A letter from Aug 29, 2024

Dear FutureMe, Just in case you're sitting around wondering what to do next, or having some crisis of confidence... It's about to be September; I've recently graduated from the MSc I started in 2020. As always, I handled the mess of an admin team at CEBE to get my dissertation submitted, and my subsequent invite to graduation. I graduated with Merit - an astounding outcome when considering everything that's happened in this time. It's been 8 years of sitting stagnant at my desk, shushed, overlooked and under developed in my career when I'm at work, but steadily building my capabilities and qualifications outside. No wonder so many quit STEM, with managers who can't deal with anything other than maintaining a status quo. The house is up for sale, my employer doesn't know about the Australian WHV, and I'm feeling the pressure of a looming deadline to get out there (2nd Jan 2025) - and even if I can't control when I'll be able to hand in my notice and go, I've got a plan. I'm excited to find my joy in engineering and design again; excited to be meeting interesting people and trying new things and learning about different industries. Hopefully I'll get to figure out what direction I want to go in next - and gain enough experience to open those doors beyond the space I've been pigeon holed into. For the first time since I was 24, I'll be able to afford to take work that I'm interested in - that is the biggest gift I could ever wish for in my career. If you're wondering what to do next... remember why we started. Don't forget to pay your chartership fees. If my application is accepted next month, they'll be due soon. Did you call home? They love you.