The BOSS OF ME blog

It’s like this: after almost 17 years of working in an office environment (of some sort), I finally had a baby and was at home for an entire year. That year was a complete blur and I have no idea what happened.

So a very blurry year happened, my daughter turned one and it was time to head back to work. I was back at work for under three months before I was ‘retired.’ Not quite ready to head to the nearest retirement village in search of a pickleball tournament; I now had a bit of time to explore what I’d like to do next (me and approximately 100,000 other people). I do want to be back to work, I’m just not entirely sure what I’d like to do. And let’s face it – even if I did know what I wanted to do, the competition is fierce. We are now competing with millennials who know you aren’t supposed to double space after a period anymore. So I think I’ll use this time to learn stuff and explore new work opportunities.

Maybe I’ll try working from home? 

With pretty vague aspirations in mind, I researched several possible work-from-home opportunities. From affiliate marketing to product testing to becoming a ‘rent a friend,’ the opportunities that spoke to me had a similar theme: upgrading my social media and general technology skills would be required. Don’t get me wrong; if the right office job fell into my lap, I would explore that too (link to my resume: C Hewlko Resume 2016). Contrary to the fact that I may sometimes inadvertently eat wax paper, I’m not a complete idiot.

My initial job search also turned up an alarming new trend: many employers requested initial video interviews, YouTube video introductions, and links to your personal website/blog, as part of the recruitment process. What? When did that happen? Thanks to a former boss (let’s call him Brent), I realize now I should have been prepared for this eventuality. A pioneer on the frontier of awkward work situations; Brent once asked an interviewee why he went by the name McLovin on his Facebook page. Although highly entertaining and definitely, cutting edge, his use of social media would likely not have been considered appropriate, nor an interview technique endorsed by any reasonable HR department – which is likely why I missed it. Now, employers expect you to know how to use a computer, iPhone and social media to apply for jobs and may skip searching your social media profiles to determine if you are a ‘cultural fit.’ So, I figure the worst-case scenario of my little adventure is that I may finally learn to use technology I already own, and actually be able to apply for a job I wouldn’t previously have been able to because I didn’t know how to use most of the media functions on my Mac or iPhone (well not on purpose anyway).

Finally, my friends, former colleagues and family also seem awfully curious about what I do all day. I know because they routinely ask: “What do you do all day?” So, I thought writing about my experiences and sharing them on a personal blog on a website I built wouldn’t be such a bad idea. And because my background and experiences lie in business and making fun of my day-to-day life experiences, I’m writing about that too.

Contrary to the popular adage: “Dance like no one is watching” – I say: “Why the hell would you want to do that?”.

Where do I go from here?

Step 1: Learn enough WordPress without taking any tutorials or reading anything helpful to start up this website. Check. If you are reading this I deem my WordPress abilities to be slightly above expert level and I also may have significantly reduced the world’s domain name population. High five!

Step 2: Write a blog post about what I am doing and why I’m doing it to share with readers I coerce to read it everywhere! Check. If you are reading this you are likely: (a) married to me (b) my best friend, or (c) a direct relative (aka my sister). Congratulations! Re-read blog post 4000 times before publishing in search of double spaces.

Step 3: Maybe learn how to write.

THE END

Motivational caption of the day: “Crap. I forgot to turn on the dishwasher.”