... so there! and please don't be a
dream zapper (defined
over here).
my
wishy-washy-when|how-should-i-leave-cubeopolis-and-why-am-i-here annoying blah-blah (a self-imposed energy/psychic vampire speak) has been tempered. last week i
expressed my interest in a position elsewhere in cubeopolis. and by
expressed - i mean that i submitted cover memo, a 1-page career history, and my mission|vision|values statements to another part of cubeopolis.
this is a major milestone ... not because it may look like i want to leave my current position and not because it may look like i want to go to another floor in the building. it is a major milestone because my stream-of-consciousness writing of my cover memo resulted in my writing why i felt a could bring a unique perspective to the position ... and i was reminded about the primary reason why i (re)joined cubeopolis after nearly 13 years of business ownership (which, for the record, is on-hold). there are many other reasons - however, i realize those are secondary.
a little background ... i have been at cubeopolis for a tad bit more than 3 years since starting back in late 2007. i often would answer questions about how long i have been at cubeopolis by noting the number of years, weeks, and days. (my
2-weeks-after-i-started thoughts
over here) i have found myself
occasionally frequently questioning not only my re-entering the traditional workforce after almost 13 years of being self-employed but also questioning why i should stay in the position i'm at and stay in a cubeopolis life-style.
stream-of-consciousness writing ... my transmittal cover memo was a product of stream-of-conscious writing. however, that product came out only after about a 2-hour period of on/off attempts at writing a transmittal memo that spoke to the job description elements. i realized as the submittal deadline approached, my writer's block would do me no good, and i resorted to the obvious - type what's in my heart and make my head write it relatively clearly and concisely (enough clearly and enough concisely).
the result? ... below is the content (for the most part) of the transmittal cover memo with a few redacted-ish/edited parts
(in italics) for a more blog-friendly post.
Thank you for this opportunity to submit my resume. I am interested in being considered for the cubeopolis position announced. I am currently with another part of cubeopolis downstairs from you all. Although I have only been with cubeopolis since September 2007 and have not had frequent interactions with your cubeopolis or other grand poobahs, I believe that in addition to my knowledge of the shit i know REALLY well – a discipline area where this regional organization and the organization's mothership are faced with several complex and high profile issues – there are at least two reasons for which I can bring a unique perspective to your cubeopolis: - I have had experience as a business owner.
- My personal mission, vision, and values are well-suited for your cubeopolis.
For these two reasons, I explain each in more detail below. I also have attached* the following: - a one-page career history, and
- two pages presenting my mission, vision, and value statements.
Business owner experience
My experience as a business owner demonstrates several qualitative, quantitative, and human resource skills advantageous for the cubeopolis position announced. In short, through my business experience, I have demonstrated my abilities for working with a variety of people, along with the proverbial wearing many hats, juggling several balls, fighting multiple fires, and herding cats (and wet cats, nonetheless). I understand the necessity of being focused on goals and objectives, adhering to commitments, and managing expectations, while assuring contingencies for potential worst-case scenarios. References from former clients, subcontractors, prime contractors, agency staff/management with whom I interacted, and interns can be provided upon request.
As background, prior to joining cubeopolis, for 13 years I actively ran my own consulting practice, kick-ass-shiznit, that provided air quality services with particular emphasis in the energy industry, especially as the industry continued to evolve through electric utility restructuring. When I started as a solo-practitioner in 1994, I primarily served as a one-on-one consultant to small businesses, other consultants, and environmental professionals faced with air permitting and compliance issues. Eventually, within 4 years, I evolved my practice into regularly teaming with other colleagues who specialized in environmental services, risk management, and health and safety. By 2007, kick-ass-shiznit teams were known for our ability to work collaboratively across disciplines – building lasting, productive working relationships among our clients, customers, and agency staff/management.
With respect to my role as an environmental professional and business owner, I served as project or task manager, as well as a team member on many environmental-related projects – often being directly involved in day-to-day decision-making and hands-on activities, entrusted by my clients. Beyond air quality issues, I worked directly or indirectly with other environmental discipline issues, e.g., hazardous materials, storm water, hazardous waste, emergency response, health and safety. I also worked among construction management, project financing, and project commissioning teams.
As a business owner, my success at executing tasks was coupled with my ability to run a successful business – marketing, business development, scheduling, strategic planning, and coaching and mentoring. A unique aspect of my consulting practice was an internship program that I designed where volunteer interns received direct, applicable, and challenging experience that has positioned them well for subsequent job opportunities. And finally, as part of my involvement in the energy sector, I was an active, volunteer participant involved with conference program development and co-conference chairing of several earlier conferences of the former california organization addressing distributed energy, which has been transformed to a new named-organization still addressing distributed energy.
My personal Mission, Vision, and Values Statements
Regardless of my professional affiliations, involvement with volunteer organizations, and internal or external customers for which I have served at any given time, since 1994, I became keenly aware of my commitment to the environment and the need for productive and open communications. To reinforce my commitment, I have held to a set of mission, vision, and values statements.
In 2007, I made a purposeful decision to join cubeopolis. Applying for the position was not a decision I took lightly; accepting the position also was not a decision I took lightly. However, because I believed that cubeopolis would be a place where I could continue to exercise and grow my mission, vision and values, while also learn from many others who are equally passionate about the environment and have chosen the role of a civil servant, I share these statements as the second reason for which I believe I can bring a unique energy and a type of creativity to the cubeopolis position announced at your cubeopolis.
the milestone, you ask? ... no more energy/psychic vampire-ing. this gave me the opportunity to express in writing a part of who i believe i am (my little narcissistic moment) being invited to interview would be icing on the cake.
see ya energy/psychic vampire!
(now i gotta learn now to manage dream zappers)
*i'll later post
my mission - vision - values statements
in a blog post ... gotta get my commute to cubeopolis on!
tyler's AR article yesterday ... the simplest commitment in the world (click article title to read on tyler's site) was my go-to blogket yesterday morning. the second paragraph piqued my interest even more than the first. tyler's second paragraph goes like this -
vicarious living at its finest! ... i left a comment (of course!). (click image to the right. to see the "set of values" reference in my comment - over here) HOWEVER, what i have LOVED most about this are the comments. by choosing the option to have an email forwarded to me when someone replies, it is like little "pick-me-up" statements from people sharing a part of themselves - the part about what really matters to them in their lives. it's wonderful, inspiring, and motivating!
... for Missy!!! if you have not come across Missing Missy ... go. GO NOW. GO. NOW! (click the image to the right) at least for me (and four other cubesters), it is a total pee-in-my-pants and tears-streaming-down-my-cheeks moment - even the third time around!
just a l'il fyi from penn's authentic happiness website about Dr. Martin Seligman ... "Positive Psychology, a new branch of psychology which focuses on the empirical study of such things as positive emotions, strengths-based character, and healthy institutions. His research has demonstrated that it is possible to be happier — to feel more satisfied, to be more engaged with life, find more meaning, have higher hopes, and probably even laugh and smile more, regardless of one’s circumstances. Positive psychology interventions can also lastingly decrease depression symptoms. The research underlying these rigorously tested interventions is presented in the July/August edition of the American Psychologist, the journal of the American Psychology Association." and when i took the authentic happiness questionnaire this morning, compared to others (e.g., age, gender, etc.) who have taken the web-based test, my score was in top 10 percentile of the answers.
... so there! and please don't be a dream zapper (defined over here).
ristorante il porcino ... yes, there is tasty italian food in the east (southeast?) bay area. il porcino is sandwiched in a strip mall area, surrounded by other restaurants - japanese, indian, etc. (quite the standard variety a la strip malls often found in the tri-city area).
1st monthly recap ... this month i decided to be more diligent about posting and (re)posting from past blogs' entries. because of the random order of topics (well ... maybe except for weekend fiber breaks and bonus fiber breaks), for my own reminiscing-ish, nutshell will be recaps at the end of each month.
