I learn about subjects that interest and inspire me so I can create content and experiences that add value to others.

 

Growing up, I always knew what I wanted to do: live a totally creative life in the arts. I envisioned pursuing a career that allowed me to learn and grow creative skills. I was always writing stories, essays and poems; drawing, painting and doing all manner of crafts; and singing with any choir that would accept me.

 

Although I received affirmations from teachers and others for my creative endeavors, when I got to high school, and then college, my parents pressured me to focus my studies on whatever would qualify me to land the most well-paying job I could find. It was apparent they didn't consider any creative discipline able to provide that opportunity. 

 

I was more inclined to believe them when I graduated from college with a Bachelor of Science in English, but couldn’t find a job that allowed me to write or even think creatively. Before I knew it, I had spent 12 years working in accounting and bookkeeping positions, because that was all that seemed available at the time. Not only was I not trained for this, I didn’t even like math. I’m actually kind of proud that I made something so foreign and uncomfortable a viable career for so long. I was determined to survive.

 

But I certainly wasn’t fulfilled. At some point along the way, I acknowledged that unused creative drive within would not just disappear, but would continue to sit there in my soul broadcasting a persistent misery until I figured out a meaningful way to incorporate it into a vocation. 

 

I took some time off to explore that need. After a period of intense reflection, independent study and volunteer work, I connected with a writers’ group in 2013, and soon after was getting paid to write columns for our local newspaper, The News Herald. When a position opened up on staff at The News Herald a couple years later, the editor asked me to apply, and I got the job.

 

I was so excited to finally work in a position that made use of my creative abilities that I thanked God for the opportunity every day as I drove to work. I grew as a writer and gained valuable skills, such as interviewing, editing and social media strategies. I also got to explore visual storytelling through photography and video production. Each day brought new things to learn about and share. I never wanted it to end… but then it did. Due to corporate staff cuts, I was laid off in April after seven wonderful, fulfilling years of writing about our local community. 

 

Finding myself again standing at a vocational crossroads, I am determined to never go back to the bleak landscape of spreadsheets, invoices and bank statements. I invested everything I had into my creative skills in the past decade, and know they have the potential to add value professionally in another position. So now it’s time to push past the tears and grief of losing the best job I ever had and write the next chapter of my life.