Hi, I'm Diana & I'm Unemployed

If you haven't heard already, I'm now a part of the league of unemployed. I was one of 400 let go from the quasi tech, daily deal selling , LivingSocial.

When I got that phone call from my boss and my HR rep telling me that my position was being eliminated, I didn't really know how to react. My face looked like this:

But inside I was numb. As information and questions were fired off through my receiver, " Do you want to arrange to pick up your belongings? Do we have your updated address so we can send you your severance information?... It's not you, it's us", all I heard was "mwa mwa mwa mwa" just like when the adults speak in Charlie Brown.

I'll be honest, I've never been let go, fired or anything... ever. I didn't LOVE what I was doing but it paid the bills so I definitely wasn't planning to leave without a more fulfilling option presenting itself. I didn't know whether to feel panicked, happy, sad, disappointed. But I will tell you what questions popped into my mind first, "how the heck am I going to pay my rent? and, will I need to return that handbag I just bought for Black Friday? maybe I should finally look into egg donation?".

I guess you'd call that panicking, but calmly so. After hanging up the phone, I dialed up my mom and texted a few friends to share my shock & awe. I guess I felt that if I told someone, it'd be like pinching myself and I'd wake up from what I was sure was rapidly approaching nightmare territory and instead be sitting at my desk having one of my usual tyrannical fits over a sales rep not heading one of my requests. Wait...

THIS is a quarter life crisis!

The phenomena I had given up writing about in lieu of  focusing my talents on my other projects: my lifestyle blog The High Life, my 9-6 and baking; was now staring me right in my face. Or better yet reading me my last will & testament as a LivingSocial employee, over the phone.

I'm 27, no longer a kid but surely not what I envisioned a true adult being... somewhere wading around in what I've come to call extended adolescence and now is the time for me to figure out what my true career path should be. Time to take my passions and run with them. Turn those dreams into a reality. But where do I start?

Yeah, filing for unemployment is definitely a great place to start, but what next? What is my next step? Where's the next adventure? I love the retail industry and have been searching for the perfect opportunity to get back into the corporate side of things whether in buying, advertising/marketing or branding. However, DC isn't exactly a hub for retail or fashion. So will I need to return to NYC or maybe this is the push I need to move to London or Dubai. I don't know. But what I do know is that I'm ready to do what I love.

After the initial panic subsided, I felt an odd sense of freedom. There's a blank slate before me and only time will tell how the slate will be filled.

Do you know of any open opportunities that align with my experience? How do you know what my experience is? Well I've conveniently posted it below. If you don't believe in your abilities no one else will right? Right.


WORK EXPERIENCE
LivingSocial July 2011 – December 2012
Market Programmer
 Was responsible for the deal quality and scheduling for 8 selling markets located in the US South East region
 Partnered with my counterparts in the production, editorial and photography departments to ensure that deals are produced accurately and to the merchant’s satisfaction
 Worked with Account Executives and Sales Managers on a daily basis to maximize revenue potential
 Guided the sales' team in each market to ensure that they were securing adequate inventory to sustain their market
 Evaluated all inbound contracts from the sales department to ensure that each deal is of an excellent overall quality
 Used empirical data in order to identify sales & market opportunities, as well as understand the buying behavior of our subscribers
 Managed the deal queue for my markets across all verticals (dailies, families, At Home) in order to maintain a competitive mix and diverse selection of concepts

CUSP-Neiman Marcus September 2010 – July 2011
Selling Stylist
 Cultivated and maintained customer relationships in order to drive business
 Maintained top sales for my location from November 2010-January 2011
 Grossed over $700,000 in sales for the store during the eleven months I worked as a stylist
 Worked in conjunction with my team to maintain the visual aesthetic of the store
Macy’s Inc. June 2009 – September 2010
Advertising Coordinator – Fine and Fashion Jewelry & Watches
 Acted as the main point of contact between the merchant and advertising worlds
 Maintained ad proofs, merchandise for photo shoots, and sign-offs for all ads
 Compiled and configured layouts for storewide direct mailers and ROPs
 Scheduled and facilitated weekly advertising presentations to the production department
 Collaborated with the Advertising Director and marketing department on a daily basis to ensure ads were completed in a correct and timely manner

Macy’s East July 2007 – June 2009
Assistant Buyer – Fashion Watches
 Ran weekly reports and analyzed sales’ trends in order to drive the business and maximize sales opportunities
 Maintained open to buy as well as weekly ROF for respective brands (Fossil group, G-Shock, private label brand)
 Compiled styles for advertising mailers and ROPs in order to strengthen brand awareness and increase revenue
 Was responsible for a $26.0 mil business within a $55.0 mil buyer-ship for the Fall 2008 and Spring 2009 seasons

EDUCATION
Spelman College Atlanta, GA
· Major: Psychology Minor: Economics
· Graduated: May 2007
· G.P.A.: 3.77 / 4.0



~ D

A Year In Review

2011 is almost over! Can you believe it? Because I surely can't. This year was a tough one and I will honestly say I wouldn't do it again for the life of me. Let's take a quick glance at my year in review:

I laughed a lot. I cried. I fell in like. I fell out of like... hard. I quit a job. I started a new one. I got depressed, really depressed. I lost 15 pounds. I made mistakes. I meditated. I gave up on pointless sex; make that all sex. I took a sabbatical from dating. I fasted. I opened my heart to God. I found a church & pastor I really enjoy. I started making turbans. I eliminated the majority of my debt. I almost jumped out of a plane. I got my passport. I gained new friends. I lost old ones. I strengthened existing bonds. I read. I wrote. I lived...


As I enter into a new year, I'm not going to make bottomless promises to myself about what I will accomplish and set goals without a concrete plan of action. But what I will do is continue to be thankful for all of my many blessings and promise to continue to grow in love & light. To laugh. To love and be the best possible me for Him.

Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah!! Happy Kwanzaa!

Happy New Year!!!!

Infidelity

"A man who will cheat with you, will cheat on you" - Some wise old sage

I don't know if that statement is true or not, but I believe it's befitting for this post. Have I ever told you all the story of my date with the married man? I feel like I did but I don't have the patience this AM to go search for it.

Many, many years ago when I first moved to NYC, I was riding the 1 train from Harlem to work and a man got my attention by commenting on the book I was reading: Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man. Nobody strikes up conversations with strangers during the morning commute on the NYC subway, so I was intrigued to say the least. He wasn't physically my type but I said, what the hey and we exchanged info.

After a couple weeks of plotting to get together, he invited me out for drinks. A couple drinks later, some laughs and good conversation and we get down to the nitty gritty of it all. We begin discussing relationships and he asks me what it is that I'm looking for in a man. A big sigh and a few seconds later, I respond with "honesty". And in true, straight from a movie fashion, he responds, "well since we're being honest I need to tell you something". Naturally my eye brow is raised at this point and I'm checking for my exits(just in case a quick escape is needed) because what in the world could you be feeling the need to be honest with me about already??

"I'm married."

I do believe my jaw hit the bar at that point and my eyes got wide as I processed my date's moment of truth. "Did he just say he was marrried? Why are we on this date then? What? Just... why!?".

He proceeds to explain how he's been married for all of four years to an older woman and as his words get drowned out by white noise, the only question I can muster up is, "where's your wedding band?". "I threw it in a fight and it got lost. That was actually my second one". What kind of man gets mad at his wife in a fight and throws his wedding band? Is what I wanted to ask but kept my lips sealed as my date, now the married man, went on the explain how we could still go out together and he could take me on weekend trips. We could have "fun"... o_0 Maybe in some alternate, parallel universe this would have sounded like a good idea, but definitely not in my reality.

Aggressively feeling sick to my stomach, the date ended abruptly with him continuing to talk about us getting together for future engagements. Future... why? I walk home feeling confused, disgusted and discouraged. And also feeling bad for this man's wife. After a mere 4 years of marriage your man is out tipping around with single women. Buying them drinks and chatting them up in a way that only a man with no formal attachments should. Your husband is a cheater with no shame or remorse. But, why?

Fast forward to last week. I'm chatting with a girlfriend about a date she just went on earlier that evening. "Which do you want to hear first? The okay, the bad or the worst?", she asks. Oh Lord here we go. After lamenting about her date discussing his previous dates/situations with other women with her and his decision to go dutch on a $40 bill, she gets to the kicker... the worst. All night she had noticed a ring on his finger, he too must have noticed that she did because half way through the date he fidgets around for a bit under the table and his hand reappears ringless. This man, her date, is married. In later conversation he admits to being married but wanting to continue to get together with her in the future.

What part of the game is this?? Obviously too many woman have been willing to overlook a man's married status just to have someone to show them attention and now these selfish a-holes are under the impression that dating outside of a marriage is cool. I want a husband someday, but not someone else's. At what point did we start taking marriage so lightly? Do only men do this? Not cheat, obviously, do married women go out on dates with single men? I can't say that I've ever heard one of my guy friends talk about taking a married chic out on a date.

Thoughts people?