Welcome! My name is Kate and this is a blog about my job search as a military wife.
Here is a little bit of a background story:
My unemployment dilemma comes from the fact that I have lived in 4 states (going on 5) in the past 2 years. In May, 2011, I graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in Psychology and Linguistics. I moved to California to start my internship at the W Hotel San Francisco in Human Resources one month later. It was fun, I learned a lot, and was even offered a job after my internship was over. That’s when I got the phone call from my soon-to-be-husband, Shelby, who is in the U.S. Coast Guard- We were moving to Virginia.
I moved out there and began my job search, thinking I would have a great career within the month. Well, a few more months went by and I had no leads. Once I finally had a job opportunity at a sister hotel to the W Hotel, we found out we got orders to move once again, this time to North Carolina.
This town had even less opportunities than the last. The problem with living here was that it was a Coast Guard town, so potential employers automatically knew I was a Coast Guard wife and that I would probably be moving again in a few months (which was true). This left me unemployed once again for the duration of our time here.
To keep myself on track despite the lack of job opportunities, I enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley Extension to obtain my Certificate in Marketing. Later, I began Career Coaching with a military spouse named Stacy Swearengen to create a Portable Career Plan and started marketing for a military spouse owned company called Hero On My Arm. I will be finished with my Certificate in Marketing in April and will begin applying the steps I learned from Stacy Swearengen soon, because guess what… We’re moving again! This time to Clearwater, Florida!
Stay tuned for the next steps in my job search and check out some links of my published writing!
Article written about me by Editor of SpouseBUZZ.com, Jacey Eckhart: http://www.military.com/spouse/career-advancement/military-spouse-jobs/jacey-eckhart-hiring-katies-speaks-volumes.html
Article I wrote for SpouseBUZZ.com: http://spousebuzz.com/blog/2012/08/ydu-military-spouse-programs-miss-the-mark.html
Article I wrote for SpouseBUZZ.com: http://spousebuzz.com/blog/2012/11/ydu-abandon-all-plans.html
My Hero On My Arm Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/KateGarrisonMarketingSpecialistHeroOnMyArm
myjobsearch2013 
Hi Kate, Feedback from another Coastie wife here. It is super hard finding a job much less a career when Uncle Sam has us moving all over God’s green Earth. I believe this is the reason so many of us military wives choose to earn income in positions with direct sales companies. Even with professions that one would think are easily transferable (i.e. teachers, nurses etc.) there are countless hoops to jump through when trying to transfer a certification from one state to another. I finally found a “job” that I love that allows me to work from home, when I want and I’m enjoying it (mostly because it lets me be home with my kids)! I hope you find a great position in Florida, and good luck with your new adventure!
Hi Elizabeth! Thank you so much for your feedback! The obstacles we must jump through as spouses are unpredictable, but the good thing is we are all in this boat (quite literally, ha!) together! The great thing about spouses is that we are always supportive of our husbands and of each other, even when we have never met! There is that instant bond that comes from our shared experiences. Thank you for your kind words 🙂
Wow Kate! You surely have a challenge with your constant moving! But if your next station is for a long period of time, I bet you’ll find something. Your articles are amazing! You’re a good writer! I’m impressed with all you are doing while you wait to get moved to a place you can really job search! You have already shown you have the drive to find THE job. Good luck!
Thank you!!! I’m so excited the next move will be for more than 8 months 🙂 Finally getting on track! As they say, good things come to those who wait 😀
Very interesting! I guess I had never thought about these kinds of challenges! I suppose it is a relatively “new” issue as at one point use ladies weren’t meant to work 🙂 Its great that you have a whole network of support that you’re building around this issue.
That is true! It does seem to be a more recent issue that didn’t apply many years ago! It is interesting to think of my experience before and after being a military wife because you really don’t understand the challenges until you’re thrown right into it and must adapt to each unique situation.
True! It is another reminder oh how you never really know how hard it must be in someone else’s shoes. 🙂
That is true! These kinds of situations really make you think of the bigger picture!
Kate your honesty and sense of humor are so refreshing! Thank you for inspiring all of us to give even our challenges our best effort. Also, I love your “glass half full” viewpoint and the way you invite others into your life in collaboration! Can’t wait to hear what you find for yourself in Florida!
Awwww thank you so much!! It always helps to have feedback in these uncertain times and it makes it all so much easier to deal with and move forward! Can’t wait to see what comes next!!
So proud of your determination and your will to never give up with the obstacles you have faced. I think I can speak for everyone when I say you are an inspiration! Best of luck with the upcoming move and job search!
You are SO SWEET! Thank you so much!! It is so exciting and I can’t wait to put all of these skills to use in my job search!!
It’s really incredible how much you have accomplished in such an uncertain atmosphere. It shows you are very entrepreneurial, creative, and smart – all qualities employers everywhere value. The best kind of employee is one who doesn’t wait around for someone to tell her what to do – she comes up with her own ideas to help the product or company. That’s you! Good luck!
Cherise, you are spot on!! Sometimes we must take matters into our own hands when we can’t control other factors. Thank you so much for your kind words 🙂
Kate, thank you so much for taking the time to share the sacrifice you are making for your husband to serve our country. We often give recognition to only those who are in uniform but a special salute should also be given to the spouses and children. Thank you for your commitment to stand by your husband and all that goes along with it.
I am selfishly still sad you’re not moving to Texas but I wish you the best in your new adventure and hope your search for work is short lived. If you need support getting back in the Starwood Family please let me know. Best of luck!
Colleen, thank you for the spouse recognition! It is very much appreciated 🙂 I am sad we aren’t going to Texas as well, so we will shoot for it next time around! I will research Starwood in the Clearwater area and will definitely let you know what I find. THANK YOU!! 😀
Hi Kate. This your personal blog project is very interesting. I simply couldn’t imagine how difficult and frustrating to change place of living 5 times in 2 years, and stay out of job, out of business because of it. But I like your sense of humor and optimism when you said that military wife’s carreer is a “portable” one. 🙂 I wish you good luck with this blog!
Thank you Viktor! The only way to get through it really is to see the bright side of things and know that it is all temporary (for and undetermined amount of time!) I am excited to learn from your blog as well because it is exactly what I am trying to learn to further my marketing skills!
A little advice for creating a simple structure for your blog.
You mentioned articles in other media written by you or about you, as well as your corporate Facebook page. It would be better if you create a “Menu” in blog header (Dashboard sections Appearance –> Menu) with static pages in it (Dashboard section Pages) , like “About me” (simple bio or essence of this your introduction + picture), “My articles” (list of articles with excerpts and pictures or screenshots), “Publications” (list of media coverage about you), “My Social Media” (list with thumbnails or buttons).
I would strongly suggest to create two static pages and put them in menu: “My resume” and “Portfolio” (some relevant projects done by you or which are in the process).
Also it would be nice to move your widgets (Recent Posts, Archive, Categories) from footer into sidebar by your choice (left or right) to let visitors easily see and find your blog content. You can do it in Dashboard sections Appearance –> Widgets.
Oh good I was wondering how to do that after I saw your page! Thank you so much, I will try that!
Nice job on this blog, Kate! I’ve been very fortunate to have found a job in my field in Astoria, OR, where my husband is stationed, right after graduate school. Now we, too, are headed to Clearwater in June and the job search for me has begun! I’m optimistic that it will work out for both of us! 🙂 I can’t wait to meet you! I love that you’re determined, motivated and optimistic…oh, and positive!
Glad to hear we are about to embark on the same adventure Tiffanie! It is great to know we are not alone 🙂 Positivity is the way to get through it, so I am confident you will be successful in your search in Clearwater as well!
Best of luck with your search, I look forward to followinf you progress and hope that your blog focus will very quickly change to a new topic such as the challenges of your career,
Thank you Terry! I hope my “job search story” quickly becomes my “job story” as well!!
Kate, your blog is great! I am so impressed with your “Hero on my Arm” page Facebook page. The bags are such a great idea for military families and are so cute. What a great idea! I’m so excited to not only follow your job search adventures of this blog as I look forward to re-building a career after my mommy hiatus, but to also read about the military life aspect. My boyfriend is in the military and I’m learning what a special lifestyle it is. It is a new world to me! The relocations seem like a challenge to the entire family. Thank you to your husband for serving and for all you do to support him!
Hi Jennifer, thank you so much! The military lifestyle is quite a roller coaster of uncertainty, but it is an experience like none other! We spouses (or girlfriends or fiances!) sacrifice a lot to support our loved ones who sacrifice for our country. The great thing about us is that there is a lot of positive support in the military spouse community. Glad to have you in it! If you ever need advice don’t hesitate to ask, as I have had a lot of experience with it in the past few years 🙂 What branch is your boyfriend in?
Thanks Kate! He’s in the Navy. Yes, I can see how the positive support for one another within the community would be so wonderful. Its fabulous that you have that built-in supportive network wherever you go and I’m sure it helps make the transistions a little easier!
It really does! I actually just posted this on my facebook page today, as today is the voting for “military spouse of the year 2013”
“Just wanted to say that Coast Guard wives are THE BEST! Moves would be so much more stressful without your help and advice for the next unit. It’s amazing all the kindness that comes from people we haven’t even met who are genuine and just want to help out a fellow Coastie! So thank you to all military wives from past, present, and future units!”
Hi Kate, Best of luck to you with this job search. It is a really great way to outline and motivate yourself through this process. This is also really motivating for other people on the job hunt as well and I believe it will serve as a great resource to people who don’t know what steps to take.
Thank you so much! I hope my story helps someone that is in a similar situation. There is a light at the end of the tunnel!