Last month SoundGirl and blogger Kirsty Gillmore wrote a blog that hit very close to home for me. She posted about taking a risk, creating change, and making decisions for her career that makes her happy. Read her blog here, if you haven’t already. Change can be hard and scary. It’s one thing to think or talk about doing something, and another to actually do it. Kirsty, I applauded you for stepping out of your comfort zone to refocus your career and take on new challenges! It is really inspiring to know someone else is in the same position I am in.
The points from Kirsty’s blog that rang most true for me were the feeling of accomplishing my goals in my last position and no longer feeling challenged by a majority of the job. Although a job may never be fully complete, there is a time where it is good to move forward, create change, grow your skills, and try something new. This is exactly the position I found myself in this year.
So, about a month ago I made a big life change; something I had been thinking about for close to a year while waiting for the right job opportunity to open up. That opportunity recently came along and, as a result, I submitted my resignation at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse and relocated to a new city and university.
I’m now located in St. Paul, Minnesota, and I’m working for St. Catherine University, an all-women undergraduate school. I’m in more of an overall events logistics role, but there is still some small-scale technology as part of the job. This move has brought me closer to family after being away for about ten years, as well as into a larger market where I hope to develop relationships to continue to freelance in the area. Overall, I’m looking forward to working through the challenges of a new environment and space while developing new skills in my full-time position.
One thing I think is great about my new position is that, as I mentioned earlier, it’s an all-women school. With that, I will work closely with and get to develop the next generation of women entering the workforce, with the opportunity to expose them to the wonderful world of events too. I find my new role challenging, but it is a great place to use my skills in logistics planning for campus events.
I’m excited to be in this larger market where I’ll be able to make new connections within the events and audio world. I hope to experience many new venues, and hopefully, run into many more SoundGirls! I’m motivated to expand my network and maybe do a freelance gig here or there. I look forward to being able to continue to talk about my experiences and this change through SoundGirls. If you’re in the area, let me know – I’d love to connect!