I’ve recently had some conversations with friends who are considering making career jumps. Some to a new industry, some to a new company, and some into their own ventures. A few are actively out there looking and some are wondering if they should hang around where they are until they see some more improvement in the economy.
One of my friends has taken a new position within her company that is going to help her transition out to another company when the time is right. She’s interested in tech venture capital. Her former role was tech heavy, and her new role is in business development. While getting this second piece of the puzzle in place, she’s also started a tech venture capital club as part of her business school’s alumni network. She’s biding her time while gaining incredibly valuable experience in segments and making contacts that will serve her well in her career.
This is what it’s all about – gathering the bits and pieces we can find to help us build a brighter future. Even if we’re in jobs that aren’t perfect, there are activities, role, and projects we can take on inside and outside of the office that will keep us moving forward, even while we look before we leap. I’m all for taking the plunge, but while I’m up here on the cliff, I’m also a fan of making sure I’ve squeezed every last drop of value from my current view.
I’d love to hear about how you’re biding your time in support of your long-term goals!
The image above is not my own. It can be found here.
Published by Christa Avampato
The short of it:
Writer. Health, education, and art advocate. Theater and film producer. Visual artist. Product geek. Proud alumnae of the University of Pennsylvania (BA) and the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA). Inspired by ancient wisdom & modern tech. Proliferator of goodness. Opener of doors. Friend to animals. Fan of creative work in all its wondrous forms. I use my business skills to create passion projects that build a better world. I’ve been called the happiest New Yorker, and I try hard to live up to that title every day.
The long of it:
My career has stretched across Capitol Hill, Broadway theatre, education, nonprofit fundraising, health and wellness, and Fortune 500 companies in retail, media, entertainment, technology, and financial services. I’ve been a product developer and product manager, theater manager, strategic consultant, marketer, voice over artist, , teacher, and fundraiser. I use my business and storytelling to support and sustain passion projects that build a better world. In every experience, I’ve used my sense of and respect for elegant design to develop meaningful products, services, programs, and events.
While building a business career, I also built a strong portfolio as a journalist, novelist, freelance writer, interviewer, presenter, and public speaker. My writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, PBS.org, Boston.com, Royal Media Partners publications, and The Motley Fool on a wide range of topics including business, technology, science, health, education, culture, and lifestyle. I have also been an invited speaker at SXSW, Teach for America, Avon headquarters, Games for Change, NYU, Columbia University, Hunter College, and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. The first book in my young adult book series, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, was acquired by a publisher and launched in November 2017. I’m currently working on the second book in the series.
A recovering multi-tasker, I’m equally at home in front of my Mac, on my yoga mat, walking my rescue dog, Phineas, traveling with a purpose, or practicing the high-art of people watching. I also cut up small bits of paper and put them back together as a collage artist.
My company:
I’m bringing together all of my business and creative career paths as the Founder of Double or Nothing Media:
• I craft products, programs, and projects that make a difference;
• I build the business plans that make what I craft financially sustainable;
• I tell the stories that matter about the people, places, and products that inspire me.
Follow my adventures on Twitter at https://twitter.com/christanyc and Instagram at https://instagram.com/christarosenyc.
View all posts by Christa Avampato
I’ve recently had some conversations with friends who are considering making career jumps. Some to a new industry, some to a new company, and some into their own ventures. A few are actively out there looking and some are wondering if they should hang around where they are until they see some more improvement in the economy. 
Christa Avampato 
Hi Christa, I was pondering this very topic during my 10 minute, winding two-lane commute this morning. Although I enjoy owning a business with two friends and like the challenge of communications technology, I’ve been wondering what I could do that would be more earth-friendly. So far I’m just musing and enjoying the roadside forest’s transition from the scattered brilliance of flowering dogwoods and redbuds to the lush enveloping greens of late spring All changes start with ideals, visions, and dreams; I guess that’s where I’m at. -Jan
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Hi Jan,
I think that’s a wonderful place to be! I used to work for an environmental nonprofit. Maybe I could help you think of ways to be in a more earth-friendly line of work. Let me know what interests you and I’ll see what I can find.
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What can I say, Christa, that you already don’t know?
You are wise beyond your years, that’s for sure. Smart.
This post is right on the mark, as usual. In this tight job market, it can help to look at the “big picture.”
You are right: show initiative, make contacts, network.
Your local Chamber of Commerce is a good place to start. Volunteer for meetings, speeches and assignments/projects. Be curious about their activities.
You never know who you can meet out there. It is best to put your best foot forward.
And enhance your hobbies and interests too.
Taking yoga, for example, will not only keep you alert in these dark times, but you never know who shows up for your yoga meet.
It may well be a CEO–who wants to lose tension–and may offer you just the kind of work you are looking for.
You will be pleasantly surprised how many deals have been clinched at the gym, golf club and the sauna.
It’s all about personal relationships, so you have to keep your eyes and ears open. And a smile and a handshake go a long way. If you smile, the CEO will be smitten. Cheers!
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Hi Archan,
These are great ideas! I hadn’t thought of the Chamber of Commerce – what a wonderful place to see what may be available at a government and small business level. Thank you!!!
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great food for thought. sometimes you end up in places you don’t expect. i left journalism in 2005 to ‘take time off.’ only the industry crumbled as soon as i walked out the door. so i spent the years volunteering and traveling, and now i do yard work and write on my own. you can make all the plans for all the jumps you want, but life has a way of thwacking you on the head sometimes when you least expect it. ironically, i’m thankful for the thwack on the head and redirection of my life.
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Hi Ed,
Thanks so much for sharing your journey. Those thwacks on the head can be such valuable teachers. I know that some times I’m so hard-headed that I need them in order to send me in teh direction I need to go. I’m trying to get better at hearing them arrive and jumping sooner rather than waiting for the thwack to land on my noggin!
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I was fortunate to have a dad who tried many, many jobs when he came to the USA as an immigrant from Russia after the Revolution, so in a way, that gave me permission to do the same. I have discovered that making a living is not the same as enjoying what one does. The trick is to make a living from one’s passion. I’m an innkeeper. It pays the bills. But my passion is writing. As you point out, it is harder and harder to make a living from writing unfortunately. Sometimes losing one’s job gives the necessary push towards positive change. Also, I have found that volunteer work can lead to interesting job opportunities …
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Hi Alexandra,
What a fantastic example you have in your father. Seeing him strive no doubt made you able to take risks and believe in your own abilities. I’m going to take you example, and his, with me as I embark on this new journey with my yoga teaching. Thanks so much for being here.
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