Turning 23

I'm sitting here writing this, fully a 23 year old. Physically nothing much has changed, but I personally feel like I have gone through a lot in the past year, and have mentally grown.

In terms of what I've accomplished, well not to toot my own horn or anything, but I personally think I accomplished a lot.

I moved back home full time after quitting my job

Going back and forth from NJ to CT for work was not easy. After making the tough decision, I quit my job and moved back home full time. It was a big adjustment, going from having a decent amount of freedom to following the "my house, my rules" system. Of course with communication, things get easier and the leash gets shortened.

I started spending some alone time

Of course moving home and not really working meant I was spending a lot of time by myself. In the past, I absolutely hated being alone, it's one of the reasons I was always in a relationship. This time however, I was determined to break the cycle by forcing myself to be alone. In the beginning, it was uncomfortable and I found myself aching to be around others. Eventually, I found myself picking up activities like puzzle making, reading, journaling, and writing. These activities allowed myself to enjoy spending time alone, which I feel has only bettered me as a person.

I worked at a bar

After quitting my job and moving home, I found that I had a lot of free time on my hands. While some may enjoy this, (and trust me for a time I did) I started to go a little crazy. It was also important for me (and my parents) that I start becoming financially independent. So, while I applied to jobs that had to do with my degree, I got a job working as a bartender.

I want to preface this by saying I have social anxiety. Talking to people? Especially new people? Hard for me. But I accepted this job because it was a small bar, they were willing to teach me (which was important since I had zero experience) and would force me to become sociable. The job definitely taught me how to easily talk to people, but overall I hated being a bartender (especially the hours).

I worked at a country club

After realizing working at a bar was something I absolutely hated doing, I decided to look for another source of income. So naturally, I turned to the country club/event hall I worked out during the summers when I was in college. It was nice going back to a place I was comfortable with, people I knew, and a job I enjoyed. So I stayed and I did what was expected, but I also continued applying to jobs- I didn't want to disregard the hard work I did to get my degree.

I applied to a ton of jobs

So while I worked, and worked, I also applied to jobs. And applied, and applied, and applied. Most of the time, it was radio silence. When I did hear back, the job ended up being something completely different than the description and something I did not want to do. Sometimes, I would get interviews, have them, and never hear back. Sometimes I got an interview and sat there for 30 minutes only for the person to never show. Yeah, it was rough and definitely drained the motivation out of me, but I kept going.

I started a new job

Eventually, I went through an interview process and was offered a position at a company for a job I could see myself enjoying (while utilizing my degree). It's the company/job I still do to this day. It's a challenging job, but I absolutely love it and could not be happier.

Starting becoming man individual who is comfortable using their voice

With the new job, I was forced to be firm in voicing my ideas and opinions. Because I spent some time alone and was comfortable with myself, I didn't find it necessarily difficult to voice my opinions when it was asked, as well as sharing my ideas when I had them. Now in my personal life, I still have a little difficulty, but I'm working on it!

Overall, the past year was great! I achieved a lot, and made a lot of memories :)