September
A new job.
Earlier this year, when I had to go out of work due to treatment, I believed my career had taken a large step back. I felt like I was left where I was as the business world moved forward without me. Late this summer, however, I was recruited for a new job opportunity, and in September, I chose to take on a bonus challenge in 2023, starting a new job.
This decision did not come easy for a multitude of reasons. First, I thoroughly enjoyed the job I had. Second, due to my treatment, I had been out of work for 6 months. Third, I was still not recovered from what my body went through this year. And then lastly, I had a 5-month-old baby at home. Wrapped up all together, I was faced with determining if switching to the new opportunity was worth the risk.
Part of the mindset that helped motivate me to move into the new role was finally being able to focus on my life without cancer. Over the year, a lot of the significant decisions presented before me were determined for me by my care team. I am very fortunate these decisions were already in place, but I was finally back to having a majority of the control over my path ahead.
There was a part of me that thought if I said no to this job, it would be because cancer was making the decision for me. I was determined to take back my power and put this sickness behind me.
Along with my decision came an old mindset I had greatly missed: doing what I can today to set myself up for future success. 2023 had already been tough, and although this opportunity was a silver lining, I knew it would not be easy to get back into work after being gone for six months and starting from scratch with a 5-month-old baby at home.
I was fortunate to have great mentors to help me think through the decision. They gave me fantastic advice when thinking about making the switch. But ultimately, I had to determine if I was in a good enough spot, physically and mentally, to add this additional challenge this year. In the end, I turned to trust. Trust in myself for what I had done before and what I believed I was still capable of.
And today, three months into the new role, I am happy to report the transition has been great. I have thoroughly enjoyed my new job, team, and company. Taking on this opportunity let me fast forward in my career from a pause that I thought would have taken me a long time to catch up from. I took a leap on many things and have found myself right where I need to be.
