The Perfect Time

I have been waiting for the PERFECT time to announce some exciting news and I finally have had some time to take things in, so thanks for sticking around and being patient with me.

Let’s just preface this by saying, last month might have just been one of the hardest months in my professional career. I probably did not respond to your text messages. I probably did not answer your calls. And for that I am truly sorry. I do not want to give excuses as a way to defend myself but instead want to share my stance.

Over the years I have learned to give grace when a call is rejected or a text is not returned, instead of becoming upset. Striving to remind myself to take a step back; to try and understand that sometimes people are fighting internal battles and need time to gather their thoughts & process information before they are ready to share and that it has nothing to do with the other party. I hope you understand that my intentions were true and I’m now ready to share.

Some advice that a mentor gave me back in graduate school was to conduct temperature checks with myself every 2–3 years. My graduate students reading this, please feel free to use this advice. IN FACT, I encourage it! Now, keep in mind that timelines may be earlier than the 2–3 years, or sometimes longer. This is where your intuition will help you decide when the time is right for you.

At this point, I had served in my role for a few months shy of two years. I loved my job — the clients I serviced, the partners I had the pleasure to build relationships with, and the team I was able to be a part of. I always say this role exceeded my expectations of my first role out of graduate school. However, there comes a time that you start to ask yourself “Have I hit the ceiling?” What I mean by this expression is, truly asking yourself if you have accomplished everything you set out to achieve in the role and gained the skills you were hoping to acquire. If you can truly answer yes to this question, guess what… my friend, you are ready to start looking for the next step in your journey!

All good things come with time — the saying that has held true for countless occurrences and once again prevails! All good things do come to those who wait, those who take risks, and those who are confident in their ability and move in the direction of their goals. My PERFECT role came into my field of vision and I knew, this was my next journey to take.

If I could only put into words the way I felt about this role, the opportunities that presented with the role, the TEAM — omg I cannot even put that into words because I would not be able to do that justice. Blown away and impressed does not even begin to describe how I felt interview after interview. It felt like falling in love. Of course, I had to be realistic, with this highly sought after role, came some of the best of the best. …. All I could do moving forward was to continue to Be Me; display my unique qualities & give a glimpse into what I would bring to the role.

On this rollercoaster high and seeing the world in front of me, nothing could have made me more optimistic about the future of my professional career. But then a few weeks after, the unthinkable happened — my role: my first job out of school, had been eliminated (due to a structure reorganization — I know I will get this question, eventually). I was now unemployed.

My reaction you ask? Well… I’ve been using the hiatus time to think of how to put that into words and honestly I do not have the words because unless you have been laid off, I’m not sure you can understand the feeling. Even more so, the feeling of defeat — of being unemployed after my first role was indescribable. I had to remind myself that I had a bright future ahead, hard to stay on the positivity train at this point, but I will say… I am blessed. I am absolutely 1000% #tooblessedtobestressed, because I have the most beautiful people in my corner — inside and out that want me to succeed, recognize, and celebrate the value I bring. This belief carried me through the dark; the advocacy, continued support of family, mentors, colleagues, and leaders within the organization that have stepped into this situation with me, when they were not asked, brought tears to my eyes. I was unemployed, but I truly had it all and for that.. I can only continue to serve and give back all I can to help others, just like those that have given to me in my career.

I hope you never endure being in a situation where you are unemployed for any reason, but if you are, I hope you choose to feel beauty in the unknown and are able to take a few lessons from my story:

1. Always trust your gut and intuition — Never stay stagnant in your career; do not be afraid to take risks, they may just pay off and point you to exactly where you are supposed to be.
2. Find the light in the darkness — It’s easy to get upset and want to cry, but I did not want to do that. I wanted to stand up tall and keep moving. I was fortunate to have found the light in the people who supported me: my family, my mentors, my colleagues, and leaders in my organization who believed in me. Find those that believe in you and let them be your guiding light.
3. Rejection means redirection — The shock of my role elimination was not really “news”, as I had found it deep within myself that I was ready for the next step in my professional journey. Although, however expected or unexpected the news may be, it is always disheartening to receive this kind of announcement. If you find yourself in this situation in any phase of your career, remind yourself that sometimes a “No” is just a “No” for right now and rejection can mean redirection of your focus to something far greater than you imagined.
4. Everything works out as it’s meant for you — This was always a difficult concept for me, as a part of me always thought with just enough hard work; I could change my trajectory. Maybe that partly holds true, but as much work as I put in, I am learning to trust the process and trust in myself — knowing that everything will work out as it is supposed to. We are all on our own unique journeys and paths, it won’t be a straight, continuous line. It will be curvy and bend you in all directions, but you’ll reach your destination.

I was offered, accepted, and have joined this INCREDIBLE team of God-gifted brilliance. Everyday, I just sit back and think to myself “I can’t believe I get to do this work with these people”. The belief in me, advocacy, and support that has been shown is what keeps me going; knowing I have a duty and I will not disappoint: To encourage young professionals like myself, to grow into the professional or leader they would like to be one day and take the lessons of their careers with them.

Thank you for allowing my story to matter and your words of encouragement through this process. Just like those that have done for me, know that I’m always in your corner cheering you on and wishing you success!

With Love, Yas