speed networking

The view from my pedestal

You know you've turned a corner in your life when all of a sudden you are the one that is handing out your business card, not in search of a job, but as the one who may be able to help others with their quest for employment. Now let's be clear, I do not have any power at all to hire others. I am still the lowest on the totem pole in my office, even after 2+ years at my desk. I barely get to tell interns what to do. But every so often I'm called upon by various affinity groups to serve as an "expert" or "mentor." It sometimes feels odd, to be that almighty advice giver, but I always enjoy the experience. I definitely learned a lot from others in my own job search as I went from one psuedo-paid volunteer experience to another, so giving as good as I got is only fair.

Tonight, at one of these events, I was humbled by the many, many post-graduate school, internationally experienced, multi-lingual idealists who were looking for any clue as to how to land a job, any job, in this shining white marble city. I wish I had better news, that it was a just a matter of knowing the right person and being in the right place at the right time, but even that fail safe route to your dream job seems way too optimistic. Times are tough and way too many overeducated, hard working young people are slinging lattes or whiskey shots, just waiting for their shot to become an under appreciated Federal bureaucrat. Usually I come out of these events bolstered by the energy of those still looking for their dream job, but today I feel hopeless. The stock market didn't help this dark mood, confirming that there was really no point of putting on a happy face and telling others, most of them my age, that there they had a chance. That instead of mustering up some creative job searching ideas I should have told them to go back to whatever country they just finished up Peace Corps service in and take up a life as an expat, because this country is clearly telling all of us that hope is in short supply, and finding a job...well, forget about it.

Being an adult

In about two months I will be 30 - a big step towards feeling like an actual adult. That's right, a step towards. I feel like I've come a long way since the rickety house that me and my closest Norwegian loving friends first moved into nine years ago (wow - typing that made me feel old) and I'm actually totally fine with turning 30. My 20s are and continue to be absolutely fabulous, and fully expect my 30s to be even better.  However, I got a lot of help along the road to adulthood, and when I came across this list on Apartment Therapy (a highly addictive design, decorating, random stuff blog), I just had to share:

30 things to know about adulthood: 

1. Read the instructions.
2. Youtube has videos for things you need to know.
3. Make sure everything has its place.
4. Keep your car clean.
5. Keep the instructions.

6. Keep good records and a filing system.
7. Clean your house before you go on vacation.
8. If you live alone your trash will smell. Use smaller cans/bags.
9. Deep clean your refrigerator at least every 3 months.
10. Look at your house as if you were a visitor.

11. Use company as motivation to clean.
12. You don't need that many kitchen gadgets.
13. The less you have the less you have to put away.
14. Don't spend more than you make.
15. Learn to repair things yourself.

16. Don't be afraid to call a professional.
17. Your credit is forever. Don't screw it up.
18. Stick to basic cleaning supplies.
19. Document any serial number on items you'd want back if stolen.
20. Take care of your stuff and it will last.

21. Save money every month, even if it's just $5.
22. Don't start activity B until you've cleaned up after A.
23. Entertain often and find great friends.
24. Nothing improves in storage.
25. True friends don't care if your house is messy. Invite them anyway.

26. Invest in a decent shredder.
27. Keep stuff off the floor.
28. Once in a lifetime deals usually aren't.
29. Keep track of your immunization records.
30. Stuff will always work out. Don't stress.

I definitely have to agree with numbers 2, 7, 23, and 30. For example, from youtube I learned how to polish the antique brass mortar and pistal that came over from India. And having traveled my fair share these past years, I can attest to returning to a clean apartment (the suitcase full of dirty laundry is usually enough). As for entertaining, I really can't imagine what I would do without my close friends, who are always willing to try some new recipe that I've been wanting to try.  And finally, the last one is often repeated to me (and by me to myself). Things will absolutely work out, even if I don't know what that will look like in the end. 

http://servicecentered.blogspot.com/

International public service?

It's not that I don't enjoy my current city and job (it case you couldn't tell, I really do), but I'm always thinking about my next steps in work and life - I just can't help but be excited for that next turn of the road. And while I certainly enjoy, and have made a habit of, serving the U.S. government in one way or another, one thing that pops into my head occasionally as a potential dream career stop is the United Nations. The UN is a massive, sprawling, unwieldy organization and I've interacted with it's various branches enough to know there would be ups and downs as a UN employee. But none of that stops me from imagining what it feel like to work for an organization that is beyond the whims of any one government. But is the UN a form of public service?

I have to believe yes. What got me into this whole public service kick was a desire to have a career that created something that was not centered on making a profit or seeking fame. In economic terms, we call these intangibles public goods. Clean air, open spaces, safe drinking water, and humanitarian assistance when a hurricane strikes. These things are not meant to be profitable and should never be. And I am so very very fortunate to have found a career path that on a good day fulfills this desire. But what about those public goods that stretch beyond borders? When I was working at State Department, I got to do a lot of work on the treaty that addressed the hole in the ozone layer, the Montreal Protocol. This treaty performed a function that was beyond any one country, and now all the citizens of the world benefit from it. The UN Environment Program provided the venue and the support for establishing the treaty and for making sure that countries continue to keep it relevant, even as the treaty now turns towards taking on climate change. Being a part of that as a career could be very interesting.

The view of U.N. meeting from the "U" section

I don't think I will actively pursue being an international Diplomat quite yet, we'll see how the whole foreign service thing goes first, but it's always fun imagining what might happen down the road.

http://servicecentered.blogspot.com/

On the Hill

There are three branches of government - the executive, the judicial, and the legislative. This is something that you already knew unless you managed to sleep through all of elementary school civics. You have probably also heard that two out of three of these branches do not always get along (if this sentence were published on twitter, this is where I would insert the hashtag #understatement).  However, the living, breathing fact of these three bodies meant almost zero to me until I came to D.C. and now plays a major role in how I go about my work (and play).

As a dutiful civil servant of the executive branch, it is my job to show up, write documents, work with other agencies, and try to move ideas and policies forward that serve the mission of my department and the administration. Politics come into play, but no matter what party is residing in that fancy house over on Pennsylvania or has the most seats up on Capitol Hill, I get to do pretty much the same work.  Being able to do this is, of course, contingent on being paid, and this is where the legislative branch comes into play. I'm not going to get into the deal that was just reached on debt ceiling, mostly because my expertise is not in complex fiscal policy and I feel like all news establishments have those events fully covered. But, I will say that it has been harder than usual to focus on actual work here in the Capitol. Occasionally though, some other business continues to take place.

Last week I attended a Senate Commerce sub-committee meeting that had nothing to do with the debt, but instead focused on economic development in the Arctic. I suspect the hearing was nothing more than an interesting distraction for all three Senators in attendance, but it's always nice to see some government in action. While the outcomes of committee hearings are usually predetermined, I recommend visitors look up the schedule of hearings when coming to D.C., since these sessions offer a form of political theatre that is free and accessible to the public, complete with celebrity witnesses and questions from elected officials that range from ridiculously uniformed partisan grandstanding to surprisingly insightful demonstration of knowledge of an issue. Nothing is likely to come out of the hearing, but at least I know that sometimes representatives from both sides of aisle can sit at the same table and listen to experts from the executive branch, industry, and non-profit organizations in a polite and dignified manner. As we've seen, politics between the branches can be messy, but I just wanted to share that sometimes they also have manners.

http://servicecentered.blogspot.com/