I graduated with a college bachelor's degree from Bucknell University back in 1998 majoring in Economics and Studio Art. Those were my majors on paper, but in reality my degree was a Bachelor's of Not-Moving-Back-In-With-My Parents. The day I graduated from college I received a phone call from my Uncle Paul who was a biologist working for the Idaho Fish and Game department letting me know that there was an opening for a temporary position (3 months) working on a WMA (Wildlife Management Area) to basically manage 1500 acres of land in south central Idaho where I would be spraying noxious weeds and growing cover crop for wildlife at the base of a canyon that had a creek running through it. The property had a ranch house in which I would stay and a couple neighbors within a 1/2 mile. Other than that, there was no one around for many miles.
Now, the only reason I got this job is that someone backed out at the last minute and the Jerome, ID office needed someone right away for the summer. Uncle Paul reached out to me and told me to apply and gave me the information of the hiring manager. This was probably the greatest graduation gift that I could have received. Not only do I not have to move back in with my parents, but I'm also 2200 miles away from them! Thankfully, my parents understood my "true" bachelor's degree and bought me a 4-banger 1994 Ford Ranger from the local car dealership (which happened to be my old high school soccer coach's truck) five days after graduation and sent me off with my grandfather (mom's dad) to keep me company and help pay for hotel stops. We made it out to Blackfoot, ID with only one near accident (ironically in Blackfoot) and only one hearing aid battery change. I wasn't responsible for the former, but had to perform the latter.
Thus began my adventures and life in the PAC-NW (Pacific Northwest for those reading along from the right coast). I could go on and on about my three month stint working for Fish and Game or my subsequent time living in Sun Valley, ID working for the resort as a night auditor, but this is a blog and not a novella. It's the back story that's important so someone may understand where I went wrong or where I went right!
I arrived in Seattle in early November of 1999 on a dreary Saturday afternoon. The only person I knew was my buddy Shawn who persuaded me to come out to Seattle after he had gotten a job working for Oak Harbor Freight. Shawn and I were co-workers at Sun Valley and enjoyed a beautiful love-hate relationship. We enjoyed hanging out, but he loved to push my buttons! I had all of my possessions in the back of my truck, no housing other than sleeping on Shawn's apartment floor, no job, and knew no one other than Shawn. The following Monday, I went to a temp agency looking for a job. The temp agency placed me at this up-and-coming company in the SoDo (South of Downtown) district of Seattle called Starbucks Coffee Company. I was to perform data entry for 2 weeks in the Store Development department. Oddly enough, that contract was extended for 15 years.
Here's the thing: My primary focus at that point was to pay off my trip across the country, pay off my college student debt, and to support a burgeoning soccer habit I quickly acquired after joining so many teams that I was playing 4x a week. I even rode my bike to a local park (Hiawatha Playfield) in West Seattle to scout out a game that was being played. I saw one team struggling so I rode my bike back to my apartment, found the right color jersey (purple), rode back to the field and asked them if they needed any help during halftime. I said, "Hey, I've got the right color jersey if you're interested!" They let me play and I scored a few goals for them. The next thing I know, they're inviting me to play on their soccer team. Honestly, it's a very similar story of how I persuaded my beautiful wife, Wendy, to join her team!
I cannot fault Starbucks Coffee Company in the least for giving me a chance, allowing me to develop professional skills, and a space to thrive. I had a lot to offer as I believe I have a good analytical mind, a strong work ethic (when I wanted to), and a good sense of humor for positive team building and cohesiveness for the most part. The problem for me professionally is that I was lacking a true sense of purpose for a natural "calling." The work was challenging and my co-workers were nice enough, but I could never put my finger on what was best for me. Early on, I figured that making more money and creating a dependable nest egg for retirement was what a professional life was all about. You climb the corporate ladder to take on more responsibilities and gather more money so that you can support your children and have a comfortable retirement was the goal for your end game.
It wasn't until 2014 and I had achieved the role of IT Project Manager that I realized that I was really unhappy, professionally. At the time I was running a Starbucks project to overhaul the ENTIRE human resources and payroll system (SAP) where there were a myriad of problems with regard to the technology in which I realized that I needed a break to reevaluate what was important to me. The project was stressful and I had enough credit built up that I could go on a company sabbatical (6 months would allow you to retain your current job, 1 year would give you "a" job). I chose a 6 month sabbatical (without pay) to clear my head. It turns out that it was enough time to make a crack in the golden handcuffs (nice salary, 5x weeks vacation, good stock options) that had kept me at Starbucks for all those years. I took my 6 month sabbatical and returned to find out that nothing had changed at the company, but I had changed as a person. There was more to life that I valued which the company couldn't provide for me to be fulfilled as a human. So I quit.
I took an additional 6 months off to focus on the family and eventually started looking for jobs. My professional focus shifted to zero in on what was important to me. I had just finished up a 5th year of coaching my daughter Olivia's soccer team when I saw a posting for a project management position for the Girl Scouts of Western Washington. I drew some analogies that since I loved coaching girls and saw a huge potential in ensuring that girls deserve as much confidence building and opportunity as boys that this seemed like a natural fit. I applied and got the job! Oh boy, what a job that I agreed upon.
Working for a non-profit as a seasoned IT professional is quite the culture shock! The skilled labor force and the tools you might expect are no longer there so you have to adapt quickly and quietly. If you do neither, you won't succeed. Fortunately, I have to admit I had one of the best bosses on the planet who kept me on for 3 years at Girl Scouts. My fortunes turned when she went on maternity leave and I no longer had "the drive". It's funny how one person can influence your life in such a profound way. I began to realize (in her absence) that Project Management just wasn't for me. Maybe her absence was a blessing. I just don't know.
I left Girl Scouts in October of 2018 as an active participant in figuring out what was the next best step for me beyond being a stay-at-home dad. There were no gender stigmatas for me taking on this role and we (Wendy and I) were able to justify it financially so things were comfortable. The idea struck me that it was the perfect time to perform a summer cross-country road trip since the kids were at a great age (13 & 11). Why the hell not? So we did...
For those of you new to this blog, I have documented extensively my 53 day epic adventure with my children across these glorious United States (please see previous entertaining blog posts). Now we're going to get to the meat and potatoes around why I've decided to make a drastic career change at age 43 and what that career change will be!
Hmm, wondered when you would pick up your pen again. And, coincidentally, I just re-read a couple of days ago your account of "ranching" in Idaho in '98. Ann/M
ReplyDelete