New Job, New Perspective

After a few weeks of down time, I went back out into the working world today. It felt great! I was so ready. It was nice to have some free time to be productive (wedding plans, immigration stuff, organizing my crap), get some rest, and be introspective. I definitely feel more grounded and confident, which took some time after the ridiculous and heinous drama in my last job (long story).

ANYWAYS so this new job will be a fun challenge as it is the first real clinical social work job I've had since college. I'm working as a social worker at a long-term care facility, primarily working with older adults. I've worked in medical and long-term care settings in the past but I had moved more to the policy/non-profit management side of things in grad school. It definitely feels like a good fit to go back to doing more direct contact with clients.

My social work "team" seems awesome so far, really cool people with friendly and warm personalities. I think we will work well together. I'm looking forward to learning more about their process and procedures, but today I jumped right in an did some assessments! I was a little rusty at first but my interview/assessment skills came back to me pretty quickly. Thanks, Juniata College social work department! :-D
I definitely enjoyed chatting with a few residents and getting to know their stories. It made me smile!

Seriously, compared to my last job, this is going to feel like a walk in the park. Here are some key differences that totally validated my choice to leave:

1) NORMAL WORKING HOURS. I work 8 hours (m-f), I go home and I have a life. Heck, tonight I went home, went to the gym, did chores, and even had a chance to talk to my family. Shocking, right?! And no work on the weekends....EVER! YIPPEEE

2) REASONABLE CASE LOAD. My last job involved casework, though not in a clinical sense. At that time, my case load was upwards of 100-150 cases at any given time. Now I have 30-40! Which explains why I will be able to leave the office by 5pm every day without nagging guilt :-)

3) MEANINGFUL WORK. This job is good for the soul! I will really feel like I am helping individuals and their families. Sure, as a social worker, I'm not always going to be the "good guy" so it's not going to be all roses and butterflies all the time, but at least I will receive support from my fellow social work team.

4) COMPETENT MANAGERS. In most organizations, the manager is the intermediary between the lower "front lines" staff and the powers that be at the top. A good supervisor/manager will find an appropriate balance between protecting the integrity of the organization, appeasing the big wigs at the top, and looking out for the well-being of the lower staffers. Priorities, roles, and goals are clearly defined and staff feel as though their supervisor is supportive when needed.

5) GOOD STAFF MORALE. It's been a while since I've heard staff laughing in an office. It's refreshing. People take a lunch break. People take a moment to talk about themselves, ask you about your interests, and share a smile. It makes a world of difference.

All-in-all, a very good start! I hope my first day was a good indication of a good professional experience to come!
Case in point--the first day of my former job started with major disorganization, lack of warm welcomes, and a co-worker making me cry. Needless to say, it continued that way for a year. Why didn't I quit that day? I felt frozen, trapped. I still don't have a good explanation for why I endured it for so long before taking action. But I'm glad I finally did.

Regardless of your field, everyone deserves to have the 5 aforementioned qualities in your job (and more, if you're lucky!!). Most studies indicate that people, on average, spend 20-30% of their lives at work (maybe more if you're a work-a-holic like me). That's a lot!! Make it count, people. Find a reason to smile. Find meaning in your work. If it's not a good fit, find a better one. When you're old and gray, do you want to look back and say you were miserable for 30% of your life? Of course not. It's not worth it. Think about it.

Okay enough of my idealistic preaching for tonight, dudes. Thanks to friends and fellow bloggers who wished me luck today and/or sent their positive vibes my way. It seems to have worked!

Have a happy Tuesday, y'all!

Love,
Amanda