I have a few rules for this blog.
I don’t write about my family, outside of telling stories or showing my appreciation for them. I know that as good as it would feel to open up this editor and pound out a post about a fight or an annoyance (like when Craig says he’s going to get up at 5:30AM and I spend an hour that I could be sleeping trying to wake him up… Oh, wait. That doesn’t happen much anymore now that we have a baby alarm clock.) I would inevitably regret posting it.
I don’t use my child’s name. I’m not sure where this started or if it will always continue this way. I just sort of started using her initial.
And, I don’t blog about work. Because? Well, I’m not stupid.
Except sometimes these rules get in the way of me sharing “me” with you. Sometimes for months on end, you get sappy stories and funny pictures written at arms length because I can’t write about what’s going on in my 9-5 life. I can’t write about upheavals that are happening at work. Changes that have me wondering whether it’s time to make a career move. Wondering if I have the stamina to undergo a second organizational change in 20-some months. Wondering what I want to be when I grow up.
I feel like I’m here, in this job, for a while yet. And while the changes that have occurred have put me in a place where I’m far more uncertain about my job than I was three months ago, I still have a job. I have a boss who is supportive and flexible and who constantly reminds me that my family comes first. I still get to pay the mortgage, keep Pampers on C’s butt and wear cute shoes almost every day.
If I’m honest, I feel a little lost at work. But at the same time, I’m trying to embrace this new reality and enjoy the down time. I’m thinking about working on my PR accreditation. I’m grateful to get my nights and weekends back and not feel guilty for napping on weekends instead of working while the baby naps. I’m beyond thrilled that I turned off work email on my phone and no longer feel like I have to check email at 8:00 at night.
It’s still a work in progress. I still have moments where I search Monster and browse the newspapers. (Anyone looking for a reasonably decent writer/marketer/PR professional with an affection for social media? Anyone?) But I’m working on it.
So, wish me luck. I’m gonna need it.
And if you work with me and you read this? Well, you understand.
{ 9 comments }
I absolutely could have written this my very own self. I feel the same way about work about 99.9% of the time. Completely uncertain and absolutely lost. Somehow they keep me around although I may never understand why they hired me in the first place. We just keep on truckin’ along.
My current job is WAY different than my old job. It’s in the same field, but does not involve direct practice or supervising others as in my old job. Way less stress. I know I will be off work at 5 pm every day. No more being on call. No more restless nights worrying if I made a poor decision. Still there is something missing. I want MORE. I think we always want more. I know that someday I will make another change in my job, but for now I am going to try to be content with low stress and job security.
Thought I was the only crazy one, working a “day job” and trying to make a go of my blog life. Damn, it’s tough.
For me, no topic is off limit, and sometimes, because I spend 8 hours of my day there, the job becomes the blog.
http://www.anauthenticlife.com/?p=48
Have a terrific day!
KT
Work posts are usually a no go for me as well, but being a working mom is who we are. And it has a huge impact on us. To not even mention it when something is going on isn’t being honest with yourself. So it’s okay to break the rule every now and then
Good luck with everything. And I understand.
I sort of hope my previous employer never finds my blog because I wrote a LOT of mean stuff about them when they didn’t deserve it. I was pregnant and hormonal and miserable and vented online way more than I should have. It’s much easier writing about my current boss, because a) he can’t read and b) he’s a toddler.
Even when I had a job I LOVED, I spent my evening browsing job websites and updating my resume. I guess I just imagined one day I would stumble across the ad that said “Wanted: One mid-20′s woman who wants to work mainly from home to write about crap on the internet and/or get paid to watch TV. Some exotic travel (all expenses paid) required. Salary: $200,000/year”.
I still check Monster sometimes.
I totally get it.
It’s like you are in my brain and wrote everything I have been thinking. I, too, don’t write about work because I know there are several people there that read my blog. I don’t think they would mind, but I just really avoid the topic. And I, too, have undergone numerous re-organizations in the past year or so. Each one has been an improvement, but then I also feel like with each one is just someone having an agenda. I haven’t had our baby yet, but I’m already trying to back off from work taking over my life. I hope everything works out for you!
from one working mom to another (in a shaky work situation as well)…I hear ya! So very loud and clear!
It really is hard to say what you really need to say because in the end the ones closest to you will be hurt. And that may get readers some times, but somethings are private. You choose what you need to post. I have felt so many times wanting to post more, but at the risk of losing (my old) job, it wasn’t worth it. Or that family member that makes you crazy, but they are family so you deal? Sigh.
Good luck
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