inCOnSistEncY

Hey blogosphere,

So, I haven’t written in a really long time. Yeah, [insert awkwardness here]. Anyways, I have been working on some blog posts– including one on my first impressions of Canada which could take a while before it is posted. However, in the meanwhile, I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer and I, instead, wanted to talk about communicating what you are looking for.

Recently, I completed a three month research contract for Company A which left me, as we say in French, déboussolée.  I guess the term would roughly translate to desoriented but the difference is that déboussolé etymologically has the root word boussole, which means compass. Therefore, for me, it conveys losing the path that was set by the compass.

Anyways, prior to the position at Company A, I had completed all the exercises in What Colour is Your Parachute? by Richard Bolles and I felt that I knew what types of jobs I wanted. Nonetheless I feel that I have changed ever since taking this position and that most of my self-reflection may no longer be accurate– leading to a problem of people perceiving me as inconsistent.

How is it that one minute, I state that I want “business development, marketing or market research positions” and the next I apply for a job in a seemingly random industry– agriculture? Okay, I didn’t apply for an agriculture position, but, you need to understand that I have to keep this blog as anonymous as possible; hence, I will not mention the actual industry where I sent in an application.

How is it that I am considering doing a Masters in Management but that I am working all over the place? Where is the consistent narrative in my past work experience? Why the lack of directions? If I really want to be a management consultant, why don’t I just apply for that?

I find this perceived bias incredibly frustrating– even more so than the stupid questions, students ask recent graduates. There are two ways, I could explain this : first, I could backtrack and explain my randomness or I could explain why the idea of inconsistency is frustrating.

Stick with me here and I will explain both.

My dream job is as a management consultant for Firm X. However, finding an entry level position in consulting is incredibly difficult, not only, because they want you to have experience from renown companies, but also because if you do get extended an offer, your application will not be evaluated for two years. That’s right! You are basically black-listed for TWO years. Let’s be honest. It freaks me out that I could accidentally lock myself out from my dream job for the next two years. Therefore, I never applied.

Moving onto the Masters thing. A Masters in Management is not equivalent to a Masters in Business Administration (MBA); the former is a one year program that students from non-business backgrounds can use to strengthen their business acumen and add prestige to their resume. Considering that such a program offers both practical, hands on business knowledge and networking opportunities, I think that it is an attractive option if I want to go into my dream job.

Then where did the biz dev, marketing and research come from? Until I get myself together to apply for either the Masters program or the consulting positions, each of these options present an alternative, and, dare I say, more accessible entry level career. As a Political Science graduate, I have been trained to be an analytical, problem-solving, kick ass communicator. Marketing is about connecting brands with consumers and biz dev is connecting firms with future markets (ie for consumers).  During my  undergrad, I conducted original research and sat through a boring seminar about methodology. I actually want to learn stats and I have an interest in it.

Meanwhile, the agriculture position all started because I feel in love with a firm that offered a Recent Graduate Rotation program wherein, the graduate would work in a variety of arenas while being prepared for a position that is analytical by nature.

To summarize, I am a people-oriented communicator who enjoys work that is analytical (includes problem-solving) and non-repetitive.

Most of all, this consistency issue annoys me because it essentializes humans. As an avid reader and a social sciences student, I know that humans are complex and that their behaviours do not always fall within the good/bad dichotomy. We all wish we were “good;” however, we know that facing situations of great adversity we may do shitty things. I find that economy as a discipline, often reduces humans to a set of simple maxims. It is perfectly normal that, as complex creatures, we have diverse interests and that we do not necessarily breathe solely for one type of industry. So yep, I may seem inconsistent but from where I am standing, I am damn proud of my complexity.

xox, S.