Heading Down A New Road – Deciding To Make A Change

I consider this year a transitional year for me.  I started off the year needing strength to get through the emotions I was feeling with the death of my son’s best friend on Christmas Day.  I also started off the year running the Dopey Challenge in Walt Disney World as I have done the past several years.  Now as we approach Fall, the leaves are changing, the light is changing and our family routines are changing; I am also feeling a very strong pull in my life for change.  It’s time for me to head down a new road.

What Is Changing

I’m changing.  My life goals are changing.  My children are changing.  Our family is changing.  I mainly feel the pull to move into a career where I will be doing what I love to do, working in social media.  That is my passion and I am not living my passion right now.  People who know me, know that I enjoy social media.  And when you start talking to me about blogging or social media, the excitement is noticeable in my voice.

I am officially searching for a new job to work in the Digital Marketing and Social Media Marketing field.  It was scary at first to update my resume and start the search, but if I wasn’t pushed I wouldn’t have started.  I am very grateful to my friends and my family and my husband for their support in helping me achieve this goal.  I have some good leads and I pray every day that the right plan for my life will happen.

I have noticed that the more I let go, the more things are gently landing in my lap.  It seems when I try too hard and push too much I just end up frustrated because I am not getting the results I want, and not in the time frame that I want.  Letting go is a big deal for me.  I prefer to control everything and this is a hard lesson that I am learning.

My fears

I was fearful that I wasn’t good enough.  I had been struggling with this for a year.  I am now learning that the reason why I feel this way about myself is because I am not feeding myself with positive affirmations.  I am letting my negative thoughts get the better of me.  I am falling slave to my doubts.  I AM capable, I do have the qualifications, I am really good at what I do.

My Growth

I invested in myself this year.  That is why I consider it a transitional year.  I invested in attending three blogging conferences and they have been phenominal.  I went to Mom2.0Summit in May, #BlogHer17 in June, and BloggyCon in September.  At all three conferences, my friend Claudia Krusch, was there.  I met at Disney Social Media Moms Celebration in 2015.  We had the chance to connect at each conference.  And at each conference we got to spend more and more time with each other.

At the BloggyCon conference I even had the wonderful pleasure of spending dinners and free time with her family.  Her husband and son were so kind to allow me to tag along with them.  We really had an enjoyable time and Claudia even sent me a sweet message that she had a very fun weekend spending time with me.  THAT is what filled my heart and soul.  THAT made me feel that I am good enough.

I also had the chance to spend time with Elayna Fernandez and her beautiful daughters Elisha and Elyssa on Sunday afternoon when the conference was over.  My flight home was late in the evening, so we were able to go to Cedar Park for several hours and ride the rides.  I had met Elayna and her girls at the #BlogHer conference in June and they were so welcoming and friendly.  It was very special to me to spend time with them for the afternoon.

The conferences were exactly what I needed.  After I came home from the first conference I was physically exhausted.  I believe that was because I poured my entire self into learning as much as I could, networked with many people and brands, and worked hard to up my game.  Each conference was unique and I acquired great information, resources, and connections from each conference.  I plan on attending all three of them again next year!

Where Am I Heading

While I don’t know specifically where I will be working in the future, I do know where I want to be.  I want to wake up every day with no regrets.  I want to feel like my career isn’t a job.  I want that job to be an extension of my personality and my desires.  One day, I would love for my blogging and social media influencing to be my full time job.  I am working real hard to get there.  It DOES NOT happen over night.  It will take several more years of hard work and great support from others.  But I believe that I can do it.

I am also working on a presentation so that I can teach a seminar at the next BloggyCon in 2018.  I enjoy speaking in front of people, and I also enjoy teaching people new things.  I think this will be a great avenue for me to build my audience and my credibility in the social media marketing community.

It’s time for me to let go.  Elayna’s blog post about quitting was something I had been reading often to help me stay focused on my desire to make a change.  She said:

“Giving up is not a sign of weakness or failure, it can be a sign that we’ve had enough, that we have outgrown a certain person, path, or purpose, or that we simply are ready for a new adventure that is more in alignment with our true calling. Surrender and allow yourself to quit that which makes you unhappy or unfulfilled, so that you can free up your time for new opportunities and possibilities to show up and to do what you love and brings you life.”

Walt Disney said, “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.”

Now is my time to surrender myself to my dreams.