The Post Graduate Flail

Hello, lovely readers. Thanks for joining me for another post in the Transitions series! (New here? Find out what the series is all about here.)

Today, we’re joined by Simona. I met Simona through Justine, and when I heard what she’s doing now, I knew that I had to include her story! Thanks for being here, Simona!

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Simona

Hello readers! My name is Simona. I’m 25 years old and I live in St. Petersburg, Florida. Currently, I’m going to school for massage therapy and will be graduating this September. Come fall, I should officially be a Licensed Massage Therapist. (Yay!)

I do maintain a blog, although I don’t write nearly as often as I would like to. My blog is called My Unsolicited Opinions and I would consider it a humor blog. Well, at least I think I’m funny… I’m not so sure about everyone else. Feel free to take a look for yourselves!

What is your educational/career background?

I went to college at the University of Wisconsin- Madison, and graduated in 2009 from the School of Journalism with a BA in Journalism & Mass Communication. After graduation, I moved to Milwaukee and got a job as a Marketing Specialist for a quick service restaurant business and continued working there for over two years. Then, in November of 2011, I made the big move to St. Pete. I packed up my car, took my dog and hit the road. Once here, I enrolled in school again, this time at Cortiva Institute of Massage Therapy (which was just voted the #1 massage therapy school in the country by the way- no big deal.)

What did you initially see yourself doing with your specific degree/major? 

After I graduated from UW, I initially saw myself working at a public relations firm writing press releases and planning/executing promotional events for my clients. I sought to work for a ‘health food’ company like Kellogg’s or Kashi because I wanted to combine my writing and PR skills with my passion for living a healthy lifestyle. However, at the time, the state of the economy wasn’t conducive to landing one’s dream job. Like many other recent grads, I had to apply for hundreds of jobs and go on countless interviews before finally getting hired. I was so thankful to find a job working for a reputable and fairly well known company that I accepted the offer right away. I felt relieved to find something that was semi-close to my initial plan. After all, I was working in the food industry, just not necessarily for a ‘health food’ company. And although I was doing marketing, I still got to help plan and execute some PR events here and there.

What are you working on right now?

Right now I am in my first semester of massage therapy school and working on becoming knowledgeable in my field so I can pass my exam this fall and get my license to practice.

What made you decide to change direction? Is there a specific moment when you knew you didn’t want to continue down your initial path?

I think it was sort of a gradual realization. I wasn’t getting the sort of projects or type of work I wanted to do. I loved doing PR events as well as writing the occasional newsletter article, but those tasks were few and far between. Most of the time I found myself counting down the hours until it was time to go home. That’s not a good sign of job satisfaction. I found myself bored with the monotony of it all because I never felt challenged. I also felt underutilized as an employee. Additionally, there wasn’t much room for growth within the company, so I knew I either had to leave or just sit and be content in the same position forever.

I interviewed for multiple marketing/media/PR jobs after I came to this realization but basically it just sounded like a bunch of the same stuff to me. Kohl’s corporate location even wanted me to come back for a third interview but I respectfully declined. I truly felt that switching from one corporate desk job to another corporate desk job would have been a short term solution to a deeper problem. I was in the wrong field, plain and simple. No amount of job searching could make me believe otherwise.

I realized I needed a career in which I would feel valued and appreciated every day. I also wanted work that would allow me to stand and be active for most of my day because I can’t stand sitting still for eight hours. When I sit for too long I feel lethargic and unhealthy. How can you perform at 100% if you aren’t feeling healthy and happy? It’s extremely important to practice good self-care and my previous position didn’t encourage that behavior.

Simona with her adorable pup

Was anything surprising/unexpected about your current field? Was it difficult to switch direction?

The switch actually wasn’t that difficult because I had come to terms with my decision and knew that if I wanted to be happy, I would need to take a risk and pursue my dreams- even though it’s always scary to deviate from your routine and try something new. You’ll never know unless you try!

As for my studies, there’s way more science and anatomy material than I had originally thought there would be, but it’s all very interesting and certainly important [to learn] in order to become a knowledgeable and successful massage therapist. I truly enjoy being challenged every day and learning new things. My mom said something to me the other day that I will never forget. She said, “Simona, I really think you’re at your happiest when you’re learning something.” Ah, mothers…they’re so wise.

Do you have any regrets? If you could talk to a younger you, what would you tell yourself?

I don’t have any regrets. Some might think I would regret ‘wasting’ four years in college and another two at a job that wasn’t right for me- but I don’t. I’m glad I went to UW because I met some awesome people and had a lot of adventures and learning experiences. The PR and marketing skills I learned will be extremely useful for marketing myself as a massage therapist and promoting my business, should I chose to open up my own private practice. I believe I’m exactly where I should be at this exact moment.

If I could talk to a younger me I would tell myself to simply RELAX and take more time to think about what I wanted my life to turn out like, not what I thought my family and mentors wanted for me. I’m the one who has to live my life, not them. You can’t force yourself to be happy doing something you don’t enjoy. You have to accept yourself for who you are and ALLOW yourself to be happy. Give in to that little voice that says, “I’d rather be doing ___” and just DO IT already!

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

In five years I see myself working as a successful massage therapist who has, like, a bazillion clients. I’m not sure if I’ll be in a spa or medical setting yet, I haven’t made up my mind. Maybe both! I also really want to set aside more time to travel and write. Eventually, I’d like to have at least two books published: one fiction and one non-fiction.

Yes, I’ve got a lot of dreams, but I have the power to make them all come true. So do you.

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Thanks so much for stopping by, Simona! If you haven’t yet, check out Simona’s blog here.

Stay tuned for another Transitions post, next week Tuesday!

Good morning! Welcome back for another installment of Transitions. (If you’re new, find out more about the series here.) Today’s guest poster is Julie from Peanut Butter Fingers! PB Fingers is one of the first blogs I started reading regularly– Julie covers life with her husband Ryan and their adorable vizsla, Sadie. Thanks for joining us today, Julie!

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My name is Julie and I am a 26-year-old blogger and freelance writer. My blog, Peanut Butter Fingers, follows my life as I try to work out regularly, eat (mostly) healthy and enjoy life as a newlywed with my husband and our crazy dog!

What is your educational/career background?

I graduated cum laude from the University of Central Florida with a degree in advertising and public relations, and a minor in marketing. After college I worked in the public relations and marketing field and realized that my favorite tasks were those that involved writing. I loved creating press releases or typing up brochure or magazine content. Eventually I became a content manager for a large website where writing and editing was my primary focus. I loved it and during my time with that company, I eventually started my blog to write about things that interested me, since I was writing about pharmaceuticals and side effects of medications all day!

What did you initially see yourself doing with your specific majors?

I thought I would work in the public relations field, hopefully helping to maintain a positive image for a large corporation.

What are you working on right now?

Right now my primary focus is my blog and freelance writing projects.

What made you decide to change direction? Is there a specific moment when you knew you didn’t want to continue down your initial path?

Julie and Ryan

My career path changed when I realized that my passion for writing was stronger than my desire to work in marketing and public relations. I loved the writing tasks that went along with my job and eventually searched for a career where writing would be my primary responsibility. After starting my blog, I was shocked when more and more people began reading it and it began to provide me with some financial cushioning. This allowed me to leave my full-time job and pursue freelance writing and blogging as my new job.

Was anything surprising or unexpected about your current field?

Blogging has taught me to expect the unexpected. There’s a lot of “behind the scenes” work that goes into blogging - stresses that aren’t obvious to outside readers that have really helped me grow as a person. When it comes to freelance writing, I was shocked to find that more magazines and publications are interested in story pitches, not pre-written articles. I never learned that in school!

Do you have any regrets? If you could talk to a younger you, what would you tell yourself?

I wish I would’ve listened to my heart and minored in creative writing rather than marketing.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

In five years I hope to still be blogging and freelance writing! I feel very blessed to enjoy what I do every day and can only hope I am still able to have this same career in five years!

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Thanks again, Julie! If you haven’t stopped by Julie’s blog yet, check it out here. If you’d like to read more about her decision to blog and freelance full-time, read here.

Join me next week for another installment of Transitions–  we’ll be joined by Simona from My Unsolicited Opinions!

Welcome back for another Transitions post! (If you’re new, find out more about the series here.) Today’s poster is another one of my favorite bloggers– Clare. Clare also lives in Dallas, and I love reading about the restaurants and bars she finds. There’s something for everyone on her blog… she covers recipes, workouts, outfits, etc. She inspired me to think beyond just cardio. Check her out!

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Hi! I’m Clare and I’m 24 years old. After working for a shoe company for a year and a half, I JUST decided to quit that job and accept a new position at a small ad agency in Dallas. Along with my full-time job, I am in school at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and will be a certified holistic health coach in April. I’ve also been blogging  about my favorite meals, exercises, and fun with friends at Fitting It All In for almost a year and a half.

What is your educational/career background?

I graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2010 with degrees in Marketing and Graphic Design. I started work for the shoe company right away, but am excited to use more of my marketing and social media knowledge at my new job with the ad agency.

What did you initially see yourself doing with your specific degree?

I really didn’t know what I wanted to do. I have both an analytical side and a creative side, hence the double major in business and design, but I didn’t know how I wanted to fit the two together. One of the great things about my first job at the shoe company was that it was a rotational program where I got to switch positions each year and try out different roles. But after becoming more involved with social media, I realized I really wanted to focus on marketing and things in that realm. I’m so excited that my clients at the ad agency will give me that opportunity!

As for my health coaching certification, that is a completely separate interest. After recovering from an eating disorder I became very interested in health and nutrition. My blog is a wonderful outlet for that passion, but I decided I wanted more education. I am certified to see clients as a health coach right now, but since I have a full time job I don’t think I’m quite ready to take that on. Right now I am just using the education for personal and blog benefit, and hopefully will be able to do more freelance writing in the future. And who knows, maybe one day my career will be in health and wellness! The way I see it, more education is never a bad thing and can only present opportunities. Continue reading →

Hi lovelies. Welcome back for another installment of Transitions. (If you’re new, find out more about the series here.) Today’s guest post is from the lovely Justine, author of one of my first-thing-in-the-morning reads. She’s smart, she’s funny, and she shares my love for dogs we can’t have (YET!). She’s also visiting Iceland soon (how cool, right?!) and I can’t wait to read about her adventures there. Thanks for joining us today, Justine!

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Hi there! I’m Justine. I’m 24 (and a half), and I’m currently the Social Media Specialist for a dinnerware and kitchenware development and marketing company. I’m also the founder and author of the blog Stop Me if You’ve Heard This One, which is pretty much the story of my life (which includes a lot of cooking, decorating, crafting, running, nerdiness, and random stories). I like to think of my blog as the awkward girl’s survival guide to life.

What is your educational/career background?

I went to Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa (holla!) and received a dual degree in magazine journalism and writing.

What did you initially see yourself doing with your specific degree/major?

I’ve known I was going to be a writer my entire life. (I have vivid childhood memories of stapling together construction paper “books” containing stories I’d written about bunnies and puppies and little girls with brown hair and bangs.) After school, my plan was to move to New York and get a fabulous job at a lifestyle magazine, ideally moving up the ranks to become a health or features editor.

What are you working on right now?

I’m currently working full-time in social media promotion, but I’m also working on expanding my blog and, in general, figuring out what I want to do when I grow up. Continue reading →