Photo Credit: Chris Bennett

40 Stories for 40 Years – Profilee 19

Laurie came to New Ventures Maine in 2012.  At that time, she was not finding fulfillment in her job. After eight years in the same position, she was questioning if she was on the right career path. She was good at her job, but something was missing.

Upon learning about New Ventures Maine, Laurie enrolled in the first online My Next Career Move class.  The class worked for her schedule and allowed her to consider aspects of her career field that appealed to her.  It also provided a way for her to identify what was missing.

Through assignments in the class, she explored careers that would best suit her personality, skill sets, and interests. She identified that her field suited her skill set very well. However, her personality required more contact with people. As an introvert, she tended to pursue jobs that allowed her to work on her own. During the class, she realized that she missed interacting with others in her daily work.

After coming to this realization, Laurie began looking for opportunities within the same agency and was pleased when she found a position that would be a good fit. She accepted a position that allowed her to use her skills at a more complex level and, most importantly, provided more interaction with clients and other staff in more of a leadership role.  “The career planning class was instrumental in steering me in a direction that brought me great satisfaction and professional success,” Laurie shares.

When asked about her career achievements, Laurie shares that her “biggest joy has been successfully meeting the challenge of growing the program, meeting the needs of her clients, and experiencing successes and failures that allow her to learn and grow as a professional.”