Yesterday, I was reading this post. Despite being mentioned, the post had very little to do with me. It was to do with stuff in the industry – the very industry that I´ve been part of for the past four years.
When contemplating this transition, I tried to figure out how to keep my feet in both worlds. I have so many skills and connections. I’ve done some pretty amazing things. It felt like if I stopped working within internet marketing, I would completely be saying goodbye to that part of my life.
I’ve been able to do a lot of good. I’m incredibly talented and ambitious. I have great things ahead of me.
That post, however, made me realise that I don´t want to be part of this anymore. I know that every industry has infighting and snarkiness but I now know that the best decision is to make a clean cut.
I want a role in digital or PR. I want to work from home and do great things. To achieve that greatness, I have to make the tough calls.
I have been making a lot of tough calls lately. Culling twitter lists. Stopping launch watch. Turning down work – money! – that I feel that I wouldn’t rock at.
Heading into the unknown.
Lately, I’ve been working for an agency as the social marketing intern. I’ve also been watching a fair bit of Grey´s Anatomy during my down time.
I have a lot of talent in blogger outreach, blogging, digital product creation etc. In the field of digital, however, I´m still a baby. I´m like Christina during the first season. I show a lot of proficiency at something but my general knowledge is lacking.
I have to look at my career as a long-term thing. This means going back to uni and looking for new learning opportunities.
Technically, I am at the start of my career.
Let´s be realistic. I lost 8 years to mental illness. I´m far behind on the employment foodchain and need to stop comparing myself to people who are the same age. I have raw talent and some experience, but I don´t have a lot of direct work experience or foundational knowledge. I need to go back to the beginnings.
I don´t want to create a startup, as much as I love them. I can´t be just a writer. I am part of something bigger. Something that will take years to learn.
For some of you, this means goodbye.
I’ve identified my skillsets. I know my passion. The thing is, this transition may mean saying goodbye to some of you guys.
Focusing on the blogosphere and certain niche communities has taught me a lot. Yet I feel that trying to keep a foot in two separate communities will be detrimental to my career.
For others – this is where the fun starts.
No more popularity wankfest. I don’t have to worry about viral posts, conversions and managing egos. I am a student again – a student on a journey.
This means that the content will change. A friend said that I was a relentless experimenter. I will continue these experiments and will share the results on this blog. I will share my ideas and suggestions. This blog will be about contributing to the knowledge of an evolving field.
I have nothing to lose here. I won’t be leveraging this blog for anything other than the learning experience.
This is where the real fun starts 