Back to the grindstone (in the best possible sense)!

Finally.

On Monday, an 11-month job search comes to an end. Over 8 months of actual unemployment. A 10.5 page list of resumes sent out. 27* different interview contacts. 3 new shirts, 1 new suit, 1 new tie. One accepted offer.

To again have a set of interviews that went really well and try not to get my hopes up was extremely difficult...to finally get the offer call was a fantastic feeling. It was even a few days earlier than I expected to hear back, so it was with the additional relief of having the "wait by the phone" time cut as well. I hadn't allowed my hopes to get too high this time, didn't tell many people about how close I thought I might be, and of course this is the one that comes through. That's just how life works sometimes.

So early retirement ends on Monday, and I head into a new office having learned a few life lessons. A lot of what I learned revolves around who I am and how I deal with adversity, which honestly is better than I first expected way back last August. But I feel I learned a great deal professionally as well. The biggest lesson? Enthusiasm makes up for a lot in an office. I'm not the most energetic person by nature, but I each time I was really interested in a job, that translated in my interview performance and most of the time, those were the jobs I expected to get. That really came through in my first round interview for this new job, and was carried over into the second round interviews as well.

I've recently read that it takes the average person 7.5 months to find a new job right now, the longest stretch in the US since 1948 (source, however dubious). Whether that's a different number for the unemployed vs. for someone just looking to switch I don't know. I've also heard rather daunting numbers for jobs to candidates ratios, and resumes sent to interview ratios as well. It's brutal out there, and everyone knows it. With this experience behind me, all I know is that I'm thankful to be going back to work, and am happy to have a chance to make a positive impact again.

Plus, I have somewhere to commute to again! Daily bike rides!

Current beer-scale: 6.1 low, but rising as celebrations near

*This doesn't include the two calls I've gotten this week since accepting the offer...my favorite part of the day is being able to say "Yes I would be interested, but I recently accepted another offer that starts next week." Fantastic.