Last week, I lost my job.

For those playing along at home, you might have noticed that I’ve never really said here what it is I actually do at my day job. That didn’t happen by accident. It was a tough choice for me, because I know that being open is important. At the same time though, I needed to protect myself and my employer from any conflicts, real or perceived. I didn’t want somebody to make the connection and try to use my words here, in a completely separate sphere, against me or my bosses.

Where I came from

Now I can come clean and fill in the picture. For the past almost-four years, I was working in a minister’s office for the Victorian government. It kind of happened by accident, but turned out to be a time of incredible growth for me, both personally and professionally.

Four years ago, I was in a job that I no longer enjoyed. In fact, it was making me flat out miserable, to the point where my health was affected. I felt taken advantage of and, near the end of my time, I was quite significantly misled by senior management. I had been job hunting for a little while, and had interviewed, and I even made it to the final two for one job, but I wasn’t finding anything suitable. After a bit of soul searching and long chats with Chris I decided to hand in my notice. I had a few weeks’ leave up my sleeve that would be paid out, so I would use that time to hustle and find something else.

How I ended up here

On my second-last day there, I got a phone call from a not-so-mysterious stranger. He’d seen my resume a few weeks ago, he was sorry it took so long to contact me, and was I still looking for a job? Um, yes! We made a time to interview the following week, and the same day of the interview I was offered a job. A job in politics.

Hmmm… I was not into politics. At. All. I don’t even know who I voted for in that election (something I admitted cautiously — I didn’t want people to know I was a fraud!). I’d only submitted my resume because my mum (an avid follower of politics) bugged me to. It was an administrative role though, so I don’t think my lack of political nous was particularly concerning to anyone besides me.

I was as surprised as anyone to find that I actually became quite interested in what was around me. Of course, it would be difficult not to, but my interest expanded beyond the scope of my role (at least in the beginning). Our chief of staff was endlessly patient with me as I asked question after question about what was going on, why this issue or event was particularly important, did I have the right understanding of what xyz was saying here…it went on and on. Some were probably silly or ignorant questions, but he and other advisers always took me seriously and answered them. Over time I started to understand at least some of what was happening, and was promoted to a more political role.

So, what do you do?

Especially in the beginning, I was vague when people asked what I did for work. This was hard for me — I’m a naturally curious person, and as I learned more about politics I had hoped to discuss others’ views and opinions. I quickly learned though why politics is on that list of things we don’t talk about. People who are interested tend to be very passionate and hold strongly to their views. I absolutely respect that, but often it’s something that can quickly turn a conversation into an argument. So I would choose my conversational partners carefully, and let them know I simply wanted to hear their views.

Why are you telling me this?

Because I like to be open, and this job became a large part of my story. And because I learned a great deal, which I wanted to share with you. That’s what this blog is for after all!

Firstly, it reinforced my belief that it is SO important to be open to opportunities. To be frank, I wouldn’t have actively pursued a role in politics. But the job made good use of my skills at the time, so I thought I’d give it a go. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have grown so much, learned so much, and met some fantastic people. Of course, it’s important to listen to your gut, but there were zero alarm bells and not a hint of anxiety or doubt around this choice. So why not give it a shot? Not only did I have a great job, I met people that made me consider things a bit differently and reminded me of what I really love to do.

Speaking of people — your colleagues make all the difference. For a political office, there was a surprisingly small amount of office politics. Which is awesome! Everyone there was working to a common goal, but we all got along socially as well. Sure, sometimes there were clashes (as always happens when you have a diverse group of people together). But there was a great deal of respect for one another too, which meant we could put disputes aside and sit down and chat and laugh together as well. It made all the difference to team morale, especially when stressful situations cropped up.

People respect a manager who respects them (or, don’t rule with fear and bullying). I’ve learned this from watching managers at many jobs, but this one was by far the best. Our boss and our chief always treated us respectfully, with honesty, and were available to us when we needed their guidance. Of course this should go without saying, but unfortunately it doesn’t. I had a boss once who loved to remind us that if it wasn’t for her we wouldn’t have jobs, and would often say things like, “I can hear laughing in that office — if I have to come in there you won’t be laughing anymore!” You can imagine just how little the staff respected her. That isn’t the way to get respect, trust and loyalty from your team. Running a state is high pressure and high stakes; if those people can treat their staff respectfully, and with patience and kindness, then there’s really no excuse for the rest of us.

The most surprising (and sometimes disappointing) thing was seeing the difference between events and facts, and how they were reported in mainstream media. It is quite easy for media to pick and choose in their reporting to create a certain impression that isn’t always representative of the facts. Given that I always (perhaps naively) thought news media was there to present unbiased information, this was a frustrating lesson to learn. But now I know to look deeper, ask questions, and seek out more information. Like with people, you can’t always take things at face value. Take your time before you jump to conclusions.

What next?

I’m not sure yet, to be honest. The run up to the election was big and it was intense. We lost on a Saturday and on the following Monday afternoon I finished work. It’s taken a week for my head to stop spinning! I’ve given myself the rest of December off (although to be honest I’m not very good at taking a break so far — it’s taken me a week to sit still). But I’m going to take a few weeks, enjoy my funemployment, get some space, then figure out the next step. And I’ll be keeping you posted 🙂

Image via Unsplash.