Latest / Happen To Your Career - Meaningful Work, Career Change, Career Design, & Job Search / From IT Burnout to a Career He Loves: How One LinkedIn Chat Changed Everything - Louie's Career Transition Story

Transcript

From IT Burnout to a Career He Loves: How One LinkedIn Chat Changed Everything - Louie's Career Transition Story · Happen To Your Career - Meaningful Work, Career Change, Career Design, & Job Search

• 0:00
  Louie 00:01:
• 0:01
  Because I was struggling with my health, I decided to leave my last role without anything lined up. And as a father, it was hard to walk out of a job without anything like that.
• 0:02
  Scott Anthony Barlow 00:10:
• 0:03
  People make career changes all the time. That's a normal thing. Unfortunately, many of those career changes are not great moves. In reality, what we find when we meet up with so many people after they've made a career change is that they're just running from a portion of their past job, whether it's a bad boss, a toxic environment, trying to raise their salary, trying to lower the amount of stress and responsibility. When instead, they should be figuring out what they really actually want and then run towards that. So what happens if you've had that situation? What happens if you have made a career change only to realize that your previous career actually fit you much better? Technology and culture can advance, or it can change quickly. How do you pivot back to your previous career path after some time has passed and make it even better?
• 0:04
  Louie 01:06:
• 0:05
  There's a lot of pressure of, I can leave at the end of the day and come home and not think about work until the next morning. And that's, you know, prioritizing family and my health. It's becoming a perfect fit.
• 0:06
  Scott Anthony Barlow 01:17:
• 0:07
  That's Louie. He went to college for medical imaging, he spent years then afterwards working in the 3D imaging field. And, as you might imagine, he felt like someplace along the way, he needed a career change. But once he made that change, he quickly realized that his health and his family life were being very negatively affected. Listen as he shares why he changed careers from medical imaging into IT and the struggles that he faced when he made that change. And most importantly, take a listen further in the episode to how he pivoted back into the pieces he loved most from his previous career, ultimately leading him to much more happiness more often in both career and the other areas of his life.
• 0:08
  Louie 02:05:
• 0:09
  I started out in college as an X-ray Technologist in Radiology and went further into a degree in medical imaging. So I learned about CT and ultrasound, and MRI. And in school, I did a research paper on 3D imaging. So there's a lot of applications of 3D of a heart, 3D of the vessels, the bones, things like that. There's additional applications that you can be involved with that go along with the software of, like, a CT or MRI machine. So it was a very new area of medical imaging, and I found it very interesting. So I wrote a paper about this certain topic. And by writing the paper and reaching out to different people, I was able to get a job and work in this very new and upcoming software technology. At the time, it was only in the university setting, a lot of researchers, a lot of vendors were working, collaborating with clinicians on developing this technology, and fast forward, probably 15 or 20 years, making it a very mainstream part of medical imaging. So I've been working in that for about 15 years. And about four years ago, I decided to take a left turn and go into more of an IT role, medical imaging informatics. So I had moved into that role, and about three and a half to four years later, I decided, "You know what, this is very interesting. I liked the medical imaging informatics." But it didn't feel right and didn't feel like it was a perfect fit for me. So I kind of did some recollecting of what I liked to do, and what I was good at, the kind of work that I enjoyed, and I came to the decision that I kind of wanted to get back into the 3D imaging work that I've done for so long. So the reason why I reached out to you and your team was medical imaging is a very dynamic department and field, and I've been out of the area that I specialized in for four years. So I knew I needed to reach out via LinkedIn and in my contacts and get, you know, just get back in the game. So I wanted some help because I know that I really had one shot to reach out to my network and wanted to be a little bit more methodical and really get some tips on what direction to go and how to handle that. So I found some of your podcasts online, and I thought, "Man, this sounds really great." So the rest is history. I went through and the boot camp that you offer, and ended up reaching out to a lot of my contacts within medical imaging, and one, before I even started pursuing a specific job that I have now, I learned a lot about my field. But I didn't even, I kind of, I guess I was in a vacuum when I left the 3D imaging area.
• 0:10
  Scott Anthony Barlow 04:38:
• 0:11
  That does happen a lot.
• 0:12
  Louie 04:40:
• 0:13
  Yeah. So I really found out how much I didn't know in a field that I'd been in for 15 years. So that was a learning experience, and just started putting pen to paper and reaching out to people and requesting time, like the bootcamp leads us to do. So that's kind of a long summary of how I got to where I'm at. But yeah, that covers on past, present, and future.
• 0:14
  Scott Anthony Barlow 05:04:
• 0:15
  That's perfect. We're gonna come back and talk about several portions of that. Because one, I'm really interested because I haven't been able to discuss it with you firsthand up until now. But then, second, I'm really curious, would you be willing to share a little bit of light on some of the big events that led you to deciding why you needed to change in the first place? It sounded like the work environment at your previous role was requiring a lot, as I put it mildly.
• 0:16
  Louie 05:39:
• 0:17
  Sure. So I was new in the field, the opportunity that presented itself to me was because of the rapport that I built with some of the physicians that I work with, and some of the administration. I was suggested for this position, but it was new. I had a little bit of IT training and looked kind of a beginner type certification, but I hadn't worked in the field directly. So I stepped in and worked really hard. I learned a lot. But it was just a lot to take on with the day to day work and the training to learn and understand a lot of the science behind and the technology behind what I was doing. And then the last year of my position, we went home, and everybody worked from home for COVID. So I think everything happens for a reason. But I think that going home and working from home was nice. And everybody's had that experience now on a grand scale. But I think what that did was kind of put me in a vacuum. And I still need my other teammates to kind of directly interact. I mean, we had Zoom, we had web meetings, but it's just not the same. I think working from home now, I understand that, for me personally, a hybrid approach would be great. It's nice and convenient to work from home. But there's always that people factor that you're not going to get unless you go in and with the team and meet and talk around the water cooler type things. So that played an impact. And I can tell that for sure, looking back that, yeah, I felt kind of on an island. And I eventually just felt like I was trying to fit in, I was trying to work really hard, and I wasn't going anywhere, kind of, like running on a treadmill. So with that, I thought, okay, it's time to start looking. And really, after I really put my mind to, "Okay, what do I want to do for the next several years, if not till the end of my career, and that's what I really enjoyed?" I just needed to kind of get out of my mindset that I was for so many years, and I think actually stepping out of the role of 3D imaging, and then coming back, I have kind of a new outlook on things.
• 0:18
  Scott Anthony Barlow 07:36:
• 0:19
  So that's interesting. Tell me about that for just a minute. When you say, you know, I needed to get out of my mindset that I was in for so many years, what do you mean by that? What mindset did you need to get out of?
• 0:20
  Louie 07:47:
• 0:21
  I think that I was in an environment up until when I left for about eight or nine years. And it was very exciting because I brought a new technology to a health system that they hadn't been introduced to officially. So what I did was establish a team, establish protocols, work with physicians, I put a public relations hat on, and reach out to different specialties and service lines. And that was really exciting, and our volumes increased, and it was great. But then things kind of plateaued. I mean, it wasn't a bad thing, because we were still busy. And I just didn't feel like I was growing, which wasn't a horrible thing. But then I had this opportunity, presented itself to me, and I thought, "You know what, I think this is a way that I can grow." And I did. It was fascinating to get into the IT world. But after, I guess you don't know what you don't know. And getting into it, I learned things that I still think it's interesting. But as far as the day to day work, I wanted to get back into the subject matter that I worked so long in, it's just stepping out of a role that you've been stale in or in a vacuum, and come out and look at it and think, "Okay, I need to take another approach to this." So now the environment that I'm in it's also very new. This organization is much bigger than I worked in before. A lot of the structure to build in this area is already there. And all the way it's not on me. So I can go into this department and share my expertise and my experience, but we're not really starting from the ground up. So I'm not the go to guy anymore, so to speak. I do have a lot of experience, and I'm sharing that with my teammates, but there's a lot of pressure off. I can leave at the end of the day and come home and not think about work until the next morning. And that's prioritizing family and my health. It's becoming a perfect fit.
• 0:22
  Scott Anthony Barlow 09:35:
• 0:23
  So what's so interesting is I remember having a conversation with you. Geez, when was that? I guess that was about six months ago, almost. And one of the things that you told me that you wanted, because I think I had asked you, "Hey, how much do you know about what you want and what great looks like for you in the next role?" And you said, "You know what, I think would be perfect, and I know not everybody wants this, but I would love to just have...," I think you said less responsibility initially. And then we kind of pinned it down to him like a different type of responsibility, because you wanted to be able to come home and focus on your family and not worry about everything else that was going on. So it's so fun to hear you say, "Hey, guess what? Now I can come home, and focus on my family and my health and everything else, and just not worry about..."
• 0:24
  Louie 10:28:
• 0:25
  Yeah. I'm glad you brought that up, Scott. Because I did say that. And I can't answer my own question, and granted my own request, I guess.
• 0:26
  Scott Anthony Barlow 10:36:
• 0:27
  So that's really, I think, fascinating on many different levels. Partially because I got the impression a little bit at the time, it's like, "Hey, I know that I want this. But I'm not sure how much I believe that it's possible for my next step, in some way or another." And I might be oversimplifying here, but yeah. How has your perspective on that changed from that conversation 6 months ago, to now you making the change and having some of those opportunities where allows you to focus on your family more of the way you want to, and allows you to focus on your health in more of the way that you want to, versus how you were thinking about it back then?
• 0:28
  Louie 11:19:
• 0:29
  So I think when I first got out of my role, my past role that I left, my health was, I won't get into all the health details, but I was tired all the time, it was starting to affect my health. And at the time, when I left my old position, I just wanted another job. I knew what I wanted to do, and I needed help to get there. But I was willing to take, really to take anything that wasn't where I was. So I started looking at, okay, my wife and I started working on budgets, and I thought, "Okay, what can I work as far as salary, a bridge job, or can I take a job to get to my next job?" But my main focus, my main priority, even till today, was my health and my family. So that was, I didn't really necessarily want to move up into, like, management or industry, where I would be traveling a lot and up all hours of the night. So that helped me kind of curtail my idea of where I wanted to go. And then ultimately, you want to have a good job, great hours, great pay, you kind of make a list of things that are the pie chart of, "okay, I really want this and this is okay", and kind of rank those things in mind. And really, the way that this opportunity came about is, it's a little bit of everything. It's a great balance. So I think there's growth and there's excitement in the job. I feel like I can be a part of the team. I think I've already added some of my experience to help things off the starting block. But again, I don't see it in my position right now. I mean, I might have opportunities to move up and over in my new role. But for now, in the short term, I'm completely fine with doing what I'm doing and just relaxing and not being overstressed. So I have my time back and my family, I'm healthy, I'm in better shape than I was when I was a young man. And I enjoy what I do. So it's kind of a win-win. So, my ideal career, I can't think of anything better than what I have right now.
• 0:30
  Scott Anthony Barlow 13:19:
• 0:31
  That's pretty cool in so many different ways. And I think that, as I listen to you talk about it, too, I think what is coolest for me or what I think is most impressive, as I look at the change that you have made, is these pieces that you had decided that you want are not always popular pieces, either. Like it's not always the socially acceptable thing to do, like for most of... this is especially common in the United States, but it is in some other countries to where it's like "Hey, you need to move up, you need to move up, you need to have this type of growth." And we have very specific ideas of what that means. And for you, you tried that out a little bit, in certain ways. Determined, "Hey, this is not right for me" and then decided that "hey, I'm going in a direction that is right for me and right for me right now, that allows me to focus on my family and health and the things that are most important to me at this point in time." So kudos to you, first of all, because you and I both know that going against any kind of norms is not always easy, right? Second of all, there's no small amount of work that it takes to be able to get there. And I'd love to talk to you a little bit about what that looked like from the inside out. I think it's so easy on some of these podcast episodes where we'll have stories, and you know, people are in their new role, and they're excited about it and everything. And sometimes we jump over, how would this actually happen. And it is no small amount of work. So could you take us through what were some of the key events that took place that allowed you to be able to take, that get into this opportunity that you're now in?
• 0:32
  Louie 15:11:
• 0:33
  I will say that I would call it a struggle, because Happen To Your Career Boot Camp was a little overwhelming. I went through all the modules, of course, I jumped ahead.
• 0:34
  Scott Anthony Barlow 15:20:
• 0:35
  We would expect nothing else from you.
• 0:36
  Louie 15:22:
• 0:37
  And so there are parts about the interview and the resumes and connecting, which at first glance, you're like, okay, you're searching for a new career, that's going to kind of refine what you already know, and give you kind of a direction. But then there was that more of a conceptual thing of developing your strengths and finding them, and knowing what your weaknesses are, and building off your strengths with your weaknesses, that was hard to get a handle on. And so I did the strength assessment, and it was very, very accurate. And I had to read through it two or three times, and I highlighted things like, "oh my gosh", you know, so that was very helpful. But I couldn't quite get a grasp on how that would affect me professionally. So what I did was, and it really helped me out and I talked to my coach about this is, I went through, in as much detail as I could, I wrote down, lined up items everything is, all the interaction that I've ever had with people and every single job, I put, "okay, this particular situation I struggled in. This particular situation, I excelled in. This interaction with a person, this is how they were, and this is how I was, and I felt like I handled the situation well", so you kind of go through your mind in every single job. And I mean, it took me a while because different situations, you remember, either it was really good, or it was really bad. So all the good situations and how I came out of those situations would kind of reflect on my strengths. And like, one of my strengths was that I include everybody. And I thought, okay, well, when I supervised 10 people, I made big decisions, but I tried to get input from my employees before I told them this is the way it was. So I thought, okay, yeah, that's an example of me being an Includer. So that helps gear that some of an abstract concept to, "Okay, I need to see what kind of employee I am. I need to see what kind of boss I am." So that made everything relevant. And it kind of turned some lights on and kind of sent me in the right direction.
• 0:38
  Scott Anthony Barlow 17:24:
• 0:39
  When you say it turned some lights on and it sent you in the right direction, what's an example of that in the process? How did that change your career change process?
• 0:40
  Louie 17:34:
• 0:41
  Well, I think one thing that comes to mind right away was, and at this time, I didn't know which way I was going. It really gave me some in-depth knowledge on what my strengths were and what my weaknesses were professionally. So now and if I ever get another job, or have an interview or anything, I can really talk about my strengths and weaknesses. Because I think we all kind of sweat a little bit on, "What is your weakness? Can you tell me what you struggle with?" It's kind of hard. But then, with the strengths and the weaknesses that I've developed and worked with, I can really tell them and give them examples of what my strengths are and what my weaknesses are. And when I was interviewed, those questions were asked to me, but I think I was very well beyond prepared to talk to them about what my strengths were and what my weaknesses were. I think that alone would be a genuine response that any person interviewing you would appreciate.
• 0:42
  Scott Anthony Barlow 18:39:
• 0:43
  How are you getting to utilize your strengths now that you have a much, much better ability to articulate what your strengths actually are? How are you getting to utilize those in your new role? What does that look like on a day to day basis for you?
• 0:44
  Louie 18:46:
• 0:45
  So there's only three people on my team right now, and we plan on growing. But the other two people on my team they have a different skill set than I do, and we coincide well together. And it's only been about two and a half weeks since I've had the position. But as we talk more and more, I talk about what I've worked in, and they talk about what they worked in. And if they don't quite follow what I'm saying, I make sure they understand things, and when we talk to physicians, I kind of talk about "We" instead of "Me" about what we're going to do instead of what I plan to do. So it's kind of, I'm including, I don't want to take all the credit. I've been there and have experienced it, but I want to share that experience with everyone. So by that, I'm an Includer. I want to be a team member, I want to be a team player. So I'll take credit when credit's due. But otherwise, I can't build this and do it all on my own. So I'm not gonna pretend that I'm going to. That's probably, you know, it's a very new job, and that's the only example that I can give so far, but I'm sure there are going to come some times where I'm going to think, "Okay, I need some help. Because I know this is challenging for me to overcome." But yeah, I mean, it's by going through that research and homework, I can understand it better, and probably develop them as I go on, what my strengths are, what my weaknesses are.
• 0:46
  Scott Anthony Barlow 20:04:
• 0:47
  What else in your, as you were going through this process, what else were some of the key events that led you to the role that you're in now? What else took place that, as you look back, you're like, "Well, I didn't know it at the time. But that totally led me down the path of now getting this opportunity."?
• 0:48
  Louie 20:24:
• 0:49
  So this is really cool. And I'm going to hold on to the story for a long time. Because it was really neat how it worked out. So when I, Scott, when we had our initial interview, and in my opinion, Stanford University has one of the premier departments and setups and the type of imaging that I work in, and my ideal... my golden nugget would be to work in the Stanford University area. So long story short, I don't work at Stanford, but on LinkedIn, I'm connected to a gentleman that is over the area at Stanford. And I reached out to him for a connection, discussion, and just talk about what things are upcoming. I said, "I've been out of the area for four years, I just want to see what you guys are doing." So he responded and said, "Hey, this Friday afternoon, I am leaving work early. I don't have a lot going on, let's do Friday afternoon." So all I asked was for 15 minutes. And we talked for 40 minutes. And he gave me a lot of information, great food for thought. And then he asked me where I was from. And I said, "Well, I'm from Indianapolis, Indiana." And he said, "You know what, I'm working with somebody in the Indianapolis area that wants to build this 3D imaging platform." I thought, okay, well, there we go. Here's the connection, like what we call a weak connection. And so I said, "That'd be great. Do you have his contact information?" So while we were having a Zoom meeting, he emailed this gentleman, and he replied back to the guy and said, "Hey, here's his email. He's wanting to talk to you." So the gentleman that emailed me is my new boss. And so it's kind of cool how I reached out to someone in San Francisco, and they connected me with someone that lives 20 minutes away from me. And what's further cool about that is, we're going to be collaborating with the gentleman at Stanford, he's going to help us in some aspects of our development of our imaging area. So not only do I have a new connection with LinkedIn, but I'm working with my connection, and the person that connected me with my new boss, so that kind of worked out, and I thought, "Man, that couldn't have been any better at a better time and perfectly placed." So that was really cool.
• 0:50
  Scott Anthony Barlow 22:31:
• 0:51
  That is an amazing story. And what I always find fascinating about stories like that, too, is it's not just those individual pieces, it's not just that reach out, that led to the perfect thing, and then led to the other perfect thing, and boom, a job opportunity that happens to be exactly what you want. It's usually all of the other work that you had done leading up to it to begin to, one, declare what it was that you actually wanted. Two, say, "Hey, look, I'm gonna go for this, I'm gonna start reaching out to people. What the heck, I'm gonna reach out to the guy at Stanford. I might as well go for the gold, right?" And all like, even in some cases, like getting through all the head games that we play on ourselves to be able to have those, take those actions in the first place. So really, really nice work. And not just with that itself, but all the things that led up to that as well. What do you feel like for you, when you think back on this process, what do you feel like was the hardest part or parts?
• 0:52
  Louie 23:39:
• 0:53
  Well, because I was struggling with my health, I decided to leave my last role without anything lined up. So by far, as a father and a dad, it was hard to walk out of the job without anything like that. Because, you know, I'm the provider, I have to have a job, but I didn't. And we thought it was best that I might not work. But you know, we planned for this, we thought maybe we would someday have to live off of one income for a while. And so we did, and we did okay. We just put down the credit card and really tightened our budget, and we did fine. But I think just what was really frustrating was I did a lot of the work, but then I started reaching out to my contacts, and when I got to the point where I reached out to all my contacts, I've done my homework, now I just have to wait. I have to wait for somebody to reach out and say, "Yeah, I can talk to you. And yeah, I have 10 minutes we can talk." And I didn't have a job. So my job was to work on my career. I was just kind of in limbo, and you can only search the internet for jobs and go to companies' websites and reach out to people. And so it was frustrating, because I worked really hard at it. I got up every day and worked till probably 10:30 or 11. And then I thought, "Okay, now what do I do?" But yeah, it was frustrating. And I think everybody's gonna go through that when you're changing your career or making a big move like this, because it's a process, right? And some people don't check LinkedIn, but maybe once a month, or once every other week. And if you're not directly connected to them, and can't reach out to them directly via Facebook messaging or text message, if you can't get a direct means of communication with them, and LinkedIn is all you have, you have to take that into consideration. It takes time.
• 0:54
  Scott Anthony Barlow 25:26:
• 0:55
  I think the waiting game, in some cases, any kind of waiting, whether it's a day or whether it is several months, is quite possibly one of the hardest parts, in general. Because what's really interesting, we have a tendency to have lots of people that would describe themselves as wanting to be in control, in one way or another, that listen to this show, listen to this podcast, and then we also work too. And when that is your nature or tendency, it feels doubly challenging. And that in itself can be just a very real challenge that sometimes feels like it shouldn't be a challenge in one way or another. The other thing I really wanted to ask you too, about was, it's been five, six months or so since you really said, "Hey, look, I'm making this change, here's how it's going to happen," and really embarked on all of the time, effort, energy, actions that made it take place. But if you were to go back to that time period, five months ago, six months ago, back to where you're like, "Hey, I know that I need to make this change, I'm going to make this a priority." What advice would you give that person that's in that place?
• 0:56
  Louie 26:45:
• 0:57
  I think what we just talked about with the waiting game and the frustration, just be patient. And LinkedIn, I think, is the best way to communicate. But you can also go to websites, go to the contact us, you know, talk to people. I think people genuinely want to talk to you about their craft. But people that did respond to me were happy to talk to me. I think that if they see that you're taking initiative, and you're genuinely are interested in what they're doing, or what they can provide you, I wouldn't be afraid to reach out to anyone. I think that's the key. And I kind of had that in mind, that looking back, it really is. I mean, everybody that reached back out to me said, "Sure, I can talk to you." And the gentleman from Stanford, we turned a 15 minute chat into a 40 minute conversation. So I think, be optimistic about that component. Because when you do your homework and get a little content in your questions, so they know that you've done your homework, and then they're definitely going to be genuinely interested in helping you get to where you're going. So yeah, I think just really focus on, if you don't have LinkedIn, if you're younger, just reach out to your contacts from college, or maybe, if you know somebody's parents that are in a field that you might like to get into, again, I think anyone's going to be interested in you wanting to be interested in what they're doing. So that's huge.
• 0:58
  Scott Anthony Barlow 28:06:
• 0:59
  Oh, one other question for you. I noticed that, if I remember correctly, and I apologize if I'm getting this wrong, I might be making this up or confusing it with another conversation. Did you and I talk about, way back when, you were saying health issues was part of that you were having seizures? Am I making that up?
• 1:00
  Louie 28:27:
• 1:01
  No, I was. So I do have a history of seizures, and looking back, up until recently, I've had them about every 20 years, with an uptick and the frequency of them, we had to do a little bit more each day. And looking back, every seizure that I had, there was a formula of exhaustion and stress.
• 1:02
  Scott Anthony Barlow 28:47:
• 1:03
  Interesting.
• 1:04
  Louie 28:47:
• 1:05
  So that's kind of what we had to get control of. And part of what led me out of my last role was, there was a lot of after hours work. And so I had to figure out something that I like to do on the premise that it was a normalized sleep schedule. And medical imaging in healthcare that's hard to find.
• 1:06
  Scott Anthony Barlow 29:10:
• 1:07
  Yes, it is. I remember vividly chatting with you about that part.
• 1:08
  Louie 29:16:
• 1:09
  So that was challenging because I really didn't know where I was gonna go. That's why I said, you know, I can't think straight, and I can't focus on myself and my health and my career when I have this very demanding job that's wearing me out. And that's what led to me just resigning without having anything lined up. So yeah, it was scary. And because I left my other role, and I know the first module in bootcamp is to manage your time, that was one thing that was nice about not having a job is, I can really focus in on where I wanted to go. So I guess, a takeaway point, and it's very hard to do this, but if you've had enough and you can't even think straight, you're so tired, and you want to focus on you, take a leave of absence, or FMLA. Or there's a lot of things that you can look into. I looked into FMLA, and actually took a little time. But found out that it just wasn't enough. So I left the position. But even if you submit with your physician and say, you know, whatever, "I need to get my sleep under wraps", or "my stress level needs to come down so I can have more clarity of thought." I think it's not out of the question. I mean, that's what it's there for. So yeah, I think that was very helpful. Looking back, I'm glad I did it, even though it was a very uncharted waters, and it wouldn't be for anything.
• 1:10
  Scott Anthony Barlow 30:36:
• 1:11
  That's the type of thing that doesn't get talked about enough. But it's something that many people are experiencing in a variety of different ways, especially the impacts from their work. It may not be exactly the same as your situation, but we talked to so many people every single day that have very substantial impacts on their health. And I think that one of the things that I've learned over the years is that hearing about it from other people helps to pave the way to, whoever is listening, allowing them to do something about it for themselves. Even if we're not working with them, they're taking serious steps on making a move that is very, very valuable. And that's part of the reason why, you know, as I share my story, I always incorporate those pieces so that people will recognize some of those commonalities in there.
• 1:12
  Louie 31:36:
• 1:13
  And I will add that about a year before I left my position, I did try to apply for another job. But that job included several interviews, one of which was about an hour away. So I just had to tell my boss I wasn't available, because it was a very busy time. And he wasn't granting PTO. So I just left. I just told him I'm not available today. It wasn't received well. But it was stressful. I mean, obviously, I didn't get the job. But I did go pretty far in the interview process. So that period of time, the stress was multiplied because I was trying to put my best foot forward, I was trying to do my best to get the job. I think I did well. The company that I interviewed for said, "You were one of the final candidates, we found somebody that was a better fit." And that was fine. But it was disheartening. Because all the work and time that I put into that, with everything that was going on with my job. So again, you know, if you're gonna do it, and especially if it's your health, and you're having trouble being a mom or dad, I mean, hey, take a second, you know, take three or four weeks off, because it's just not worth your health.
• 1:14
  Scott Anthony Barlow 32:43:
• 1:15
  Hey, if you're ready to be clear on what you want and find what fits you, I would say just email me — pause this right now — scott@happentoyourcareer.com. Put “Conversation” in the subject line. I'll connect you with somebody on my team, the right person on my team, who can help you discover your ideal career profile. Again, it's scott@happentoyourcareer.com.