06 Oct Working Remote

Working remotely has its advantages and disadvantages. It has given me flexibility in my schedule and has also give me the opportunity to work with my team in Region 3. But it does get a bit hard to connect with people. I was feeling a little lonely and felt like I wasn’t talking to other Resource Assistants as much as others did. Talking in a big group chat can also be daunting as there’s just a lot of people. So I decided to start with other Resource Assistants that I met during the in-person orientation. I would send a Teams conversation to see what they were up to since the orientation and we would both share how our experiences has been.

Another way that I connected with other professionals is through informational interviews. I was very curious about what other programs and professions are there and the best thing I could do for myself was to talk to people. My mentor encouraged me and suggested people she knew that would be good to talk to. I talked to many people about forest health, partnerships, NEPA, etc. Through holding informal informational interviews, I got to expand my network and have conversations to learn of their journey to get to their current role.

Even though I was remote, I looked for ways to interact and engage with other people in the Forest Service because I had this opportunity to explore what jobs and opportunities there are. It has made my remote life not as lifeless while still giving me my personal space.