Two years ago, I attended a three day seminar at Columbia Business School which focused on the idea of returning to work after taking time off. One of the “morsels” I took away from it was to “work my connections”. The executives (all women) participating in the course seemed unanimous that the best jobs for ANYONE, but particularly for those returning after a hiatus, were those that would never make it to Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, or any recruiter’s desk. The jobs they were talking about would be found through networking. Fortunately, I must have had some inkling about that, as I have tried my darnedest to keep in touch with some of the folks I interacted with most in my professional days. From time to time, we get together, or catch up over lunch, drinks, or a phone call, just to keep in touch. Besides my professional interest, these are all people I would want to keep up with anyway. So I guess it makes sense to surround oneself with people you like!
Out of the blue, one of these contacts, who is also a close friend, called me to tell me about an opening at her firm, which is one of my former employers. It happens to be one of the largest and most revered real estate companies in the world (yipes!). We used to work together, and I was her boss. With this new position, she would be MY boss. I went to the office last week to meet with her. The position is not a “dream” job for me; it is very management – focused, with no revenue responsibility and no upside potential. However, the team of people working on this particular assignment is outstanding – a very fun, interesting group with whom I could get along quite easily. It is also not a high profile job, which might be a good fit for someone like me who is looking to get her feet wet again. After the meeting, I emailed and thanked my interviewers and told them of my interest. I also emailed two other friends (both Senior VP’s) and told them of my enthusiasm for the position and the firm. They were enthusiastic and offered to put in a good word for me. Just working the network, after all!
Next, I emailed another former colleague who focuses on Corporate Real Estate at a smaller firm. I told him of my situation, and the potential job at a rival company. He immediately set up a meeting with his partner and me, and a lunch at Del Frisco’s (fancy midtown steakhouse) next week. This would be a very different position from the other one: Total revenue responsibility, endless upside potential, but a smaller, less well-known firm. More risk could translate into more reward. Both options are great, and as someone who has an eight year hole in her resume, I feel incredibly lucky that they are willing to talk to me at all! If I am lucky enough to snag offers from both of these companies, it will be a tough decision. However, with my six-year-old going to her first orthodontist appointment at the end of the month, the timing may be perfect on achieving an additional family income stream!
