The Graveyard Shift

Nearly two weeks to the day that I was laid off, I forwarded my resume to MA, an old high school friend who then forwarded it to a colleague of hers, who in turn forwarded it to his old strategic communications agency. As luck would have it, not one hour before receiving my resume, the CFO of said strategic communications agency was asked to find freelance workers for a major project. He immediately wanted to meet with me, and I could not be more ecstatic about a paying opportunity.

I met with the CFO and a few of the associates running the project. I then took a writing test and was offered a freelance position at $45/hour. I was asked to make a 6 week commitment with the understanding that I would be working the graveyard shift.

Lets evaluate what exactly is meant by the graveyard shift. The time now is 3:40 A.M. on Friday (or Saturday) depending on how you look at it. I am sitting in a large conference room in one of the most highly recognized financial firms in the world. For confidentiality purposes, I am not allowed to disclose who it is I am working for, but simply know that it certainly a financial institution you have heard of (without question).

My shift began at 11 p.m. and does not end until 7 a.m. on Saturday. It is an 8 hour shift tonight, a 9 hour shift tomorrow and another 9 hour shift Sunday that ends at 8 a.m. on Monday morning. I accepted the job knowing these stipulations becuase quite frankly my current economic and financial situation does not afford me the luxury of getting picky with what jobs I can and cannot do. To be frank, the money is not bad and besides the fact that my social life will suffer slightly for the next couple of weeks-- it is work and I cannot complain.

So what do I do for these graveyard shifts? Well, the financial institution has asked for 24/7 media monitoring of any and all mentions of the company. I spend my shifts pulling all references of the firm in major media outlets including television broadcasts. It is not a particularly grueling job, it requires me to remain on task as it is imperative that all news be sent in real time, so there is little room to slack off....which sort of makes time fly (sort of).

The good news is, I can afford my rent for another couple of months. I can afford to stay in NYC. I have ample during the week and the days to search for full time positions, and once again-- I am employeed in a time when unemployment rates in NYC are at an all time high of 10.5 percent (versus the U.S. at 7.5 percent). The situation (to say the least) is freightening. There remains an immense amount of uncertainty, but if I've learned anything it is to roll with the punches.

As much as we'd like to think we have some say in what direction we take-- we rarely do. Three weeks after getting laid off, I am remain surprised at how well I have managed to 'bounce back' from what I thought would certainly ruin me (or at the very least knock me down).

I've spent my days sending out the periodic resume to the monster postings, I continue to reach out to friends and explore new avenues (including possibly interning again) in order to steer my career down a more desired path. That said, and I am weary of saying too much, but I have secured an interview with a major PR firm this coming Monday and once again-- I am ecstatic at the possibilities that lie ahead.

Needless to say, for a young professional, I have managed to somehow take a series of unfortunate events and work them to my favor. I have firmly believed that the cards will fall as they are meant to and my experience as of late could not be a larger testament to that theory. I seldom believe in luck. It is all about timing because luck is simply when preparation meets opportunity.