Moving Up In The World

Well, gone are the days of endless wonder as to what I want to do with my life...for now. Today, I completed my first day at work on my real, grown-up job, and I loved it. There was so much to take in and lots to be done, but I really think this will turn out to be a great fit for me.

So what is it that I do, exactly? Great question. My title is Volunteer Coordinator, and my job description is essentially to be determined...intimidating, right? This is a brand new position, and all I (and my boss!) really know is that I need to find, recruit, and maintain volunteers for some awesome programs in four counties, and perhaps an additional three. I'll be talking, driving, calling, emailing, and organizing like mad. I'll be writing my own job description as I shape and mold the position into something vital to the organization. Breathe. I must remember to breathe.

At this point, easier said than done.

The good news is that I have volunteered since I can remember. I love it. Volunteering could be a career path for me if it weren't for the fact that I actually need to, you know, survive. I've been that volunteer wiping down nasty food-covered lunch tables and I've been the volunteer passing out prizes or meeting some awesome people. I've volunteered with kids, cancer patients, seniors, kids with disabilities, people with mental illnesses, and poverty-stricken people of all kinds of backgrounds. You name it, I've probably volunteered with it--or know someone who has. Here's to hoping all of that gives me some sort of special insight as to what makes volunteers tick, what tugs at their heartstrings, and what it is that they love.

Oh yeah, and maybe that psychology degree will come in handy. Let me take a  moment to point out how excited I am to actually be able to use my degrees to help people. It always makes me sad when people can't use the degrees they worked so hard and paid so much to get. Boo.

So fingers crossed that I can knock this job out of the park and learn a lot along the way...preferably not the hard way, but life is funny about that sometimes, huh?