Some may think I’m crazy for thinking I’ve already found my dream job, but what else do you call something you love to do with people you love to be around?
Sadly, just seven short months after waltzing my pre-graduated self into the hall (yes, singular 
) of Love Scott, I am already leaving. My husband and I are relocating to South Dakota for his job and for reasons that I have not yet discovered, it’s for the best.
I have mixed emotions about the situation. I’m sad because I’ll be leaving a job I love, but I’m proud and honored to have known and learned from everyone here. I’m excited to live in a new place having lived in Iowa my entire life, but scared because it will be the first time since I was 15 that I won’t have a job. But, as I spelled out in my last post, I am determined to make it work.
I realized early last week that being out of a job means I can do anything I want. Anything. However, working at Love Scott has made me realize what I love to do and that’s what I keep coming back to. So, not knowing a single soul in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, I turned to my always-trusty Des Moines network on Twitter.
I posted this simple tweet asking for any suggestions for my move.
The response was overwhelming and I could hardly keep up with the suggestions and references people were throwing at me. Keep in mind, most of these people I have never actually met face-to-face with, but have grown to know through Twitter. It is rewarding to have such a strong social media network in Des Moines and it makes me proud to be from somewhere where people don’t hesitate to help a neighbor out.
I made a list of people that my Des Moines tweeps referred me to and started connecting. I emailed them, followed them on Twitter and connected with them on LinkedIn. Through these mediums alone, I now have three lunches and/or coffee meetings and an interview planned and I haven’t even moved yet! It’s not to say that any of these meetings will spur a job offer, but networking with these people will definitely start the process.
It’s crazy to me to think that just seven months ago, I didn’t “get” Twitter. I thought, like many people, it was a place where people shouted to the world what they had for breakfast. And now I’m using it to connect two worlds.
So, thank you Des Moines tweeps (shout out to @YvonneBeasley, @Cavan, @Schippers & @AngelaTenClay) for teaching me and believing in me. I may be more than 300 miles away come Friday, but I’ll still be tweeting from the same handle (@lindseymckelvey). I look forward to continue learning from all of you and hopefully I’ll be able to teach you a thing or two about what South Dakota has to offer.
