Small Town, Big (City) Dreams #9

Tis the season.

It’s happening. My colleagues are beginning to get offers from schools to interview on campus. Phone interviews are happening. C3 and TPE are launched and well underway. Suddenly I am feeling the pressure. On top of that, candidates for my graduate program have been on campus for the past few weeks, interviewing for, what will be, the spot I leave behind. Life has become overwhelming all at once. Looking at the C3 website, I am disappointed that there are not many positions that I would apply for, if any (remember that I am searching outside of Residence Life). The other day, I spoke with a seasoned professional about this. He stated that ACPA and the job search is far more than just C3. He compelled me to join a committee in the functional area I am searching in, to make connects and figure out what potential openings people had.

Along with C3 and ACPA comes the anxiety that most introverts experience, the idea of being surrounded by an overwhelming number of extraverts in a closed space (thus, student affairs at its finest). This anxiety does not keep me up at night by any means, but this aspect does not really excite me. I am trying to think about ways that I can combat the feeling of being overwhelmed and exhausted (something that definitely occurred last year, because I did not know many people who attended the conference, consequently feeling overwhelmed to make “new connections”). This year, I feel like everyone in my graduate program and department are going...which could make for a fun, but very stressful time. I can just imagine the banter around how many interviews each person has. I would hope that my colleagues would respond professionally to this environment, but I can already feel the competitive atmosphere building. (Note: “Hi, how are you? I applied for 8 jobs this weekend!” is not an appropriate way to start any conversation this time of year…)

Its moments like this morning (when I was reading Job One, which is excellent by the way) that allow me to take a step back and reflect on this job search holistically. It’s safe to say that this job search will most likely be the most extensive one of my career in number of positions I apply to and geographic region. So for now, I will rely on the advice from my mentors, who all say to take it one day at a time.