I’m in!

It's been an exciting whirlwind of activity with IBM’s Corporate Service Corps (http://www.ibm.com/corporateservicecorps/)! Let me catch you up on what has happened: A few days after I accepted that I had not been selected, I found out I was in the program; a few weeks later I found out that I was leaving for Ghana in ~10 weeks; and the last month has been incredibly busy and exciting as I have been preparing for this trip on top of my day job.

More details:
When I applied to the program, I was told that they would make selections in late October and we’d be advised in early November if we had been selected. For the first round of applications, they had over 5,000 people competing for 100 slots, so I guessed that it might be mid-November before we’d actually hear. I was optimistic that I would be selected, but I also recognized that there was a very good chance I would not. Luckily, people often tell me that I’m one of the most optimistic people they know, so true to form I was optimistic despite the daunting numbers. I never prayed that I would get into the program, I just prayed for God’s will. Which I am learning is always the right thing to pray :)

On Friday (November 14), I spoke with Carolyn, my former manager who had agreed to serve as a reference in my application. I didn’t ask her if she had been contacted about my application (we had many other things to discuss!), and she didn’t mention anything. Later that afternoon, I thought about it and realized that Carolyn would surely have mentioned something, because she was very excited about my application and would have been thrilled if she thought I might get selected. Although I was initially disappointed, I quickly realized that it must mean that God had something different and more interesting for me planned at that time, so that alleviated any sad feelings.

Monday afternoon (November 17), my manager Dave called me and I picked up the phone in a public place. I stepped outside so I wouldn’t be the annoying woman on her cell phone in a quaint coffee house, and he shared the fantastic news that I had been selected to participate in IBM’s Corporate Service Corps in 1H09. I literally screamed with excitement (luckily I was outside) and then started crying because I was so happy. Not my finest moment professionally, to be sure, but Dave certainly knows my heart and passions and understood my reaction. At that point, I was informed that I would be advised within the next few months and would deploy some time before June 2009.

I was really happy that many folks were excited at my news: I called my mama first (she was excited, but was heading into fairly major surgery the next day so naturally had her mind somewhere else) and then was able to reach Carolyn. Carolyn was as excited as me, and she told me that in fact the selection committee had not contacted her. Next I called Mike, my former General Manager who had also served as my reference on the application. Unfortunately, I didn’t reach him in his office or on his cell so after a bit of stalking (ha ha), I finally left him a message. Fortunately, he called me back and left me such a warm voicemail that I actually saved it. Over the course of the next few weeks, as word got out, I received many nice emails and phone calls from people, even people who I haven’t worked with or talked to in years. The question on everyone’s mind was “Where are you going?” and my only response was “I should know soon.”

I was flying home from my big sister’s college graduation and was stuck in the airport on December 7 with a delayed flight. I had lots of time and the airport offered free wireless, so I checked my email and learned that I had been assigned to Ghana, scheduled to depart in February 2009. I was very excited to be going back to Africa, even though I had kept my mind open because all 6 countries sounded like wonderful places to live, work, and visit (Tanzania, Ghana, Romania, Turkey, Vietnam, and the Philippines – all countries that I would like to but have not yet visited). Knowing that I was headed to Ghana made the whole experience finally seem more real, and I was energized despite the daunting task of completing 3 months of pre-work in 2 months.