Christopher Maddox shares a success story inspired by IABC.
I was part of a layoff from a large U.S. bank where I had worked for almost three decades. It was a gut punch at first, and I felt like I had lost part of my identity. I decided to take some time off and then turned my focus to what came next.
I studied for my degree as an adult in English/Media Writing. I have always loved to write—using words to inspire, inform and tell stories. I knew that’s where my passion lay, so I resolved to make my long-term passion into a short-term focus. I wanted to make a career change into a full-time communications role. But how? Where do I start?
For many months I networked, applied for positions, and attended both online and in-person job search groups—all without success. Then one day I came across the IABC website. I wondered if I might somehow join as an aspiring communications person. A phone call to the president was quickly returned and he agreed to let me join.
He later suggested introducing me as a new member in their quarterly newsletter. I submitted a short article briefly telling my story. Around that time, I also volunteered to write a couple of articles for their website.
A couple of days after being introduced as a new member I received an email from an editor in a communications department at a local company. She told me she thought I wrote very well and that her company would soon be posting a position for a writer and wondered whether I’d be interested.
Fast forward several weeks and three interviews later and I was offered the position! I have been in the role for six months, and it’s my dream job—a strategic communications writer.
IABC’s role in helping me make a complete career change was critical. From the moment I picked up the phone to speak with the president of the local chapter to when a fellow IABC member saw my introduction, networking through IABC changed my life.