Anyone who knows me knows I tend to take on a lot. I often work best when my plate looks like this:
Both metaphorically and literally…
The truth of the matter is, when you do what you love and are working towards your goals, your overflowing plate doesn’t feel like a burden. Work, graduate school, AMA, family, friends. These are the things that fill my plate, and I couldn’t be happier.
I can’t stress enough that if you love what you do, it doesn’t feel like a chore. Last year I ended up taking a job in a weird industry, social casino games. I didn’t know what to expect, I just knew that the marketing sounded fun and cutting edge. Now, I am so happy I took that chance.
The American Marketing Association is the same story. I took a chance joining the board 2.5 years ago, and now I am starting my year as President and have made some amazing, life-long friendships.
What it comes down to for me are 3 key factors:
The People
The Challenge
The Fun
The People- Surrounding yourself with intelligent, passionate people breathes new energy into everything you do. For me, I am lucky enough to have this experience in all facets of my life. Among my co-workers and colleagues are amazing people who I enjoy learning from and with, every day. Ruby Seven has some of the brightest people I have every worked with, doing amazing things for such a small team. The AMA has introduced me to some of the most genuine people who I am now proud to call friends. UNR has kept me in the education community, full of “doers” who push me. And of course, my amazing family and friends, keeping me honest and reminding me to have fun.
The Challenge- I am the type of person who gets easily bored with the mundane. I need to be challenged all the time and feel like I am growing, professionally and personally. This is another thing I am not short on. My boss is demanding, and expects a lot from me, and it pushes me to be better at my job every day. The AMA pushes me, not only professionally but personally, finding creative ways to not spend money and motivate people. School pushes me, my weird need to get straight A’s means lots of reading and studying! Every day I feel pushed beyond my limits a little more, which ultimately will make my limits boundless.
The Fun- At the end of the day (or even in the middle of a project), the most important thing is if you can laugh. A day without laughter is a day wasted. No matter how stressful things get, I truly believe there is always something to smile about.
A big thank you to my amazingly supportive husband for putting up with my A-type idiosyncrasies and helping me become the person I am. The first half of this year has already been full of a lot of accomplishments, AMA President, Marketing Director, a big trip with family, my first year of graduate school in the books and I’ve mastered a perfect bolognese with homemade pappardelle 😊 I can’t wait for what the second half has to bring!