Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.  I am blessed with many fond memories:  spending time with family, enjoying home cooked meals and watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and football on TV. Thanksgiving is a time to step back from the challenges and stress of normal life and count our blessings. 

Even with close to a 10% unemployment rate, some of us who are capable of working and lucky to be employed find reasons to complain about our jobs.  We all have struggles or challenges that have the potential to make us stumble or help us learn and grow.  Learn and grow is what we want, right?  This year, I decided to take a moment and reflect on the positive facets of working for Allegis Group Services that I am truly thankful for.  This exercise helped me remember everything the company has done for me, refueled the tank that keeps me working so hard and reinforced my decision to remain a loyal employee year after year.  If you can take some time over the next few days to do the same, I hope you find renewed vigor and meaning in your career as well. 

My reflection brought me back to the beginning of my recruiting career and reminded me how thankful I am for all the people in my life that have impacted and developed me into the professional I am today.  After accepting an offer to join the company in 2005, I was partnered with an experienced mentor who taught me the fundamentals of recruiting.  In collaboration with the learning plan my mentor was facilitating, the entire office provided endless guidance and invested precious time teaching me the techniques and strategies to make me a successful recruiter.  Along the way I have also worked with many talented managers who taught me the intricacies of building and maintaining relationships, both personally and professionally.  In 2007, I transitioned to Allegis Group Services and for the last four years I have built new relationships with coworkers with whom I share a mutually vested interest in our collective professional growth. 

Continuing my reflection, I thought about some of the unique opportunities that were bestowed upon me as an employee of Allegis.  I have been invited to attend our company’s national meeting on more than one occasion.  One year we traveled to Denver, Colorado where employees from across the country gathered for meetings designed to educate and motivate.  Our keynote speaker was Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind person to reach the summit of Mount Everest.  Most people would never challenge themselves to perform such a feat and he did it without the sense of sight.  Talk about motivation, wow!  During this same meeting we were shuttled to the home of the NFL’s Denver Broncos where the entire stadium was open for us to eat, drink and play.  Playing catch with coworkers on the field at Mile High Stadium is a memory I will have for the rest of my life. 

For the past six years I have been steadily employed by Allegis Group with two different operating companies and five different roles.  The internal leadership has been consistently excellent, encouraging its employees to reach aggressive goals time and time again.  Thanks to Allegis, I have received top notch training and experience; built strong relationships both inside and outside of my company; traveled to new and exciting places; acquired great friends; and maintained the work/life balance necessary to stay happy and healthy.  I know that as I proceed on this journey with Allegis, I will continue to gain excellent experience and make memories that will last a lifetime.  On behalf of my coworkers across the globe, thank you Allegis Group and Happy Thanksgiving!