This is the photo from my last working day at UNICEF, and it was an opportunity to reflect and share my feelings and thoughts with colleagues.
This is a part of my farewell letter.
- Gratitude is the main point. From the moment I joined in 2005 to the last minutes of this organization, I felt grateful for its existence and privileged and humbled to be a part of it. The noble mission, the importance of its mandate, and the strength of its team are so inspiring that no other word can describe my experience.
- Work: Life Harmony. Despite my resistance, like most of my colleagues, I could never think of UNICEF as “just a job.” Thinking about the most marginalized children, their rights, needs, and challenges simply becomes a part of our lives. One of my first tasks after separation will be to rationalize, unlearn, and detach from the overwhelming sense of responsibility for the “unfinished agenda.”
- Learning and Education. I was lucky enough to benefit from UNICEF’s policies, which allowed me to dedicate my free time, flexible work arrangements, and energy both to formal and informal education. That was the key reason for me to accept the abolishment of my post as an opportunity and not as a calamity.
- Job security. The lesson I wish to share with younger and less experienced colleagues is that the only guarantee for job security is our set of skills, competencies, and contacts. At this moment, facing uncertainty, I can only believe in my resilience, qualities, and potential.
- Preparing for my separation, as a part of career coaching, I shared a voluntary and anonymous survey with a smaller group of colleagues I worked with over the last 10 or so years.
Reading their answers about my working style, strengths, and possible blind points leaves me with confidence that I have something to offer and also something more to learn in my next professional phase. I am grateful for their insights, and I am getting ready for the next challenges and opportunities. 💙