On Being a Secretary

For most of my adult life I was very career focused. I wanted interesting work, but I also wanted the money and the status. I wanted to be able to call myself a professional. My father was a doctor, my mother a nurse and my brother also a doctor - even as a Network Administrator I was pretty much a tradesman or technician to them.

Now, though, I've turned away from that. Six years of under-employment have taught me humility. The least pleasant thing I've done to keep a roof over my head was telemarketing, and everything else gets measured by that yardstick - is it as bad as telemarketing? No? Well, okay then.

I'm enjoying the tasks that go with my new job, but I can see the time when I might be a little embarrassed to tell people that I'm "just" a secretary. On the drive in to work, though, I heard this piece on NPR's Morning Edition. The essay, part of the This I Believe series, is by a programmer-turned-secretary, and she expresses a lot of my feelings on the matter. Go listen to it or read it - it's good stuff.

I'll take being a secretary and feeling good about myself over IT and an ulcer any day.

So far, Fabulous!

I was job-hunting for six years. For large portions of that time I wasn't hunting very hard, because I had temp work and job hunting is hard, and even harder on the ego (all that rejection). I'd reached the point of desperation, where I would have taken any old job just to get a steady income, and get back onto campus.

Fortune, however, smiled on me. I didn't get just any job, but one that I can love. I'm a secretary, but also part of a team that's defining itself, which means that I can stretch and grow in a lot of directions. Our team leader (Paul) and my supervisor (Lori) have been gracious and welcoming, and are full of confidence that I will be able to do everything they need, when they need it, and exceed expectations. It's a really nice, warm, fuzzy feeling.

I managed to pull a couple of hat-tricks last week (one by sheer luck and fast thinking, the other by technological mastery), so I'm looking pretty good. More importantly, I'm feeling pretty good about myself. It almost makes me uncomfortable - it's such an unfamiliar feeling.

And then there's the MSU Dairy Store right downstairs... I've managed to limit myself to one scoop a day, but I'm going to need to cut back if I want to keep my weight and blood sugar under control.

I'm actually looking forward to getting up and going to work in the morning!