Transition Tales: There Must Be More Than This
Career Discovery, Confidence, Get That Job, Transition Tales
Transition Tales is back with another edition! Today we’re chatting with a client from Chicago who recently made a special transition from a Legal Assistant to a Marketing Administrator. In this edition, we’re going to be sharing what it’s like to explore a transition tale because you believe there must be more than this. Let’s go!
Her story begins in October 2018 right after she moved to Chicago and bought a condo! She came across the Legal Assistant job and knowing it was a “temp to hire” position figured it would be a good way to start making some money while continuing to look for something else. As the three-month mark approached, she hadn’t found another job. She enjoyed all the free time she had in her current position, so when she was offered the permanent position she said yes!
ALV: What made you decide to pursue a career transition?
TT: After being at my permanent position for a little, I kept applying to other jobs because I had SO much free time. After only hearing back from a few jobs, I began to grow very sad at work and even in my time away from work. I literally was reading book after book on my Kindle during my job as a legal assistant. I was not given anything to do! It made me feel like a loser and that I had no purpose. This is what brought me to ALV.
ALV: How did you figure out what you wanted to do in your next role? Was it immediately clear to you?
TT: I met with Eden and it proved to be a challenging, fulfilling and life-changing experience. It made me move out of my comfort zone and really dig deeper into what I wanted in my professional and personal life. After working with Eden for a while, we came up with the idea to email the woman who hired me at my firm and ask her about moving to a different department because I truly did like the company, it offered great benefits, everyone was super nice and the hours were OK.
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We encourage all of our clients to dig deep before making any changes because we know that it can be easy to just get out when the going gets hard. However, in the case of this client, it wasn’t the company she wasn’t enjoying; it was the work she was doing.
ALV: After making the decision to explore more opportunities at that company, what did you do next?
TT: I worked with Eden to craft an email to the woman who hired me explaining that I was looking for new positions/opportunities in the company and let me tell you, I was so nervous to send the email asking to meet and discuss other departments! However, it ended up being the best career decision I’ve made in a very long time. I was able to move into the Marketing department, and I am so genuinely happy.
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As a Marketing Administrator, TT now gets to fill her days with tasks that help her grow and develop professionally. Her day-to-day includes answering emails and phone calls, monitoring the budget, scheduling team meetings, processing expense reports, tracking vendor contracts, managing and tracking entertainment tickets, booking travel arrangements, tracking firm-brand giveaway items, coordinating the department calendar, and so much more!
ALV: If you had to do it again, what would you do differently this time?
TT: I think I would have just been more proactive. I wouldn’t have procrastinated for so long. Life is short. I kept telling myself that it’s ok, I don’t have a fulfilling job yet because I’m young and I have so much time to decide. This can be true but I’m not getting any younger! As I waited doing nothing waiting for something to fall into my lap, I could have been utilizing that time to learn something new, make new connections or take bigger steps to better myself.
ALV: Do you have any final advice for other people considering a career transition?
TT: Don’t be scared to take chances with your career. Stay proactive and make moves! It took me so long to reach out to the woman who hired me about other departments at the firm for two reasons.
One: I was nervous she would say no. This is not a practical reason because it isn’t a big deal if she says no. It could only be a positive. No company wants a high employee turnover rate, and I can guarantee you if I brought it to her attention that I was unhappy in my current position, she would want to do anything she could to keep me at the company. It’s just another long and dreadful task to go out and find another employee and train them if I left.
The second reason is that I was scared she would say yes and I would actually have to be responsible for very important things. I was scared to have such a large responsibility after having none for such a long time because I did not want to make mistakes. The truth is, I’ve made tons of mistakes since I have started this position but I have learned from every one of them and I have grown. I also would advise other people considering a career transition to stay organized and keep yourself accountable. Eden helped me hold myself accountable for the things that I was nervous to do because I don’t normally do them.
Stay proactive, take chances, and hold yourself accountable!
