Last Wednesday (June 25th) was my one year blogiversary. Interestingly enough, I had spent that day surrounded by fellow bloggers at the Disney On-the-Road Celebration event in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was such an inspiring day! I learned a lot & I’m so glad that I made the trek from CA to AZ. (Recap will be posted on the blog at a later date.)
It was during the drive from LA with my parents & young daughter that made me contemplate this question that I read in the April issue of The Oprah Magazine –> “What do I really want to do all day?”
(Image credit: Camille Dashana Kimble-Wall)
Currently I work three part-time jobs. My “day job” is with an online babysitting resource that connects parents with nannies & babysitters. I am the Editor/Founder of Real Mom of SFV. I also freelance write for various online publications. These jobs, along with volunteering at my daughter’s school, keep me very busy.
It wasn’t that long ago that I was working in the corporate world. I’ve held marketing & product development positions at various toy & entertainment companies in the LA area. At some point, I got burnt out & transitioned to a job in the aerospace industry. Talk about culture shock. After I had my daughter, I took some time off.
Then when daughter was just about to turn 4 years old, I went back into the corporate world & took a marketing job in the healthcare insurance industry. It was probably the most conservative company in all of the places I worked at. Looking back on that time, I’m really grateful to have worked at that company. I learned a lot & proved to myself that after being out of the working world for 4 years, my “mommy brain” was able to keep up with many of the younger women in that department. I’m still friends with some of my former co-workers to this day!
I held a couple of part-time jobs afterwards. One was with a company that was actually right around the corner from the health insurance company. My boss seemed to really like me & I got along with my coworkers. Unfortunately the position was about to turn into a full-time job & I didn’t want to grow into that role. (I know, first world problems.)
The part-time job that I had just before my current one was very interesting. I was a virtual assistant for an agency that had many clients. At the end of my time as a VA, I started to realize that it was a soul-sucking job (for reasons I won’t get into, obvs). However, if it wasn’t for that job, I would not have developed the skills & learned the software programs that have made me the blogger that I am. I would have NEVER learned about MailChimp, WordPress, InfusionSoft or Hootsuite on my own. So for that, I am forever grateful that I went through that year as a VA.
Why am I communicating all of this in a blog post? To illustrate that finally, at the age of 40, I have landed the job(s) that I really, really want to do ALL day!
This is a screenshot of my very first post that I did back on June 25, 2013.
I have to give a shout-out to some folks who encouraged me in the very beginning to start blogging. Both Linda Williams & Rhea of Rhea, Et Cetera are friends from a previous job who gave me advice & encouragement when I was just kicking around the idea of blogging. I had met Sarah of Moms LA at The Grove last year when I won a contest that her blog was sponsoring. I had reached out to her for some advice (over social media no less) & she was nice enough to answer me back. Dontcha love Twitter?! Jeana from Surf & Sunshine is my “boss lady” who sends me out to cool places in LA to cover entertainment for her blog. My first blogging job for her was to cover a TV show filmed at Warner Bros. studios. She took a chance on me & has kept me on staff for some time now.
I’m going to wrap this post up because it’s starting to sound like a rambling Golden Globes speech. However I’ve saved the best “thank you” for last & that is my family! My husband is supportive of this endeavor, my daughter “puts up” with my never-ending quest to balance social media & answering work emails on my phone while being trying to be present with her and lastly, my parents. They instilled a work ethic in me that has taught me to never give up & that it’s never too late to reinvent yourself.
Cheers & XO!!
Wow! Happy blog anniversary!! What an amazing journey! I’m so glad we met last week! Valley girls for life! Hahaha! Thank you for sharing! <3
Camille, it was so nice to meet you in person in Arizona! Yes – Valley girls for life!! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by my blog.
Congrats on your Blogiversary 🙂 I am so glad that you are finally feeling like you are doing what you need to be doing. I am sort of struggling with that right now…. and I am debating whether or not to get back into the working world. I’ve spend two years as a housewife…. and I’m not sure that I really like the idea of working outside my home again. Luckily, Hubbers is really supportive of my blogging and social media networking, and is starting to consider it as a viable option for income. Hopefully this will continue to workout for me. Congrats again 😉
Megan, thanks for the well wishes! I wish you well in your blogging/social media career. I find that it is hard to work in a “traditional” job, as many companies (especially corporate ones) are not that flexible when it comes to mothers of young children’s needs. I’m thankful for work-at-home opportunities. Stick with what you are passionate about & keep plugging away with what is right (and best) for you & your family. I appreciate you reading my blog post!
Wow, time flies when you’re having fun! I am sooo proud how far you’ve come. Keep up the great work, and I look forward to reading your blog posts for years to come. (Meanwhile, one of these years I need to get back in the saddle and start writing again.)
It’s been a whirlwind of a year! I’ve learned a lot & hope to continue to grow in my blogging journey. Thanks so much for the encouragement in the beginning & even right now! Yes, as soon as work calms down for you, you need to get back to blogging. 🙂