The Five-Year Plan

“What’s your five-year plan?” I was often asked this question when I interviewed.

The honest answer: I don’t have one.

Five years ago, if someone had told me I’d be living and working in Idaho, I would have laughed. Yet, here I am.

Five years from now, I know that I’ll be flexible and open to the opportunities that life presents. People who adapt find life is a wonderful journey filled with winding paths that beckon to places never dreamed possible.

My five-year plan goes something like this: In five years, I’ll be working in the communications field, learning and adapting to whatever new communication channels are emerging. Five years ago, social media was just starting to revolutionize PR practice. In five years, I expect something new and completely different will be emerging.

Five years from now, I’ll make sure my skills are updated regularly because when I started my career, I typed stories on a TRS-80 and used film that had to be developed before adding a picture. Some estimates say that what I know now will be completely outdated in five years.

It’s not that I don’t set goals and make plans. One of my goals is to earn my APR, a professional designation established by the Public Relations Society of America that says I know my profession well and meet specific credentials.

I’m going to learn InDesign and Illustrator, two graphic design programs.

I’m going to learn how to shoot and edit video. I’ve watched many bloggers move from a written blog to “vlogs” or using short videos to share information. I’m not a graphic designer, nor a videographer, and my efforts likely won’t rise to a professional level. But when I see potential for adding interesting elements in storytelling and improving my communications skills, I’m all for it.

Mary Chapin Carpenter’s song “The Long Way Home” says it best: “Accidents and inspiration leads you to your destination.”

Job Search Insanity

To say that I’m stubborn is quite an understatement. Strong willed. Persistent. Yes, even pig headed at times.

I live by my personal Polish proverb: If you at first you don’t succeed, get a bigger hammer.

But there comes a time when even I have to admit that I’ve fallen into a kind of insanity. I keep doing the same things over and over again and expecting a different result.

Some people say that God has only three answers for our prayers:

• Yes
• Not yet.
• No, I have something better for you.

Well God, maybe you can drop a little hint or two. Or send a memo. Please.

I’m down here slogging in the trenches doing my best – crafting awesome resumes, building unique portfolios, researching employers and nailing the interviews. But it’s never quite good enough to close the deal.

I am rapidly realizing that no matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, no matter how many times I try, what I want may not be part of the Universe’s Grand Plan.

So what should I do?

Keep trying? Keep applying, keep interviewing and hope that someone will be smart enough to recognize what I offer?

It seems insane to stop trying. Or is it insanity to keep doing the same things and expecting a different outcome?

Photo from Flickr Creative Commons:  Dima Bushkov’s photostream

Songs in the Key of Life

For a Monday, I was feeling pretty feisty yesterday and rocking through my TO-DO list. Cue up the James Brown: “I Feel Good!”

Out on my social networks, I asked people to list their favorite Monday songs, even created a #MondayMusic hashtag. After all, all the glory shouldn’t go to that insipid Katy Perry Friday song. A Monday such as mine deserved a song too.

My picks were: Culture Club’s “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” and Elvis’ “All Shook Up.” Later in the day, after getting outside to run a few errands, I wanted to add Katrina and the Waves’ “Walking on Sunshine.”

Some of the other contributions were the Bangles’ “Manic Monday,” Judy Collins’ “Send in the Clowns” and Men Without Hats’ “The Safety Dance.”

Clearly, people were not having the kind of Monday I was having.

Like Ally McBeal, I  often imagine soundtracks to the highs and lows of any given day. (So who remembers Billy moving through the law office with the Robert Palmer ladies following him?)

It gets a little more complicated by the fact that most of my music is 20 to 30 years old – bubblegum pop from the ‘80s and storyteller ballads from the ‘70s. Alright, I’ll toss in a little country and some classic rock sometimes, but it’s still music from a decade ago.

The decade or genre of the music really doesn’t matter, except it reflects how our attitudes about specific days, and it affects more than just our choices in music.

How many of you count down the week until Friday comes and bemoan the dreaded Monday? They both arrive at the same time every week. The schedule never changes.

What if we approached every day with the same anticipation and hopefulness as we do a new year?

Imagine just how wonderful our lives could be, if we picked a different song and approached every Monday with a better attitude.

Image from Flickr Creative Commons: PhotoSteve101’s Stream

A Resolution of Sorts for 2012

One year I took a whole box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts in the office on our first day back to work after the long holiday break. 

“Let’s just get those resolutions out of the way,” I told everyone.

I doubt my coworkers were very happy with me, but every doughnut was gone before the end of the day. I’ve never been a big fan of New Year’s resolutions.

But this year, I saw a post on Facebook from my friend Mechelle Woznicki: “2012 – Live with purpose and passion!” I commented that this was a resolution I could achieve. Then I read Chris Brogan’s post “My 3 Words for 2012.” Mechelle had already given me two of my three words.

It’s not a resolution in the traditional sense, but a reminder of who I am and how I want to live in 2012. So here goes:

Passion: During a recent interview, I was asked to describe myself in one word. It took me a few minutes to come up with the response I wanted: passionate. My work is my passion, so it never truly feels like work. I care deeply that my communication skills be used for good, to help people live better. I love my family deeply and make lifelong commitments to true friends. I’m quick to anger when people are cruel or vindictive. I passionately hate injustice and bigotry. My passion makes me a better, more caring person.

Purpose: I struggle with the purpose of my life, of being here in this time and place. My son is grown and out on his own; my role as his mother has changed. My career also seems to be evolving, and I continue to try to adapt and understand the purpose of these changes. I’ve weathered some gut-wrenching disappointments this past year related to my career, so I’m trying to remain open to a new purpose in my volunteer work. I believe, still, there is a purpose for these changes and I will understand them in time.

Persistence: When I tweeted about being rejected for a job I really wanted just three days before Christmas, a friend responded using the hash-tag #nevergiveup. It reminded me my passion and my purpose are the result of yet another personality trait of mine. I’m the person who never gives up. No matter how big the obstacle, I’ll find a way. I loved a particular slide in Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture that said: “Brick walls are there for a reason: They let us prove how badly we want things.” I’ve never met a brick wall that I didn’t find a way over, under, around or through.

In 2012, I will find a way past the brick wall using my passion, purpose and persistance. I will never give up. Ever.