My best friend’s blog inspired me to pick up writing again and now one that she referenced has inspired me to take an incredible job opportunity abroad. It started off when Katana mentioned Penelope Trunk’s entry on how that isn’t her real name. This caught my eye not only because I use something other than my birth name, but also because Ms. Trunk started the website Brazen Careerist that Katana had recommended to me as a networking tool. Interested both in the story behind her alias and background as an entrepreneur (especially a woman entrepreneur, which seems a lot harder to find), I went to her blog.
At first, I was unimpressed. Here was a woman who had changed her name multiple times and wrote about it in a quirky writing style that didn’t suit me. All those changes made her seem flighty, almost shady. I had been expecting some sort of great revelation that led to her current name, but she didn’t even choose it. The first time she changed her name would have made a good story, but the other times it was just giving in to pressures. After reading the article, I hoped a second reading would show me something I had missed. I was about to start on that when other links distracted me and before I knew it, I was engulfed in the opinionated advice of a career woman.
From working as a professional to working as a mother, tips on relationships to advice for the future, she covered a lot of ground. I found what she wrote to be thought-provoking, whether or not I agreed with it (and mostly, I found I did). She referenced Daniel Gilbert, author of Stumbling on Happiness, multiple times, which won brownie points for me – I have read the book twice and will probably continue to read it in the coming years, or at least remind myself of the lessons held therein.
Hours later, I was still reading, scouring every entry that had an interesting title. I read about her experience beinga block away from the World Trade Center as it collapsed, why graduate school has become a deadend, why working any job is better than taking nothing, how changing jobs should be in the normal course of a career, how my generation is unique professionally, that failure will come and failure will go (and only those things worth doing will make you doubt your ability to accomplish them), and so many other lessons. Most were lessons I knew in the back of my mind, but never really took to heart. Some were new concepts that just made sense. And somewhere in the midst of all this, I realized that I needed to stop living in denial.
I want to take the opportunity in Singapore. I am going to stop being afraid of failing, I am going to stop being afraid of disappointing, and I am going to try. I may not have a definite plan, but I have goals, dreams, aspirations. I have a vision. It’s time to stir my passion and just go for it. It’s not going to be easy and it will take a lot of time, energy, and effort, but what better time than now? I have the least to lose – no job to quit, no family to care for, no rent or mortgage or loans to deal with. I will, however, be terribly sad to be so far from Panda. He is supportive of my hopes and career choices though, so we can work through it. I need to stop being so scared of how difficult it will be to not see him for months when I can’t even go a week without going crazy. Because you know what? Once I’m over there, working, learning, growing, it won’t seem as bad as when I’m sitting here like a couch potato, with no real plans and no schedule to adhere to. Plus, I’ll be living with Marylin! I’m sure my “twin” can help me get through rough times and we can commiserate, since her boyfriend is also here in California (albeit up north).
