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Resurrect your Career

It feels so good to be back at work. I have to be very careful around attaching self-esteem to working for a company. It's very important for me to continue to stay connected to the supporters in my life I discovered in the worklessness.

1. My self-esteem comes from something bigger than myself.  Work is just an agent of that.

2. I am underearning. I'm still taking $1,700 from my reserve (taken from my retirement money) per month to fund myself. That said, I can do that for a year, however, it behooves me to continue doing other side gigs, AND to continue looking for more remunerative B work. I'm lucky to have the reserve; it deserves to be rebuilt for the next 'emergency.'

3. I still need to look closely at my expenses with trusted advisors and see where I can trim. Must do this month.

4. I still need to prove myself at the gig to aim for a permanent position and I'll need the support of friends to negotiate a right-sized salary given my experience and contributions (and potential contributions to the organization at a right-level).
5. I need the support of friends to take care of myself: I tend to over-give especially time, let my personal well run dry (connection to family and friends, rest, time for me etc) and then get resentful and completely sabotage my career. Work smart (instead of hard.)

So, I'm grateful for the 5 months away from corporate. I realize I love being in corporations. The rest period worked and I'm excited once again to go in the office. Now I want to get the support of my tribe to help me escape the traps that torched me last time.

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