Expecting a Stressful Week

Tomorrow I have an interview for two possible positions (Producer and Product Manager) at a local casual games company. I won't go into any detail for fear of jinxing things, but suffice it to say that I'm nervous -- and actually, excited!

I've also been talking to another gaming company, a museum, two online learning companies, and a university-based research project. (And of course, I'm finishing out my contracting stint at Microsoft this week.) As encouraging as all that sounds, I'm trying to balance hopeful optimism with objective realism. I want to find the right thing this time, something that draws on my specific skills and passions and doesn't ask me to be someone I'm not, or to pretend to have skills I don't. I'll never be a left-brained engineer... and I don't want to be. I am a producer, an educator (and edutainer), and a team player and I hope that any job I accept will draw on those strengths. My dream job would be designing and developing really cool products (media) or programs (museums, academia) for kids in a tight-knit, supportive team environment. Microsoft, where people work on "feature teams" (which only deal with one very narrow aspect of a product), is way too big for me, and I feel much more isolation and competition there than team work. (A co-worker said to me on my first day there, "Good luck -- you're on your own now. It's sink or swim." How true I've found that to be!) I much prefer having my fingers -- and my heart -- in every aspect of a project, from design to peripherals to marketing, and working within a truly collaborative team.

I have to remind myself not to panic or to accept the first possibility that comes my way. It's time for me to settle down and find the right position, and that might not happen until after the holidays. Fortunately, I qualify for unemployment and, with Tom's salary, that will see us through just fine.

Plus, I love the idea of finally having some time to read, scrapbook, garden (yes, garden!) and even clean, cook and organize! And I've had a novel swimming around my head for years that really needs to be finally committed to the page!