Tag: backtowork

“Your job isn’t to know the how, it’s to know the what and to be open to discovering, and receiving, the how.”

Jen Sincero

At this point, I’ve applied to over 200 job postings.

1. Office Jobs: Reception, Mail & Courier, Admin Assistant, Office Assistant, Personal Assistant, Marketing Assistant, Marketing Coordinator
2. Non-Profit Jobs: Donor Relations, Fundraising Assistant, Corporate Sponsorships
3. Hospitality Jobs: Events Assistant, Event Coordinator, Banquet Lead, Concierge

I don’t even remember what companies I’ve applied to at this point, but I’ve never seen so many notifications in my inbox.

I read the posting, look at the qualifications, and I apply.

And a few days later I get a response along the lines of:

“Dear Mr. Punzalan – we have reviewed your application thoroughly and while we are impressed with your experience and qualifications, we feel as though there are other applicants that meet a certain set of criteria set for the role. We’ll keep your application on hand and if something comes up, we’ll be in contact. All the best with your job search. Warm regards.”

Back to the drawing boards.

It has taken a toll on my pride.

My days consisted of: Gym, Breakfast, Job Boards, Snack, Job Boards, Lunch, Job Boards, NAP, Job Board, Snack, Job Boards, Dinner, Job Boards.

Somewhere in between, I would read my book (you HAVE to read it) or binge watch a Netflix original series (I’ve done three).

The only times I left my house was to go to the gym or to go grocery shopping.

There was one day where I walked into the the washroom and just stared at the mirror. My hair was a tangled, my facial hair was a mess, I was wearing the same sweats I wore for the last few days and something just *clicked*.

This was not me!

So, I made a deal with myself:

1. I’m only allowed to apply for jobs at night, when I come home from being out all day
2. If I do stay at home, I have to at least get dressed and walk around the block – no more lounging in my sweats all day.

I decided it was time to change my mindset, I had to pivot from the path I was going down and onto a more positive one.

I mean, c’mon …

I’M IN AUSTRALIA!

So, I do what I always do when I need to reset: I went to the beach.

I walked around and realized how much I was missing by sitting at home all day.

It is “winter” in Australia. I laugh at this season because even though it’s winter, you still need sunglasses because of how sunny it gets. Even though it’s super windy these days, there is not a drop of rain; it’s basically Vancouver during October/November.

Here’s what I’ve been up to:

One of the things we started doing at F45 Engadine is this 8 Week Challenge. You work out five days a week and stick to this super strict meal plan (measuring, portioning, weighing food, meal prep). You also cut out bread, potatoes, and alcohol (UGH).

I came all this way to a new country, and now I’m on a diet?

Sigh.

So, I’ve been trying to find ways to make it fun, I mean there’s only four more weeks left on this program (I really can’t afford to stay at this gym – they charge $65 a week, yikes).

View this post on Instagram

We’ve entered Week Three of the Eight Week Challenge at F45 Engadine! . Who knew working out could be so much fun?! . Just showing off how I grocery shop for my weekly meal prep 🛒🤔🥗. . . . 📹 @lans.solo @f45_training_engadine . #zpsradicalsabbatical #zptakesstraya #workout #gym #f45 #f45challenge #f45training #f45family #f458weekchallenge #f45engadine #circuittraining #earlymorning #training #circuit

A post shared by Zaigh's (@zaighum_punzalan) on Aug 4, 2019 at 4:52pm PDT

Last Saturday, I went into the city for the first time in weeks.

There are so many tempting things to do when you visit the city, my favourites are day drinking and eating at every single bar that I visit.

It’s a great way to meet new people. I usually sit at the bar, someone comes up and while they wait for their drink you just turn over, say hello and make conversation.

Since the challenge started, I made it an excuse not to go out.

However, I’ve been killing this challenge so, and I felt as though I could handle going into the city and not be tempted with food.

I went, I overcame temptation; I crushed it.

Here’s how crazy the evening went!

I was walking around the city, enjoying the usual night life that is a Saturday. One of the best spots to go is Darling Harbour, they have so many cafe’s, restaurants, and buskers.

While I was walking in the area, I took my headphones out and I heard my name being called.

I looked around, quite confused. I’ve never heard of another Zaighum before, so someone was obviously calling me. It was strange though, because I don’t really have any friends here and who would know me?!

I looked behind me, and it was an Australian local who was on a Working Holiday Visa back in Vancouver back in 2016!

We met at Oakridge Centre in Vancouver at the David’sTea.

We caught up for a bit then went our separate ways – what a random event!

During one of my first workouts at F45, I was paired with this fire cracker Italian woman who lifted heavier weights than I was lifting and simply walked to next station while I basically crawled.

At the end of the session, Pina introduced herself and we started to chat in the parking lot after class. During our conversation, she asked me what my weeks used to look like back in Canada. I spoke about my job and the work I did during the week and then spoke about the Church I went to on Sunday’s.

She lit up when I brought up Church, and she didn’t miss a beat by inviting me to hers.

I’ve only been to one church since coming to Australia, and I was trying to figure out what the next Church I wanted to visit would be.

Pina then revealed she was a Pastor for Hillsong City Campus, Waterloo.

I was taken aback for a moment.

I was working out with a Hillsong Pastor; crazy!

I found a Sunday I was freed up, and decided to go.

It’s quite a distance to go to Hillsong from where I live. I walk 15 Minutes to get to the train station which leaves every 30 Minutes and goes into the city which takes about 45 Minutes depending on which line you take to Central Station. They have a Community Shuttle that leaves the station 45 Minutes before the service starts (which of course, I missed). I thought about walking, but I was getting close to the start of the service. So, I hailed an Uber which ended up picking someone else and took them to church, oh and I still had to pay for it (I got my refund the next day, but it was a pain to get). The second Uber came and I arrived at the church about 15 Minutes after the service started (I really dislike being late).

When I walked into the church, it was everything I had expected. There was a cafe, a gift shop, lounges, foosball, and Hillsong branded signage just about everywhere. Oh, and there was even a Basketball Court (yup, a Basketball Court).

I walked into the Worship Centre and was quickly greeted by an usher and asked to sit on the “inside of the row”. I almost said no because I am a back row, isle seat person … but I should’ve came earlier, SO I sat where I was told to sit.

The room was dark with a full light show on stage. There were photographers, videographers, producers, and of course the full band, worship leaders, and a choir.

Yup, I was at Hillsong.

It was the first Sunday of the month which meant they were going to take up communion and they ended up doing What a Beautiful Name.

This song gets me every time and I found myself absolutely undone (you can replay the bridge over and over, it’s quite something).

Once worship was over, the message was delivered via Live Feed from the other Hillsong City Campus, Alexandria.

The pastor spoke about how sometimes our plans change, no matter how much we want to be in control. How sometimes we have this vision of where we want to go and we continue to hit roadblocks and setbacks. Sometimes these occurrences aren’t in place to tell you to “ditch the dream” and give up. Instead, they are in place for you to go down a different route to reach your goal.

God isn’t telling you to completely go off your path to reach your goal, He’s just telling you to pivot onto a different path to get there!

I had a goal of working in Australia to fund my Radical Sabbatical and was negotiating with the company I had served for almost six years to help me out. Unfortunately, I had learned that week that they did not have anything available and could not accommodate me; a devastating conversation and outcome I had prepared for but still stung nonetheless.

The path I had planned on going down was no longer an option and I needed to accept the outcome and pivot onto a different path.

The following Tuesday, I was staying true to my commitment to myself and headed into the city for a day of wandering. As I was out and about, I received a phone call from an Agency that came across my application and asked me if I was open to interviewing for a one week placement in the city as an Administration/Events Assistant for a Conference Speaker/Coach who facilitates corporate events for up to 150 professionals in a four-day session.

Being a Temp has its perks:

1. You get paid weekly
2. You have flexibility to say yes or no to contracts
3. No week is the same (depending on the length of your contract)
4. You meet new people
5. You are exposed to new companies/industries

View this post on Instagram

I was putting on my blazer today and stood still for a few moments while I stared at myself in the mirror. . I haven’t worn a blazer since I left my job in Canada. . I needed to wipe the tears that fell down my face as I stared at my empty lapel. . Every morning, I used to open up a box that sat on my dresser and pick one of the many pins that I had collected over the years to place on my lapel. . I would walk into every community event or agency meeting, reach out my hand and say, “Hello, my name is Zaighum and I’m with McDonald’s.” . My identity was in the brand I proudly represented and wore on my lapel for all to see. . Today, I’m walking into a boardroom of strangers and for the first time, I will reach out my hand and will just say, “Hello, my name is Zaighum.” . And that’s okay. . #zpsradicalsabbatical #zptakesstraya #interview #newbeginnings #freshstart #restart #lettinggo #letgo #unemployed #funemployed #movingon

A post shared by Zaigh's (@zaighum_punzalan) on Aug 6, 2019 at 6:33pm PDT

I walked the twenty minutes from Central Station in the city and met with the Recruitment Consultant who gave me the run down of the company and job.

He spoke to me about my qualifications and asked me if I was okay taking on a one week placement, knowing I would be back to the (f)unemployed life once it has completed.

I am more than fine with it.

After my meeting, I went to my interview with the company who showed interest in me.

It was nerve-racking as I followed my GPS, the thirty minute walk felt like forever.

I walked into the office, it was a office shared space – I love these models, beautiful community can come out of it.

I was ushered into the boardroom to wait for the HR Manager and other members to interview me.

As everyone came in, I stood up, reached out my hand for the hand shake (as you read in the Instagram Post above, it was one of the moments I had to prepare for) and then sat opposite the HR Manager.

My interview began and instead of the scripted questions that were on their computers, we began to speak on my entire Radical Sabbatical journey and what it has been like to find work.

There was a lot of laughter and comforting from the team; we both agreed this could be my foot in the door to the workforce – opening the doors for other opportunities once employers see that I have worked in this country.

At the end of the interview, we parted with a hug (handshakes are overrated anyway) and I was on my way.

The next day, I was informed by the Agency that the team wanted me to join them for the week, calling my interview “genuine and unforgettable”.

I am going back to work tomorrow!

The moment I chose to accept how things were going and pivot from my previous path and go down another, things began to fall into place.

The same day, I received another phone call from another Agency in the city saying they were impressed with my background and wanted to interview me the week after my placement completed.

It’s only up from here, I’m going to be just fine.

“You have to change you thinking first, and then the evidence appears. Our big mistake is that we do it the other way around, we demand to see the evidence before we believe it to be true.”

Jen Sincero

So, friends.

Are you on a path to reach your goals and you are continuing to experience road blocks and setbacks?

Don’t scrap the goal, just pivot onto a different path and see where it leads.

It might be a small change with a big result.

Can’t wait to let you know how the week goes.

Onwards,

-Zaighum