A Risky Past
1999…
I had moved back to the Bay Area a few months earlier. I had graduated college, worked for a couple years, and wanted to be back up in Northern California. I had 800 dollars to my name, a friend who needed a roommate, and the name of one temp. agency. Seemed like a good plan to me.
It was a good plan, and because I took the risk… I ended up in a job I loved. I ended up becoming a product manager for software tools used in Interactive Television. I was in my early/mid 20’s and was interested in learning, doing and getting my hands on anything that would challenge me and get me excited to go to work in the morning. I seriously loved my job. I got to travel, internationally, I got to work with interesting clients, and work with a lot of smart people from engineering to finance.
It was a dream, to me. I had an amazing boss, who is still a mentor of mine, and great colleagues. By far, one of the best teams I’ve worked on.
Late 2000…
It had been almost two years, things changed, and I decided to quit my job. I paid all of my bills two months out, finished up at my job and bought a round trip plane ticket to London with absolutely no plan. I knew some people all over Europe from my business trips, that was all. No international cell phone (I had a plastic phone card that I could use anywhere in the UK and Europe), a Yahoo! mail account, and a backpack with a camera, film (yeah, not digital!) clothes, books and writing materials. I was 26, single, with no plan for when I returned home. It was an amazing time.
Yep… I did that…
Yes, I moved to San Francisco with $800 (that barely covered rent with a roommate!) and left a job to travel solo for a couple months, with no real plan for when I returned. On each occasion I had supporters and questioners. Thankfully I did what I wanted to and now have these experiences to lean on, because they definitely prepared me for the feeling I have right now. That feeling that is a mix of, “Anything is possible” with a bit of, “What the $%^& have I done!?” Depending on the day, the mix is more of one than the other.
But, no matter what…
Based on my various experiences, I will never look back and regret that I did this, took a chance, tried something new. Because if there is one thing I know, it’s that when I take a risk, it puts me on a new path. It opens my eyes to something new and challenges me in ways I never imagined.
Every time I wonder if I can do this, I look back at my 20 something self, with $800 and no real plan and think, she made it work… and so can I!
