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a l i z a r i n R E D the red light district |
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Friday, 19 October 2007 I finally have a job prospect--three, in fact, but I'm really more interested on the one I had an interview with yesterday. It's another PR company (surprise, surprise) and they're really good. What I liked about them is that they're growing and they have this policy of taking in clients preferably on a project basis only--6 months to a year--because they believe that one can already transform a company's reputation in that span of time. I like it in the sense that I wouldn't get bored. I suppose I find it dynamic. And different clients have different challenges so that'll teach me to be more versatile and more creative.Anyway, I passed the initial interview and they're asking me to come back and meet the owner this Wednesday. What am I having qualms about then? Well, Adelle and I got to talk yesterday. She's one of the best coaches (ahem) in LEAP and I've always felt a kinship with her ever since she jumped in on one of our council meetings. And I remember she asked me then if PR was really the path I wanted to follow in my career and I thought then that it was. Well, it still is. But when it comes down to it, what am I really passionate about? Art, writing, photography and traveling. As in if money weren't an issue (why am I making it an issue?), I would probably be spending my time in wanderlust, with my camera (which I have yet to buy), journal and my easel and brushes and paints and canvass in hand. Forget clothes! Haha kidding. :) Adelle told me...PR, marketing, communications...I do it because I know I have the potential to excel in it. And in a way, it also involves creativity and a lot of out-of-the-box thinking so I suppose, yes, I even see myself pursuing a career in the field. If you're really great at what you do, then you even manage to put personal touches here and there in a campaign for a client--subtly, of course. But Adelle asked me, why not make a living out of the things I really love doing? She told me that when she jumped in during that meeting, she saw something in me that has yet to be expressed. And I totally agree with her because much as I try to really let it all out, I can't because I've yet to find the perfect outlet. And then I remembered back in college, the time when I was most at peace, most content with myself, was during my last semester in school. I decided I did not want to continue with my minor degree in Marketing so I used all my remaining electives taking classes that I REALLY loved. I took photography (my teacher was Pancho Escaler and he made me love old school black & white film photography) and oil painting, where I learned that I have always had an eye for color--I'm not bragging here but my teacher loved me! As in I got an A in every painting and that was the first time I dabbled into oils. As in I loved, loved, loved that semester. I was learning a lot of humanities subjects--philosophy, theology (yes I even loved theo here) and I took another elective that made me love the classics--Great Books of Ancient Literature. I learned so much about humanity and its complexities and it gave me a lot of insights about myself and how I related to other people. And then the so-called 'real world' came, which as it turns out, is actually not so real after all. Everything was just skimming the surface, nothing deep or meaningful was really happening, most of the time it was just pure kababawan and then I found my "true self" deteriorating. Writer's block, artist's block, etc etc started popping up by the minute until I was left with no means to express myself. I went on like that for a year until I landed my first stint in PR, which, in a way, helped awaken my passion for writing. It was exciting at first because I was doing things that I loved--I was mobile and I was expressing a part of myself through the releases I wrote for my clients. It wasn't total self expression but in a way, it helped. But then it became so stagnant, I was writing the same thing over and over again, I felt like a robot, I felt frustrated, I felt tired of making pacute to people with apparent power issues. It really drained the hell out of me to the point that my performance was already beginning to deteriorate. I left before I could completely drown myself in that rut I created. Bumming around after did not even feel like bumming at all. I got involved in OCCI's Leadership Trilogy Program and a LOT of changes started happening. The past three months have been the busiest in my life--I was supposed to be doing NOTHING but I ended up doing something extraordinary. I moved out of my comfort zone a lot--hell it wasn't easy but I DID IT and I'm a better person for it. I interacted with people whom I never expected to interact with before--hell I even dropped my expectations--and now I find myself spending time with a ton of interesting people. To say that the past three months left an impact in my life is an understatement. Because it totally turned my world upside down. I totally opened up. I was attracting new people in my life. Not all were pleasant experiences but they really tested me and upon overcoming the challenges they gave me, I came out stronger. ANYWAY I could go on and on. These days I tend to get carried away a lot. Re the PR company, if they offered, I see myself taking the job. It's a company owned by a husband and wife tandem and the whole environment screams creativity. What got to me during the interview was when the manager told me it was a company borne out of passion. And being passionate is something I am passionate about so I suppose that struck a chord. But I'm also setting goals outside of work. Adelle told me about this book called Artist's Way and it's a twelve-week guide to total self expression and I'm going to follow it. I was already planning on working on a similar goal anyway--I want to finish 10 art works by December. Don't know what I'll be doing with them yet but I definitely see myself shooting for an exhibit some time next year. I plan on selling some art works and I'm going to use that money to buy me a new camera. And even a plane ticket to somewhere! Wheeee! Another goal I plan on continuing is my writing portfolio. I enjoyed writing short stories so much that eventually, I want to work on compiling a number of stories and essays and have them published. By hook or by crook. Haha. Good luck to me! :)
posted by Anonymous @ 08:29 0 Comments:
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