SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/517437
www.stma.org June 2015 | SportsTurf 35 coworker and I called him to harass him about the opening we saw at his place. During that conversation, as he mentioned he didn't think I would be interested in moving, it became clear to me that I might be. I bounced it off my wife and we both felt I had nothing to lose and if anything it would give me a chance to see a part of the country I had never seen. I fell in love with the location as soon as I saw it and really clicked with some of the other staff and crew. The interview went well I thought and I just needed to see what they thought of me. In the mean time I sat down and made a list of pro and con issues that I felt were important to me. I admit I was disenchanted with running snow operations for years and wanted to gain my life back in the winter. I also had been infected twice with Lyme disease and was convinced I still suffered from its side effects. This list would change during the process but I needed to start somewhere: When I heard that the job was mine if I wanted it and what the pay and benefits would be, we added this information to the list. The two biggest questions I kept asking myself were "Do I want to do what I'm doing right now for the next 10 years?" and "Would I regret not trying this?" We were in a situation that my wife was also ready for a change in her career; she spent some quality time looking at homes, schools, and jobs in the area of the university. I have two children, one in middle school and the other in high school at the time, and we chose to keep the initial interview and process quiet until we knew more and had thought threw a lot of issue ourselves first. When it became clear that this was something we may want to do we sat down and talked with the kids. Even though it was a decision my wife and I needed to make, we wanted them to have a voice in the process. One child was all for it, one was not; the concerns were normal, e.g., leaving friends and family, etc. The last thing my wife and I did was to take a trip at our expense, wrapped into a small vacation we had planned, to go back out for her to see the area and meet the people. We then went on our vacation and made the decision. One big issue after accepting the job was timing. My interview was at the end of October and I ended up living in Washington by the second week of January, roughly 14 weeks start to finish. I needed to be out in January to start getting the athletic fields ready for spring sports and we still needed to deal with packing and selling the house and the kids finishing the school year. The hardest day in my life was the day I drove off across country leaving my wife and kids behind and going to a place I knew little about and knowing only one person. BIGGEST REASONS TO DO IT We wanted a life change and felt we would have better oppor- tunity if this worked. I wanted to move my career in a different direction and to have more freedom in what I did. Although the job was new, I knew who my boss was. We both knew our good and bad points and I didn't have to worry that I wasn't going to fit into his organization. I felt this was a huge plus with such a big change. I also felt I was respected enough that if it did not work I would be able to find a job back in New England. Professionally I had many conversations with several trusted people in the industry to get their input and opinions. I wanted to hear their concerns and fears along with the benefits and possibilities. I chose not to do that with extended family mem- bers, as for me it was a decision for only my wife and kids to be involved with. I also believe that sometimes you have to take a step back to move forward and that can mean anything— financial, title, position, etc. WHAT I LEARNED Moving across county sucks! Sell everything and buy new when you get there, it's cheaper. That is not true for everything, but you really need to think about what's important and what you can replace. The USA is an amazing, beautiful country. I drove across it twice in 4 months and it was a humbling, trying, beautiful experience even with the minivan loaded with a wife, two kids, three cats and a rabbit. I recommend not going back to where you moved from too soon; it opens up too many emotions. Live the adventure that it is first. All four of us hit home sickness at the 6-month mark. We now live in an area with many military families. I would compare what we went through to what our armed forces families go through; it always helped put things in per- spective for me. Professionally, it was hard to start fresh with all new vendors and suppliers again. It takes time to build up that group of people you count on when things need to get done but it's time that needs to be invested in as the payback is well worth it. More advice: embrace change but rely on your knowledge and experience; and, take advantage of the clean slate, both pro- fessionally and personally. Reach out to fellow colleagues and educators in the area along with professional organizations to help. STMA, PGMS and ISA and their local chapters all helped in the transition for me. ■ ST Pros Cons Little or no snow Overcast rainy winters No ticks, very few bugs Much smaller Campus Free education for kids Already have free education for kids Great growing conditions Unfamiliar with a host of plant material Fresh start Leaving friends and family behind New and different Could do job in my sleep (Groundhog Day!) Life style change