Job and Life After Chicago GSB

I just got back yesterday from a week-long jaunt from all over the country. I have to upload a bunch of pictures before I can post on my recent travels. So I thought it an appropriate time to update you all on my job situation. Despite the mental flip I had before deciding to come to Israel, I became pretty calm about my job situation when I came out here. Being removed from the GSB, recruitment activities, and no longer having the ubiquity of the job search looming over my head gave me a bit of time to relax and regain perspective. I suppose that some people are really good at shutting out all of the white noise, but getting away from it was a good thing for me.

Right before leaving for Israel, I ended up getting another couple of job offers. One came about a week before I left, the other one literally on the day of my flight. I was very pleased about the opportunities, but had little time to think or feel good about them since I had to deal with traveling and settling in here. After a few weeks, I started to think about what I had on my plate, and did due diligence on the opportunities that were available to me, those that I was still pursuing, and those that may come up in the future. I had many conversations with people at the various firms, long chats with those people in my life that matter the most and whose opinions I trust, as well as some quiet time away from everyone just thinking on my own. I decided to take one of my offers, based on some of these conclusions:

1. I didn't come to business school with the plan to do this afterwards. But I've changed a great deal in the past 2 years, as have my perspectives, goals, and priorities. To stick to the original plan would be taking a path that no longer suits me.

2. I'm going into a completely different industry. Perhaps I won't like it at all, but there's only one way to find out. The variety will add some breadth to my resume, and give me the opportunity to bring a fresh perspective to the field. Plus the nature of the job allows me to experience various functional roles.

3. I was worried that it wouldn't be the best short-term step for my long-term career. But in this day where the economy and jobs are evolving so quickly, there are no guarantees that the long-term picture won't be obsolete in a few years. Remaining flexible and adapting are worth more effort than planning the future out in great detail.

4. I was confident that I would be able to get another offer if I chose not to take any of the ones I had. This isn't due to an inflated sense of self-worth on my part - I do believe that I have saleability, but its also a good market and a great year to graduate from a well-respected MBA program. But I was very excited by the offer that I took and thought it provided certain advantages that were not a guarantee in future offers.

5. I may not be doing what I thought I would, but I'm going into a job that I think will give me the opportunity to gain both hard and soft skills, interact with smart and senior people at the firm, and provide continuous learning. I should be able to leverage many of these skills and the ability to learn no matter what the next role or where I end up.

So I will be working for a company in San Francisco. I am very excited about reconnecting with my family and friends out there, though I think that based on the transformation I've undergone in the past 2 years, it will be a totally different experience upon my return. I didn't expect to move back there after school, but I suppose that donating a kidney to pay for a house is something that I can live with... you only need one kidney to live, right?