So…..I Accepted a New Job!

Hi friends! Some exciting news today over here on Sequins and Sales. I GOT A NEW JOB! I was approached by Lowe’s regarding this position, and I couldn’t be happier to announce that I have accepted! I will be a Navigation Analyst on their site team and could not be more excited for this new step in my career. I wanted to write this post to share what my (brief) career has been, and share why it’s okay to branch out into new roles!

I decided to accept this role not because I was unhappy with my current role, but because I feel I’ve learned everything I can! When I first started at Carter’s, they told us that as soon as you are comfortable in a role, that’s when you should get promoted or find a new role that excites you. I feel that since I’ve been here for a year and a half now, this time has come!

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How to Decide to Leave a Role

I feel like this is the hardest thing people grapple with when presented with a new opportunity. My team has basically been with me since I started my first ~real~ job so it almost felt like leaving behind a family. That said, I feel like you need to objectively look at the pros and cons of each position before you decide to take a new route. I took the interviews not sure how I stood if I’m being completely honest.

That said, after I spoke with my new manager and the head of Navigation, I knew this was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up! Over the past 3-4 years, all my internships and jobs have been in retail or some sort of fashion related buying. I graduated college thinking that was 100% what I wanted to do with the rest of my life and was dead set on this path. Once I joined the e-Commerce world, I realized that this was the true path I wanted to be on (at least in this portion of my career).

I love the fact that I’m able to change and build things that will create a better user experience for the customer! This was one of the main reasons I chose my new role. Another thing that factored into my decision (which is a little harder to talk about) is diversity and some of the things I experienced in my previous role. There were (many) times where I didn’t feel welcome or that I didn’t fit in.

Racist things were said directly to me/while I was sitting in the vicinity I was in and I started to dislike my life more each time those occurred. It’s a peculiar balance being a Black woman (or POC in general) in a corporate environment because often times there won’t be many of you. Learning to navigate this has been hard for me since I am only starting out my career.

How to Leave Your Team in a Good Place

My new job was offered to me about two weeks before Black Friday. Now since I’m in retail, this is the massive crunch time that everyone freaks out about year after year. The guilt that I felt leaving my team during this time was IMMENSE, so I asked my new employers if I would be able to finish out the holiday with my current team and then transition over! They were kind enough to let me do so.

I made sure that I told my team I would be leaving in two weeks, and that I would do everything in my power to make sure they were in a good spot before I left! I helped to set up the last of our campaign changes before the holiday, provided linking strategies through December, and did everything I could to get ahead! I also know that my absence during this time of the year still isn’t great, but I tried to leave everything as complete as possible.

It was kind of a surreal experience because I hadn’t been into our actual office since March of this year. Going in and feeling like I was doing my “normal routine” again was very strange! I made sure to coordinate everything with HR to make sure my HSA and 401K were good to go, I checked about my PTO being paid out, and then set up a time that worked for both of us in regards to returning my equipment!

Should Compensation Factor Into Your Decision?

This is always a tricky subject when it comes to interviewing and finding new opportunities. Obviously it’s important to make sure you’re getting properly compensated, but you have to make sure everything else is in line too! Make sure that if you have to move, there will be a relocation package. Make sure your benefits are as good, if not better, than you current role.

Compensation is important in itself though! If you have to relocate, you’ll need to make sure your salary matches the cost of living in the area you’re moving to. Making $50,000/year in Augusta is a lot different than making $50,000 in NYC(trust me, I’ve lived in both places). You also need to make sure the company culture is in line with what you want/need out of a job. Do you want a close knit team? Are you good at working cross-functionally? These are things you need to ask yourself!

If you have ever thought about leaving your role/having new opportunities, I hope this post helped you to see what you need to do/look for in order to do so! This is everything I went through mentally before ultimately deciding to accept this new role. I am so excited to begin this new adventure and cannot wait to start tomorrow!

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Photos by Hannah Lozano

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