This is the first in a
three-part series focusing on my camping retreat last weekend. Full of
campfires, organic farms and wild prairie land, it was a time of reflection,
growth and personal challenging. This first post will focus on the people I met
over the weekend and how they have inspired and affirmed my current career
decisions.
Liz, Program Director,
Angelic Organics Learning Center. Caledonia, IL.
Surrounded by a pen of
goats on her right and hens on her left, with boots sinking into the muddy farm
path, Liz declared that she quit her first office job out of college in under a
year. She couldn’t do the paper-pushing lifestyle, and needed more than just an
office window as her daily connection to the outdoor world. She took a job at a
farm in upstate New York, and knew this was where she needed to be.
Now, Liz serves at the
Angelic Organic Learning Center found at a farm about two hours outside of
Chicago. From their own herd of cows and flock of hens to their compost toilet
and massive greenhouse, this farm is branching its roots out in many
sustainable directions. But what struck me weren’t just the outstanding
grassroots efforts of the farm that piloted the first CSA in Chicago, it was
the energy I saw in Liz as she led our tour and engaged with us. It was clear
this was her passion-every last beet seedling and angry bull included. Her raw
energy for the outdoors, her attention to detail when describing the story of
every animal and every farm initiative, were invigorating. Liz has found what
most of us still yearn for-a job that truly fulfills her.
Now, I didn’t talk to
Liz in-depth about her career path, or inquire about her current state of
happiness in this position. But I could tell from her energy and her vivacity
that she embodied the notion of not settling until you find your unique niche
in the world.
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| Harvesting fresh organic asparagus for our dinner! |
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| Cooking our frittata with fresh veggies and eggs from the farm. |
Kim, Graduate Student,
Restored Prairie land. Northwestern Illinois.
Kim is passionate
about turtles. Not just any turtle-the Ornate Box Turtle that can be found in
its natural habitat in the prairie of Illinois. She has devoted her studies to
researching this population and its ability to survive in a haven of restored prairie land. Kim
loves these turtles-the way she crouched to record each one we found, talked to
it as if addressing a young toddler, and excitedly explained to us the science
behind her project and the goal of her degree-it was clear this was part of her
calling. I am not a science-person. At all. But after spending a morning
“turtle hunting” with Kim, I wish I was just so I could understand her project
and really comprehend the extent of her unique work. She is someone who would
have made me love science…if we’d met back in 4th grade. She was
never shy about her turtle fetish, or reluctant in explaining the nature of her
work. Every detail was presented with refreshing energy and vigor. She was in
her element. And I envy that in her.
These two women
exemplify that success and fulfillment don’t always fit societal norms or
people’s expectations. In a postgrad world focused on salary and corporate
ladder climbing and always making the “right step” these women proved that
sometimes you take a few steps in another direction before you find your
calling. In one of the latest chapters of Lean
In for Graduates Sandberg has a chapter titled “It’s a Jungle Gym not a
Ladder” focused on this very concept-our careers are hardly linear entities,
but rather a jungle gym of decisions and positions and aspirations. Why measure
your success in such a limited scope when there is an entire playground to
explore?
This quote form Joanna
Torres’ Everygirl profile sums it up perfectly:
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