Prior to writing this, I re-read one of my essays from last year, “Calling”, about the circumstances and decisions throughout my life that’ve led to becoming a commercial artist. At that time, I also attempted to clarify what my true interests and talents were, in order to work out what the next step in my career should be.
In the previous essay “Five minutes, 10/08/12”, I wrote about the need to further solidify my goals, but months later I’m still figuring it all out.
In the meantime, I’ve been exploring webpage design and have found that I sometimes enjoy writing code. I’m taking on interesting and profitable freelance projects, which has led to greater knowledge of marketing analytics, branding and social media.
I’ve also determined which avenues of the design/marketing field I DON’T wish to travel down. The need to find a place where professionalism is rewarded, and to avoid compromising my values, has led to turning down a couple of interviews and one job offer.
But my future still seems like a blank page, with a faint watermark:
I do realize that the approach of simply waiting for opportunity to knock is foolishly passive, so I continue to read through online job listings, send out resumes, go to the occasional interview, research possible sources of employment, and attempt to establish connections.
I also keep updating my various design portfolios and online profiles.
Being patient and not getting frustrated with the lack of results in a job search can be hard. (I’ve been there a few times before over the years, and keep reminding myself that circumstances were far worse back then.) Overall, my hopeful, optimistic nature and happily busy life has kept me from feeling down.
“It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.”
–– Ursula K. Le Guin
Leave a Reply