Five things I never expected I would do during my step back.

I previously spoke about my Five Failures during this no-work, no-responsibility break. Today I am going to talk about five things that I have done that I never saw coming.

My Five Unforeseen Adventures:

1. Traveling to Strangers Having always been a pretty sheltered and cautious person, I surprised even myself when I booked a trip to New York to stay with a friend that I hadn’t spoke to in over 9 years. After the major success of that trip, I began getting gutsier, traveling to and staying with people I had just met recently. [I am not suggesting this is necessarily the best – or safest – thing to do, so trust your gut and let people know where you will be staying!] It worked for me though. After a few stays with Riley in Portland, a stay with Khalid in San Francisco, and a stay with a friend of my mom’s in San Diego, I am now convinced that some of the best people are the ones you meet serendipitously, and are worth connecting with despite distance.
2. Finding Minimalism – Once I hit the age of 18, I became a huge consumer. I mainly blame makeup videos on YouTube for this. Despite its origin, moving back home and fitting my life’s belongings in one room forced me to start cutting back. Once I started to trim the fat just slightly, I realized how liberating it was. Now, I find myself still on the road to minimalism, walking further and further down that path. I no longer put any product in my hair (save shampoo and conditioner), my makeup routine is super basic, and I truly feel no guilt for donating an expensive item that just collects dust. Read more about my journey here or here.
3. Helping Raise Two Boys  Well, helping raise might be a little strongly put, but I have changed enough diapers and wiped enough snot-noses to take some credit. What started as just a chance to see my cousin Emily and her boys Mason and Jack has turned into an almost weekly event. If I was in town, you would find me with these two heart-capturers. It has been such a joy watching them grow and develop. They are two of the biggest reasons why moving to Oregon is so hard!
4. Networking – Another thing I didn’t expect to do was work of any kind, especially going on interviews. Well, I was again surprised when I found myself in both San Diego and Portland going on multiple interviews a day for a week straight. As I truly love getting to know and learning from new people, networking doesn’t feel like work at all for me. Being open to new relationships both virtually through this blog and in person, has allowed me to meet so many inspiring and influential people.
5. Writing Professionally I never thought I would be a writer. However, between this blog, the articles I have written for Career Contessa, and my desire to start working on a book, I think it is safe to call myself a writer. Although it adds to my already-full writing plate, seeing my name on the byline of an article that I conceptualized and brought to life is the best feeling. I know that going into my MBA program, I want to continue writing for Career Contessa, even if it is just once per month.

The most memorable parts of life are the twists and turns you never saw coming. I hope you enjoyed reading about a few of mine.

-TM

What is one unforeseen adventure you have had in the last year? Let us know below.