Right On!

Man, I love being a longhorn! And even though I'm not in Austin anymore, awesomeness is everywhere. :D

At a gas station around where I live in Dallas...




Hook 'em!

Not So Much Scary As Funny

Happy Halloween!

This Just Needs To Be On Here

What a Nice End to the Week

Man, everything just wrapped up very nicely today at the end of a busy work week.

I was working on several different projects, just trying to efficiently manage all of them, all due by the end of the week. There was one project that I knew I could get about half (the big half) done but wasn't sure that it would be where it needed to be by the end of the day, and it got dropped. I had completed the necessary part and the rest was moved off of my plate. So that freed up a bit of time to work on my other projects.

I am helping to put a mood video together and it's a really cool thing. We're looking up all sorts of images, books/quotes, songs, and video clips to set a certain mood for a presentation coming up.

Another thing I have been working on...I have been doing some trending. I don't think that's really a word but I like it. The definition: to look for/at trends. There is this huge Trend Report put out by http://www.trendwatching.com/ every year that I have been sifting through to apply to different targets. At first I just had to learn what the trends were as they give them these crazy names, like "Hobbynomics" and "Infolust", but then it has been really interesting sifting through with one group in mind and then explaining how the trend could be leveraged for that target. I am going to be a Trend Master. ;)

Some Texas Tech advertising students came to the agency today. (Some UT Planning Grad Students came 2 weeks ago, so that was pretty fun for me.) They selected me to be the person who represented Planning so that was pretty cool. It's interesting because I know exactly what they're going through and exactly what they're thinking - I was just there not too long ago! So I tried to be as helpful as possible and got a lot of positive feedback. Many of the students asked for my card and wanted to know if it would be okay to send me questions. So I'm having a lot of fun with that - molding young advertising minds. Remembering being in their shoes sure helps me think of the right things that they want to hear about. So add to my list of titles - Molder of Young Minds. :D

So yeah, I got to a good stopping place on all of my projects and came home today feeling quite fulfilled. It just sets the stage for a relaxing weekend. Hooray!

A Little Lopsided

So I realize that several of my posts have been heading south and I want to show that it is not the way I am feeling constantly.

I write most of these posts in the evening when I'm home, and that's where I've been having problems recently.

So at work, I have been listening to music on random - the top hits and new songs. It's a fun thing to hear a bunch of stuff that I like but didn't know the name or artist, so I jot that down quickly. Here's one that really seems to show the duality of what I'm feeling right now:




And here's one that just makes me want to DANCE - dance therapy always "does me well"!

Alright, It Hit Me

I blame the stresses of the week: multiple apartment and car problems have thrown my life outside of work into a bit of turmoil, and I have been getting more work to do and thus have been expending a lot of energy during the day. I just don't want to come home to a bunch of problems. :(

Today I did get everything patched up - alignment fixed (again), other headlight fixed, and the light was replaced in my apartment. So I'm glad those things were done but I am a little afraid of something else happening - please, no.

I think all of this built up and at the same time I am trying to e-mail family and make sure they know things got fixed, etc...

I was writing an e-mail to my mom tonight and just realized that I really needed to say something because none of my immediate family members have visited me since I moved here. Granted I did travel back to Austin for about the first month, but I am coming up on living in Dallas for 3 months. My mom helped me pick out the apartment, but noone has seen me moved in, where I work, or the area where I live.

I feel like I shouldn't have to ask, but rather than just let it bother me I asked her. I have already told all of them that I would like them to visit, of course, but it's so easy for them to say they're too busy.

So here's my history: though I lived in Austin where I grew up, I did not live at home while I was in college. I lived in the dorm for one year, in apartments with roommates for the next 3 years, and then in an apartment of my own while I was going to grad school for one more year. Because I was in Austin, my family obviously helped me move in and what not but after that they really didn't ever come to my place. It was just too easy for me to go to them, but wore on me after a while. It's not always easy with a full academic and social calendar to visit a mom on one side of town, dad and stepmom on the other side of town, relatives about 45 minutes out of town, and then also my brother and his girlfriend moved about 5 minutes away from me my last year...but I frequently went there instead of them coming over.

Now that I have actually up and moved away a considerable distance comparatively, I just don't think that they think it's as special anymore. I've lived in an apartment before, I've lived on my own before...but it's just me this time. It's still too easy, it seems - my mom told me that we're not that physically far away. That is true, I could be further away if I were in NY or San Francisco, but it's still 8 hours out of my weekend if I want to drive to Austin to see her.

Do they want me to move really really far away?? Didn't seem like it when I talked about getting a job - they all just assumed I would be looking in Austin too. But I told them that I was applying pretty much anywhere but Austin. (Again, not because I don't love Austin. It is my home. But I needed to grow.) I think a few family members were a little surprised, but why? It made me feel like they didn't really believe I could do it.

So here I am, trying to do this, and I need support from my family. Let's hope they start missing me so they'll visit. :/

I Just Held My First Baby

I'm pretty sure...I think I may have held my cousins when they were babies, but not really, you know? Like the parents are hovering over you and you're sitting down so the couch or chair is really doing all the supporting.

So it's our admin Jessica's baby, Jacob. He was very tiny and very cute. He kept making faces at me and I was afraid I was going to be the one that made him cry. But no, he just wanted to make a squishy face and then move around a little bit so he could get comfortable and fall back asleep.

I held him for a good long while and just kept talking to him, telling him how cute he was.

Babies are quite cute.

Please Tell My Stuff to Stop Breaking

Stuff that has broken since the weekend:

(1) My AIR CONDITIONER! (Fixed, but now it's cold...wasn't cold when it broke.)

(2) My other headlight (got the right one fixed about a month ago.)

(3) The alignment (that was fixed a couple of weeks ago) is inexplicably off again - another trip to Firestone.

(4) Walked into my apartment this evening and *pop* goes my dining table light - my favorite light in the apartment, I must say.

A note to my stuff: please, please stop breaking. It is annoying. Thank you.

Oh, and of course the response is: Well, that's the joy of owning a car and apartment/home. :/

Why Planning?

I've noticed a lot of posts recently about my move/life and not so much about my job/career. ;) Sooo, I wanted to answer a question for myself: why planning?

Something that I heard several times near the end of my schooling and when I got hired was: if you think you know what you're doing as a planner, just wait. Tomorrow you'll have no idea. It's that certain unpredictability that is exciting, scary, and just a part of human nature...and my business is people. So sometimes in those exciting/scary moments, it's easy to ask if I'm cut out for this; do I have what it takes?

But I've looked that question square in the face and have decided that I do belong here and I enjoy, quite a lot, what I do. I had to face a fear that even through undergrad and grad education in advertising, specifically in Account Planning, and several internships that showed me many different sides of the industry before I really entered it, I would not like what I was doing or feel like I fit. I don't know why I questioned all of my preparation - those are things I did precisely to see if I would fit. But you never know - this is a really tumultuous time of life and nothing is certain.

So why do I say that planning is a fit? I actually think of new things all of the time..I'll have to write more as it strikes me. First and foremost, I love planning because it is a challenge to me. This is where I'll continue to grow because I will be constantly learning. One of my strengths is that I'm really good at school stuff. In grad school, I learned that meant I enjoyed learning because tests and quizzes were stripped away and it was only about how you think. I don't know everything about planning - I don't think you ever can as you could never understand every single thing about people - so that makes me want to keep learning.

There are other things that I may be really good at, perhaps even better than planning, but it's because it plays off a different strength of mine, such as organization. But it's that those things don't excite me and don't make me want to show up every day...as much as it's a career, it's still a job that you have to do even on your grumpy days.

I found a quote that pretty much guides my way of thinking about life:

If there's passion, it's right.

And it's also pretty cool to tell people what I do and have them be like, really? That's what you do? That's cool!

Hot and Cold

Why is it that we have to go straight past jacket weather into colder weather? I would like to just ease into it instead of going from summer to winter. Ah well, at least it's cooling off.

So my air conditioner got fixed just in time for this cold snap - haha. I am just hoping everything goes smoothly with the heater now. :p

I was reflecting on my last post today as I sat at work worrying about my air conditioner. Here we had the other extreme - focusing too much on my apartment. Well, probably not too much but it was distracting.

This weekend was affected by it too as the comfort that you should feel at home was taken away from me. It affected other parts of my life as well: I didn't feel like I could communicate as well because I was distracted, sitting in a hot apartment, and only thinking about what I needed to do to fix it. I talked to both my mom and dad but had to cut them both off as I was just plain grumpy on the phone and couldn't concentrate.

Today I felt uneasy at work as I didn't know what was going on at home, hoping I would return to comfort instead of more problems. I checked in with the complex in the middle of the day and felt a bit more at ease as it was fixed.

It's just that apartment living took center stage today but in a pretty negative way. I am feeling a bit sad and homesick today just because I can't rely on my apartment to be my home yet. I need to feel completely comfortable - it is supposed to be my sanctuary and it really sucks when that's out of balance.

Tomorrow is another day. Tomorrow I will be focusing on bundling up. ;)

The Other Half of the Day

Having just started my job a little more than 2 months ago, I have obviously been very focused on making a good first impression, settling in, and doing my work well. I have learned a lot in the short amount of time I've been there and want to continue to be focused on making my way towards my own client. However, recently I have realized that there is the whole other half of my day that I have been neglecting a bit - my home life.

I have neglected it because when I get home from work I am tired, I want to just sit and relax, and I have been gone many weekends so I haven't really been able to just thoroughly enjoy my apartment. The last couple of weeks I have set out to do just that.

Now I have been hampered just a bit with this enjoying business - right now it's about 85 degrees inside my apartment, and though a cool front is coming tonight it doesn't seem to be coming soon enough for me. You see, some crazy thing is wrong with my air conditioner and though I was able to catch it yesterday, the part they need to fix it won't be available until tomorrow (Monday). So bummer for trying to enjoy it because a hot apartment is a bit less than comfortable, but this is just part of an apartment or home - stuff breaks.

So, due to my lack of focus on my apartment living, I decided to go to a community meeting last Thursday. Several from the apartment complex gathered to speak to the manager and the three courtesy security officers that are present to help with issues at any time. I enjoyed the meeting because it was an opportunity to understand what kind of security is offered here, as a single girl can't get enough of that, but it was also an interesting view of some of the residents.

Here we had several complainers bring their grievances to the meeting. They were quite amusing (to me and several other residents) after a while. Their bitching went on even though the security officers had explained what the problem was or how they were going to take measures to fix it. But I think the most amusing thing was how out of touch one woman was about security and apartment living. She wove an elaborate web of encounters, she's just certain that all sorts of drug deals go down here at night, but then changed up her story and said that it was all hearsay. She wanted people to volunteer and take 1 hour shifts to patrol the complex. It was pretty obvious that she didn't get out a lot and I realized how caught up people can get in one thing.

Aha, a lesson. Though I'm not as in touch with the apartment complex as that woman, perhaps I can dial it up a bit. I do need to be aware of security issues and it made me feel safer just going to the meeting and learning what the security officers can do for me if needed. But it does feel nice to have many, varied outside interests instead of focusing on just one. It can't be just work, not just my apartment, not just thinking about friends and family - they all kind of swirl around, buzzing in at different times of the day. It's about striving for balance.

So I'm going to watch out for any crazies, as always, but do that in many different atmospheres ('cause crazies are everywhere!). :p

Can't Get This Out of My Head

This song by Paolo Nutini is just so fun and has been stuck in my head all day.

Today was a day of smiles, laughing, good inspiration, bubblegum, and "New Shoes".

Missing You

I think I mentioned this before, but I think missing people is really good for you. Not in a bad, crying, "I can't handle this" kind of way...haven't been there yet...but in a way that just makes you think about people more.

I actually feel closer to people right now because I think of them so much more. When you're around people all the time, there's not a lot of time to reflect on past happy memories and think of a person outside of just being with them.

Little things around me (a somewhat unfamiliar place, in the scheme of things) will surprisingly remind me of a friend and through that association I will actually feel more comfortable in that setting and also place my friend somewhere in my current environment - so I know my friends are always with me though physically far away. :)

So just a note if those tears start coming: missing can feel good sometimes.

My Mind is Slowing...

I just noticed today at work that I wasn't noticing things around me quite as much. This will sound silly but I always like the music they play in our bathroom at work. I got almost all the way out of the bathroom today and realized that I hadn't been paying attention to the music, though it could have been because I didn't like what was playing.

It made me a little sad to think that I have been noticing the fun little things around the office less. I mean, we have our logo projected onto the ground on my floor which I like walking over and around, a pool table, shuffleboard table, this popcorn cart that shows up in different places (but you can always find it as you just have to follow the wonderful aroma of fresh-popped, buttery popcorn), a few toy cars and other props that were used in ads, funky light fixtures galore, and many other things (including flowers on the sink in the bathroom that get changed out periodically). I like that stuff and I think it's fun that we have it in our office...I just may not appreciate it as much now since I see it every day.

It's interesting that I thought of that today because I was reading an article earlier that talked about doing things to help your memory. One was changing up your routine, such as taking a different way to work, just so that your mind makes new connections instead of just relying on what is familiar. I guess this blog post kind of helps bring those special things about the office to the forefront and think about them in a fresh way. (Oh, and reading and writing helps your memory too.)

Good Stress

Things that are really good and exciting are sometimes new and different, a change, which causes stress.

I keep needing to remind myself that good stress is still stress. It still affects the body and mind.

So even though I've been having a lot of new, great, fun, exciting things happening, I am feeling the stress.

Victories and Defeats

What a strange day. The first half involved work, the second a party, but they all unfortunately lent some sort of stress to me.

So I have been helping our NY office with a new business pitch - super cool! Since all the planners have been out, I was coordinating everything. This proved a little tricky as I had not done it before and of course wanted to get everything right.

Today were two focus groups: I scheduled my director as moderator, requested food and drinks, reserved video equipment, found an AS person to videotape, recruited for it by sending personal e-mails (because the first recruiting attempt failed) to about 25 people and scheduling based on responses (that turned out to be a little crazy as it was so last minute), prepared materials for the group such as flash cards and a flip chart, handed over the discussion guide I modified and also took notes and jotted down quotes. Whew! It was a lot to do and took me a considerable amount of time to put together.

I feel that I got really stressed out during the entire process and I'm a little disappointed in myself. I would be grooving along getting things done but I would pause for just a second and the stress would kind of seep in. I have dealt with many stressful things before and have become better at getting my work done despite it. Perhaps it's because it's so new, but I feel like I didn't do as well because I didn't handle the stress very well. Perhaps it's all in my head and I didn't appear quite as stressed as I thought I was.

My director asked me if I would like to moderate the second group right before the first group started and it made me really nervous. I have of course beaten the path and done interviews, etc. in grad school but I think that my mental state led me straight to panic when she asked. I do want to know how to moderate well but I don't necessarily just want to be thrown in on this one. I have been thrown into a lot at work lately and I think I have done very well, but something about this threw me off. I didn't feel that I could do it. I also felt that I wanted to do moderating the right way and I know that learning the basics could definitely help avoid common errors. I asked another planner if she would help me out. This also allowed me to pay more attention to the second group and actually have some takeaways to present to NY when I sent my notes to them...but I was still disappointed in myself. It made me realize that this is why I'm a junior right now and that I still have a lot to learn.

"Just a junior": I have not felt this way at work even once before. I have always felt like a valued member of the team and someone that can be counted on. I have felt welcomed and celebrated. But I did feel it today and it sucked. I didn't want to feel like that because I want to prove myself. But I think it's important to have this junior time to learn - as much as you can ever learn in school, there's still experience that you need. You can never get this in school, I don't believe, no matter how much you try. I had 5 internships, both client side and agency, went to grad school, and I still have a lot to learn. I will always have things to learn but they won't always be the basics as they are now.

So I'm trying, but I realized I'm not there yet.

Now the party portion of the day - today was our annual meeting and agency party. I had already heard a lot about it and so was pretty excited to see what was in store. Everyone is fun, was having fun together, and it was a really good party.

But at one point, far into the party, I stopped dancing to get some water and was just watching everyone have fun and dance. I thought about a few things. For one, I had been a little intimidated by the dancers because they're really good! That is a weird feeling to me because usually the dance floor is one of the places I feel most comfortable. This could be explained by my shyness when I first meet people - sometimes it hinders me from being as outgoing - but I felt like I should be able to open up, and everyone else was being so fun. So I continued watching and realized that I thought everyone knew each other much more than I knew them. True, but it really shouldn't have scared me away as the group is just plain welcoming. Basically, rational thought had flown out the door and I was just becoming sad.

I thought about not knowing people well, not knowing a lot of people in Dallas in general, and being a bit lonely. This wasn't even about missing specific people, it was about not being quite settled yet. This is all part of moving to a new city or starting something new, but it just kind of caught me off guard in the midst of all this excitement.

Fortunately, one of my coworkers came soon after these thoughts started bubbling up and chatted with me for a few minutes. Before I knew it, she was pulling me out to the dance floor and the fun began again.

But it was definitely a strange day of certain victories and defeats.

First Business Trip

Update: Oh, and I forgot to add that I had another interesting horoscope encounter that relates to this business trip. I have this horoscope calendar that features the horoscope of that month. Well, it sometimes has messages on a particular day as a forecast of what may happen. Monday, the day I went on this trip it said:

"Excellent day: mingle with VIPs, travel."

Well, I did just that. I was traveling and I flew first class! See, see?? Crazy. ;)
___________________________________________________________

My, oh my, what a busy week it has been...starting about mid-week last week.

As soon as all the planners left the building, a few big projects dropped in my lap. I was, for the first time and on my own, setting up focus groups. Well, I say on my own - I always have back-up which I really appreciate. But I do want to show that I am capable and of course I want everything to go well.

So I'm busy coordinating and I get a surprise visit from a head Account Services guy on Friday afternoon - do you want to go to Denver on Monday? I'm sorry, what?! I was so shocked that I asked if he was joking. No, no - they would like me there and my supervisor approved.

I carefully tried to organize and foresee anything that would be needed for my projects while I was gone, and put off organizing my trip as I was heading out of town over the weekend for a wedding.

Let's just say it was a really long couple of days and I'm exhausted! But here are some highlights from my first business trip ever:

(1) I got to go to Denver - not too shabby for the first business trip location, in my mind.
(2) Due to last-minute booking, I got to fly first class on the way to Denver!
(3) My first class status really came in handy as I got lost on the way to DFW at 6 am and needed to get through security to catch my flight (express line for first class - woohoo!).
(4) My first class experience made me feel out of place but I made sure to take advantage. ;)
(5) It was a long day...
(6) I have enjoyed every focus group viewing I have been able to go to because it's different every time. The moderator was very good and even had to control a group of unruly young men (they were giggling and carrying on like a bunch of jackasses).
(7) I am now a Hilton Honors Member and American Airlines Frequent Flyer Member.
(8) I just happened to be going to a far away destination where I knew someone. I think this is one of the cool things about having all of your friends scatter to the wind. I was so excited to get to catch up with her!
(9) I am not a morning person but if I have to be up early, I might as well see a beautiful sunrise, clear Colorado skies, and mountains!
(10) Work was still waiting for me with full force after my flight this morning. ;)

All in all it went very well and I had a great first experience with business trips.

Now I have a few small fires at work to put out but we'll see how my project management went as these events happen over the next few days.

I LOVE my horoscope today...

Some of the best things in life actually do come easily. Don't question something that seems too good to be true. It actually isn't this time.

*I've been feeling so lucky lately! ;)

Important People

So I have been very busy the last couple of days coordinating a few student visits (ahh, to be on the other side this time) and some new business research...I've just been on the phone and sending e-mails a lot.

In the midst of these different distractions, I get a phone call the purpose of which is not divulged right off the bat. As I try to figure out who I am talking to and to what it relates, I get distracted by the big title of the guy I was speaking with - a head honcho for new business in the NY office. What is he doing calling little ol' me?

So as I try to get my bearings, he relates the story of two people taking separate paths but unknowingly destined to end up in the same confusing forest. We had both, a junior and a VP, been researching the same thing and he wanted to get an idea of what I had been working on! I was simply trying to dig up the costs of adding another research tool for our office, but he was trying to get that research tool for all of our offices.

So he jokes with me, "Do you just want to head up securing that [the tool] for all of our offices in the U.S.?" Haha, very funny, I nervously joke back. Fortunately, he was only joking but said that he would follow up and get back to me with what we would do as a network.

Crazy! I continue to be amazed by my job. I never feel like a "lowly junior" and I'm always amazed by who I may encounter next.

So brush up on those communication skills...you want to impress the VP, don't you?

Having Good Friends...

...rocks my face off!! :D

Too Smart for Their Own Good

Have you met the socially-awkward genius?

I have, on several occasions, met someone so brilliant that they didn't know what to do with themselves...in social situations. It amazes me the difference between book smarts and social smarts and how more and more we're seeing the polar movement on this continuum.

I am completely unimpressed with someone who is smart, knows it, but can't carry on a conversation without being condescending or saying something so off that it turns off the other person. A person can wow you with their intelligence and then totally erase the effects of that impression by saying something inappropriate or acting in a way that doesn't make sense due to their high IQ.

I guess I'm just concerned with this idea because I need to stay connected always, as a planner, to the consumer. Sure I can do a ton of research on them but if I can't carry on a conversation with them, how am I supposed to translate an idea that will resonate with them to anybody, much less them?

I dunno...maybe this is my way of trying to stay grounded and put things in perspective. But I would much rather have a person make me laugh my ass off than to have to pretend to listen to a person that is telling an inflated story of their self worth.

Too Many Hats

Ugh, I've hit a bump in the road. I was trying so hard to keep everything going that it was bound to fall apart a bit.

Here is the list: turn sleep schedule around, exercise, cook frequently, clean up apartment, do clothes shopping over time to add essential work clothes to wardrobe, etc., etc., the list goes on and on.

My problem was that I was trying to do all of these things at once because I want them all to get done - now. I wanted to feel accomplished in all of these areas, but I really just ended sucking at all of them. I wanted to think that I could be completely settled in my new life just 2 months after getting here! So now the bump in the road was needed so I could have a more realistic view of the way the world works: fast and simple is not always on the menu.

To get over this little hump, I am going to try to focus on the most important things first and work my way through the rest. Sleep is my number one priority right now and it will effect my energy to get everything else done. I must do better at this to be more energized at work, stay up in the evenings to get things done, and get to bed at a reasonable time every night (or at least most nights). Gotta be smarter about this!

So with that, I am off to bed and trying to have more realistic views of what I can accomplish in one day. Don't worry, I'll still be reaching for all of my goals but this new pace should actually make them more attainable.

Zzzzzzz...

Yay Me!

Yay me for two reasons: (1) Terri will be happy because I am updating my blog (she is a blog master so I must mind her) and (2) I successfully followed directions to a far away destination and got there and back in one piece. :)

So I don't know the Dallas area very well yet and I was driving to Brownwood, TX, that I don't know at all, this weekend for my friend Misty's wedding. When I printed off the directions, I noticed quite a few exits and turns and not so many long stretches of driving. I was a little nervous about it but it all turned out quite well. I was able to navigate there and back, and returned in one piece. My car returned in one piece too and I'm thinking that these days that is a very good thing.

My car isn't doing so hot. I've been driving to and from Austin quite a bit and my car has definitely shown its age because of it. On my way to Austin about a month ago, my speedometer started going all crazy. When it dropped to 0, and I was obviously not going 0 mph, you could say that I was a little concerned. Turns out it was some electronic sensor business that I had to replace, thus carving out a good chunk of my time in Austin...and my bank account.

So I took my car to Firestone on Friday to make sure I got my oil changed (it was due) for the trip this weekend. They did a courtesy check on the rest of the car and found another (expensive) problem with the tires and alignment. So this week I have to go in early one morning to drop off the car for a maintenance olympics on it - I know that the car is having some other problems which I'll have them check out, and you know what? I bet you they find those problems and it will mean more money and more time in the shop. But really it's a good car and my dad believes that putting money into it for maintenance is the best thing to do right now. I agree, and I really love my car, but I would really appreciate if after this there would not be any more problems for a while.

I don't really like the idea of driving long distances and thinking I could get stranded along the way so this is definitely a good move. Especially since next weekend I will be traveling to Austin for another wedding - Terri and Joe's!! I'm really excited and also kind of glad that I "have" to go to Austin for it 'cause I was feeling a little homesick last week.

You know, I don't really want to drive a whole lot more since I've been doing it so much, but I would like to hang out with my friends and family. If I could just be in Austin and with my friends and family without all the driving, that would be great! Actually, it's not Austin so much...it's really just the people that I miss. Ah well, 'tis the way with moving to a new city...