MaryB and the City

Mary Christmas.

An observant friend told me that this has certainly been “my month.” I won’t argue that. So, for official documentation purposes in the history books, we’re assigning 2009’s last 31 days to moi — Miss December.

I haven’t spent too much time blogging about my job search in recent weeks because I’ve been quite consumed in content regarding the location of my future husband and then reintegrating my ex, Mr. Big, back into the picture. But also because my brain has been in four-wheel drive trying to keep all the behavioral-based interviewing questions and repetitive example-based answers straight, plus treating the search for employment as a full-time job…the last thing I wanted to do was spend one more second thinking, or writing about it.

Today, by the grace of God, I have reached my personal goal of receiving and accepting a job offer before the New Year. I was only out of work for exactly eight weeks. In the greater scheme of a shitty economy and hellacious job market, the worst in 26 years to be exact, I can’t complain. In fact, I’ve made a conscious effort not to complain. But that just goes back to my fundamental belief that the people who focus on what they are grateful for and pour energy into blessings, despite being in turmoil, will only experience more good coming to them. No matter how many nights my ego was lured to invitation-only pity parties with an open bar, I refused to RSVP.

Throughout this whole experience, I’ve had a supernatural sense of calmness, which could not be explained other than giving God props for taking control of my chaos. I rationalized… if I put in the legwork with some serious elbow grease on the back-end, He’d make magic happen on the front-end and put the Universe in my corner. Wax on, wax off.

I’ve sent countless emails, submitted dozens and dozens of job applications, conducted several phone screenings, seven face-to-face interviews and after all of that, ironically took a job at a company who offered me a position on their team almost one year ago. At that time I was proactively searching in fear of being laid off…but ultimately didn’t accept it as my agency practically begged me not to leave…promising I had a long future ahead at the spacious desk inside a corner office with a window. My agency ultimately did end up eliminating my position and with the quickness, I went back with my tail between my legs to said company. So I find it deliciously serendipitous that I’ve come full circle. And to top it all off, I get to work in the pet industry — four-legged animals complete me.

This week not only did I receive one, but two job offers back-to-back. And a third one was in motion, however their hiring process had a much longer lead time. Under normal conditions that redemption rate would be pretty badass, but in a sinking financial climate it falls under super hero status. Sure I’m proud of my resiliency and relentless efforts, but at the podium, I can only give credit to my partners in crime who provided award-winning support.

Family encouraged me through the miles; Friends have been on their feet as a cohesive cheering squad; Former coworkers checked in regularly asking for status updates, sharing job openings and offering referrals; Mr. Big has been nothing short of amazing since being jumped back into the MaryB fan club; and last but not least The G-man, leading me out of the dark and into the light without breaking a sweat.

Well readers, sorry to cut this short, but I’m late to a calendar shoot.