Prioritizing My Life
April 26, 2010
We’re coming close to the end of the month, which means I have–if you can believe this–two and half months to go in this year of service. It’s pretty exciting, but it’s also quite scary, because I’m not sure what’s going to happen two and a half months from now.
My old man keeps telling me I have options, and he’s right, I do. It’s just a matter of me figuring out which one puts me in the best chance to succeed. So I took a few days to think about it, and decided the best thing to do would be to prioritize the three core options I have to choose from, based on where I am and where I want to be.
At this time, my top priority is returning to school to get a Masters of Business Administration. I have scheduled to take an exam on June 11. They say to give yourself at least a month to prepare for the test. Of course, Dad thinks I need to start right this minute. I suppose I’ll meet him halfway on this and probably begin next week.
Why am I going for an MBA? Because I’m hoping to learn what I can about marketing, particularly the social media aspect of it, which in my opinion is one of the easiest ways to get your message across to people. I’m currently an administrator for the VISTA Corridor Recovery Facebook page, and would love to do something similar to that for a local company.
Next on my list is get another job. We still have a long ways to go, but there are indications the economy is improving. As of today, the Iowa Workforce Development job site shows 1,643 jobs in the Cedar Rapids area, while Corridor Careers has 482. I don’t know how much overlap there is between listings on both sites.
Whether I can find another job depends on who else is out there looking and what their experience is. There really isn’t anything I can do about that, however. I can only worry about me. If I do get work, I can still go for an MBA either by taking evening classes or going online. So I will simultaneously search for jobs and apply for the MBA.
Finally, I can stay with the VISTA program for up to another year. I won’t rule it out: this is a nice little office I have here in the St. Wenceslaus Gym Building, and not making the money I was slated to make at Gazcomm hasn’t burned a giant hole in my pocket. But complacency can be dangerous. It’s time for a new challenge.
I have received a notice of intent from the national office that I am supposed to fill out before my term is up. I am hesitant to submit it right away, because I really do not know what the results of my efforts will be. If possible, I’ll put it off until I know a little more.
I should also share with you the new “card” I made for myself last week, so to speak. It features all my contact info for networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and my Gmail account. I probably should have put my name on it, but this will do for now. If you like what you see, contact me via one of these platforms. I look forward to hearing from you! 
