This has been a whirlwind of a year. After turning 25 in January, I joked that I was having a quarter life crisis. The thing is, I wasn’t actually kidding. When I was in college I thought that I would graduate, get a job, and have life figured out immediately. If you don’t know, I majored in journalism and sociology. Not exactly the type of major that has a direct path to a career post-college. Sure, I know a lot about how people interact with each other and I’m great at communicating, but that doesn’t exactly narrow down the job field.
While I thought getting a broad education would make me eligible for a wide range of job opportunities, I didn’t get any specialized practice. Yes, I can write, but was my major non-profit communication? Nope. I studied in the School of Media Arts and Design, but did I minor is social media management? Nope again. Turns out, specialization would have helped me A LOT.
I’ve done a lot of bouncing around since graduating. I started with AmeriCorps, and when that was over I applied to a handful of non-profit jobs, only to receive rejection after rejection. This led me to believe that AmeriCorps didn’t seem like real job experience to many companies. Trust me, it was real. I learned more in that year than other people probably do in 3 years at their job.
As my frustration with the job search grew, I was tempted to send out snarky cover letters:
“To whom it may concern:
You should hire me because I’m so passionate about non-profit organizations that I worked FOR FREE for 11 months! I had three different job titles and worked more than 40 hours each week. Imagine how hard I’d work if I had a real salary!
Enough said.
Emily Winters”
Don’t worry. I never did. But seriously people, what does it take?!
After some time job searching, I decided I might want to go back to school to get my masters in Public Health. So I started studying for the GREs, took the test, applied to school, got accepted. And then backed out. For something that you’re going to spend $40,000 each year on, you should be 100% committed. And I wasn’t.
So back to the job search I went. Bounce, bounce, bounce around. Still no luck. Okay what next? Personal training.
I’ve always been passionate about health and fitness, and I’ve always been told that I’m a good leader, so why not combine these two in a training certification? So I registered for anatomy classes at the local community college (because I definitely wasn’t going to teach myself all of that on my own). I bought an ACE certification study pack. And I devoted 4 months to studying and learning all about the human body and the impact of exercise.
I took my certification, PASSED YAY!, and then moved on to finding a job. I worked full-time as a personal trainer for the last 5 months, but recently left that job. Yes, I love connecting with people and leading them to healthier and happier lives, but something was missing. Whether it was support from a manager, clients in the population I want to work with, or just a more positive, uplifting environment, I just wasn’t meant to be working where I was.
Which brings me to now. I have my fingers crossed for a position to coach at a gym I love. Where I feel connected to everyone around me and know that I’ll be mentored and supported by the other coaches. In the meantime, I’ll be working at a local brewery. If you know me, you know I love craft beer. So I’m pretty excited about this.
I also can’t wait to spend more time focusing on this little blog of mine. I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine.
No really. I want this blog to support me one day, so tell your friends, family, co-workers. Anyone you think might relate to the struggles of a 25-year-old who is looking for her place in the world, has a love for healthy food that can be make in 30 minutes with minimal clean up, and is working to spread the belief that working out can be fun, and YES you are strong enough.
Follow along in 2017 for more rambles, more recipes, more quick workouts, and lots of goofy fun. It’s going to be a fantastic year, I know it.
Definitely not alone! Why does it have to be so scary to pursue your passion. You’re not living though if you don’t at least give it everything you’ve got, so get after it girl!
Thanks for sharing your post. While I got a job shortly after college, and worked for several years at the same position, my career path changed after marriage and family. After staying home with the kids for several years, I am reinventing myself. I can’t imagine going back to the field of study that I took in college and that’s ok! I think what I’ve discovered over the last couple of years is that I need to be creating. A wise man once told me “Create or Disintegrate”. If I continue to create, all will be well. So, keep on creating!
I am also a former AmeriCorp member. I worked for the National Wildlife Service in Arizona. It was a great experience!
Yes! I definitely need the freedom to be creative as well. Thank yo for your kind words Teresa! So cool that you did AmeriCorps as well 🙂
Emily,
Sadly your journey of exploration is not uncommon. What I love about your path is that you have stayed true to what you love and not settled into something that simply “pays the bills”. You will work for too many years to fill your days with something you are not passionate about. Best of luck to you in your continued journey!
I wholeheartedly agree! thanks for reading!
I love how open and honest you are about finding your path. It’s refreshing tof know I am not the only one!
Best,
Kelly
I know it can feel like everyone else has it all figured out, but being open with everyone about my journey has helped me realize we are not alone!