Leaning In.

The sharp intake of breath, the fear flowing through the bones, when told you are no longer required in your role, is immediate. So many questions flood the brain, "what am I going to do? Will I be able to get another job? Who's going to hire me? Where will the next $$ come from?", that is hard to slow them down and quieten them, let alone hear yourself think.

But in the midst of the shock, just like in the eye of a storm, there is quiet. And in that quiet, I know I felt something in me had changed, and just maybe, for the good. Going through the motions, I picked up my bag, gathered my things, and walked out the doors and sat in my car trying to gather my thoughts.

After nearly 15 years of working and going from one role to the next, I realised I now had the opportunity to take some R and R - Reflect and Re-evaluate. My confidence had certainly taken a knock recently, not quite fully deserted me, but I had allowed that small voice of self doubt to get louder rather than tell it to shhhh - don't you know who I am??!!

Sitting in my car, I put on my son's baseball walk on song - You Only Get What You Give by The New Radicals. It always worked for Jake, getting him into the right frame of mind to smash it outta the park - and I was going to do the same.

Who even am I?

I am the quintessential "People Person". I thrive on being around people, on connecting and interacting. So what had changed? What had lead me here to this point? Was this culmination of post pandemic world, no longer locked down, but still disconnected, as we "work from home"? That in itself was no longer a benefit of the role, but rather a hinderance to the unpredictability of being out and about in the world. Making things happen.

Of course, for many, the effects of losing their primary source of income is unspeakably profound because of the individuals circumstances: financial climate, job market, only source of income, security and most importantly, personal health - both mental and physical.

The temptation from relatives and friends to show support is to say, “put things behind you, you'll get another job" but when there is no certainty, there is no comfort in that. Somethings gotta give. There are those people who think that they have everything under control, that if they just get stuck in and start applying, there will be a new role around the corner. But I had been doing that for the past 15 years. What if I took charge of my own destiny?

I decided to put my skillset to use and after many years of Sales and Marketing experience, why not be the product and sell myself? Canva is a Godsend (not a paid ad) and I got to work (ha!) putting my own ad together. I needed a good sales pitch and then let Social Media do the rest.

Self promotion is not simply tooting your own horn. In a crowded marketing of applicants, it is very hard to stand head and shoulders above the rest. You need to be bold. Be daring. Draw attention to yourself and your skills. What do you bring to a role? A well written CV and a tailored Cover Letter will show a little of who you are. But never be afraid to wholehearted step into the light and shine.

I am no wallflower and by marketing myself, I was able to, in the 6 days since putting up my "ad", reach over 1500 unique views on Linkedin and my post was shared 7 times here and over 15 times on Facebook and Instagram.

As a result, I have had a number of really great conversations with new contacts who I may have never had the opportunity to talk to, had it not been for tenacity and a whole lot of love and support.

I am humbled and so very grateful for the kind words, encouragement and faith in my abilities from friends, colleagues, and sometimes, complete strangers.

Naysayers will chirp - so chirp louder and march in your own parade. Do it.

Know your worth.