03/01/2017
First of all, I want to tell you guys that
a month ago on February 1st I started blogging as a way to share
with the world my life. I got a few clients because of that, which I am
grateful for. Today I will blog about my career. Which one? I have had so many
jobs in the past, and all of them have brought me to the next one in a way to
where I am now. So let’s talk about my first experiences in the work place.
I
have to say that the American culture is a little bit different than the
Peruvian culture when we talk about jobs. Teens in Peru are not supposed to get
a job, at least in the environment in which I grew up. This may have changed
since I lived in Peru, but I was not supposed to work until I finished college
so that I could have a great job that pays well and makes me look important.
That was the belief I had when I was younger.
So
when I was about to finish high school, I had to make a decision of what my
career would be. I loved psychology, but I knew I would have to read a lot, so
I said no way. I loved numbers, so I thought that might be the route. So I had
the best idea: I looked around and saw who my family was proud of? My cousin
the accountant! I thought I had better be like her because she was also going
to a very good college at the time and might help me with my homework. LOL. So
guess what? I went to college to become an accountant. Quitting was not an
option; I had to finish no matter what, and that is what I did.
In
order to get good jobs, I needed the experience, so I was supposed to look for
a job in accounting before I graduated so I could get those hours in. But I was
not motivated. I did not want to look for a job; I wanted the job to find me.
So I created my reality, and the jobs found me!! Two companies called me, and I
had interviews with them. One of them wanted to hire me, a photo company in
Peru, and I accepted. I was an intern in the accounting department implementing
the new accounting program. So I started with them but didn’t do anything. It
was so frustrating to be sitting at a desk for 8 hours doing nothing. I asked
my boss, “Are you sure you guys need me?” He said, “Yes.”
The
other company that interviewed me was a mining services company, but they took
forever to make the decision, which is why I lost that opportunity. They later called
me to offer a job, but I felt bad about quitting my first job. They even told
me that they would pay me more to leave the other place, but I believed I had
to be ethical, so I recommended one of my best friends for that job at the
mining services company. To my surprise, I got fired just after a few weeks
because the program was not going to happen.
Really?
I said no to a job because I wanted to be faithful? But I guess they did not
want to be faithful to me. I told my friend who got hired at the other company who
told the guy whom I refused what happened to me. He called me and hired me for
another one of his companies. How lucky was that?! I started as an intern in the
accounting department, just doing basics. I got to learn a lot, the good and
the bad. But when things started to happen that went against my ethics, I quit,
not before telling the owner that he needed to take a closer look at some
things.
I
graduated college when I was probably a few months employed at the mining services
company and I was an accountant! I remember I travelled to the United States
for a few weeks. As soon as I came back I heard that my ex-boss told me that
all the bullshit from before was gone and wanted to offer me a job. Right away
I said yes. I knew everybody, and I was going to be the accountant. I was going to make more money than my mom had at the
same job she had had for a thousand years. And I started there at the mining services
company.
OMG!
It was a nightmare! The pressure, the ugliness of some people, the back
stabbing. You know why? Because the bullshit was not really gone; the bullshit
just changed color. There was a guy who created such a mess, who cooked the
books so “tasty,” who would stay close to leer at me. Cleaning up all of his mess
was not as easy as I thought; doing so meant I had to see the ugly side of me
when I had to fire someone. I cried so much during that time. But as every dark
side has a light, I also got to experience closer friendships with co-workers,
the auditors that would help me with the mess, and the amazing people who stuck
with me. And I knew I had to stay. All that I understood was that to have a
good job is to be stressed out, to be at the top and to be the boss. I thought
I had to do that to be considered as successful a woman as my mom, my aunts and
my cousins.
In
this job, I felt at the top. But at what price? I was crying every day. I took pills
a couple of times to make me feel better so I could keep going. I wondered a
few times, “Is this it?” I knew my mother, my aunts and my cousins also had
hard jobs, but why couldn’t I deal with it? I worked very hard to be laid back
and joyful, and I always tried reacting to my difficulties in a good way. I
still had in the back of my mind that in order to impress my mom I had to have
a good job. After all, my mom paid thousands of dollars to see me graduate from
a good university in Peru.
I
found out later that the company was going to be more involved with a sister
company in Canada, and the accountant would need to be fluent in English. My
boss asked me to learn intensively, so I had to take a year off to do so. My
English school was to immerse myself in the American culture, and that is what
I did and how another chapter of my life started.
I
think life usually gives you the experiences for you to make decisions toward
being your TrueSelf. Sometimes we make the right ones and sometimes not, but
either way you will get there. At least that is what I believe, and I hope we
all get to do that sooner rather than later.
Stay
strong to your TrueSelf
Me
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