Feb
02

Love, work and the whole damn thing part 2

Pamela Collins continues her own story of  resilient transition from Part 1 and in today’s post she talks about:

Pam Collins, writer of the He Said She Said column

Pam Collins

  • Adjustment to a new daily routine
  • Mentorship’s value
  • Birth of the He Said She Said column 
  • Creative connection to military and giving back

Have you guessed yet who is on her team?

Find out who they are NOW and check back again for the full confession of who this popular columnist and her writing partner really WERE before you met them here on Military Success Network…. 

…  we return now to read ...in her own words

The daily routine was not an issue.

I could always find something productive to do besides working full time. My days were filled with projects I worked for the military, college classes I taught and a teenage aged daughter I raised.

And, Oh, that need to give back? To be part of something greater than myself? Well, I did manage to pick that up along the way, too.

I joined local organizations and attended classes, but found nothing that grabbed my interest, not long-term.

There is an ancient belief that, in order for a person to be fulfilled, they need to have an “old man” mentor them, and a “young man” to mentor.

I realized very recently that I am more likely to be involved, be interested, and stay committed to an organization or cause if I have a mentor who is also involved and holds me accountable. It’s amazing how mentorship can be found just about everywhere, and you never get too old to have one or be one!

It was several years ago during one of my Master Gardner meetings that we inherited the He Said/She Said column.

I found myself again voicing my dismay to the editor of the Fort Leonard Wood post paper about the advice offered by their “Ask Missy” column. Only this time, he not only agreed, but also offered my husband and me the job. The first thing he wanted me to understand, of course, was that it was a non-paying job, which we did not care about, as we only wanted to offer sound advice to people trying to adjust to their life in the military.

He started sending us issues, and we set up a system where we would address the issues separately, then exchange our writings for review and feedback.

My husband, Shaun, and I have been married a short time, but one of the things that drew us to each other was that we are philosophically matched in almost every way. There are very few things we don’t agree on, but agree to disagree on the issues we don’t see eye to eye on, rather than allowing them to be a source of tension.

I thought this would make the column boring as “she said/he said” the same thing but we were coming from it from two different perspectives, which by the feedback we receive seems to resonate with people in a very powerful way.

We love the idea that we are able to continue helping service members navigate difficult situations, and continue to give back in some small way to an organization that gave us so much.

                                                               SHE had her say today.
                                                             Next up…..HE has his say.

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Trackbacks

  1. […] SIGN UP  for updates in the box on any page and don’t miss the revelation of the military mystery connecting Pamela Collins, her life and professional partner in “crime” and the next installment. […]

  2. […] Collins is co-author, with his real life partner, Pam Collins of “He Said / She Said.” The weekly advice column appears each Thursday in the “Guidon,” which is the post newspaper […]

  3. […] HE SAID SHE SAID advice column, written by our own new dynamic duo of guest bloggers and veterans Pam Collins and her partner in life and practical advice prose, Shaun Collins. (Formerly, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, […]

  4. […] are out now and our far-reaching and free range folks: Shaun and Pam […]

  5. […] for Pamela’s story on resiliency in transition and in part 2 on integrating all that is important in her […]

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