In another lonely universe, we're laying side by side

[impersona]

THE PLANS HAVE CHANGED.

So only one day into Nanowrimo, I had a major melt-down.  Really bad.  Like 2-3 hours of K and Kol talking me down, and plenty of DBZ therapy to soothe my hurts.  It has boiled down to the fact that I can not physically handle my job for much longer.  I am falling apart at the seams, and I'm sure people have noticed but I have been a wrecking ball of butthurt and insecurity and insanity over the past two months (I am sorry).  So, Nanowrimo is now Jobowrimo.  The new goal is 1k a day of writing novel/tags, and the other 700 words has to be in some way related to job-hunt, whether it is logging my progress, doing exercises, or god forbid, writing resumes and cover letters.  LIKE A PIMP.

The goal is a new job by December 15th.  It almost doesn't matter WHAT, except it does, cause I want to pick something that makes me happy and I don't want to do worse than I am now.   It is really clear though.  At this point, I need to get out of Macy's or I will suffer a major breakdown.  

My mom sent me a book called What Color Is Your Parachute?, and that has become my project for the first week of this month.  My perpetual whinging has been "BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WANT TO DO AS A CAREER", and we are going to fix that NOW.

Here is one of the exercises I did today, and after that, one of the recommended career quizzes I did.  Please feel free to comment or correct me, or make observations that I've overlooked. 


What Color Is Your Parachute? Exercise, page 181

1. Take ten sheets of blank paper.  Write, at the top of each one, the words: Who Am I?
2. Then write, on each sheet in turn, one answer to that question.  Only one.
3.  When you're done, go back over all ten sheets and expand now upon what you have written on each sheet.  Looking at each answer, write below it why you said that, and what turns you on about that answer.
4.  When that is done, go back and arrange the ten sheets in order of priority.  Which is most important to your identity, down to the least.
5.  Find the common denominators among the answers on the sheets.

Who Am I?  #8

-Independent

Why?

I am resentful of people over my shoulder. I like to be given tasks and my own space to do them. I do not enjoy work that relies directly on others. I make my own choices for myself. I like to have pride in my own work.

 

Who Am I?  #1

-Writer

Why?

Because writing and written communication is my form of art. It is how I best express myself, and I consider it my primary love and talent. I feel security and confidence when I write. I am clear and bold without being face to face.

 

Who Am I?  #2

-Critic

Why?

I enjoy cultivating opinions. I enjoy editting, cutting down to the wick. I like evaluating and reading into details. I like knowing where something falls apart.

Who Am I?  #9

-Instructive, guide.

Why?

When I learn something, I like to pass on my knowledge. I like helping people find tricks themselves. I like being demonstrative and I like instructing. I like to help people see difficult concepts and understand them.

 

Who Am I?  #4

-Adaptive

Why?

Rigid schedules and routine bore me. I need to be moving and engaged in different tasks. I need to be able to demonstrate flexibility. Travel is important. New faces are important. I like tasks that involve critical thinking and adaptivity as opposed to routine.

 

Who Am I?  #3

- Competent

Why?

I take pride in learning and sufficency. I like being a go-to person. I like figuring out tricks and short-cuts. I like having a handle on my environment.

 

Who Am I? #7

-Analyzer

Why?

I am unsatisfied with being told something is an absolute truth. I must see it and understand it for myself. I need to see deeper. I need to understand people. I like to ask people why they think what they do, or about their methods, and get a better psychologic picture of that person.

 

Who Am I?  #5

-Emersed

Why?

I enjoy getting deeply engaged in a project. I like to know details inside-out. I like having things 'drowned out', leaving me to focus. I do not enjoy surface engagement with a project, and must go further. I enjoy research immensely.

 

Who Am I?  #10

-Mediator

Why?

I do not like fighting and tempers. I stay cool and light a majority of the time. I like being goofy and fun and incomprehendable. Laughing means a lot. I like to be kind to people who aren't appreciated.

 

Who Am I?  #6

-Introverted

Why?

I require time to myself to fully recharge. Social engagement can get incredibly stressful. I want to work with a small team. I like to work on my own project. I can present and speak but would rather create.

Then, to look over those comments and pull out what is common to them.



Common Denominators:

• Correctives, problem-solving

• knowledge, acquiring and teaching it

• flexibility, having space to move in, adaptive

• depth in knowledge, research

• gentle interaction with people, restrict stress/competition

 

What must my career use (and include) for me to be truly happy, useful, and effective?

A changing environment and constant learning environment. Providing a worthwhile service to others. Ability to manage own tasks and to complete projects on own initiative.

 

 

This quiz came from the Princeton Review.   It was recommended by this page on the Parachute website.

People with blue Interests like job responsibilities and occupations that involve creative, humanistic, thoughtful, and quiet types of activities. Blue Interests include abstracting, theorizing, designing, writing, reflecting, and originating, which often lead to work in editing, teaching, composing, inventing, mediating, clergy, and writing.

People with yellow styles perform their job responsibilities in a manner that is orderly and planned to meet a known schedule. They prefer to work where things get done with a minimum of interpretation and unexpected change. People with a yellow style tend to be orderly, cautious, structured, loyal, systematic, solitary, methodical, and organized, and usually thrive in a research-oriented, predictable, established, controlled, measurable, orderly environment. You will want to choose a work environment or career path in which your style is welcomed and produces results.

Careers from The Princeton Review Guide To
Your Career linked to "Blue" interest:

• Actor
• Animator
• Anthropologist
• Antiques Dealer
• Archaeologist
• Artist
• Career Counselor
• Child Care Worker
• Clergy--Priest, Rabbi, Minister, Imam
• College Administrator
• Comedian
• Cosmetologist
• Curator
• Dentist
• Disc Jockey
• Editor
• Fashion Designer
• Film Director
• Film Editor
• Graphic Designer
• Guidance Counselor
• Human Resources Manager
• Interior Designer
• Inventor
• Journalist
• Librarian
• Management Consultant
• Market Researcher
• Media Specialist
• Musician
• Nurse
• Nutritionist
• Occupational Therapist
• Paralegal
• Pharmacist
• Philosopher
• Photographer
• Physical Therapist
• Physician
• Political Scientist
• Product Designer
• Professor
• Psychologist
• Public Health Administrator
• Book Publishing Professional
• Researcher
• School Administrator
• Secretary
• Social Worker
• Sociologist
• Speech Therapist
• Teacher
• Travel Agent
• City Planner
• Writer
• Chiropractor
• Public Relations
• Substance Abuse Counselor
• Trial Lawyer
• Hospice Nurse
• Landscape Architect
• Optometrist
• Website Designer
• Digital Artist
• Mediator

•  
• Small Business Owner
• Theologian
• Web Art Director
• Web Editor
• Consultant
• Florist
• Media Planner
• Set Designer

Out of that list of jobs, I can see myself doing: Consultant, Web Editor, Small Business Owner, Mediator, Public Relations, Writer, Sociologist, Secretary, Researcher, Book Publishing Professional, Psychologist, Professor, Media Specialist, Market Researcher, Journalist, Interior Designer, Human Resources Manager, Guidance Counselor, Editor, DISC JOCKEY, College Administrator, and Career Counselor (yeah irony).