The Pace of Change

Change as we all know it is ultimately unavoidable, but as I’ve come to learn during my recent job hunt, it doesn’t always come quickly.

After graduating from the University of Washington in June 2009, I expected big changes to occur in my life rapidly. I imagined the perfect post-college dream. I had it all planned out. I’d graduate. I’d get a fantastic job. I’d be important. I’d be successful. And most importantly of all, I’d have money. Life unfortunately had other plans for me.

I graduated but I didn’t find a job and I found myself occasionally strapped for cash do to the sporadic paid internship work that I did shortly after I finished school. The change that I sought didn’t come at the rapid pace that I was expecting. It came at a crawl.

At first this snail’s pace of change frustrated me but as it carried on for over a year, I began to quickly appreciate the smaller aspects of life that I would have missed if I had went speeding by. In my “spare time”, I volunteered with my national fraternity, dabbled in various industries, created a network of passionate working professionals, explored my city more frequently, and reconnected with friends that I had fallen out of touch with. All of these experiences and more helped me stop and enjoy the good things in life; it let me see that work isn’t life. No, it’s just a mere component among many others that make a happy existence.

Now as I approach the close of my unemployment, I can honestly say that if I could go back and change everything, I would leave it all the same. Change as I’ve learned is sometimes unexpected and develops on micro level that can’t be appreciated without time and the right perspective. After all, very few great things are put together in a mere day. Like a great story, life requires the right amount of build-up and suspense to make it interesting.

So yet another chapter of my life comes to a close. My prolonged post-graduate job search has concluded. I now eagerly look forward to the beginning of the next chapter of my life at Nyhus Communications and the start of my “adult life.” I’ve waited a long time to say this, “It’s time for work!”

Building Steam for the Tough Road Ahead

"I--think--I--can, I--think--I—can", simple words from a modest blue engine that faced down a grueling mountain with not much more than sheer willpower. This is the type of determination that I adhere to and aspire to have in my life. Tell me that mountain is too high and I’ll find the tools to climb it. Tell me that river is impossible to cross and I’ll find a raft to cross it. I live for the challenge of the unreachable and the unattainable; strive to tackle new problems with vigor, good spirit, and an open mind.

My latest challenge comes in the form of three simple words, “find a job”. While this may seem like a simple task at first glance, closer inspection reveals that it may be one the largest challenges I’ve ever faced, turning my mole hill of a problem into a mountain. The recent state of the US economy and job market makes this is one of the worst times to enter the working world, dumping a lot of recent graduates like myself directly into unemployment – an undesirable state of being for anyone. Dorian Waller, a friend of mine described the situation best during a conversation that we had on trip from to Tacoma to Seattle,

“Unemployment is going to be one of the most challenging experiences you’ve ever faced. In the end, it will either make you a stronger person or leave you completely broken.”

His view as I’ve come to accept it, is a rather realistic outlook on unemployment. Two drastically different outcomes exist and lets just say I am not a fan of the second option. I’ve experienced the feeling of being lost and broken; don’t really care for it. Purpose is something no human can live without. Every life has meaning; should be supplemented by being able to contribute some of their talents to this vast world. Fortunately I have been able to fill my recent “free-time” with friends, family, volunteer opportunities, the occasional run and late morning walks with my dog Judo.

Life isn’t fair; doesn’t make time for people that don’t do. In light of these facts, I’ve decided that I am going to build some steam and tune my own engine for the tough road ahead. In the next few months I plan to grow myself professionally and personally. I plan to accomplish this by acquiring new computer skills, staying informed about new developments with social media, meeting new people, writing for leisure and most importantly searching for my dream job. After all, what’s the point of life if your not enjoying what you do and the person that you are?

I’ve equipped myself with the proper tools and rolled up my sleeves. I am ready to tackle the challenge ahead with vigor, good spirit, and an open mind. I won’t get dismayed over the lack of tracks ahead or the general large steep incline of the mountain. Nope, instead I am building steam, retooling my engine and chanting a few simple words that I learned when I was young reading a “kids” story, "I--think--I--can, I--think--I--can." Look out mountain! You may seem daunting and foreboding for now, but may God stand as my witness, I am going up that mountain.

Building sand castles to make connections

Life after the BA, it’s a tough question. Where to go and what to do is an endless assortment of personal choices that help either create the person that we’ve always dreamed of being or dismantle the perfect portrait of our lives that we planned out so clearly years ago. Looking at the path in front of me, I can say that it is no longer a clear-cut path for me to follow. Instead I find that there are now infinite possibilities of where to go from here. Leaving me to ponder which way to go and if I can make the right connections to get there.

At this point life seems to have become a sandbox where I am in charge of building or destroying my own sandcastles. Life is now full of endless possibilities, with choices galore for me to make.

As I sit in my own sandbox and decide what type of legacy that I want to leave, I can only ponder the connections between my actions. Past, present, and future are all suddenly relevant factors in the type of castle I decide to build. Who I meet, what I do and what I learn all become relevant tools that help shape and design the person that I am going to be. I plan to use this blog as a tool to explore these connections and intersections that occur in my life, exploring issues related to technology, social media, transportation, networking and my own personal life experiences. Through self reflection I hope to build the sandcastle that I've always dreamed of.