My dream job at National Geographic was actually a nightmare.
I never intended to tell this story. But I’m better because of it.
I made my first real vision board in 2019.
In December 2018, I decided that 2019 was going to be the year my life changed.
I openly share how 2019 was the best year of my life, after making my first vision board. But I hardly talk in detail about what state things were in before it.
In 2018, my life was falling apart.
I had just finished up my year-long contract as National Geographic’s first-ever Digital Correspondent. A lofty title I’d earned after competing with over 600 industry experts who (on paper) seemed way more qualified than 23-year old me.
After uprooting my life and moving back to Washington, D.C. for the gig, I just knew this would be my ticket to success. THEE National Geographic. I’d jumped from a $30,000 marketing job at a credit union, to my 6-figure grown woman salary at one of the most sought-after companies in the world.
You couldn’t tell me nothin’.
I was working long hours trying to stamp myself, excited for the opportunity to show my skills and grow as a journalist. Busy days full of meetings with execs, traveling for stories, and hustling to make the most of this insane career boost was how things started. But it wasn’t long before my boss – the person who’d selected and advocated for me – was suddenly laid off. That changed everything.
The entire experience went left. My job went left. Really left. I’m talking, Beyoncé to the left to the left, left.