LibraryTechtonics

First, let me address the “how’s the job hunt?” question: in short, it’s not.

Right now, I’m not actively spending my days pouring over job listings and sending out cover letters, and I won’t be anytime soon.  Instead, I’m spending way more of my time just talking to people, not in the “I want a job from you” kind of way, but in a “hey, we both do interesting things, and I have the time, so let’s chat” kind of way. If jobs come out of these relationships, then that’s super. If not, that’s totally fine, since the relationships are more important to me. If a job falls in my lap in the midst of everything I’m doing right now, and it’s the right job at the right place, I won’t say no. People I know are sending me links and leads to jobs, which is always helpful, as long as they fit what I’m looking for. But otherwise, I’ve eschewed the traditional job search for now.  More importantly, I’m resting, spending my time doing things I’ve needed and wanted to do, and just enjoying life.  I’ll let you know when things change in that respect.

So what am I looking for?

My time, Their time: First and foremost, regaining and maintaining a sense of work/life balance is of the highest priority.  When I was freelancing in technology many ages ago, I did a much better job managing my time and preventing work time scope creep, but it was still a bit crazy.  When I was working in librarianship, the freelance work seemed to never end, and between the crazy library hours schedule and side work, I was working all the time, and I could never do things at night (which I really like to do).

I want my life back.  Now.

So, while I know that people think this is impossible, I want 9-5 (I could do 10-6, or 8-4 or 5, as well) to be Their time, and everything around that to be My time.  Anyone who knows me realizes that I work at 200%, efficiency is essential, and I think excellently on the fly, which means I can pack a lot into a small bit of time, although I am one of those crazies who thinks the 7- or 8-hour work day should be sufficient in general.  I’m fine with the occasional late night, or big project weekend.  Flex time is also a plus, but all the work is still done at the office.  No laptop to work from home “as necessary,” don’t call me at home unless something’s on fire.

Not in a library:  I don’t want to work in a library or for a library vendor.  If you want clarification on this, you’re welcome to leave a comment.  (As a side note, at some point soon, I will be changing the name of the blog, so that it will no longer be a misnomer.)

Easy commute: This includes walking distance, T (Boston area public transit subway), bus, or any combination thereof, at less than 45 minutes one-way.  I’ve done the driving commmute in the Boston area, and it’s really just a stress generator for me.  I considered a job that was right in every other way, and it turns out that, with considerable thought, the commute was a deal-breaker for me.

Excellent organizational culture: I’m looking for a place with low internal politics, a good number of people who are smarter than me, and a collaborative nature.  I want to work with people who get technology, and I’d love to work with some geeks again.  I’m not looking for a work environment where everyone is friends, or, worse yet, family, but I do want a friendly environment.  As long as there’s a balance of time to work and time to hang, I’m cool.

My position? Well, that’s the interesting bit.  At this point, my firm belief is that I’ll know it when I see it, but I’m open to suggestion (but please spare me the “go back to being a librarian!” fun comments, I’ll probably just delete them).  I think that I’d do well in a consultant (internal or with a consulting company, not on my own) or client services position, but I’m not limiting my options to that. My nature is to be a problem solver.  I can plan, I get human behavior, I can Geek-English translate, I work well with others in a team or as an individual and/or leader, and l learn quickly.  I have hands-on tech skills, everything from configuring and tinkering with WordPress (although I will admit there are a few things I haven’t gotten around to fixing with my theme, too busy living ;D) to fixing computer problems, and I’m a natural tinkerer.  I’m never afraid to say “I don’t know.”  I’m really good at social networking.  You can get a full run-down on my experience and skills on my LinkedIn profile.

That’s where it’s at.

Tags: career, jobhunt, jobs, me