November last year, I went to a training on new media tools for NGOs. The training took place in Georgia and it was held during a very busy period at my work, but I still decided to go. Imagine my surprise, knowing that I left my colleagues with a lot of work to do before our Annual Conference, when, at least the first days, the training did not meet my expectations. Still, it was one of the best experience of my life. I knew then that the choices I made or did not make were the best ones. I was working (and still working) for GRASP, a global network of Romanian young professionals and students, coordinating the communication activities and strategy at a global level.
My bachelor was in Communications and PR. As I like to say, this departament chose me and not the other way around. I just wanted to prove to myself I can pass the entry exam. I had no idea what communications means and what my field of expertise will be after I graduate. Since the first year, I started volunteering in a student NGO, then I started working in the field, but not for a moment did I stop to assess my career path. I like to think that I loved too much what I was doing to put this into balance. All these were followed by a master’s degree in European Communication studies, by jobs, internships and volunteerships in different communication departaments: within Greener, an environmental NGO in Romania, within the European Agency for Fundamental Rights, within Romanian Center for European Policies. Now when I think about all these, they seem normal and natural. I would do the exact same things because this is how I realised that I was lucky enough to discover my passion when I applied for my BA programme.
And now coming back to the Georgia story. I knew then that communication is a way of being, but I could never be complete if i don’t put my skills for the use of a cause. It is then that I understood that contributing to social change is the only way that I can feel my personal and professional life will have a purpose. Communications for NGOs, NGO organizational capacity building, community engagement, social entrepreneurship – these are the things that bring joy in my life. I definitely know that along the way, I will discover other things that will add up to these ones, but I know for sure that we cannot afford ourselves the compromise not to do what we are meant for.
There were times in my life when I was not sure that I made the right decisions. There were times when I thought I wasn’t the proffesional I imagined to be. And it might sound unrealistic, but I often dreamt about a moment when I will be offered the perfect job. And dreams come true. At the beginning of last month, I received a job offer – no CV, no interview. They knew my work and they felt I am the right person for the job. I knew the organisation and I felt it is the right place for me. Now, while I am consulting for GRASP, I am doing communications for PACT, a Romanian NGO doing community development in rural areas in Romania. I am busy as a bee, but happy! And one can say I am jobless, because I have two wonderful hobbies that help me contribute to changes around me.
Have a nice day