Dear Ms. Career Girl Critics, I Heart “Me”
Things are absolutely nuts in my world and I couldn’t be happier about it.
What started out as “Job Search Boot Camp” has quickly evolved into something even more fabulous. I cannot wait to share more about this project with you over the next few weeks. All I can say is that it has a lot of sparkle and “Nicole” in it (and a bit of pink as well!).
I also get to meet Emily Bennington in person in Ohio on Saturday to start on big project #2… this project also has a lot of sparkle to it. Stay tuned.
This week didn’t start out so hot though. I received a few snarky emails from people who questioned my credibility on my more recent job search/resume posts and about my representation in the article published in the Chicago RedEye on Monday.
The emails suggested that I was somehow being fraudulent to my readers because I don’t have a masters in Human Resources, I don’t work in HR and I’m not a recruiter by day. Side note: I never claimed to be a career expert.
Oh yeah, and then there was the reader who wrote in to tell me that I am so money hungry. That one was the most interesting considering I have not made one cent from my blog, but have dumped a lot of money into updating it over the last year and a half…I’ve always written here simply because I LOVE IT.
Hearing these things definitely bursted my bubble for a few hours, and I may or may not have had a cocktail or two to soothe the blow.
Then I thought about it a little more.
I definitely care about what you guys think. I love talking to you, reading your emails and checking out your resumes. But I understand that not everyone is going to like me. I guess that’s just part of blogging.
Second, I was disappointed these Gen Y readers were so narrow minded. I thought we were the generation that believes, “we can achieve anything we desire to in our careers!” I thought we were part of the generation who encouraged starting businesses from dorm rooms and turning them into something great. We are an entrepreneurial generation, yet these readers criticized me for it.
Lastly, since when do I need medals of honor and accolades to write about rocking your career as a young professional? Really guys?
I believe that in many cases, self-education is the best education. My family is living proof of this theory.
I am living what I write about. I work in Corporate America- and I love it. I wear a lot of pink and I work in finance. I wake up at 5am to write about what I love- for FREE- before going to work. It is in my DNA to network every day. I pack a hell of a lot into my day because I have a ton of energy. Not to mention all of the career books, coffee dates, emails with career authors and podcasts I devour. If that’s not enough, than so be it.
Accepting your own oddities may be the best thing you can do for your personal brand. After talking about this with my publisher last night and accepting that “it is what it is,” I felt a huge relief. When I worked on my manuscript this morning at 5am, I started writing it with much more spunk. I cut out boring sections, I re-named all of the chapters and I used more daring examples to illustrate my points.
It really feels good to be me.
In conclusion, thanks to the loyal readers who have stuck around. Thanks for those who have accepted my odd “passion” (I don’t love using that word) of everything career-related.
If you have something you love to do, go for it. Who cares if it’s normal. Who cares what other people say. I know, easier said than done, but at the end of the day you are the one that has to look back with no regrets.
