Employed!

Trevor got a job!!!

I cannot begin to explain how much this helps us, how much stress it relieves. Getting married is scary as it is, but then you add financial uncertainty on all the stress and it’s been a load to carry.

Every minute of our after work hours (he has an internship that ends at the end of this month) is consumed by wedding stuff. I’ve never been so exhausted in my life. He has little time until the wedding to apply, and none of the leads from the past have gone through.

He applied for a job at his current company, in a different department, and was offered the job yesterday.

He told me and I started crying, I felt so happy and relieved and so GRATEFUL.

I know Heavenly Father was in the details here. I have no doubt this was a blessing from Him. I can’t express how grateful I am!

June and Jer brought over some amazing mango bubbly for us to celebrate! 

Everything with the wedding is coming together, now this... what a tender mercy so close to the wedding to have financial security.

Love,

Brittney

This post is a good one. Expect an awesome ending.

Workwise, the last months (ok let’s be honest – my whole professional working life has been lots of drama, ordeals, waiting, etc. ) of my life have been beyond insane.



Here is somewhat of a timeline summary (excluding my month to month intern trauma, and my year long contingent woes. Also excluding the huge awful reorg, which was also awful ((no redundancy there – I’m simply stating the extent of the awfulness))).


March 3 – Interviewed for the Missionary Work and Public Affairs Project Coordinator position (upgrade from being an Admin) with Michael Gibby, Portfolio Director and Romina Uceda, Portfolio Analyst.


March 11 – Got offered the job!


March – August – Trying to figure out this job! So much to learn, and getting used to the people I work closely with. It ends up being a bad situation for me. My moral is at an all-time low. The portfolio as a whole’s morale is also low. Stressful time.


August – The Solution Manager over Mormon.org takes another job. We are down an SM. Frantically trying to figure out how to proceed, interview process starts.


September – Romina tells me that she is being transitioned to a Project Manager spot, leaving the PA spot open for someone else to come in.


October 7 – Announcement that the Public Affairs and Missionary Departments were being split. Michael Gibby was going to be the Portfolio Director over Public Affairs. Missionary would be getting a new Director.


October 12ish – Another of our SM’s leaves under sad circumstances that has everyone upset – he was one of my favorites. We are now down 2 SM’s (We have 4 total, down 2) a Portfolio Direct and the Portfolio Analyst (Romina was still doing some work, but not as much as before). Our portfolio is falling apart!


Dec 1ish – Finally get a new PD!! Ron Stutz takes the job.


Dec 10 – Romina completely goes to being the Project Manager in Public Affairs. I am the interim Portfolio Analyst, with no training. No time for training. It is the end of the year and we’re closing out projects, going over budgets and everything else that comes with the financial end of a huge IT portfolio. Still no training. And I’m doing this for both Missionary and Public Affairs.


This state of complete chaos and me wanting to literally die from stress and being overworked goes for an entire month. Note – I’m always overworked and stressed, this just takes it up to a level where I could not physically and emotionally handle it anymore.


Jan 5 – I finally got taken off being the Portfolio Analyst for Public Affairs. SIGH OF RELIEF. I can function as a human being again.


Jan 10 – We get a new SM!! Yeah! Now we’re just down one SM.


Feb-6 – We get a new SM for Mormon.org! Yeah!

Feb 21 – GET OFFERED THE PORTFOLIO ANALYST JOB FOR THE MISSIONARY DEPARTMENT.




Wow. This is just all the drama for the last under a year. My whole professional career has been so much turmoil. Internships that are promised to lead to full time jobs ending (and telling me on the day I was leaving to go home for Christmas I didn’t have a job when I came back) and being unemployed. Oh, being unemployed is the worst. Sending out a zillion resumes. Rejections. Temporary jobs that make me come home crying my eyes out.


A year of being an intern – getting my contract extended a month at a time FOR A YEAR. Interviewing for the Contingent Admin spot – also lasting a year.


And now. I’ve made it to a Portfolio Analyst spot.


I went from Intern, to jobless, to intern Admin, to Contingent Admin, to Project Coordinator, and now I am an official Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Missionary Department Portfolio Analyst.


I’ve reached a position I never thought possible. This job is hard. Not to brag or anything, but it’s hard. I have so much to grow. SO much. Lots of work ahead, but I can honestly say I am proud of where I am today.

Bonafide Working Girl

Today I was offered a Portfolio Coordinator position in the Missionary Portfolio in the Ecclesiastical Department in ICS for the LDS Church. Whew.


This is such an incredible blessing. I am so ecstatic. The position will require more training and much more responsibility, all of which I am so excited to take on. This will be great for my career.


I am so grateful for all my coworkers who were so helpful finding this position and making it happen.


When they offered me the position, they told me it was a nightmare to get everything transitioned to accommodate me. Which means they really wanted me! Score for me.


I get full benefits. An increased salary.


For the first time in my entire life, I have a full time job.


Oh, and I’m going to Barbados for a week at the beginning of April.


Love,
Brittney

*update*

Remember that time I posted pretty much every day about my job status? It is that time again.


Sigh.

I got extended for another year, last January. My contract ended, and they managed (seriously – this was an impossible feat. You can only do 2 years as a contract position, and I did 1 year intern, 1 year contractor, so getting this extended at all was a miracle) to get my contracted extended 3 more months, while they work on getting me on full time.

The problem is, while they want me and NEED me (and by need I mean whether it is me or someone else, there is a TON of work to do) there is no position. When they went through the 2011 hiring plans, there was no request for any more Admin headcount. Super bad on their part – they need the help.

I was told yesterday that they cannot get approval for the headcount. There is just no way.

Sigh.

My only option is to get hired on in a department where there is a need, and a budget to pay for me. There is one possibility here, and I have an interview tomorrow.

There are a couple of obstacles. One – the position has always been an intern position. So the Director would have to agree to switch that role from intern to full time. That costs the Department much more money. A pretty big obstacle.

Second, they have to REALY want me. They are looking for people who have the potential to go on the department and make a difference. They have to think I have this potential. And they have to think I have so much potential they are willing to pay much more to bring me on FTE, instead of going to BYU and getting a recent MBA or business degree graduate for an awesome internship opportunity.

If this interview does not go well, or it just is not a good fit, I am out of a job at the end of April.

Nothing to stress about, right?

On top of that, I have so much to do. I am way behind. I’m buried. Swamped. I stayed until 8 last night, a 12 hour day – and it barely made a dent. I stayed late on Monday too.

I’m so mentally and physically exhausted.

Any prayers my way for tomorrow would help.

Banished to the Hallway, and Jacob

I no longer can say, "come to my office - room number 3162".

Yes, I got the job. But simultaneously, I've been kicked out of my office. Banished, if you will, to the middle of the main hallway on the 3rd floor of the Riverton Office Building (ROB).

Not just me, but my partner in my every-day endeavors, Julie. We've shared out small, cramped, yet wonderful office for the last 5 months or so. We could close the door, hide, talk as much as we wished. It was fabulous.

(Here are our desks. Hallway behind, in front, in the middle, and on either side. Mine is on the left, Julie's on the right).

But those on the fourth floor (the fourth floor is where all the Directors are) have decided a better place for us would be in the middle of the hallway, outside of our old office. Eek. We hated the idea. We cringed and cried and whined and delayed our departure, but, alas, last last Friday was "D-Day". We are now officially sitting in the middle of the hall.

Not only that, but they built our cubicles WITHOUT back walls. Seriously? Apparently, they ordered the wrong walls. Woops. That is all we got. "Woops". No effort to order the right walls or anything of the sort.

The guys (the guys being the men in our department who we support) saw our predicament and were nice enough to pull an unused desk behind my desk, which made the back wall standard cubicle height. If it weren't for that desk, I'd be so hating life. I would be visible from almost anywhere on every side. People could stand right behind me and see everything I was doing. Unnerving. Now, with the back wall, I am at least not visible from directly behind.

(The half wall in front is all that was there. The wall that goes higher is a desk they pushed from some other location to rest behind me, at least blocking my visibility from behind. That desk is my saving grace! Notice the flowers my family sent me! And the pictures Bob drew for me).

My time to work has decreased, significantly. People come by to chat, ask questions and ask me to do all sorts of random things. And the printer. Ooooh, that printer. This printer is much better than the one at the Triad. But it still has its issues. It beeps. It gets jammed. And now, I have a front row seat to the action. Before I could hide in my office and pretend I didn't know the ins and outs of it. But now, as the men stand there perplexed, they look at me - and I have to stop what I'm doing and fix the printer.

No, I am not a big fan of the hallway.

The worst part, I assumed, would be people being able to creep up behind me and see me from every angle. Having no privacy at all. Yes, it is bad. But the worst part?

Jacob.

Jacob is single. And looking. Jacob is maybe 300lbs. He is a computer nerd - aka - no social skills. At all.

Jacob walks back and forth in the hallway, all day long. It is impossible that he is getting any work done, with the time he spends pacing the hallways in front of my desk. Back and forth. Back and forth (he actually said that one time, on one of his treks). I ignore him. I want to be a better person than that, but I just can't do it. Julie and I look at each other every time, and mark off what time that was that hour. We've gotten 10 times in an hour. Julie and I look at each other a lot. He is decreasing our productivity as well as his own.

In the morning, as he starts his back and forth bits, he doesn't look at me.

Towards afternoon, he does this creepy behind-the-shoulder-sexual-glance type thing.

At the end of the day, he talks to me. This is the worst part of my day.

Friday, it went something like this:

Jacob - takes this digital clock thing I have on my desk, and holds it, looking at me.
Me - I look at him like, "what are you doing?" and then go back to work.
Jacob - Stands there, talking to me/himself. Nothing worth repeating.
Me - I continue to work, pretending he is not there.
Jacob - "Look, it's a FOOTBALL!" Proceeds to pretend-throw it at my face, repeatedly, extremely close,   while saying, "BAM! BAM!"
Me - I give him my best crusty. "It is not a football". I look back down at my computer/work.
Jacob - "It's a VOLLEYBALL!" Proceeds to pretend-throw it at my face, repeatedly, extremely close,   while saying, "BAM! BAM!"
Me - Another crusty. "It is not any type of ball". I look back down.
Jacob - Proceeds to fly it around my desk, my face, etc.
Me - A co-worker walks towards me. I see him, and make my most in-need-of-help face. He sums up the situation, laughs and walks away. I'll get him back later.
Jacob - "Look! It's a top!" Proceeds to spin it around on top of my desk.
Me - I see another co-worker. I give him my most in-need-of-help face. He pauses, enjoying my pathetic face and situation, laughs hysterically, and leaves.
Jacob - Finally puts the clock back and leaves.

I can't do this every day! I don't have the charity or the endurance. I want my office back!

Love,
Brittney

Drum Roll, Please!

I GOT THE JOB!

They just called and told me.

SIIIIGGGHHH.

I can breathe for the first time in a year...

I originally signed on for a 2 month internship... and they would extend it every time. So every 1-2 months, I would go through the stress of, are they going to extend again? And start job searching again. This last year has been so hard with the uncertainty of just not knowing how long I will have a job. So stressful.

When the recruiter called, I just took a deep breath, and he laughed. He probably gets that reaction a lot.

Now that I know I have a job (for the next year – hopefully I’ll get changed over to a permanent position – but this is a GIANT step closer to that goal) I can finally do some things I’ve needed to for a long while.

First – move to a place that is not underground, has windows, and has roommates. Seems like such a small thing, but to me, it is HUGE.

Second – sign up for a GRE class (they are expensive!).

Those are my first 2 priorities.

Thank you so much to everyone who prayed and fasted on my behalf… it has helped more than you know. I love you ALL!

Job Update #Too Many

My last two interviews went well (But take in mind, this is coming from the girl who doesn't know what 20% of 100 is).

One of the guys I interviewed with, I already Admin for, so he knows me really well. I told him the math-whiteboard-percentage story, and he thought it was hysterical. Shocking.

So...

In my interview, he put four cans of Sprite on his desk, and proceeded to ask me percentage questions on them.

How much is 75% of the Sprites? If I take one away, how many are left? What is 25% of the Sprites... and on... and on... until the grand finale - what is 12.5% of the Sprites? I am happy to say I got them all right, including the last one, which is, in case you didn't know, half of one of the Sprites. After I got each answer right, he would praise me like I was one of his own kids. "That is right! You are so smart!" "That's it!" and so forth. In the end, he told me I wasn't dumb, and he'd let my first interviewer know. Phew. That is a load off my mind.

I'm now being mad fun of quite a bit for my humiliating mistake... word has gotten around about it. While I am so glad it is bringing so much amusement to everyone I work with, I still haven't shaken the incredible dumb spell that has clouded me since that fateful morning. Eek.

I'm not sure when they will let us know who has gotten the position. But everyone (except, well, some) has been so supportive and encouraging to me. I love my co-workers, and really, really hope to get an opportunity to work with them longer.

Anyways, I don't get tomorrow off, like most the rest of the USA, and I had a very good, but incredibly busy and sleepless weekend, so I am going to be all matronly and go to bed at 9:00. Don't judge me - I obviously need all the sleep I can get. Get those brain cells working for me, instead of against me. All I have to say is, imagine if I drank!?

Love,
Brittney

Second Round

I made it to the second round of interviews!

That means this week, I have four more interviews. Eek.

Today I had two of them. My first was with a guy so tough and severe in interviews, he's made interns cry. Thats right, 20-something, college educated, prospective Engineers balling at the hands of this one man. No mercy.

So imagine my fear as I waited outside his office, and he eventually beckoned me in.

He asked some good questions, and I couldn't stop twitching, which is what I do when I'm nervous. Sitting there twitching, trying to convince this man that I am exactly when he needs. What the whole department needs. Shoot, what the whole Church needs.

I made it through the questions. And then, BAM, my worst fear came to fruition. He told me to go to the whiteboard.

I died a little inside, and my twitching increased.

I walked to the board and grabbed a marker, knowing what was coming...

What came out of his mouth next was a blur something to the effect of...

"Marker.... math..... problems..... solving..... test....."

Anyone who knows me well is cringing right now. Basing my employment off of solving math problems given to me by an engineer on a whiteboard is suicidal. I SUCK at math. Repeat - I SUCK AT MATH.

He gave me a percentage problem first. I hate percents more than most things. I immediately shut down. I didn't know the answer. I knew there was a formula, but couldn't remember it exactly... so I guessed. Based my answer off of 50%, which I could do.

After that meltdown, I proceeded to state the obvious - I am a words/verbal/people person. With numbers - I suck.

His response?

"Yeah, your answers to my questions were some of the best I've ever heard."

I twitched just a little bit less after that.

Then he gave me two more math problems - both of which I solved. Success. One was hard. Well, for me it was. And I figured it out. Right there in that office with him watching on the whiteboard in green marker, I got the answer.

After, he said he had all he needed to know. He went over the interview, and said he thinks I have an extreme level of emotional intelligence. Which is important for my job. He said he thinks I am extremely competent and would do a great job.

My downfall? He said he sees me as not being confident enough. He can see me stressing myself out over a project, thinking I don't have the skills to do it, and not performing as well as I could. Which, he said, is also a positive - because he thinks I have the capability to do an amazing job - but that I would be my greatest downfall.

Which, in my opinion, is spot on. From the questions he asked me, he really did assess me very accurately. I've never been in that type of an interview before. It was extremely intense and intellectual.

I left, somewhat awkwardly, naturally, and said something to the effect of, "Well, I'll see you around, I imagine."

And what did he say?

"I'm sure I'll be seeing you a lot."

I'm pretty sure that means he likes me. I hope so.

The next interview went well. General questions, the questions I expected. I think it went well.

I have my last two tomorrow. These will be more awkward... as they are with the two men I currently am an admin for. They knooow me. They know when I've messed up, succeeded... they know my weaknesses and strengths. So when they ask me those questions - they already know the answers. What if I say my weakness is one thing, and they are thinking - "eek! I didn't know about that... I would have said ...." or when I say my greatest strength, and they are thinking "Oh heavens! That is not your strength!"

I'm sure it will go well, but it is nerve-wracking.

My triumph is doing well in my first interview. Although, I am feeling a lot dumb... it didn't hit me until driving home, as stressed as I was all day, the answer to the first math problem he gave me finally clicked in my mind.

Say something electronic is $100 and is 20% off. How much is it?

I thought and thought and thought. What was the formula? What is 50% off? I ended up saying 85. That is how stressed I was. And it wasn't until on my way home it hit me. $100. $100!! That is like 2nd grade math. And I know the answer without thinking. Except for in the interview, when I was so nervous after hearing the word "math" I basically shut down. I'm humiliated. I want to go to him and let him know I KNOW the answer! That it is easy-cheesy!

My redemption? I answered the much harder ones that proceeded my disgraceful, humiliating, blundering failure.

I'm hoping this works out. I guess what will be, will be, right? I'm praying my hardest... just have to have faith. Always more faith...

Love,
Brittney

Prayers Accepted

There has become a position available at work.  Unfortunately, due to required processes and the Business Manager, who does the hiring, it is open to the public.

Which means, I'll have to apply and be interviewed along with all other applicants - both internal and external.

Sigh.

There are some people out there, and by some, I mean, a lot, that are MUUCH more qualified for this position, have much more experience.

The Business Manager, who will make the final decision, is hard to read. I'm not sure how much he likes me. He doesn't really see me in the work setting, more in the chatting setting - in certain meetings and such. I think he is my biggest obstacle, and he is pretty much the decider.

I think I could be in trouble?

I've been praying, and I feel at peace. So I guess I've just got to realize that whatever happens, it is in the Lord's hand. I need to make my peace with that.

But sometimes, it feels like the Lord listens to others more than me.

So, if you want to offer a prayer Heaven-bound on my behalf, I wouldn't mind. In fact, I'd love it. In faaact, I think I need it.

Love,
Brittney

Buying Some Time

I was just informed my internship has been extended to mid February – a year from when I started, the maximum time an internship can go. So this is way good news!

This time when I’m home at Christmas (I AM GOING HOME FOR CHIRSTMAS!) I will have a job to come back to. That relieves so much stress. I’ll have more time to figure out what to do from here on out. This is such a HUGE stress reliever for me. Also, it gives more time to try and figure out HOW to get me on as a full-time employee. Odds are still not looking very good for that, however.

So that is my awesome news for today.

Awesome news for Friday – I had a Winter Formal I attended. And I wore my high school prom dress.

Fun thing 1 – It is pretty (the dress)

Fun thing 2 – It was only the second time I’ve been able to wear it (the dress)

Fun thing 3 – It was way fun getting all dressed up (me)

Fun thing 4 – My cute new blue coat looked super cute with it (the dress)

Fun thing 5 – IT FIT! YEAH, BABY! Personal triumph. My high school prom dress fits!

Fun thing 6 – I got it zipped up all by myself. (Becki was going to be home to do it ((It goes all the way up my back – and I’m just not that nimble – or so I thought! HA!)) But then she ended up leaving early. And I was left in a sticky situation. How on earth do I get my dressed zipped up? I am home alone. Do I ask my date to do it? How awkward/inappropriate is that? Or do I just leave it not zipped up and put on my coat, and have one of my friends do it once I got to the formal? Anyways, it all worked out, obviously).

But, I didn’t take any pictures. Sad, yes. But I wasn’t feeling particularly into pictures. And now, of course, I wish I had some. Oh well.

Anyways, today is a good day. There’s a plethora of snow outside, which always makes me happy. And I have a job until at least February. I have time to figure out my life. I had an awesome weekend filled with good friends and food. What more could a girl want? (Lots, but I’m trying not to push my luck…)

Winter Formal

Officers and our Dates

Officers

Group Shot

Thanksgiving

ALPHA Officers
Battle of the Chapters!

I died all our tights. In my trash can at work. I'm awesome. And resourceful. It took all day of them stewing. I'm sure all the guys though I was nuts. But I don't care. I didn't have time to do it at home the night before, and I didn't have a bucket or anything - so I used my trashcan. Then I used the sanitary sacks in the bathroom to wrap the wet tights up for each girl. I felt proud of my ingenuity

ALPHA Girls!

Love,

Brittney