Oh baby oh baby the places you'll go...

Last week I celebrated a milestone, my 5 year anniversary at GE. This company amazes me everyday in how we support the world with passion, patience and persistence. We're supporting critical delivery needs in power, healthcare, aviation and more. Even now our teams are working around the clock to ramp up ventilator production. There are things people don't tell you early in your career, for instance, that the environment of a particular type of job is what will make or break you - not the actual functional work. Being part of a company that aligns with your values is so important to keep you moving forward. My world is fast paced and chaotic some days but also allows me to contribute in small ways to our overall response to COVID-19 & other initiatives that really make a difference

While it doesn't seem that long overall, so much can change in 5 years. I was a mom of one boy and now I have two, I've moved twice since, no one knew what COVID-19 was, and Bruno Mars' Uptown Funk was just being released. Professionally I thought I had hit a wall after growing my career within the same team. Personally I was forced to say no to a dream that meant a lot to me, but just wasn't going to work out. In response to both situations, I had a lot of pent up energy so I decided to use it in a positive way and throw it into my work. Something must have clicked because within that short time an outsider cowboy to take a chance on me, and I will forever be grateful for that. My first manager believed in me, provided growth opportunities and taught new skills like crafting conversations differently. We were part of an amazingly tight knit team getting things done. I've now seen the shift in my role across function, division, both positive & challenging times, centralization & decentralization models. Consistently though, my goal has been helping to advance our recruiting function and candidate experience throughout, and to have such responsibility I couldn't be more proud to contribute to the critical work our company does everyday.

When your job offers you not just a job, but a mission, something to be passionate about, it changes the way you look at the world, where, how, and with whom you spend time. Things that seemed like fleeting curiosities become passion projects and advantageous at the same time to explore new areas of your career. I didn't learn this early on but maybe it will help someone else... keep pushing yourself to grow even when those around you are are not challenging themselves at the same pace. It may not be what you expect your life to look like, but will be worth it in the end.

For myself personally, I still cant believe that a little girl who ran around singing Paula Abdul barefoot in a Strawberry Shortcake nightgown in the '80's is here today.

Here's to the places we've been - the ones that make us who we are, the places we are today that present opportunity, and the places we've yet to go.