Tag: moving on

life: goals and moving on

My goals for November are simple: just get back to something like normal. At work and in life, things are slowly shifting into a routine, and I just need to keep working at finding that equilibrium. The semester is winding down; my conference is over and done; and the leadership program I’m attending is wrapping to a close. There have been days when I’ve just wanted to curl up and hide, but I’ve managed to stick it out (despite the boy’s grumbling about the amount of complaining he’s put up with).

I haven’t kept up with my writing and, some days, the only exercise I get is the walk to and from my car (a long one at least), but I’ve needed the pause, even if only to find the energy to start again. Even now, I’m debating whether I have the mental capacity to work on a chapter (the answer is likely no), but I know I will with time. Fall is a time for new beginnings for me and I’m more than ready for a fresh start.

life: October goals and moving on

There’s a lot that needs doing in October. I have a major library event to manage, a conference event (but a fun one), two leadership workshops to attend, and a car to buy (as soon as the check rolls in). I am barely managing to keep myself from going into a full-on panic. I can do this. I’ve had worse. But it’s always darkest before the dawn (or so they say). I really can’t wait for a drama-free week. I desperately need a few days without prep or planning, just some time to be.

  • My main goal is to settle the car situation without turning into a mush of nerves. We’ll see how that turns out.
  • Next goal: continue working on Round 1.2 (because round one became three rounds). This is the stick middle, which needs two rounds of careful revision before I can unravel it. My personal goal is a complete draft by January, but I foresee delays given recent events.
  • Speaking of delays, I will not be participating in this year’s NaNo. I was really looking forward to it, but I haven’t made the progress I need to even think about working on something else. I’ll keep storing my ideas for later, perhaps Camp.
  • Healthwise, I want to control myself around the holidays. I’m debating a Whole60 in November, while following most of the Whole30 principles in October. The holidays are my weakness when it comes to bad food habits, and I’ve been doing so well, I don’t want to fall off again.

As of today, I’ve waved the car goodbye and started preparing for a potential storm situation. I’m hoping for the best. Meanwhile, I’ve stocked up on books and cold-brew coffee. Probably no video on Friday.

That’s my plan. What’s yours?

knowing when to move on

I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to move on, professionally, and how to know when it’s time to do so… For me, it was building for a while, but until I saw the job that I will start next month, I wasn’t ready to take the plunge. I wasn’t looking when I applied–not in that desperate way that I did when I was fresh out of college, working two part time jobs and barely making enough money to pay off my bills. That was a hard time and I applied for every opening because I just needed an in. Now, I’ve earned my stripes (or, the requisite 3-5 years experience that employers like to point to in order to turn away fresh candidates). And that may very well be the main motivator behind my decision to leave… I’m ready to move on because there is nothing new to be gained. At this point, I’m just rehashing the same old thing I’ve been doing for the last three years, with the exception of a special project here and there. I like a challenge; when it feels like there’s nothing left to be learned or gained, it’s definitely time to move on.

That said, there are some things I’m going to miss–my coworkers, student workers who always manage to make me laugh, a few extra special professors who granted me the privilege of teaching their students, whether in the use of library resources or general learning trends… there may not be much else to be gained, but I will feel the loss. Nevertheless, I’m really looking forward to getting to know my new colleagues. I really enjoyed the conversations we had during my interview sessions and I saw a level of congeniality among them that put me at ease. I’m also looking forward to being able to work in my area and not having to scramble to meet demands that are outside the scope of my position and the library’s role (a reality that happened more often than not). If knowing that it’s time to leave means knowing there is more to be learned somewhere else, then I’m ready for the learning.