MAJOR LIFE UPDATE!
My teaching partner Hannah & I on my last day of teaching 3rd grade!
When I left for Korea, I left the classroom with hopes I could move on to something else career wise. Teaching was my PASSION & I was good at it. I loved it so much, but I was burnt out after only 4 years. I loved my students dearly but almost every other part of education was breaking me down. I won’t get into that right now as I could go on and on... but I wanted something better for myself all around. I decided to take this year overseas to dive DEEP into what I wanted to do with my life moving forward. I needed something that would make me feel happy, filled with purpose, not stress me out to unhealthy levels, something that had meaning & something I felt gifted at the way I felt I was gifted in teaching- all while making an income. It was a tall order but I saturated this situation with so much prayer, I was trusting that when the time was right, God would show me the opportunity I was supposed to take- even if that meant getting back into teaching when we returned to the States.
While substitute teaching part time here in Korea to continue making an income, I dove into my social media & online presence. I learned the ins & outs of social media marketing while also learning how to navigate life as a new military spouse. I focused very hard on growing my Instagram audience and niched down into the categories of Christian and Military Spouse. The two worlds collided in a beautiful way where I found something I love to do- encourage others, write, be creative, share my life online, share my faith, & help people. I knew I wanted to continue this but also knew it would be a while before I could start making an income from Instagram & blogging alone…so I decided it was time to look for something part time. I’d been praying for the Lord’s direction over this job search all year long & now I was trusting that He would point me to something that would make me happy but also give me the time to continue the work I started with my own branding online.
So I went ahead and FINALLY started Googling part time jobs, I thought maybe i’d try being an assistant to an event planner or maybe a bridal consultant. I was about to update my resume (how in the world do I do that when all I’ve ever done is teaching!?) and I got so overwhelmed by the feeling of “what do I even want to do with my life” that I decided i’d put the computer away and try again tomorrow. Baby steps…
Branding photos for my website and Instagram once I started getting serious about it!
Not even a full 24 hours after I accepted the fact that I’d have to find something part time while I grow my own brand, I got a message from the owner of a very successful and driven real estate group out of Fort Bragg who was looking for someone to fill a full time position. She said she heard about me from another military spouse group she was in after she’d put some feelers out about the kind of person she was looking to hire. She wanted someone who was passionate about the military community, knew how to navigate social media and market themselves online, & was looking for a long term position to better themselves and their family’s financial future. I was STUNNED. Absolutely shocked that the Lord had brought her to me… this is exactly what He had for me the whole time. We got to talking about her vision for her business and how I could come alongside that vision and bring it to life. She is passionate about providing REAL opportunities for military spouses to have a career they can take with them anywhere that really means something. She wants to grow her online presence for her businesses & she was confident that I was the person to do it.
Fast forward to today… i’ve accepted a full time position with The Signature Group Realty Team as their Director of Branding and Content! The year I took to grow myself and find out what I really wanted to do with my life paid off in ways I never could have imagined. I was so scared to leave the only thing I knew, teaching, and look for something else I was equally as passionate about and gifted in. I’ve found it. Really, it found me. I have been working incredibly hard on my own brand online, and now this opportunity has come straight to me. All of the times I prayed for the Lord to guide me to what was next for me, He was smiling because every Instagram post I made, every edit to my website, every reel I lip synched, every DM I answered- they were all building my marketing skills for this opportunity now. I am now about to start a full time job that was offered to me to do something I absolutely LOVE. I love marketing on social media and you KNOW I love the military community.
I am incredibly grateful I was fearless enough to look for something else, I’m incredibly proud of myself for the hard work i’ve been putting into my online presence, & I am so thankful the Lord is showing is favor and faithfulness to me by providing this wonderful opportunity for me. I know this is just the beginning of the places this role can take me.
If you’d like to follow along with what i’m doing over at my new job, be sure to follow us at @thesignaturegroupteam on Instagram!