I know that this blog post is coming on the heels of Thanksgiving, but there’s nothing like a national holiday devoted to being extra grateful to make me feel…well, extra grateful for all the help I’ve had.

I interact with the Career Planning & Resources office as a blogger, a career consultant, club leader, and of course, as a student; my multi-faceted experience has only made me more grateful to have a supportive network of women I know I can trust when I need help. Valinda has been incredibly supportive as the manager for this blog, and I appreciate the weekly updates she sends out so that we bloggers feel like part of the CP&R team, even though we might work from home. Grace is essentially my safety net when I’m on duty as a career consultant, and words cannot express how thankful I am to know she’s there when (not if!) I bungle an incoming phone call. She has the voice of an angel and could probably calm a stampeding rhino. I’m grateful to Lesley for walking me through the process of taking a Meyers-Briggs personality test. When students come in wanting to take one, I’m able to help them more effectively because of Lesley’s amazingly thorough explanations.

I’d like to offer a special shout out to Gretchen for training all of us career consultants back in August before school started. I’m grateful to her for a solid foundation in practical, career-related knowledge that I can use to effectively help my peers. Gretchen also does an amazing job of making our weekly job training sessions enjoyable and ensuring that we on the student staff feel like we’re part of the CP&R team.

Before I came to CP&R, I thought team building in offices meant awkward bonding activities and weirdly complimenting each other. Gretchen, on the other hand, has built our team by touching base as a group every Friday and providing a safe space to share feedback. I’m hoping to improve my own leadership skills by incorporating these practices into my extracurricular activities. I don’t know how else to say this, and most of you might think I’m weird for saying it, but I actually look forward to our regular training sessions. We’re all relaxed and comfortable being ourselves–Gretchen breaks out her killer Boston accent, Laurie and Janine practice being ninjas with the coasters, I make awful puns, and Megan and Chandra act like they’re too normal to be silly with the rest of us. I’m reading my post and okay, that doesn’t sound as funny as when it’s actually happening. Just trust me when I say you have to be there for it.

Last but certainly not least: Vicki is a bomb director and decision maker. She’s calm, cool, and collected in any event. A few months ago, I was working on a scholarship application in the CP&R Library when I realized that I wanted to make changes to a resume I had already submitted. The changes weren’t absolutely necessary and I believed the benefits might somehow outweigh the cost, but I didn’t want to attract negative attention to my application. Vicki showed me how to navigate this potential sinkhole by making my message about the reviewer instead of myself. In my short time at CP&R, I’ve witnessed Vicki handle sensitive situations with tact and poise. I’m grateful to Vicki for her emotional and professional support. I know that what I’ve learned from Gretchen and Vicki I’ll take with me even after I graduate. After barely three months here, I can’t imagine anywhere else I’d rather work on campus.