Why I'm Choosing to Dance in the Rain

Hello Beautiful Ones!

This is not the post I was planning to write this week, but life is unpredictable which is arguably what makes it beautiful. This week I was faced with a shocking life change. I've been doing a lot of thinking over the last few days, so I thought I would share some of those thoughts with you.

I won't go into the gory details, but the basic gist is that the company I worked for sold the division that I worked in and the new company eliminated my position. I was completely dumbfounded. I've definitely been experiencing all of the emotions: shock, anger, sadness. There have been a lot of tears.

Needless to say I've had some unexpected downtime, and I started thinking about one of my all time favorite quotes: "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning how to dance in the rain..." -Vivian Greene. This quote has always spoken to me. But lately it has never felt more applicable. I walked out of my office building for the last time feeling hopeless.

I soon realized that  even though I was going through something terrible it didn't mean that I wouldn't be able to figure it out. Sometimes horrible situations can still be productive, even if it doesn't feel that way. I feel so bonded with another coworker who was also laid off. We've been calling each other every day with updates on our job searches. And you know what else? I realized how strong I am. As cheesy as it sounds you have to experience the lows to truly appreciate the highs.

We all have to deal with our own personal storms. I know there are a lot of people out there that are dealing with things much worse than losing their jobs (perspective is so important), but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt. I'm choosing to dance in the rain though. I let myself cry the first few days, but I didn't hesitate to start applying for new jobs. I think that's the point of the quote: you should acknowledge the storm, but you shouldn't let it stop you from doing what you want. I also took some time for myself. I took a bubble bath in the morning, wandered around the mall in the middle of the day, hung out in Starbucks for an afternoon. It felt good.

I know this post has been heavy, but there is a silver lining... I was offered another position today. I know Olivia Pope is choosing to stand in the sun (I am obsessed with the show Scandal, #teamJake), but sometimes dancing in the rain can feel so good.

I don't know what storms you're dealing with and I don't know how long they will last, but I hope that you choose to dance in the rain.

XO- Brittney

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Monday Musings: The Power in Being an Introvert

Hello Beautiful Ones!

What do you think of when you hear the word introvert? I'm going to pretend to read your mind (that would be pretty impressive), and assume that you consider being an introvert a negative thing. I identify as an introvert, and I'm here to tell you why that is not necessarily a bad thing.

I'm going to start this post by saying that I'm 23, and I'm certainly not really an expert on anything at this point. But with that being said, I've always been an introvert. It's who I am, and I can remember so many instances in my 23 years of life when I tried to change that or wished I wasn't. The thing is that at the end of the day, you are who you are. Sure we can change and grow. That's normal and that's great. But there is also something to be said about how powerful it can be to embrace who you truly are.

I didn't really start figuring that out until I went away to college. If you asked one of my high school classmates about me I'm guessing they would say "she was nice, but really quiet." In my mind college was going to be awesome because I was going to a new place to meet new people with the opportunity to completely reinvent myself. The thing was though that I could change my scenery but at the end of the day I was still the same person.

Try as I might to be outgoing, it's just not who I am. But with that being said, it doesn't mean that I'm not friendly or don't enjoy a great conversion because I totally do. I think that when a lot of us think about introverts we think about a kid in their basement glued to their computer because they don't like human interaction. Sure, that would be a severe form of introvertism (is that even a word?), but it's not the only form that an introvert can take.

For me, being an introvert means that I might not be the one who initiates a conversation. It doesn't mean I don't want to talk to you it just means I might not feel comfortable walking up to you to start a chat. Also on that note I sometimes struggle speaking up in large group conversations (especially if I don't know the group very well), but that doesn't mean I don't have something to say I just prefer to say it in a smaller group or one-on-one. And finally being an introvert does NOT mean I don't like going out, it just means that I also value my alone time. On a Friday night I like to unwind by myself with a glass of wine and my Netflix, and by Saturday I'm ready to go out and do something fun with my friends.

Being an introvert doesn't mean you're broken, it just means you think and act differently from your outgoing counterparts. My main point here is that it doesn't really matter if you identify as an introvert or not, it just matters that you figure out what works best for you. I know that I like listening more than I like talking some days. One of my best friends just needs someone to listen to him, we're a perfect match. Yet another good friend of mine is also an introvert, and we can sit in happy silence with each other for hours. My point is that you don't need to change yourself to connect with other people, you just need to know who you are so that you can surround yourself with people who get it.

I have more to say about this, but I think I'm going to leave it at that for today. Maybe I'll come back to this topic some day. All I want for all of you is that you are happy (cheesy but true).

Just remember to be yourself and I promise you will sparkle. x

XO- Brittney

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Monday Musings: The Art of Embracing Change

Hello Beautiful Ones!

Happy Monday! The weekend always ends WAY too fast, where does it even go? So here we are at the start of a new week. It's been a while since I have done a Monday musings and there have been a lot of changes happening in my life lately, so that is the theme of the day: change. As always, prepare to experience the inside of my mind (buckle up kids!).

Ok, now on to the serious stuff: change. Change is literally inevitable. Without change we would all just be doing the same exact things day in and day out. That sounds terrible. So why then is change so scary? I think it's super easy to get caught in your comfort zone. Lord knows that happens to me more often than I would like to admit. But as I said, change is bound to happen. So I've decided that when change does happen (regardless of good or bad) the best thing you can do is just embrace it!

I mentioned at the beginning of this post that I've been going through a lot of personal changes lately. You may have read on this blog previously that I recently graduated from college and then moved back in with my parents to job hunt. Well, I can officially announce that I am now an adult with a big girl job and rent to pay (bills make me wish I wasn't quite so grown-up).

Although theses changes were ones that I had been looking forward to, I still found them a little daunting when it actually came time to make the changes. First of all, the idea of my first full-time job was intimidating. I found myself thinking things like: "what if I can't handle it, or what if I hate it?" Luckily for me it turned out that those worries were completely unwarranted. After a week on the job I'm already in love with it and my co-workers.

Another change that had me nervous, was that my new job was also in a new city. Not only was I leasing an apartment for the first time, but I was also trying to adjust to a new place without my friends and family close by. I'm still getting used to this one. I'm learning to enjoy my alone time. That's another thing about change though: sometimes adjusting to change will take a little time.

I'm not going to pretend to have the art of embracing change down to a science, but I'm trying. That's all you can really ask of yourself.

To leave you with a little extra inspiration, here are some quotes on change that I love:

“The present changes the past. Looking back you do not find what you left behind.” 

-Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss

“Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn't stop for anybody.” 

-Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” 

-Albert Einstein

I hope you all have some very sparkly changes waiting for you in the near future. Whatever it is, just remember to do your best to embrace it.

XO- Brittney

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