Ground Work

Retail. I don't know a thing about it. I had a holiday job once in 2003 at one of those bath/body, intense smelling shops in the mall, but that lasted a month and was easy since everyone who walked in bought something. So that doesn't count as retail experience for me. I nearly forgot about it until I started applying for jobs in this field.

Retail. A necessary evil? Not really. In this day of online shopping, who really goes into a store to buy something?

Retail. After applying at various coffee shops, discount and department stores, I finally got an interview at one of my favorite spots! But the interview was with my computer and a bunch of short videos of a woman asking me questions and giving me 30 seconds to prep and 2 minutes to respond while I was being recorded. To get an actual person to speak to me has been a challenge. Shortly after, I received some generic response about how I am not good enough for them. Then a few weeks later, I received another email telling me I was good enough and to come in for an interview. A young man, clearly intimated by my resume, 'interviewed' me. He seemed nervous and awkward. I basically ran my own interview and insisted on getting a tour of the store. I heard back a week or so later from this young man letting me know I got the job.

Retail. So, I go in on my first day for orientation where my employee number does not work, the HR videos do not play, door codes are not working, and no one is really available to help anyone out. Things seem unnecessarily chaotic and severely disorganized. But that's just how it 'works' right?

Retail. First day on the job. Got my uniform which is a t-shirt. The supervisor is not there and I am being trained by a young, perky man. I am not introduced to any co-workers, just thrown in to work a fitting room. The roles seem very defined. If you are the one who collects clothes, then that is what you do. No one is to multi-task unless they get 'backed up'. But really kids, this job is not rocket science so I am not sure how they all seem so overwhelmed. From the interview process, I expected the position and the employees to be mature, kind, and professional. They weren't mean, but they were barely professional. I was talked DOWN to by multiple people and it truly makes me think twice about ever shopping there again.

I won't quit...yet. But I won't stop looking for something different.

I Can't Be The Only One...Can I?

Thirty-five. 35. Thirty-five? It's the new 25 right? Wrong. I made some bold (sober) decisions in 2013. I decided that becoming a mother was important to me, that I wanted to quit my career of the last decade, switch to the world of humanitarianism and find my passion while taking a four month extensive vacation to India, Thailand and Cambodia. HOWEVER, life is really awesome at throwing dodge balls at your face! I did get pregnant, three times in fact, all ending in miscarriages, one even being in the second trimester. I did quit my job and realized maybe my skills aren't transferable because getting an interview was equivalent to climbing Everest. It didn't take much to lose my savior complex. I have helped my community, my world around me, I just don't want to make it a career so that I can in turn, start to hate it. And then there is the search for 'passion'. I call BULLSHIT. Let's be 100 shall we. Your passion is what you are best at. I recently read a blog where the writers argue that people who say you need to find your passion are wrong. You need to instead become great at something and then find passion in it:

The “find your passion” idea is the kind of insipid, meaningless argument most frequently made by B-level speakers and middle managers who have nothing specific to offer. It’s just like “Keep a budget!” — an idea that sounds logical, but has no evidence to back it up. It simply doesn’t work. People love the “passion” idea because it allows us to wait for a mythical day where we find this elusive passion…and then ride off into the sunset on a white pony. I prefer a different approach: Becoming world-class at something, then letting the passion follow.

You can read the entire article here.

So I'm on the quest to becoming really good at something. But I sure do feel alone. I can't be the only one starting over, can I? I'm competing with teenagers for jobs, I'm learning how to 'learn' again in this world where people have turned 'instragram' into a verb. I am trying to connect to a community of people who only want to connect with their selfies. Starting over...maybe not such a good idea...wait and see.