The End of an Era

Posted on 30th June, 2005 at 11:00pm by joel

On Friday, June 24th, I went home from Curtis Marketing Group for the last time. After over four years of employment for Mark and Susan, the time had come for me to move on. Two weeks prior, I accepted a Web Site Producer position on the Travel Technology Team at BI, a very large firm located in Edina, MN.

This marks a very big moment in my life. I started working at CMG when I was but a sophomore at St. John’s, going in to the office in St. Joseph on a part-time basis during the school year and full-time during the summers. This was a very exciting job for me and was very good to me for a long time. After graduating, I was exceedingly fortunate to not only stay on with CMG, but to do so in a position that was largely created solely for me. Over the next two years, a lot changed. People left, more people left, and the business model was radically altered, if only for survival’s sake.

I went through a lot of tough times and a lot of good times with Curtis Group, but no matter how good or bad things were, Mark and Susan remained dedicated to their business and their employees. I’m very happy to say that as I walked out that door on Friday, things were as sunny and promising as they’d been in a very long time. I still am very excited about the future for CMG, but now I am a mere observer…

I may only be 24 years old, but I feel I am qualified to make the following statement: there comes a time in every person’s life when he or she must look deeply within his or her soul and attempt objectively judge what one finds. And so, after much introspection, it became clear to me that no matter how much I enjoyed my job or coworkers, no matter how great my church was, no matter how nice it was living just a few minutes from St. John’s and my brother, I had to make a change in my life. I had to take a giant step forward instead of shuffling along.

That brings me here: my new job starts on July 11th, I need to pack up and start moving all of my worldly possessions to the Twin Cities, and I get to start building a new life in a big, lively metropolitan area. A large number of my closest friends will be nearby, the metro area is teeming with opportunities for artists, and I can refocus and concentrate on developing my web design and development skills. The opportunities for both personal and professional growth are astounding.

Like anyone, I’m terribly excited to start something new and incredibly saddened to have to leave so much goodness behind. And so, even as the sun sets on one major stage of my life, it rises on the next. I can already feel the warmth on my face. I’m ready to explore!

Filed under: ramblings

One Response to “The End of an Era”

1. 1Halbie sayeth:

   1st July, 2005 at 7:23pm

   I know you will really enjoy this. A few things may be difficult, but overall it is going to be a great thing for you.

   I would be lying if I didn’t say that I was a little jealous.

   Good luck! I look forward to future posts about your move.