As some of you may know, the last few weeks Jill and I have had to make some tough decisions about our family's future, as well as the future of my career. Over the last 3 weeks I was pursued by Philips Design in Atlanta about the Sr. Structural Designer position, and so we began to consider our options here in Nashville versus another move. And let me just say that I was not looking for another job. This opportunity just seemed to fall out of the sky and really caught me by surprise. However, recognizing the brand name of Philips and their presence in the everyday lives of consumers, I was instantly intrigued. Of course, it always makes it that much harder when you least expect to be put into a career move & family move situation. That's the business world, though, and you've got to prepare yourself mentally for anything that may arise. So, after a 3 weeks of interviewing, negotiating and considering every possible scenario Jill and I came to a decision this weekend to make the leap. This morning I officially gave notice to Griffin that I would be leaving for the position with Philips in Atlanta.
Another move...
Yes, here we go again. This will be my 6th move and 5th job since college, which should earn me some kind of award, but I will say that 4 of my 5 career moves have been for the right reasons...the advancement of my career. And honestly, our move to Nashville was a ultimately a better career move despite being put into the position of finding a job due to losing mine in Birmingham. Losing my job allowed me to find a much better one where I further developed my skills in a completely different arena. Bye, bye corrugated boxes...hello product packaging! And so now I take everything I've learned from my time at Griffin and apply it to my new job with Philips Design.
Nashvegas, We Love Ya!
The journey to Nashville began when I accepted a job with Griffin, although it was a rough couple of months thanks to our housing situation. My first day at Griffin was June 18, 2007. We didn't officially move into our townhouse until the first of November 2007. That was a very trying time for us, but we stayed focus on the prize...calling Nashville home. As brief as our time here was, we really made the effort to become a part of the metro area community. Whether it was going to a Preds or Titans game, or attending country music shows and touristy stuff, we were making this city our home. And that came easy because Nashville is such a great place to live. Looking back, I will be able to see how much this place influenced and impacted our lives. Here's a few things:
1.) We Got Pregnant!!! Our baby girl spent most of her unborn life in Nashville. Yes, that means she gets to keep her pink cowboy hat and boots, Anita & Wayne. ;-)
2.) We made some great friends and got to spend time with existing friends (Clint & Fernanda). This includes all my peeps at Yazoo! Man, I'm going to miss those Thursdays after work downing a few pints.
3.) My photography hobby completely took off like a rocket. I went from a casual photographer to a semi-pro photographer whose work will be published in the upcoming Capture Music City book.
So, that's that. My last day at Griffin is October 31st. My first day with Philips is November 10th. I'm sure I will update as we go along in this transition. Thanks again for everyone's thoughts and prayers!
