It’s a year already?

It’s my Floatversary (soon) 🥳 . I can’t believe 365 days have passed.

You see, last year was a wild ride.

I felt uncertain about my future at Animalz and was this close to giving up on writing due to burnout 🤏🏾. So I started looking for a new role.

I set a goal of 6 months in which I’d have to find a new job or quit Animalz and go freelance. It had taken Tami the same amount of time to get a role at Buffer so I thought it was a good estimate.

But within a few months, I landed an interview at Float. From the start, they seemed like a place I’d enjoy working in. I was really excited about the product, they communicated async and they paid everyone the same no matter where you lived.

But guess who missed the first meeting with the head of HR? This girl! 🙌🏾.

I thought the meeting was by 6 PM (it was by 6 AM) and spent the entire day prepping for a meeting that I had already missed. I almost lost my mind when I realized what had happened.

My friend Ernest calmed me down and suggested sending an apology in a Look video.

Luckily, Linda Biggs was gracious enough to grant me another interview and I moved on to the next stage.

Then after getting through the second stage of the interview, I didn’t make the cut. They had given the role to someone who had scaled content at Workable. 🤷🏾‍♀️ Who can compete with that?

But all hope was not lost. I got an email from the Director of Marketing, Siobhan 😊 asking to meet with me. I was puzzled. Why would she want to meet with me when I didn’t get the job?

During the call, she mentioned that she was impressed by my work and she’d let me know if another role opened up.

I went on with my life not thinking too much of her words.

Then one evening, I got an email asking if I’d like to apply for the position of content writer. I was literally getting first dibs before the job went to job boards.

I jumped at the opportunity and aced the first interview. The last interview was with the CEO. I kept freezing and getting thrown out of the meeting every 5 minutes 😭😭😭.

I was sure that I had not gotten the job because of my spotty internet connection. I was this close to sending an email asking for another chance.

A few days later, I got an offer 🥹. It didn’t take 6 months and I had gotten a new job.

The next day my dad went into a coma.

I got on a train and went home to be with my family.

I can’t remember much but I recall trying to book a ticket to Abuja to pick up a document I had forgotten when the first train attack happened. I could have been on that train. I don’t even want to think about it.

Some days later, my dad passed on.

The days after were a blur. I can’t remember much. One memory that I have been able to retrieve from the chaos was when I quit Animalz.

I sent my manager a message thanking her for being a great manager and letting her know that I’d be leaving. I didn’t care that it was abrupt.

Looking back, I’d have done things differently but I was just in so much pain.

I wrapped up work in a few days and wished everyone goodbye. I lost access to my work accounts on Friday.

Everyone at Float was so supportive during this time. They sent condolences and pushed back my start date.

But eventually, the first day of work came and I had to show up. Sometimes it was hard to put my heart into my work because I was hurting. But I knew that so much depended on me doing well at this job. I leaned on God for strength and He helped me.

I don’t have a moral lesson to share or anything. I’m just glad I am writing this newsletter to you 365 days later.

Till next time 👋🏽.

P.S

I met Yinka Bernie this week and I was ecstatic.

To celebrate, here’s his latest single, It’s Okay To Cry.