Full Time Employment

So anyone who might read this blog probably knows that I am working full time at an oil company called Newfield Exploration. I got my foot in the door thanks to my amazing sister Emily! It's such a fantastic job right out of high school. It pays way better than any job I could possibly find at this age, (other than a young drug lord) it is good experience, and it's good networking. It really is fantastic. I'm so thankful that I'm making money to go through college and go on a mission in the future. However, I find myself having a hard time with the change.

Again, I'm super thankful for the job and maybe I'm just a ignorant teenager but working full time is incredibly stressful and tiring. I know I'm working for all the right reasons but my summers have usually consisted of sleeping in, practicing guitar, and playing video games (with the occasional job or two thrown in there). I never really appreciated how much time I have had for the past couple years and now I'm kicking myself for not utilizing it as much as I could have.

I remember thinking at one point last summer that I hated sitting around and doing nothing productive. I was an idiot! As much as I wasn't wholly productive, I was doing three of my favorite activities all the time. Now I feel like every second I don't use at home is a huge waste. I only have a short amount of time until I go out to college up in Idaho for BYUI and I still have so many things to do. I have to pack, I have to make more money, I have to help my family move into a different house, I have to figure out what I want to study up at school...the list goes on for ages.

I have all of these things happening at once and not enough time but when I think about it, that's what growing up is all about: Having my own life and being solely responsible for my own choices. I have so much more responsibility and so many more decisions to make than I ever have in my entire life. It's super daunting but I think I can do it if I have the right attitude.

I don't know what it is, but in the past couple months I've realized something really important: my attitude can actually be to my benefit. I will admit it, I've been fairly pessimistic through much of my life but I think that is going to change. Today, I had the slowest day yet at work, it was atrocious. I went into today thinking about how much I would hate it and it turned out to be just as awful, if not way worse than what I excepted. My sister Charlotte always tells me something when I'm in a bad mood, "don't have a badittude." As much as I absolutely detest that cheesy, dumb saying, it has some merit. Maybe we should all choose good attitudes. I know that I could easily make my summer much worse and less than enjoyable but now I feel like I have that choice. I choose a positive, enjoyable, exciting summer with as little negativity as possible (I seriously have no clue what this person has done with John Wood).

Working has seriously been a huge slap in the face. Reality has hit me hard but I'm slowly starting to learn so much more than I intended. I may have gone into full time employment expecting just steady income but I am gaining so much more through everything I am learning. I am actually starting to get excited about my future and everything I have yet to learn. I thank everyone for their positive attitudes and support throughout my life. I have so much more to do and accomplish but hey, at least my summer is going to be fantastic.