How To: Walk Uphill Both Ways

DISCLAIMER: I am by no means an expert on any topic I choose to write about from here on out, but maybe the things that I've gone through or are going through currently relate to you and can help you in some way. At the very least, you can laugh at/with me, remembering that one time that maybe you too felt like a complete moron, as I go through the many Mishaps of an Almost Adult.

I just spent my Labor Day weekend at a family reunion in Indiana and celebrating the grueling (ha) labor I've put in over the last two years. This was the first time since graduating college that when I was asked 40 times by 40 different relatives the dreaded question, "So what are you doing these days?" that I'm not fumbling for an answer. The uncomfortable "Weeeeeeell..." is still all too familiar with me, trying to avoid the fact that the answer is rather underwhelming and definitely not where I had thought I'd be after college. As I was flying back to Dallas, I came to the decision that the only way to start this blog off correctly would be to start at the beginning; the first, most important lesson about being an almost adult. How to edit your original plan to fit reality.

The day after college graduation I found myself headed to Paris with my mom to avoid the reality that the economy was terrible, I'd picked a major that was laying employees off rather than hiring, my internship couldn't hire me and I had no plan. A week in France didn't seem to change any of that either. I had until June when my lease was up to figure out a plan or else I needed to pack up, move to Nevada and back in with my parents. Sacre bleu, zut, et merde, as the French would say.

I found out quickly that job hunting is exhausting, depressing and I'd rather perform a root canal on myself. It was time to ditch the public relations route, switch gears, and shoot for the least degrading job I thought I could manage to find. Luckily, I found a job working as an assistant for a photographer and she hired me to do the graphic designing for her company. Not what I particularly wanted to do, but it was better than nothing.

At this point, my flirtation with Completely Broke turned into a long-term steady relationship and I needed a plan C since Plans A and B weren't working out so well. These are some of the lessons I learned along the way.

1. Big kid pants are uncomfortable. And prone to wedgies.
2. Although I prefer the motto, "If at first you don't succeed, destroy any evidence you ever tried," the original saying fits better for job hunting. You really do need to just keep trying again.
3. Find something you're good at, even if you didn't major in it, and figure out a way to use it as a Plan B. Sometimes Plan B turns out better than Plan A.
4. Never stop looking. Even if you have to take a job that isn't ideal in order to pay the bills, keep your eyes and ears open for new opportunities to better yourself and your career
5. Think outside the box when it comes to things to add to your resume. Is there something you can volunteer for that would count as experience in the field you'd prefer to be in?
6. Find out if your community has networking meetings for professionals. I attended a few promoting the photography studio I worked for, and then again later representing my own company I started. Its a great way to meet people who run small businesses that might need some contract labor in whatever field you might be in.
7. Maintain a good sense of humor about it all. This is our opportunity to write our "Oh yeah, well when I was your age..." stories. My mom still claims to have walked to school uphill both ways. In the snow. All year. Cleveland is so hilly.