A most unusual year

I have no illusions that the changing of a calendar year represents anything more than the changing of months, from December to January. It’s like waking up on your birthday expecting to instantly feel a year older. However, I look forward to shedding this last year and beginning 2020 without the burden of 2019 hanging over me. 2019 was a long, strange year.

Most of this last year has been spent applying for jobs. To try and try to do something, and consistently fail, is what made this year difficult. In hindsight, some of my mistakes are very clear to me- resumes that were amateurish, interviews I was not very prepared for, jobs I was simply underqualified for. And I was in an unusual position for six months, of being technically employed but virtually unemployed. I’ll rewind and elaborate.

During the month of January, I showed up to work every day eager to learn if there was a new project for me to work on, and every day I learned that there was nothing. I asked members of my team if I could lend a hand, and they simply had nothing for me. It seemed suspicious to me. Then, in early February, I learned why: my team was moving from one division of the company to another. And with this move, the team would no longer need a writer: me. In one fell swoop, I lost my role. Redundant. But I wasn’t laid off. So I continued going to work every day, collecting a paycheck, and cheerily letting my colleagues know I was available if they needed someone to help out on anything. But mostly, I kept going into the office every day for the routine. To see my work friends. To ride Muni in the morning with all the other people who had places to go. To maintain the illusion of usefulness.

One way I occupied my time was by taking long lunches. It was quite a luxury- taking an hour and a half to eat at Indian buffets, Thai restaurants, dim sum palaces, and pizzerias. Reader, I got fat.  And in the meantime, I was applying for jobs. My employer was all but telling me: leave. We have nothing for you here. An ideal time to leave. But I had to lie through all of these interviews when asked about what I was working on, why I was leaving my current position, etc. It’s hard to interview well when your confidence has been shaken. Remarkably, I sailed through a lengthy interview process in February for a job in my previous industry, digital marketing. I was given an offer. But the salary was a significant decrease from what I was making, so I turned it down. Was that wise? I think so. I sailed through the interview process because the job turned out to be fairly entry level, which was reflected in the salary. Too qualified for entry-level jobs, underqualified for senior-level jobs in my current industry. I slogged along. I became absorbed in user testing research and analysis, though that project was temporary.

Luckily, in late July/early August, after a former colleague left the company, I was told I’d be assuming his old projects. Finally, I wouldn’t feel like a fraud for accepting a paycheck for nothing. I had to learn this new role, which was very different from my old one, but I was glad to have work. That first month, I was tossed into the deep end while still being trained- it felt like that dream where you show up to school and find out there’s a test you aren’t prepared for. After a few weeks, I got the hang of the new role. But I kept looking. I was happy to have work to do, but still felt there was a different job at another company for which I was better suited. I was determined to continue my career elsewhere. And that hasn’t changed.

I’m not the superstitious type, and I tend to think coincidences are just coincidences. But after trying and failing to find a new job- and watching so many of my colleagues leave for plum jobs at other companies- I’m convinced that it’s a sign. Look for a different type of job, make a shift in your career. It’s tough, to be nearly forty and still pondering what you want to be when you grow up. Wondering how to best apply your talents. But I haven’t lived in Spain and France and Mexico by being rigid. I’m remarkably adaptable, and resilient. The last year felt like a hamster wheel I couldn’t get off. Well, this year I’d like to jump off and get on a new track. A new job, perhaps representing a shift in my career. Maybe here in San Francisco, or in a new city. And while I know that December 31st becomes January 1st and it’s just another page on the calendar, I wanted to set down these thoughts before the New Year begins. Maybe I believe in New Year magic more than I’d like to admit. Only another two days until I can turn the page on this long, strange year.