Once again as one door closes, another will certainly open...

I wasn't quite expecting to be writing this particular post this evening, but given the events of the last couple of days, this is what is on my mind at the moment.  As always, I will share it with you in this space.

Yesterday my tenure with Meridian Credit Union, where I held the position of Member Services Representative for just over a year, came to an end.  I wrote at the time I took the position I was very lucky to be given a chance at a second career, and I still feel that way today.

Let me explain.

The position of Member Services Representative is not an easy job, nor did I expect it to be.  It was for me, at least, a tremendously steep learning curve, coming as I did from an entirely different career path for about 40 years.

But I wanted a challenge and I wanted a new career, so Meridian in their collective wisdom took the gutsy move to hire me for their downtown St. Catharines branch in March of last year.  I went through the extensive training programme and took all the required courses, doing rather well all things considered.

But progress can be a fickle passenger on the road to success, and for me at least, progress was not coming as quickly as the company would have liked.  I tried, oh I tried.  And so did they.  On both sides we worked diligently to close the gap from where I was and where I needed to be for the position I held, but in the end the decision was made to end the association yesterday.

I was not totally surprised by the decision given the events leading up to it, but I was somewhat surprised by the timing.  But no matter.  I accept responsibility totally for what happened and wish it could have turned out differently.

Don't get me wrong here.  It was an amazingly gratifying experience and I worked with a great team of financial professionals, all of whom I hold in very high regard.  I would not trade this valuable learning experience for anything in the world.

The Meridian vision is still one I share and I will continue to be a proud Meridian Member even though I will no longer be working there.  The commitment to community values they champion are my values as well, so in that regard, nothing changes.

What did I learn from all this?  Basically, the front-line position I held is much more important and complicated than most people realize when they visit their favourite financial institution.  Certainly that was the case for me, at least.  Having said that, I feel I adapted to the new reality to the best of my ability and successfully transferred my considerable people skills to another, totally new area of expertise.

But in the final analysis when you don't measure up not only in their eyes but your own as well, something has to give, as it did yesterday.

So as they say, as one door closes, another opens...

I am on the hunt once more for my next Big Adventure, and the search is now underway.  But not before taking a little bit of time to rest and recover from what ultimately I believe will be a temporary setback to my second career goals.

I don't mind telling you I am a little tired and in need of some down time to recharge.  It has been about two years since I last took any time off at all, and given the events since that last break, a little bit of a rest right now is not such a bad thing.

I have had time to go to the Y.  I slept this morning about an hour later than I usually do.  I am walking more and enjoying some sunshine in the process.  This afternoon I cleaned up my bike and filled the tires so I can enjoy a little time cycling around this amazing part of the country we live in.

I also plan to spend a little more time becoming more active in this space along with social media posts once again.

However, as time marches on I don't want to fall behind, so an active job search is currently underway even while enjoying a little bit of down time.  If I were needed right away for a new position, I would be ready in an instant.

I have no particular career trajectory at the moment, other than find something that will utilize my people skills and relationship-building talents honed over many years dealing with the public on many levels.  But other than that, I am open to any and all opportunities I am able to seek out in the coming days and weeks.

If you know of something or someone I should talk to by all means let me know.  But rest assured I have no intention of sitting on the sidelines for long with this temporary setback.  I have too much to offer and too great a desire to succeed in a new, challenging career path.

Opportunity doesn't always knock; you go and seek it out often in the unlikeliest of places.  That's the challenge I intend to rise to going forward.

I am excited by the prospects I might uncover and the rewards that will come with them.  The task now is to remain positive and confident.

I think I can handle that.

Wish me luck!

June 3rd, 2015.