Hooray!!!
After a brutal 3 month job search, I have finally landed my dream job. In fact, I ended up skipping a part of my dream and vaulting myself into the place I imagined to be in approximately 5 years. I planned on going to Eastern/Central Europe first, believing it would be easier to get a job there and easier to save money for my eventual move to Western Europe. But as it turns out, I was able to land a great job at Zurich International School, and it will pay enough for me to have a comfortable life on my favorite continent.
I should probably recount the details of the job fair in London. But I'm far too exhausted to do that right now. Besides, I've told the story so many times that I simply can't bring myself to go through it again. But I will say this, I received contracts from Budapest and Zurich, as well as verbal offers from American School of Doha and the FDR school in Lima (Peru, not Ohio). I also believe I would have received offers from Dusseldorf and Madrid had I not signed early on with ZIS. So my worries of not finding a job at the fair were for naught, but I suppose my lack of self-confidence motivated me to try my hardest. Which I did, and it paid off in the end.
When Budapest turned me down during my Christmas break, I was pretty bummed. It was interesting though - I got over Budapest quickly. It's really not like me to hang on to things. What upset me was that I thought that my philosophical approach to life had been disproved. For those of you who don't know, I wholeheartedly adopt the ideas put forth in The Alchemist. (If you've never read it, read it; if you've read it, reread it.) I am not exaggerating when I say I live my life based on that book. And up until December, it had worked. But when I didn't get Budapest, I questioned not so much my failure, but my entire philosophical approach to life. It began to seem that life was, indeed, completely random with no inherent meaning. It was the second time I faced an existential crisis this year (see my blog post on climbing Kili for my other account).
I look back now, however, and realize I couldn't have been as nihilist as I thought I was, because I never - not for one second - considered giving up my job search. Even when I was offered my current job back, my gut reaction was "not until after I see what happens in London." So though I felt a little lost and a lot disappointed, I kept moving forward. Which, of course, is exactly what Santiago does in his journey. And in the end, I find that my journey was indeed just like Santiago's. Budapest only existed to motivate me to move forward. And when I got to Budapest, I realized my dream lay elsewhere. I am so glad I have always been able to let go of things. If I had not been able to let go of Budapest, I never would have gotten Zurich.
And now, I need a new title for my blog. Suggestions are welcome.
I should probably recount the details of the job fair in London. But I'm far too exhausted to do that right now. Besides, I've told the story so many times that I simply can't bring myself to go through it again. But I will say this, I received contracts from Budapest and Zurich, as well as verbal offers from American School of Doha and the FDR school in Lima (Peru, not Ohio). I also believe I would have received offers from Dusseldorf and Madrid had I not signed early on with ZIS. So my worries of not finding a job at the fair were for naught, but I suppose my lack of self-confidence motivated me to try my hardest. Which I did, and it paid off in the end.
When Budapest turned me down during my Christmas break, I was pretty bummed. It was interesting though - I got over Budapest quickly. It's really not like me to hang on to things. What upset me was that I thought that my philosophical approach to life had been disproved. For those of you who don't know, I wholeheartedly adopt the ideas put forth in The Alchemist. (If you've never read it, read it; if you've read it, reread it.) I am not exaggerating when I say I live my life based on that book. And up until December, it had worked. But when I didn't get Budapest, I questioned not so much my failure, but my entire philosophical approach to life. It began to seem that life was, indeed, completely random with no inherent meaning. It was the second time I faced an existential crisis this year (see my blog post on climbing Kili for my other account).
I look back now, however, and realize I couldn't have been as nihilist as I thought I was, because I never - not for one second - considered giving up my job search. Even when I was offered my current job back, my gut reaction was "not until after I see what happens in London." So though I felt a little lost and a lot disappointed, I kept moving forward. Which, of course, is exactly what Santiago does in his journey. And in the end, I find that my journey was indeed just like Santiago's. Budapest only existed to motivate me to move forward. And when I got to Budapest, I realized my dream lay elsewhere. I am so glad I have always been able to let go of things. If I had not been able to let go of Budapest, I never would have gotten Zurich.
And now, I need a new title for my blog. Suggestions are welcome.
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