what was something you were afraid to do but glad you did career wise?

My undergrad degree is in recreation with an emphasis on youth. My goal was to work for the Girl Scouts in a full time position which would include directing a summer camp. I am sure my past experience of working at several GS summer camps helped me to get my first full time job with a Girl Scout council in Wisconsin. It was scary. This was not just a full-time job but a 24/7 type of job that required I use every skill i ever had acquired and some I didn't even know I had! This including everything from logistics, organizational abilities, safety regulations knowledge/enforcement, hiring, training, firing, creativity, negotiation, paperwork to driving a van with 6 canoes on an attached trailer. Mostly I had to use people skills with fun-loving kids, camp staff, council staff, volunteers and parents. Now, 40 years later, I know it was the best preparation I could have ever had to prepare me for my roles in the work world. By having to think on feet, rely on others for help, read and learn on the fly, make mistakes and allow myself "do overs" (of course not where safety was an issue). My newly acquired professional confidences pushed me forward and I was no longer afraid to take on new work challenges. My advice, if you find a job you've worked hard to get, i.e. completing your college degree, jump in with both feet and trust yourself and your skills.

When I first starting out in my career, I was very ambitious and successfully landed a job at J.P. Morgan as an Equity Research Associate. It was the Wall Street job that my immigrant parents would have wanted, and that I also wanted because I proved to myself that I could succeed. It took me just a few months in the job to realize that I truly hated the job. It was isolating, slow, boring, and in the days before the internet, difficult to get information. I was miserable everyday coming into work, yet I forced myself to work the typical long hours and weekends in order to succeed, because I was afraid of failing. I was afraid that no one would give me a job after leaving a job after just one year (This was the 90s), and I told myself that I had to stick it out for two years. At two years, I made the very scary decision to leave J.P. Morgan without having a job to go to. It was the best decision because I could finally free up enough time to figure out what I really wanted - which ended up as marketing - and I landed a great job at a great credit card company after that. I only wish that I had quit earlier rather than torture myself for the whole two years. Take the leap to pursue what you want. Once you learn that it's better for you to change jobs, rather than stay in a job you don't want, just make the jump. It's not as bad as you might think. When a door closes, a window opens.

I have been at my current job for 20 years and I can still remember my initial job interview. The reason is that I knew when I applied for the position there were a number of skills that were beyond my current qualifications. I knew I could learn the other skills if an employer would believe in my capabiities. I am happy to say that I found an employer that also believed in me. Lesson learned is that you should shoot for the stars when looking for careers. Don't ever sell yourself short!