Sitting here in my home office, I’m pondering whether to refer to my career in the present tense or the past tense.  Technically, I’m currently without employment.  It’s been nearly a month since I was let go by my prior employer.  I’ve ran through a gamut of emotions since, however, I still do truly believe that it will benefit me in the long term, even if I might need to figure out what the hell COBRA is and how to pay for the benefits of said acronym.

I want to inform everyone that the job search is still ongoing.  It’s been part surprising and many parts painful.  I’ve ran through emotions in which I feel like I’m going to nail an interview to the sneaking voices in my head telling me that I ranked just above plankton after.  I’m still generally positive on this process, but I’m getting antsy.  My family, without going into too many details, needs steady medical coverage and I would like to ensure paychecks continue to come to my address well after the beginning of June.

Now, I’m going to gush on you, my networked tech communities.  Many of you, who I may not even recognize, have sent me plenty of opportunities to keep me busy with a job search for a very long time (however, let’s just say I need to land something and soon).  You’ve been awesome.  I can’t describe the outpouring of response I got on social media platforms when I announced the implosion of my most recent role.  Even a month later, I still get a plenty of you to check in and see if there’s anything else that you can do to help.  You all are a very bright spot in something that could have turned very dark during this time.  I can’t even quantify the amount of thanks that is going to be owed (likely being converted to a certain amount of or age of bourbon) the next time we meet face to face.

To others that may, inevitably, end up in the same position that I find myself in, I tell you this.  Continue to invest in your tech communities.  If you haven’t started, start laying the foundation.  I never really thought about the impact that I might have on the community, even if it’s a smaller subset, but what I’m seeing now is that I am leaving a lasting impact of people whenever I speak at an event or even write a LinkedIn or Twitter update.  While I might have sacrificed some time away from my family to contribute to the community, I feel like I’ve turned my network into a very essential insurance policy on my career.

So, without getting too mushy on you, I have nothing but heartfelt thanks to all of you.  I hope that whatever the role that comes along next is one that I can continue to give back to the community that has helped me so much in the last month.  You’ve been awesome and it’s on me to be awesome back to you when the right offer comes along.  Keep up the good work, community!