Hey all my HVAChicks (and dudes who support us), after a brief work-related hiatus, I'm back with more knowledge and understanding of our beautiful, crazy, rewarding-but-taxing trade to share with you!
There's a common thread I've been noticing. HVAC isn't like ANY other career out there. There are so many reasons I say that but to address the "elephant in the room", I think it's best to reserve this particular post for time constraints! HVAC service is very much a "hurry up and wait (but make sure you watch)" business. This causes our work days to be longer, and our free time shorter. Most of you know I'm a mom of five, and I also own a full time home school pod where I teach not only my kids, but other peoples kids as well. That and being a full time service technician make for an insane schedule. Throw in the fact that I go to an ivy league school and will be a Mechanical Engineer in May, and that my friends is what we call a "dumpster fire"
So how do I manage it all? Most people, (especially supervisors) would say "time management".. NO, NO, ABSOLUTELY NOT! You cannot manage your time better when you work in our field. The system manages your time, in fact. What I'm about to tell you will sound absurd.. I DON'T!!! I juggle, and balance and I move things around constantly but manage, I do not. The point of this blog was never to give you advice on how to better use your precious time, or to organize your life for you. The point of this blog is to tell you IT'S OK!
We as working moms, or working students (or all 3) are constantly told to be more ENOUGH. Guess what? WE'RE ALREADY ENOUGH! We cook dinner AND heat exchangers, we check homework AND sight glasses, we change diapers AND burners... When we get home at night we immediately transition from hard worker with something to prove, to super mom keeping tiny humans alive! Then, after all the kids are in bed, laundry is done and everyone is prepped for the next day WE GO TO SCHOOL! We're constantly trying to better ourselves for our families and careers and our self worth. Think about that, let it really sink in. We are really out here doing three jobs and the outside world and even our inner voices still tell us we're not enough? To juggle better? To manage our time more efficiently??? That will never be what we need. We NEED the world to see us for what we are, because as my teenagers would put it affectionately... We're Dope. We are enough.
So if you came here with the hopes of getting advice on juggling from a woman holding 6 spinning plates, and an elephant, with Cheetos and drill bits falling out of her pockets, I'm sorry you've come to the wrong place. When you leave this page, all you will leave with is a new sense of love for yourself. With a new sense of community and the priceless knowledge that you are not remotely alone. You have added the whole freaking world to your circus act and you're doing just fine. Sometimes we may drop a plate or two, (like last night when I fell asleep reading before creating my kids lesson plan for today) but you will sweep up those pieces, glue them back together and spin them twice as fast because YOU ARE DOPE. Don't ever forget it.
Be Kind HVAChicks~* That's what sets us apart<3