I Speak For The Trees

It’s finally time to find the Bach family Christmas tree! I doubled checked there were no squirrels, so I think we are good. I’m sorry I always reference Christmas Vacation in my posts… not really though. Anyways, my family always puts up a live Christmas tree. It just brings in a more authentic vibe for the holidays, which my family needs sometimes. With the fresh scent of pine, it just allows for my family to slow down and relax a bit. The holidays tend to get the best of us, so putting up a real tree helps us put things back into place. As we were shopping though, I got to thinking. This tree’s life parallels mine. Sounds crazy, but this Christmas tree spoke to me. It sent me some friendly advice that I wanted to share with you.

I must be sounding crazy right now, but let me explain myself. I’m at this pivotal time in my life, as many of you are too, about where your career is going to go. Finding a job is extremely stressful and ultimately, it just sucks. Plain and simple. My dad has always told me that your life is much like a fork, or a tree branch if you will. You have multiple paths that you can take, but you won’t know the outcome till you take it. One job can lead to another job and the options are limitless. In contrast, you could have to backpedal and try one of the other paths. After pondering this realization, I realized that I needed to get a jumpstart on this new year. I need some motivation, inspiration and furthermore, advice for my future self.

1. Get Over This Shy Phase!

For me, this is my biggest obstacle. Many people in the fashion industry are very boisterous and extremely commanding of attention. I tend to be the person that wants to differentiate themselves from the rest and I like to be the laid back, relaxed person in the room. My problem is, I need to learn to slide in some confidence to my laid back, relaxed self to show my future employers that I am able to do this job. If I don’t show confidence in myself, how will they have confidence in me? My resume will only take me so far. Mission number one is to never sell myself short!

2. No Doesn’t Alway Mean “No”

What I mean by this is, that if I send out a million resumes and I get no response or a response that says no, it doesn’t mean “no”. It simply means “not at this time”.  This is where my girl Erica from Coming Up Roses comes in. You won’t get what you don’t ask for. You need to be “politely persistent”. I think this actually goes hand-in-hand with the getting over the shy phase… Once I learn to get over that hurdle, this step will be a piece of cake. If everyone quit after someone told them no, our lives would not be where they are today. There are so many examples, but the most recent example for me is the Wright Brothers. The Wright Brother, as I’m sure you know, are the brothers who discovered how to fly the first airplane. What you don’t know is that Wilbur Wright only flew once, because he had to settle a bunch of lawsuits. The government didn’t want them to fly! Crazy right? So always remember, No doesn’t alway mean “no”.

3. Dare To Be Different

My mom constantly says this line and it’s always just kind stuck with me. This is an excellent follow up from the Wright Brothers story. You need to be creative and think outside the box. Once you find a job, you are there to come up with ideas that have been never been done before. That’s how you become an excellent asset to the team. People will want to work with you if you have interesting and creative ideas to bounce off of. I need to learn to have confidence in my ideas when it comes to my career. People will say no sometimes and not like my ideas, but I need to understand to not take it personally. I just need to come up with more ideas!

4. Always Outwork Your Peers

If you outwork everyone around you, your employers are going to notice. The key is to make an impact immediately when you are starting your career path. First impressions are everything in this day in age, whether you like it or not. You need to put your best and only your best foot forward. Do the things that people don’t want to do, or don’t think to do. The more effort and work you put into everything, the faster you will rise in your career. Go the extra mile, it’s never crowded.

5. Get More Organized

I can be extremely organized when I want to be. My problem is that I need to start planning, dare I say. My philosophy has always been one from Harry Potter. “We plan, we get there, all hell breaks loose.” I am the type B person that likes to wing everything. Everything I plan, never ever goes according to plan, so eventually I gave up with planning. With my career though, it is going to be essential that I learn to like planning. I have mastered the art of adapting, but now it’s time to master the art of planning.

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I went a little bit deep and different today, but the trees really inspired me. I hope that some of this advice for myself can help you out as well. The new year is approaching quickly and I’m more ready then ever to get this 2017 show on the road! On a fashionable side note, I’ve picked out a bunch of fun and cozy sweaters that were extremely similar to mine. I got mine last Christmas from Topshop, so of course it’s no longer available. I’ve also linked the rest of my outfit, if you are interested in shopping for some of these pieces. All you have to do is click the link and it will take you directly to the piece! I know it’s been a different ride today, but as I said earlier, dare to be different.

Sweater || Scarf || Leggings || OTK Boots || Shades || Lipstick in Rose Velvet

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