Blog #170: When Opportunity Knocks

Sometimes you find opportunity when you are looking for it - scouring indeed.com for potential jobs, sending resumes to one potential employer after another, and writing cover letters like a pro.

Sometimes, though, opportunity finds you when you're occupied with something else - and maybe not even looking or paying attention. Sometimes when you're looking for one kind of opportunity (perhaps one on a social media based dating app not to be mentioned here but rhymes with cinder) you stumble upon an entirely different opportunity (like the kind that are career oriented rather than socially oriented).

I have plenty of experience with the first kind of opportunity. In fact, through tireless searching I found a good fit at my current position. It was a great introduction to the mental health field and the perfect way for me to hone and develop some clinical skills. I'm very grateful that I found this opportunity and had the chance to learn and grow in such a clinical capacity.

And now, I can say, I have experience with the second kind of opportunity as well. While I wasn't even looking, a great opportunity snuck up and surprised me, and before I knew it I was swept up and on my way to flat out changing my life.

Grief work has been very near and dear to my heart ever since I first encountered it as an intern at Solace House and since that time I have always known that my life's calling would eventually be helping people cope with difficult life transitions. There is something beautiful and amazing about being allowed into someone's life when they're so broken and vulnerable and being there to support their rebuilding process. However, I did not see this as a direction I would be going for a few years for all kinds of reasons (availability of positions, getting licensed, etc) Then, all of the sudden, here I am out of nowhere it seems, accepting a new position in bereavement for a hospice. Not only is it the direction in the field I've always known I'd eventually take, but it's right here, closer to home.

This opportunity came to me when I wasn't even looking. However, you shouldn't disregard an opportunity just because you weren't looking for it at the time. In fact, I might argue that those are the opportunities to which one should pay special attention. It's true that you can't plan for everything - even the things you think you are planning extensively, like your career. And isn't that what makes life fun?

So, to make a long story short - I've got a new job! I'm excited to be a bereavement coordinator at Crossroads Hospice and can't wait for all the ways I'll continue to grow in my clinical and professional skills in this new environment! I start May 27 and my last day at my current job is May 19.