Take this job

Ok....so now that I have revealed my most recent huge life change- and please pardon the FB tease, I just didn't want to be one of those assholes who gets nailed for announcing something on Facebook before informing the most affected parties first. Now that I have informed my boss I can share the details with you guys.

As the faithful followers of my little journey may recall, I was promoted to General Manager in Nov. and took over the staffing as well as my own direct hire business (if you have no clue what I am talking about and want details feel free to ask otherwise I assume you are just saying...yeah yeah, get to the good stuff and want me to move on). In January I hired a partner who is wonderful and amazing and has become a very close friend and we started a healthcare division together which I was able to help build as I spent 3 years calling on healthcare in a previous position. We did what we could to build it but he has a baby on the way and got a bit nervous and ended up taking a position with one of his former clients back into his former position that he had before joining me. Can't blame him and we are still working together in my side business so its a win win.

So for the past month I have been all alone in my office, literally alone. Just me everyday. It is hard to work by yourself and to keep motivated. Perhaps if it had always been that way it would not have been an issue but it has just been damn lonely. And then last week I got an email from a former co-worker.....she is working with a great company that she loves but literally had her dream job drop into her lap and she was looking for her own replacement. She was asking me if I knew of anyone who knew healthcare and could develop new business. Tell me more I said...she told me some details and it sounded great so I went and met with her boss and really liked what I saw and heard.

I went back and forth alot about leaving my company and I have to be very clear why...this company has taken great care of me. I knew Jason, my boss, for several years before coming aboard and we have always had a mutual respect for each other. When it finally made sense to work together I was thrilled. I started in Nov of '07 and after just 2 weeks I left for Iowa to spend xmas at home. I had scheduled an extended trip so I could spend as much time as possible with my Grandma which I was able to do and am so grateful I had that time. I got back on the 28th and I think was only back in the office one day before I got the call that my brother was dead.

I can only vaguely remember calling Jason and letting him know what was going on but I do recall that he told me to do whatever I needed to do and just let him know what was going on. He called me after I got to Iowa and checked on me and then from our convo he figured out where the funeral was and sent a beautiful bunch of flowers. I had been working there 2 weeks- that's all. And after I got back he gave me all the space I needed to bounce back. Then when I started the diet he and the owners cheered me on and have been so generous with their praise and support. And just a few days ago I had let him know my Grandma was ill then called when she passed. Jason did not hesitate to tell me to lock up the office, go be with my family and he took care of all my responsibilities. I am and will always be so grateful for that and for this great group of people I have had the honor to work for and with...

So why leave these great people? Fair question and one I struggled with a lot.....all I can say is the upside of this new opportunity looks huge and I am a risk taker and this just seems to be another chance to crawl out onto the skinny branches and see what I can do with my life.

After all that has happened I think I need a clean slate. A place to just start over and correct some bad habits that I might have fallen into and just stretch and push myself into a new role. I will be building health care staffing and placements which combines some of my current skills sets but also learning a whole new line of business (consulting) which is very exciting.

Tomorrow is a new day (and by tomorrow I mean next week- I will be working both jobs while I transition the office) and it will be full of new challenges and I can't wait....

I have to say also that I was also offered another position by a current client of mine. It is in a totally new field and nothing I have done before which had its own appeal. I was debating the 2 offers and ran it by my friend Chris who never bullshits me- he cuts to the chase and tells it like it is the same way I do for everyone else. He is the one who does it for me (in more ways than one once we plan another get together, but I digress- heh). He liked the sound of the first position and when I told him about the second he was like - why did you waste my time telling me about that? I told him it was worth considering because it was out of recruiting and frankly, recruiting is hard right now and it might be nice to get out of the storm. Here is his reply...Ok, so whaa whaa, my job is tough right now and even though I am talented and passionate about it, it is too hard so I am gonna run away from it and hide in a new industry cuz I don't want my job to be hard. Me: ummmmm, point taken.

I also have been feeling very guilty about having 2 solid options to consider while holding a good job while so many people I know are taking anything they can get just to get by- I am placing (former) 6 figure earners into a $12 p/hr telemarketing job right now because they have to have some income rolling in. That is sad and scary so while I feel bad I am grateful....and besides, if a recruiter can't find themselves a new gig then how good am I after all?

So that is my update and my life....If my life wasn't upside down and drama filled, how would I know it was mine??