Prior to my current job, I was a Senior Marketing Product Manager for a publicly-traded company with a fairly recognizable name (that is, they paid an advertising agency and several PR firms, and advertised during the Super Bowl to try to become a household name). And no one in my family or circle of friends knew what I did for a living. So much so that my cousins took to calling me "Chandler" because it was a running joke on Friends at the time that no one knew what the poor guy did, they just knew he made a lot of money.
I worked really hard at that job. A former colleague and I were just commenting that it was the sort of place where you took care of your projects as quickly as possible because you needed to have a partially clear plate when the next project got lobbed at you from out of nowhere. Needless to say, it was a challenging work environment.
I am now hyperefficient. While I have never been a procrastinator, it just isn't my nature, I now consistently work myself out of work. When people ask on a job interview what is my greatest weakness, it really isn't BS to say that I need to be challenged. When we were in college, it would drive my boyfriend at the time (the Hoos) crazy that I would start on a project as soon as it was assigned, even if it was the first day of class and the project was due on the last day.
While the product management gig probably spoiled me for future jobs (honestly, it took a long time to get used to the drastic change of pace once I left), it really helped prepare me to be a mother. When else do you need to do 10 things at once? And be on the look out for ambushes from any direction?
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