progrès...?

Its been a while since i last wrote...i think i was sick...and then i got sick but in a different way and during that time i was thinking and considering my next career move.

The possibilities out there are abundant right now. And i am getting heaps of positive feedback. Quite frankly, i'm being offered interviews on a weekly basis...

I'm just being awfully selective. I'm comfy where i am right now. I'm going to Europe in about 3 months time...some companies dont want to deal with that right now...I fully understand...which is why im turning down interviews more than attending them.

I went to an interview...only 1 of about 6 I actually even considered...but it really got me thinking.

The opportunity is actually fantastic. The money and perks being offered is ideal. He was willing to consider bringing in a temp to fill up my 5 weeks of leave - if the Programme Mgr's Manager was cool with the idea. I was offered a second round interview right after the first interview...

When i went home, i started to really think about my career...where do i really want to go with it? How am i going to do it? Am i going to take the shortest but surest route to get there? Or can i prolong it by 6 - 12 more months and achieve it in a bit of a roundabout way, and still get there in the end? Should i take the one offering more money...? I mean, reality check...I have a mortgage to my name that i would like to pay off ASAP.

I spoke to Mum about it. I spoke with a couple of friends. E really put things into perspective for me. It was short and simple. Go with the place that pays for the highest accreditation you can get...as soon as you can get it! In the end, after the accreditation...i will be able to ask for more anyway...and i was leaning towards this all along...but the change...the money!

So, i decided to stay with my current employer.


The interview was a good experience none the less. I now know that i am perfectly comfortable in selling myself as a PM. I know that i can impress the people worth impressing under such circumstances. Which at the end of the day, is a good skill to have - who knows when you will be made redundant or decide to leave and look for something new?

My managers (client side) know about the interviews...well the ones i have asked to be my referees.

They are all wishing me bad luck or that i fail...or that the company that im interviewing for, fails in my eyes. They dont want to lose me, but they know the reality of having a mortgage...most have their own...and the fact that theirs is with their wives and mine is on my lonesome...they understand the need for me to make more money.

And its not that money is everything. If i didnt have the mortgage...i wouldnt be too fussed, because i would be comfortable. With the mortgage...its not as comfortable as you would imagine.

Like, come on...i have to start thinking about my future. Who else will do it for me?

I'm not in a position to marry someone in the near future or the luxury to think of a different path to where i am headed.

I'm single. I'm independent. I need to grow my own wealth for my own future. How else will i retire comfortably? If i continue the way i am now, its not like i will have kids to rely on in my old age. And i wouldnt want to rely on my children. Even when i am old and grey, i would like to retain my independence.

So, right now...i have to look at things strategically and objectively. I want to maximise the opportunities that are presented to me and use them to my advantage. The choices i have to make from now on, must be of a benefit - otherwise its not worth making.

I received a long overdue email from a manager who was made redundant at the client side in January this year. It came on a Monday...(about a week ago)...and i replied before 8:30am that day. He called me back...we arranged for a coffee at 11am...I sat down with him and he basically advised me that at the new company he currently resides with...they are restructuring the company and he will be able to build his own team in a couple months time. He was advising me this because he basically wants me to join him when the time comes.

I have never worked with this manager - ever. We spoke to each other on a personal level on a day to day basis. He would make fun of me, really, and i would take the p!ss out of him. He didnt say to me "I want you to be part of my team in a couple months time"...but he asked me where i was at in this point in time...i told him about the interview i just had...he asked me where i wanted to be in 2 years...what i would like to earn in 5 years...and basically advised me what he could offer if i joined "their" company.

This colleague has been a deep well of knowledge and advice. I'm in debted to him for a lot of defining moments (career wise). We are both USYD Alumni and we joke about it too. I asked him why me? We have never worked with one another. He said he could tell that i was very good at what i do. He had heard me on teleconferences at my desk...on phone calls with clients...basically it was the way i held myself...im bright...ambitious, but willing to work for what i want to achieve...he said that he didnt have to work with me to know that he wanted me on his team.

You know, a couple months time is a good schedule for me to follow...Europe will be over by then...i should be a fully accredited RPM by then too.

So, i wont be making any swifts move for now. But there are a couple of plans that may come to fruition by the end of this year.

(lit: progress...?)