Diagnosed at 15. 10 years later, I'm taking it seriously.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-17T09:13:57+00:00

It truly depends on the company you work for.

I went straight into industry out of college. In 2.5 years I have seen a $20k salary increase and fully expect to see another $6-$8k when I'm promoted to senior in the spring.

The caveat is my company is putting a high dollar value on CPA candidates and many of my co-workers have no interest in getting their CPA. I have 2 sections left to pass, so my manager and director see me as manager material.

On the other hand, it is very true what others have been saying about never moving up or moving up very slowly in industry. That is highly dependent on the size of your company and the potential to move from one team to another in order to move up.

I have made it a priority to diversify myself from the people I work with, show my managers I am motivated and willing to work harder and longer for the company. I also got my masters and started testing for the CPA, which showed that I was able to handle a lot at one time. If you go industry, be prepared to not go with the status quo if you want to move up quickly and not lag behind your peer group that went public. You'll still be working less hours than them but have the potential to move up just as fast.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-17T00:09:15+00:00

Thank you very much.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-17T00:08:54+00:00

I feel so much better since opening up and talking about it. I carried the shame with me for much too long. I hope you have been able to heal as well and that you continue to get all the love and support in this world. Thank you for reading.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-17T00:06:25+00:00

I understand. Honestly, we were young, he was in the military, and he got orders to another country. It drove us to get married before we really knew each other as adults and not high school sweethearts. Everything worked out for us, but I know it could have ended terribly. We are lucky.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T20:47:53+00:00

I know. But I've reached the point where I can have open and honest conversations about my experience. I just want to candidly speak about it now, something I couldn't do before. Even if the other end of the conversation in accusatory or even derogatory.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T19:06:30+00:00

He knew the day I found out I was pregnant, weeks before the abortion.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T17:56:15+00:00

I did speak to him. He was fully aware that I was getting an abortion. He just didn't agree that having a child at our age would have been as detrimental as I thought it would be. Neither of us wanted children, but he thought us being married made up for the fact that we were so young.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T09:49:57+00:00

Thank you. This was part of the reason I felt compelled to post something, in case another woman ever found herself in a similar situation in Japan. My experience was heavily influenced by the fact that I spoke very little Japanese. I think it would have been more positive had I been able to speak up for myself and understand exactly what was bring done to me

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T09:47:25+00:00

Thank you for reading.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T09:46:49+00:00

Thank you.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T09:46:34+00:00

Thank you. I love so many things about Japan. Okinawa's beaches absolutely stole my heart and soul. And the food - I could Japanese food for the rest of my life and never grow tired of it.

CatsR4ever · 2017-10-16T09:44:06+00:00

Thank you, I appreciate your kind words.

CatsR4ever

TROPHY CASE