Why I Moved to Washington
In the aftermath of a spontaneous, rapid, and borderline unbelievable turn of events, I find myself writing this post in a brand new state with a brand new job. In reference to my previous post, “Graduating College and Feeling Lost,” I took my own advice about “casting a wide net.” By applying to numerous jobs outside of Southern California and considering opportunities I previously would have turned down, I expanded my self-induced boundaries considerably. Ultimately, the catalyst for such a huge transition was my desire to escape the post-grad stagnancy perpetuated by COVID-19. Without further ado, here is my brief story about transitioning into a new job as well as a fresh chapter of adulthood in 2021.
The idea of moving was not high on my radar initially. However, I found myself in a rut due to the jobs I was applying to and sought some much needed change. Upon talking with our best friend who lives in Seattle, Emma (a Rooted in STEM editor) and I decided to take a leap of faith and move to the Emerald City. Many things could have gone wrong, but we were both willing to commit to the adventure. After two weeks of sorting out the logistics, we hit the road with our cars packed to the brim, ready for all of the unknowns yet to be encountered. Naturally, not everything went exactly as planned, such as having to postpone the 18-hour car ride due to the snow-covered interstates as well as multiple failed apartment application attempts. Despite our challenges, the serendipitous timing and minimal risk associated with the move were driving forces to pursue a new home base.
In terms of my job, I was hired at a local medical laboratory as a full-time clinical lab assistant. I aid healthcare professionals in their pursuit of attaining clear diagnoses. My responsibilities range from specimen accession to data entry as well as various other lab tasks. The job serves as the perfect opportunity to hold a career-related role while still allowing me the time to decide what my intended long-term career path is. Although the process of moving to a new state and transitioning to full-time work has been intimidating and overwhelming, it has also been the grandest adventure to have graced my life thus far. If you take anything away from this life anecdote, it should be that you are the deciding factor for how you live your life. Taking risks and learning from the process is part of the fun of being a young adult in this world. If you have the opportunity to make a big change in your life, don’t ruminate on the “what-ifs” and instead focus on the step-by-step approach of attaining your goal!
