And a Happy New Year: A New Direction Yet Again

We’ve had a very busy couple of weeks. Here, on New Year’s Day, I sit with the Christmas tree lit, candles going, a mug of tea by my side. Sean and I have agreed to leave the tree up, and the decorations up until next weekend. On purpose, because he says he likes how it looks. I am happy to keep the magic going. (that’s not to say I won’t get antsy and start to put other pieces away…)

This last week has been pretty amazing. I have lots to share. Most important, over the last week, I’ve resolved that Happiness and Following One’s Heart are what will be the focus of 2010.

In this last year, I have found myself at a couple of jobs that have been less than ideal. By mid-December, it was obvious to me that the most recent post was wearing me so thin that I no longer felt I had a personal life at all. I’d work twelve hours in the office, come home for a bit of dinner, sleep for an hour on the couch and then work a couple more hours online before falling into bed. I had given the job all I could.

Even with the long hours, the leadership and some of the people I interacted with were difficult. I was getting yelled by the leads of other departments at because I was doing things differently from how this company had done things in the past. I was being asked to make changes by the president, but the other employees wanted nothing to do with it. I felt stuck in the middle, but without any support to do what I was being asked to do.

I prayed about what to do.

A friend named Darren contacted me and asked if I knew of anyone good who has completed responsible service of alcohol course for a new restaurant. He and a long time colleague had started a new hospitality company a couple of years ago were looking for people to work for him. At first I said that I was bummed that I’d made a leap only a couple of months earlier. And I kept on with my routine.

And then I thought about it. This was a person I had thoroughly enjoyed working with before. He’s smart, respectful, and very good at what he does. I would be a fool to turn away from this kind of opportunity, especially when I’d put it out into the universe that I was hoping for something better.

After a lot of thought, some agonizing, and a whole lot of chatter with Sean, I made my decision. I’m changing jobs. Three months to the day after I started the new job, I am leaving for another. This is not like me. I am tried and true and stay loyal for a long time.

On the other hand, this job has a ton of opportunity for me. It will be closer to my retreat work and team, and closer to the Graduate Theological Union (maybe I can take more classes? I’d said I really wanted to consider more classes and now, look, I’m going to be physically closer to the school!). I will be working with a team that wants a work / life balance, who wants to do good work for clients. Who understands that advertising is not rocket science, and who understands that we can find joy in every moment.

Last night, to celebrate a New Year, Sean and my sister and brother-in-law and I went into the City and checked out the fireworks:
And we wore masks … because it was a celebration, after all 🙂

How did you celebrate the New Year?