swear to god, every year Bridge School irks my nerves. I logged in right at ten to get tickets, and John was telling me get the good seats. Well, the clock must have been like 10:00:05, and the supposed best seats were already all the way in the corner, just a few rows before lawn?!?!? Surely, there was some mistake, so I tried again, this time specifically selecting the highest priced tier. I should have known better and just opened a new tab, but I didn’t. And then I never got into the system again. Fucking A!! I’m such an idiot. I think something very similar happened two years ago too. I was so incredulous that five seconds after tickets went on sale, the best seats were so far near the back, that I was convinced something was wrong with the website. Then I lost my place in the queue and got screwed. Argh.

Today, I thought I would try to win tickets from the radio station, but then I didn’t ever turn on the radio. Whatevs. I only feel badly because we were supposed to go with John’s sis and her beau. My bad. She ended up getting lawn tickets maybe through StubHub or something. Event tickets are so ridic expensive. I’m really annoyed by it. I mean, are people really dropping like $500 pp at these auction sites?? Too cray for me. I’d rather go on a trip. I know, I’m so damn judgey! Ha.

After that whole fiasco, I had a phone interview 30 min later for an assistant director of social media gig at an area university. I had applied last week by emailing the hiring manager directly and attaching all my docs. That’s my new MO now. I try to bypass the job system black hole by just skipping straight to the decision maker. Of course, after I didn’t hear back from her in a few days, I did go ahead and also submit through the automated system. I dunno. I kinda likened it to government jobs. They’re very “by the book.” That said, I’m convinced reaching out to her directly still helped draw some additional attention to my materials.

Anyway, the call went well. She’s a little concerned about the salary– again significantly lower than my past gigs, but I’m actually kinda stoked about working in higher education and academia. Though the salary sucks, the other benefits (including tuition for classes) seem pretty cool. Plus, the lady just sounded like a really cool boss. And the role is on a small and nimble communications team… I would get a lot of opportunity to do a lot of different things and to implement creative ideas. So we’ll see what happens. Fingers crossed for an onsite interview.

What else. I had another info interview this afternoon. I’m up to like 45 info interviews now. The lady was very kind to meet with me, but she was pretty adamant about her job “just being a job”– and not her life. She said something about how some people have all these unrealistic notions about waking up everyday excited and motivated to go to work… I interrupted her right then and there and said, “I’m one of those people.” The thing is, my last job WAS that way for a long time. I really loved my job. And no joke, every Sunday night, I was excited about the weekend being over, because I could go back to work… Obviously, things changed and that’s why partly why I left but yeah, I want to wake up eager to get to work and happy to move the needle in some small way. I also want to be inspired by my colleagues and by the leadership. That’s what I want, and I’m not going to settle or apologize for aiming high. Anyway, it was an interesting conversation… and a good reminder that we’re all different with what we want to get out of life.

Rough New Week

This week is off to a rough start. On Monday, I finally got word from the environmental NGO with whom I had been interviewing since July. After four meetings, it turns out that leadership has decided to switch gears, so that position? It’s gone. Vanished. Well until 2016 or so. The CTO (Chief Tech Officer) suggested that a different role requiring different skills might arise in the meantime, so if I’m interested, let’s talk. That said, at this point, the new role is only conceptual, and the org will require quite a bit of patience from now until an actual job requisition materializes. I was pretty bummed with the news, even if the change didn’t necessarily reflect badly on my candidacy. Still. Sometimes, after facing so many rejections, it’s hard NOT to be uber dramatic and think to myself, “I will seriously never get another job again.” I know, I said I was being dramatic. Sigh.

John keeps reminding me: I’m seeking very specific jobs with very specific organizations. He’s right, but heck, just let me be a drama queen for a sec, would ya? 😉

Thankfully, the more positive side of my brain hasn’t totally died. On the plus side, after all these visits to the city for events and interviews and hustling, frankly, I was starting to re-think my target organizations. because shit, SF is frickin’ far!! So now, unless the org is walking distance to SF Caltrain, SF is a dealbreaker. I know, I just keep narrowing the field even more, but what can I say: commuting sucks and I value work-life balance. Haha. Apparently, beggars can still be choosers in my book!! So I am refocusing my energies now on the peninsula and South Bay. I mean, I’ve already expanded my net beyond philanthropy and corporate social responsibility (CSR) to include non-government orgs (NGOs), so surely, there are a shit ton of places within a 30-minute radius.

In other news, I delivered my first workshop today for ProMatch. The tech services team was asked to deliver a training on designing and creating business cards, a critical tool for job hunting. The slidedeck was pretty much already created: I just did a few content tweaks and updates, and then I reformatted to get all the font/spacing consistent. I co-presented with a veteran ProMatcher– a genius guy with a gabillion tech certifications behind his name, not to mention decades of experience working in Asia… Very nice guy, but he likes to talk. A lot. You know how I am with my tight-ass, urgent nature. Gotta be all efficient and shit. I swear impatience is my biggest flaw. Anyhow, the 2-hour session went well. We had an audience of about 14 people, and the feedback was positive. Whew! Done. I will say, this really was the first time EVER that I did not get nervous at all. I suppose all this ongoing desensitization and playing outside of my comfort zone has really paid off. Thank god I wasn’t burdened with the inconvenience of public speaking anxiety today. Yay. Very liberating.

Of course, just as I myself am conquering my anxieties, Martin is turning into an entirely different dog. Holy shit. Remember how mellow and laid back he used to be? After Reno, he did great for about a day, and then yesterday was a total disaster. Throughout the night, he abruptly got up and ran outside. He had his tail between his legs, and he was clearly freaked out about something. He was pacing around all unsettled, and then the panting and full-body trembling began. All last night, no one in the house got any sleep. This morning, I got up to prep for the presentation in the afternoon, and despite getting a few hours of rest from 9-11a, Martin again started freaking out before noon. Restless, anxious, shaking, panting. WTH??? I called the vet and left messages. Now it’s 10p, and still no call back yet. Meanwhile, I put on his ThunderShirt (same idea as swaddling a baby), tried to distract him with treats (first time he rejected food), and then even sprayed a sock with lavender and tucked it under his collar. By the time I had to leave for ProMatch, he was calming down a little, but still. This is so worrisome. John even came home from work early. Since then, Martin’s been better. If anything, I think he is physically exhausted from being so damn tense and high strung all night and day. John’s been reading about old age and senility in dogs. Symptoms include zoning out, trembling, disorientation, among other things. I really just don’t want to deal with this right now. I know Remy’s passing was many months ago, so I kind of had a break and I should be all bounced back by now. But I’m not. I feel so much dread just thinking about Martin growing old and having issues. Sigh. I know, I’m a goddamn control freak. I like want to “schedule” Martin’s aging process. I’m such a dumbass sometimes.

In general, I have to admit, I’ve been feeling a kind of baseline anxiety the last few months. I’ve lost my appetite and dropped a few pounds– not that I’m complaining. But there’s just this chronic tension. Sometimes the self-doubt comes up again. For example, with my project management abilities. Isn’t that the super skill I’ve been marketing all this time? Multi-tasking, keeping all these concurrent projects moving. And yet, dad’s condo is still not rented, my rental property repair is still not done, I have no job, and Marty’s issues are unresolved…

Tomorrow, I have a few classes. Maybe they will re-inspire me and get me back on track. I’m also exploring the consulting angle a bit… I’m meeting a fellow ProMatcher tomorrow who wanted to talk with me about his sales/marketing consulting biz. Also, remember the cowboy I’d met weeks ago who commented on my boots? He’s the GM of a local theater in San Jose. We’re meeting next week to talk about helping him market the venue and maybe work on the website… so we’ll see what happens. Gotta keep plugging away.

I recently submitted a few more apps for jobs in the South Bay. I’m actually pretty excited about this latest batch, because they feel like a strong fit for my skills and interests. I made John review my latest round (he hasn’t been subjected to this for a long while), and he actually had zero suggestions. In fact, he said my materials were a lot more compelling than before. Hurray for progress! Let’s hope I get some new bites soon.

Project Management

In addition to my very aggressive job hunt, I have been managing a number of other projects that quite frankly, are irking my nerves. First, I got my parents signed up with a tenant placement service. Things started off well the first few days, and then, there was an edit to the listing that took a few days to get done. Also, the property was supposed to be listed on a bunch of sites. When I checked, it didn’t come up on search… I think those things have been resolved now, but still. Takes poking and prodding, which is annoying this early in the game. Anyhow, the place is posted. Know anyone seeking a furnished 1 bedroom condo in Washington? Check out the listing. Btw, the price rocks considering that the location is superb.

Second, I’ve been feuding for the last week with Lowe’s. It’s a very long story, but pretty much we’re dealing with a broken ordering/shipping/customer service system. I was so discouraged by the incompetence, that I turned to twitter to seek resolution. I just wanted to have someone answer the damn phone, but instead, they directed me to a Rant and Rave website. Are you f-ing serious? Fine. So I posted my story. The grill was ordered at the end of August to capstone our anniversary. I think there were at least five failed attempts to deliver the item, meaning the store and/or shipping company said it would arrive, I stayed home, and then no one showed up. No call, no nothing. Fuckers. The good news is that the grill finally arrived today. We’ll see whether it turns our food into magic!

IhateLowes

I HATE Lowe’s.

Third, I’ve also been dealing with poor communication and insufficient information with my property management company back East. Up until now, I was actually really happy with their service, but in the last month, our house started having water leaks in the chimney and roof. The agent got ONE estimate to replace the roof. Then, he sent me a shitload of images of the roof and chimney. Uh, I have no idea what I am looking at. Back and forth several times, and I ask for a second quote as well as explanation for what these photos are showing me. I receive a few email replies that give updates on calls put in to contractors and the HOA, but no answer to my more urgent concern requesting interpretation/advice as part of their service. One month later, I finally get clarification that there is a fix that will last a few years and NOT require complete roof replacement. We are proceeding with that route. Meanwhile, I voiced my displeasure to the maintenance lead and the agent. No calls back regarding their inadequate service. Goddamn. I might have to start shopping around for another management company. Fucking pain in the ass.

Fourth, Marty and his bizarre anxiety/trembling. The night we returned from Reno, he conked out pretty quickly, but Monday night, the trembling was back again. I put on the ThunderShirt which helped, but still didn’t make it go away. I re-did his bed, and laid down my old, pink bath robe that Remy used to sleep on in her later years. He seemed to settle down a bit. I called the vet tech, and she said it’s pretty hard to say with the older dogs. Could be pain, could be arthritis, could be anxiety. Well, that narrows things down. Sigh. Interestingly, last night, he had no trembling at all, so maybe it WAS anxiety? I dunno. I’ll monitor again tonight. Meanwhile, his flea meds are working wonders. He’s scratching a whole lot less these days. As for me, I still get occasional bites, but I have been vacuuming like a fiend again, so hopefully, that issue will go away very soon.

Ok. Time to crank out some more apps. I had a phone screen last night for a product marketing manager role at a tech nonprofit in SF. Tomorrow, I will meet the hiring director for an interview. Also, I cold emailed the Executive Director of a tech nonprofit in Milpitas. We’re meeting for coffee on Friday. Yup, still hustling.

Itchy Britches

OMFG, today was the craziest day ever. Lately, meaning for the last few months, Martin has been scratching and biting around his tail like crazy. Seriously, we’re talking compulsively biting and scratching. We’ve never had an issue with fleas, but I took a real close look anyway as soon as he started scratching there. Didn’t see a damn thing, so I figured it was some kind of allergy. I switched his food, and his coat got better, but he was still super itchy. So then I determined that maybe the issue wasn’t a food allergy but rather, an environmental allergy. I didn’t know, but what else could I change about my environment? Nothing, so I just left the issue status quo.

Then, I started getting bug bites all over my body. I blamed the skeeters, because Bubbey always leaves the doors wide open to cool down the house. I’d wake up in the middle of the night, jarred from my slumber by this annoying buzzing. I would jump up in bed, turn on the light, and start hunting. Even though I would often find and kill the critter, the damage was already done. Those fuckers ALWAYS got me.

Last month, the situation worsened: Martin started scratching even more, and the fur on his rump started balding, and the skin was dry and scaly. I too was getting bites all over my legs– on my feet and between the toes even. I just assumed that my feet had found their way out of the blankets while I slept or something. Since I still couldn’t SEE the fleas, I figured mosquitoes or spiders were the culprits.

Well this morning, I awoke to clusters of bites on my thigh and in the back of my waist. And I was itchy as hell!!! WTF? I started thinking that maybe I was getting shingles again, triggered by all the job hunting stress. So I made an appointment to see the doctor, and I decided to take Martin to see the vet. What do you fucking know??? Fleas. According to the vet, fleas are the worst they’ve been in well over a decade. Something about the drought and crazy heat. I dunno, but shit. Now I feel so damn dirty!! And on top of that, Martin has flea allergy dermatitis, meaning all the irritation is an allergic reaction to the bug bites. Ugh!!

So I did a shit ton of laundry today (screw the drought, this is an emergency), and then I even got the carpets steam cleaned for the first time ever… since our carpets were installed in 2010. I know. But my parents just never got their carpets and rugs professionally cleaned. They used their own Bissell. Meanwhile, I put Frontline flea treatment on Martin, and I vacuumed the shit out of the house. One other lesson I learned? You know how I used to be totally OCD about vacuuming every damn day? Well, the therapist had convinced me that it was overkill (and irritating to John), so I cut it back to a few times a week. Well turns out, vacuuming actually picks up all the fleas and their eggs… so shit, I should have never let up on that habit.

The good news is, there is relief for Martin. He’s gonna start taking oral meds that will lessen his allergic reaction. Meanwhile, where’s the human equivalent for me, because I am fucking scratching this shit up raw. Soooooo itchy. To kill the irritation, I like to take hot, short showers. Well, the doctor told me today that heat makes the area even itchier. Huh?? Why is this shit messing with me?

I changed all the bedding, and I’m going to shower again tonight before bed. Shit, I sure hope I won’t have to resort to spraying myself with OFF at bedtime.

Packing it in!

J and I arrived in DC Thursday night. The next morning, I had a second in-person interview with the environmental nonprofit in downtown DC. Due to nerves and my usual insomnia, I had trouble sleeping Thursday evening, and then I was up early again Friday morning. There was some kind of train delay on the metro, but it was waay early. So we had breakfast with the in-laws. Every time I go back to Maryland, I have a tough time adjusting to the pace there. During breakfast, I was internally stressing out wanting to get to the interview site so I could cram some more info and mentally prepare, but I told myself to try and maintain some perspective. There was plenty of time, and really, was breakfast with the in-laws too much to ask? No. Seriously, I needed to calm the fuck down.

And anyway, by the time breakfast was done, the trains were back to running on schedule. So John dropped me off at the metro station, and I arrived at the office building still way early. Of course, every time I have an interview, I go crazy with having to use the bathroom like every 30 minutes! That said, I didn’t want to check in at the receptionist desk just yet, so I went out in search of a public restroom. I ended up going across the street and intersection to the National Postal Museum, one of many public museums in DC with free admission. So yeah, entry is free but you gotta go through security and everything just to get to the restroom! Yes, it’s overkill but hey, I was desperate. Regardless, I got to see the insides of a cool, old building…

The interview itself went ok. The manager appeared in a dress, and she was all tatted up– like above the chest, on the fingers, arms, legs, etc.! I guess I wasn’t THAT surprised considering I had researched her profile beforehand and known she was from LA, if that says anything. Plus, she used to work in the music industry. Anyway, she said she was glad I didn’t wear a suit. Well yeah, I’m from California!!

So all the stuff I had prepped for the interview? She asked nothing related to any of it. No org history; nothing about the technical platforms they were using; nothing about current products and technologies out on the market. She just wanted to hear about my project management experience. By the end of the meeting, it was pretty clear that she was worried that I didn’t have experience drafting formal project work plans and having to document EVERYthing. And I get it: none of my other roles ever really demanded explicit documentation… it sounds like this org relies super heavily on documentation– partly for measuring and gauging results but also for major CYA internally. She said she would feel better if I had a PMP certification… And then on top of that, the largest project I’ve handled is only a small fraction of the size and magnitude this role calls for…. So, I left there kinda questioning whether things would proceed.

After the interview, I headed over to the Verizon Center to meet my parents and a prospective property manager for their condo in DC. The agent seemed responsive and savvy, so I’m hoping this arrangement will work out. I just asked for some references and there are a few things I want to negotiate in the contract. Otherwise, that’s good to go.

After that meeting, my parents and I drove to see my grandparents. They appeared well. Grandma has slowed down quite a bit: she looks rather sleepy and tired, but grandpa is still very sharp, especially for a 90+ year old. We went to a local Chinese restaurant and ordered a few of my fav dishes: Taiwanese rice noodles and Beijing duck. So yummy!!

The drive home took forever due to the holiday traffic, but I received a pleasant surprise email from the nonprofit… I’m invited to a third in-person interview with the IT director on Tuesday, the day after we fly back home. Yay! So, to recap the process, I applied at the end of June, and since then, I’ve done the phone screen, an interview with the CTO, an interview with the line manger, and now I have this upcoming interview with the IT director. I guess that’s a good thing, right?

Overall, the trip back East went well. My dad actually planned some outdoor activities for us, which is different. He was asking me what we like to do, and I said, no museums but outdoor activities in nature. The next day, we went for a short, half-mile hike to Cunningham Falls State Park. It was hot and muggy (not to mention mid-day, because I slept my sorry ass in), but my parents were really good sports about it. Really accommodating, and I appreciated their gesture. After the hike, we re-hydrated on drinks and watermelon and then headed off to Emmitsburg…along the drive, I was reminded of all the churches and religious institutions all over MD. Mount St. Mary’s University plus the National Shrine of Elizabeth Seton… pretty places to visit and sight see, but religion always freaks me out a little.

So now we’re on the plane. Bubs got wifi, so I prepped a few more job apps and caught up on my usual social media sites. I’m really pooped. I hope I’ll still be able to bring my A game for the interview tomorrow.

Turning Things Around on a Dime

I’ve been gaining decent traction these last few weeks… it feels great, but being the nerd that I am, I’m always trying to analyze and attribute the turn of events to very specific factors. Was it the optimized resume with less text and more white space? Was it the abbreviated cover letter? Was it the check-in email post submission? Honestly, my sense is that several factors contributed, but one definite thing that is helping is name dropping or connections. Every week, ProMatch reiterates that 80% of jobs are netted through networking. So fine. In the last several months, I’ve continued refreshing my old networks and reaching out to strangers. Slowly and methodically, I have grown my LinkedIn connections from around 100 to over 300. And the good thing is, I actually have met and talked with nearly all of those 300 people. I can honestly say where they work, what they do, and/or what they are seeking. Go ahead, test me! 😉

This month, I had five phone screens and two in-person interviews, with a third one scheduled for Friday. In 4/5 job opps, I had an “insider” contact (a current/former employee or someone who knows the hiring manager personally) either plug me if we worked together, or mention me as someone they loosely know. Certainly, the personal plugs from former colleagues or former collaborators did wonders. In three of those cases, I was very quickly contacted for a phone screen. In the other scenario, where an insider just mentioned me and my application (but didn’t necessarily vouch for my competency), my resume and paperwork got enough “view time” to get me an initial screen.

In two phone screens, I ended up withdrawing my application because of a very large salary gap, but still. These experiences really reiterate how influential any connection– even a remote one– is for recruiters and hiring managers. Turns out, HR is desperate for anything that will help filter and weed people out from the enormous pile of applications.

I did something differently yesterday. I came across a job posting from June for a higher level strategic marketing and communications role at an education nonprofit. Based on the description, the role actually seemed like a great fit for my existing experience plus there looked to be some decent room to grow. When I looked online, I discovered a standard web submission process: register here, then fill out a bunch of online forms, then upload your docs, etc. I HATE those automated job submission systems. First, I had zippo “insider” connections at the org. Then, seeing that the position had been posted for two plus months, where SURELY my resume would end up on a tall stack of papers, I decided to do this shit up guerrilla style! The hiring manager was listed as just a job title (no name), so I found the name and email and just sent my application to her directly– bypassing the whole system and HR. You would not believe. Within 24 hours, I got an email from HR saying that the manager had passed my info to her, and she’d like to do a phone screen. That was this morning. Funny thing, one of the HR lady’s first questions was: So you found our posting online, and you saw the instructions to apply through the system, but instead you emailed the manager directly. Why did you do that? Eekk!

I laughed nervously, because the HR director didn’t sound all too pleased about my blatant disregard for the process, but I just told it to her straight. I’ve attended a lot of job search workshops and read a lot of articles on job hunting. Sometimes you just have to do things differently, and see what happens. Change things up and try new strategies. Haha!! I didn’t divulge, but yeah, it’s all about adapting and iterating. I have heard SO MANY disastrous stories about applications falling into the black hole system, just getting stashed into some random desk drawer… Anyway, I’m sure she was a little annoyed and a part of me felt compelled to apologize, but heck, I was actually pretty proud of myself for scoring the call this way. Shows some initiative and gall! And in the end, if I’m a good candidate who offers value, who cares? Both sides win! Ice cream for all, as they say!

That first question definitely caught me off guard, but after that, the call went really well. She said they were already super far along in the recruitment. Two finalists had already gone onsite for in-person interviews with the director. But she said she was impressed with me, and she would check to see how set the director was feeling on the other two. Maybe it would be worthwhile to bring me on site. Woot, woot!! That’s right, sister. I’m the dark horse blazing ahead in the final stretch! We’ll see what happens…

In other news, J and I are headed back East to take care of family bidness. It’s going to be another packed couple of days. In person interview. Meeting with a property manager. Catching up with family. Then back on Monday to start September fresh.

Ewoks Savor Fruity Jam

I am back in action these days. It’s kind of funny, because I didn’t really say to myself, “I’m going to step up (even) more,” but through my actions, it seems that I somehow made a subconscious decision to say “yes” more often. I mean, not all the time and not to everything, but definitely more than usual. For example, last June, I took an “Uncover Your Calling” class. It was 12 weeks long, and boy was that class intense: there was a ton of homework and exercises to “discover my true self.” There were class presentations and all kinds of uncomfortable exercises in front of a small group. I distinctly remember feeling frustrated at the end of the class, because I felt like I hadn’t progressed. Things were still unclear, and I was still dissatisfied with who I was and what I was going to do with my life. One part of our self discovery process though included personality tests and the like. Actually, that was my favorite element out of everything, because I am obsessed with punching in short answers to a series of questions and then being presented with some kind of immediate answer.  For some reason, it makes me think of gumball machines– slide in a couple of coins and out comes the toy! Of course, in typical VG fashion, once I got the answer, I was unhappy with who it had determined me to be. I know, this is the problem with being an overthinker. I am never satisfied.

Long story short, I got ESTJ from the personality test last year.  The ESTJ is basically described as an administrator: someone who likes to get shit done and manage people and processes. To be honest, much of the description was accurate, but I dunno. It sounded like a boring person to me. I mean, who wants to be an administrator when the other options are so much more interesting: “architect” or “scientist” or “artisan” or “explorer,” you know? I didn’t like the answer, so I retook the test. Like 13 times. 12/13 yielded the same results. Sigh. The single outlier was ISTJ: practical, fact-minded, reliable. Still, incredibly bor-ring! But whatever. At the time, I just sighed loudly and acquiesced. I am what I am.

Fast forward one year, and I was asked by the instructor of the class to demo the presentation/brainstorming exercise to her current students. This involved sharing a one-page document that described “my essence.” I had developed this file for the class last year and presented it then. Now, I was to present it again and then solicit feedback from the audience on how, on learning these things about me, they might advise/suggest that I proceed to uncover new opportunities that jive with me. I thought about revising the one-pager, but I didn’t really have time. Nonetheless, I did take the opportunity to redo a few personality tests. Haha.

Whaddaya fucking know?? My personality changed!!! From ESTJ (Every strawberry tastes juicy) to ESFJ (Ewoks savor fruity jam). Holy crap, I’ve become much more of a feeler than a thinker, it seems… Here’s the description. It’s kinda scary how spot on it is. Now I don’t know what to think. I guess I’ll call it a lateral move. Hmph! 😛

But back to my earlier point. So I went to the current class and presented. Very nerve-wracking still to talk about myself to five strangers for ten minutes. But I got ‘er done. I must admit: had teach asked me a year ago, I would have declined. I mean, come on, it’s just too much. Enough to do it for my own class, but to do it again?

But like John says, now I’m turning into a classic California granola hippie. I’ve been thinking a bit about karma. I mean, these people are taking the class because to some extent, they are dissatisfied with life and seeking alternative ways of living. If my brief period of discomfort helps them achieve clarity in some way, is it really a huge deal? It doesn’t really seem like THAT much to ask. So I did it. The people in the class were… interesting. One person was clearly stuck, walled in by her own hangups about what defines success. I know, sound familiar? If anything, I suppose my demo helped my instructor in some small way. I imagine it’s pretty challenging to work with people who are frustrated and dissatisfied (albeit taking action). Whatevs. Maybe the universe will appreciate my small gesture.

Similarly, at ProMatch, my team co-leaders invited me to observe one of their meetings. By the end, I realized that they were actively recruiting me to join them! Again, a few months ago, absolutely not. But now, as I’ve gotten to know them better, I can see that several co-leaders are dedicating waaay too much time to the organization. They’ve politely asked for help, but no one ever pipes up. So I agreed to join and help. I know, now I am sucked into two additional meetings per week, plus I’ll have added responsibilities to facilitate some team meetings and training workshops. I’m such a sucker. And as soon as I did that, John suggested it was a bad idea given all the time I was already pouring into ProMatch. But I’m trying to adopt a more positive perspective on this. I mean, I absolutely loathe meetings, but they really are so much a part of the working world. So I reasoned that I’ve already been spared about a year’s worth of meetings. When I eventually do get a job, I’m going to have to deal with them again, so I might as well start wetting my feet. I know, I can rationalize ANYTHING, right? Well, cross my fingers. Hopefully, there really are some leadership growth opportunities with this experience… As they say at ProMatch, I’m going to “step into my magnificence.”

Reviewing the Numbers

A week or so into August, and the activity finally seems to be picking up, thank goodness. At my networking group, I am pretty much “all in” these days. Truth be told, I give the most credit to my impatience: for the last several weeks at our team meetings, most people have been reluctant to volunteer for duties. I dunno whether they can’t commit to three weeks at a time like some of the roles require or what, but invariably, we get to that part of the meeting where things come to a standstill. There are roles that need to be filled, and no one steps forward. We can’t move on to the next agenda item until that issue gets resolved. It’s a pretty uncomfortable couple of minutes, and frankly, my distaste for inaction and drawn-out meetings compels me to volunteer.

Granted, I’m not the only over-achieving nerd. There is another newbie who is an even bigger sucker than I am… The dude has volunteered for EVERYTHING, from high-responsibility roles, to teaching workshops, to taking on leadership gigs. Seriously. And he’s such a personable guy to boot. He’s my Shawshank Redemption warden. I really dig him.

So yeah, because I volunteered for a ton of slots, today I ended up:
1. observing another team’s meeting,
2. ushering during the all-hands meeting,
3. reporting on the team I observed, AND
4. volunteering at the computer lab help desk.

Shit man, I was so swamped with people needing help at the lab that I didn’t even have time to hit the restroom. That said, the people are always so thankful for the help and guidance. One dude today asked me about DropBox and when I explained cloud storage to him, holy shit, watching his reaction to my explanation was like watching someone witness magic. He was so blown away. It was pretty frickin’ awesome. And he was so funny about it: he was all impressed with how quickly I navigated on the computer. He was in complete awe. “Oh my god, how are you without a job? You have crazy skills!! You need to be at Google.” So sweet, but clearly, this is someone who doesn’t interact at all with techies, you know?

All in all, it was a pretty full day from 10-4. But hey, I clocked in my volunteer hours! Afterwards, I then met with a fellow ProMatcher who just started an environmental NGO and wants a digital marketing communications volunteer. I know, at some point, I need to stop volunteering and start pulling in the dough, right?

Beyond the volunteer work for ProMatch, things do seem to be picking up. Last Friday, I had a really great phone screen with a recruiter for a communications manager role at a small and lean environmental NGO. Sadly, I ended up withdrawing my app. The pay was just waaay too low with no wiggle room and few other meaty benefits. Bummer.

This Friday I have a phone screen with another environmental org– one really close to home. Then next week, I have round 2 (in person interview) with the big-name environmental NGO in the city. Sadly, still no word from any of the family foundations. Philanthropy sure is turning out to be a tough nut to crack! But I just keep plugging. Tomorrow, I’ll submit for a digital marketing manager role at another foundation nearby. Fingers crossed!

As for my learning, I have a few job center classes on my calendar this week. One class is with the Sunnyvale library on using the A to Z special database to research companies and get the REAL inside business scoop on them. Another class is on interviewing, and then a third one is on negotiating. I haven’t taken any of the negotiation classes yet, but I ALWAYS negotiate job offers. It makes such a huge difference: several years ago for the fuel cell startup, I ended up earning $22k/year more than they had initially offered. Seriously. I know my worth, and I’m not about to get lowballed on that shit.

Ok, so not that you give a damn, but I’m an engineer so just indulge me here. Yes, I have been tracking all my job activities in spreadsheets: one for info interviews and one for applications. Just to get a sense for my response rates, I have compiled the data. I requested 66 info interviews and have been granted 39. Since January, I have applied to 25 targeted job positions, and I have been invited to the first round on 8! Percentage-wise, I’m pretty happy with these rates. But clearly, I need to boost my numbers and cast a wider net. There’s so much more to do! Off to bed so I can rest for tomorrow!

Progress

I had my one-month anniversary last week at ProMatch. John had expressed some concern that the networking group was sucking too much of my time, so I started tracking my hours. The mandatory meetings and volunteer hours clock in at about ten hours per week, but I end up spending closer to 20 hours onsite including all the career classes. Truthfully, I’d begun feeling regretful about joining, but then I decided that the negative thinking just wasn’t serving me. So, focusing on the plus side, I’m still learning a ton and growing/developing my skills. Plus, I’m hoping things will die down a bit now that I’ve taken almost all of the classes. I still have a few more on presenting accomplishments, negotiation, and facilitation, but I hope to crank those out by the end of August. By then I’ll REALLY be a job hunting expert! Ha!

In other news, my inspiration from BlogHer pushed me to update my personal branding materials. I updated my business card, and more importantly, I created a digital portfolio. To be honest, I dunno why I dragged ass on setting up a web portfolio. I had a lame PDF version, and I mean, in retrospect, wtf, I’m a “digital communications specialist”!! Duh. Whatever. The good news is, I tried out a new web tool, and wow, I ended up with a pretty badass site after all was said and done. I mean, it still took time, but less than I anticipated. I also kinda wish I had collected more writing samples from my last job, but whatevs. It is what it is. I’m pretty damn stoked nonetheless!

So then what IS the latest scoop on my job hunt? I applied for a few communications foundation jobs a few weeks ago. I haven’t heard back, but I’ll follow up this week. I also applied to a couple of communications roles at environmental nonprofits– for both places, I actually have a connection. That said, my environmental education and immediate experience probably does appear more appealing to environmental employers than non-environmental employers. So yeah, I had a quick phone call today for a digital product manager role at a well-known environmental NGO. I spent a ton of time this morning ramping up on the organization’s history and current events, and I also practiced my responses to standard interview questions… But the hiring manager didn’t go there at all! The position actually sounds like a really good (and natural) fit, considering all the web products I created for the District. The manager says he wants to bring me onsite for an interview with him and another staffer. Yay. Finally, I’m advancing to the next round in the game. Goddamn. Yup, I’m taking a break tonight from my job hustle to celebrate this small victory!

20140805-214855-78535868.jpg

Cowgirl Boots

Recently, I started wearing my cowgirl boots to ProMatch. Even though I miraculously managed to get my black patent wedges waaay stretched out for regular wear, nothing compares to boots when talking comfort. So I started wearing my boots with everything: dresses, jeans, cords, skirts… and man, I got so many compliments. One guy even came up to me after a meeting to say, “It’s nice to see someone around these parts wearing REAL boots.” Haha. The dude grew up on a ranch in Wyoming, not far from Jackson. Man, his comment made me feel so legit, almost like I should have plugged this website to him right then and there (I didn’t). Instead, I gushed about our trip to Wyoming last summer. Goddamn, that was such an awesome vacation. Easily amongst my top five.

Regarding the positive feedback on my boots though: it’s kinda funny. All the people who complimented me were old(er) men. No women! But it kinda got me thinking… it’s nice to meet men who, you know, pay attention and know how to give compliments. I feel like with younger guys or with guys my age, they’re love withholders. John says he’s stingy with compliments, because he doesn’t want women to think he’s hitting on them or something. Lame. Maybe the older men are just better “trained.” I dunno, but I’m thankful for their comments. They just brighten my day.