Quote From: mooimooiI'm an almost 38 year old Dutch girl living in Florida. 7 years ago I moved from The Netherlands to the US. I used to be a Druggist/Pharmacist for over 9 years and loved it. Unfortunately my certificate doesn't mean a thing in the US.
So when I was offered a job as a member service representative at a credit union, I took it. It seemed an interesting career: the American lending and banking world. And it was. I had an awesome time for 4 years and made several promotions. My title when I left was senior loan officer. I have to tell you a little bit about my life so you can understand why I left that job. I was in an interracial relationship for 11 years at that time, and when I was promoted to sr. loan officer I was also transferred to a new branch to help get it off the ground. The community this branch was located in, was very "southern" if you know what I mean. So was the branch-manager. I won't go into details, but there were some very derogatory remarks made towards me about being in an interracial relationship. At first I tried to brush it off as ignorance, but me being from a very tolerant country, especially compared to the South of the US, I decided I wasn't going to deal with this, I reported it, made sure I was heard, and started looking for a new career.
I decided I was going to get in the insurance business. I got my license and quit my job. Around that time my marriage was not as stong as I would have liked. Things escalated and I filed for a divorce. (By the way: none of the problems had anything to do with our races!). We seperated almost a year ago, sold the house, got our own place, and the divorce was final 2 months ago. Since the seperation my drive to be an insurance agent has deminished. Although I was, and still am, very relieved about the fact that I'm not married to him anymore, I became less and less motivated to get up, and go to work. I was an independent agent which means I am not employed by anyone, I represent 1 or more companies. Sort of like a broker, but I don't have an office. My home is my office. I knock on business doors to get business. No knocking: no income. The hardest part is hearing NO. Over and over and over again. With all else that was going on in my life it broke my spirit. I couldn't stand it! Here I was, Dutch girl, all by myself in the BIG USA, trying to make it, and not making it at all.
I became depressed, got some counseling and figured out that it wasn't ME who was wrong for the job, it was the job that was wrong for me. My counselor suggested that maybe pharmaceutical sales would be a great careermove for me, considering my background. As I started lookin into it, I became very enthustiasic about it, and invested a lot of time in networking, I spoke to my physician, contacted several representatives, met with a few of them, got certified, joined forums and posted my resume on every jobboard I could think of.
It is not easy breaking into this field! For every opening there are at least 500 applicants! Finally, after about 3 months, I was invited for a face to face interview with 4 managers for a huge pharmaceutical company. The first of at least 3 or 4 interview rounds. Unfortunately I didn't make it past the first round... So I'm back at square one.
By now, I don't have any money, I'm living on credit cards! I will loose my house and everything else if I don't find a job soon! I feel like bailing out! But moving back to The Netherlands is out of the question because:
1. I can't afford a move like that, and
2. I don't want to give it all up again!
I really want to make a life for myself, but right now I just feel so desperate and depressed and alone. I feel paralyzed and stuck... Like I don't have anywhere to go. Maybe America was not right for me. But I'm here now, and something has to happen! I know I'm the only one that can make it happen, but I just wish that someone could tell me what to do...
After reading your message, I had to respond. I don't have the answers but I can tell you what has happened to me -- maybe it will help. I relocated from a big city with a masters degree. I thought I would easily find a job but had the hardest time. The job market didn't care about my degree because I didn't have experience in my field and the market down in the south is very different from that of the north.
I'm working in a field that I have not worked in for a dozen years. I don't like my job but told myself I have to eat and pay the bills so I go to work everyday. But I don't and have not given up hope. When I moved, I worked for a small fraction of what I had earned in the past. I decided that some job, ANY JOB, would get me out of my rut! As I worked at different jobs through a temporary employment agency, I found this permanent job. No, I don't like it because it doesn't utilize my skills and abilities but it's a paycheck.
In the process, I managed to figure out what I wanted to do just because I didn't have the worries of paying the bills on my mind. What I discovered is I had the answers to my life passion all along. I began to think about what I would do if money were NO OBJECT? What kind of work have I enjoyed in the past? I could not find anything that I had done in the past that I loved wholeheartedly. But what I did discover was there was something I enjoyed doing when I was a youngster. I enjoyed helping people but did not want to counsel others. What I decided is that my love of writing, history and research, and interest in helping people translated into the career I always wanted.
Find a job! Any job just to get you out of the house. You will not be able to work (or be self motivated to work for yourself) so long as you have to worry about the bills. Once you have found a job and have some stability in your life, then you can begin to find your true passion. I hope this has helped.
