As I tapped my pass and walked through the security gates one last time, I say goodbye to another chapter in my career.
Unlike previous places which gave me reasons to jump ship, this time with my contract ending, I feel no bitterness or resentment, only slight sadness on the friendships I've made that I now leave behind.
Sure every place has its challenges, but it is how you overcome them and what you learn from them that builds character.
Things that I learnt working here:
Scrum in practice
Authority and responsibility for making quick decisions on a daily basis
I no longer get nervous running meetings
VC and technology is rarely on my side - try to get in early to set up before people arrive
Meetings make you feel important, but I relish being at my desk, putting on my headphones and getting stuff done
Respect the team and they will respect you. Treat your team well and they will have your back
Macs in a corporate PC environment do not get along
Bullet Journaling and using it to plan your day is the bomb (I may write a blog about this later)
Projects are smooth if I run them from beginning, I shouldn't be too hard on myself if I can't save an inherited train wreck
Old me would be freaking out at not having a backup. With mortgages, bills to pay and mouths to feed, I'd be wondering where the hell my next pay check was going to come from.
But this is the first time in 10 years where I've been able to have a break between jobs. To have no deadline to worry about, no task to assign or approve, no fires to fight.
I'm going to take it easy, enjoy my time off and go visit my dad in Adelaide, as I reflect and plan out my next steps. This is my time to find something that would satisfy my needs rather than jump on any offer that comes along. Luckily I have confidence in my abilities to aways fall on my feet and have set myself up to be ready for any shortfalls (personal finance blogs to also come).
Thank you to those that I had the pleasure of working with and for coming out to my farewell. It was so heartwarming to see the show of support - I felt so much love, as well as the headaches of too many shouted drinks. 😛
I will be eagerly looking out for the mail for my oversized farewell card...The time when the missing card joke is not actually a joke.