I needed a break between jobs
3 things I learned about myself while taking a beat before the next chapter.
The backstory
Everyone: You’re leaving Target?
Me: Yeah. It’s bittersweet.
Everyone: Where are you going?
Me: Noom.
Some people: Zoom? Nuun?
Me: Nuh-Noom. N-O-O-M.
Everyone: Oh, I know them. Their ads are everywhere. What will you be doing?
Me: Joining their brand team to help grow social.
Everyone: Oh, that sounds right for you.
Me: Yeah - it’s a great opportunity for growth and development. And I’m excited by the direction they’re heading in the tech, wellness and holistic healthcare space.
Everyone: When do you start?
Me: We’ll I told them that if I left on Friday and came to them on Monday, that they’d be getting a really burnt out human. And they said they wouldn’t encourage that. Plus, some family stuff and their orientation schedule made four weeks in between the best timing for me. Which I appreciate.
Everyone: Wow. Four weeks off? Good for you. What will you do? Go home?
Me: Yes - quick trip. Mostly try to do nothing. Weeding. Reading. Snuggling Boba…
In my experience, transitioning jobs is always an emotional roller coaster. To myself, “Don’t burn any bridges. You can be excited, but not too excited. Is this right? So much newness. I thought we’d be there longer. You’ve got great people there. Growing pains are good.” Anyone else?
This move was not expected, but like many things in the last year and a half - what was planned and expected just wasn’t the way things panned out. So, call this move a part of the “Great Resignation” or the “YOLO Economy.” Whatever the spin, it’s simple. I got offered a great opportunity that I was willing to go through the change churn to step into. I start on Monday and I am so excited for what’s ahead.
It’s not lost on me how all of this is steeped in privilege. I’m going from employment to employment with funemployment in between while people I know and love are out of work, burnt out at their jobs or looking and not getting the offers they deserve. So I take responsibility and hold myself accountable if this reads insensitive to those or your experiences.
Spoiler alert: I didn’t have any major epiphanies over the last four weeks. But spending time with myself, and sometimes avoiding myself, was a gift. When I think about how I define success or what energizes my happiness, it is a feeling of having enough time. Enough time to do what I need to do, but also enough time to pick up that dusty book, to care about the backyard, to ask my mom about her dad or to nap without an alarm. I had enough time these past four weeks and I’m going to try to hold onto that feeling for as long as I can.
3 things I learned about me
Human Being vs. Human Doing
I’m borrowing this from Kristen Bell who I heard borrow this from her therapist on Alec Baldwin’s podcast. She said that she has been working on human being instead of human doing and that resonates with me so hard. E will tell you, I filled the last four weeks with home projects, chores and other shoulds I thought I should be doing to make the most of my time “off.” All this to say, I have a hard time doing nothing. When I told my mom this, she laughed at me because that certainly wasn’t news to her. Thanks, mom. I’m hoping naming it here and calling it out will help me honor that part of me when I need to and give it permission to lay low when it can.
I like my introverted side
I am no expert on introversion and extroversion, but I believe we can be mixtures of both. Like many other things, it’s fluid. I certainly operate more extroverted than introverted, but this downtime allowed me to give more attention to my introversion. Warning, speaking in third person. Introverted Aaron spins melodies in his head while doing busy work. Introverted Aaron drives with the radio off in order to take in the scenery. Introverted Aaron loves looking at home listings. Introverted Aaron connects deeper with friends 1:1.
I’m better at setting boundaries for others than myself
Tale as old as time…I don’t take the advice I give to others. Going deeper, I love helping friends and family declutter, find clarity, prioritize their needs or wants and set boundaries to allow them to enjoy their bounty in their way. When it comes to me, myself and I, boundaries are hard to set or follow through with. For me, setting better boundaries will prevent me from spreading myself too thin. Whether it’s trying to do too many things in a day, going from brunch to dinner to a night cap or replying to an email while Mare is protecting Easttown. Sigh. Similar to the human being learning, I don’t have a plan to correct this. Just going to acknowledge that it’s a thing for me and let it exist for a bit before trying to treat it.
Here’s to new beginnings!
