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"Don't settle. Life is too short!"

Meredith Dean
Aug 17, 2015
3 min read

Blake Mitchell is living the dream in San Francisco -- AND working at Google! Before working for this tech giant, our #MCM thought he would be working in the film industry. Read Blake's inspiring story and his advice in going through the first quarter of life!

1. What's your story? What makes you unique?

I graduated from the University of Georgia with degrees in Finance, International Business and Mass Media Arts. I felt called to work in the entertainment industry, so I interned in LA a couple summers and ended up moving there after graduation. After 2 years, however, I realized that I wasn't as passionate about the film industry as I should be, so I began looking into other options for work (read: I had a full-blown quarter-life crisis). After some soul searching and help from mentors, I began pursuing jobs within corporate HR, and I landed at Google in the San Francisco Bay Area as a Recruiting Coordinator supporting leadership staffing. I am still at Google, although I've now transitioned into a learning and development role. My biggest project involves looking at how unconscious bias impacts the hiring process at Google and developing training to mitigate this potential bias. Our larger goal is to promote corporate diversity and inclusion within the organization.

2. What motivates you?

I am motivated by working with and investing in people. It's something that's driven me since I was in college. I am grateful that in my role at Google I am able to connect with individuals through training and see them develop and grow.

3. Who is a hero of yours?

My Dad is a hero of mine. In the past five years, I've watched him walk through losing both his parents, battle addition and cancer, and undergo multiple surgeries, only to come out on the other end with a positive attitude and a desire to give to those around him. I am inspired by his strength of character through such profound hardship.

4. What's your future plan? Your goals?

To be honest, I'm really happy where I am right now! I am challenged by and learning a lot in my current job, and I'm excited to see what else Google has to offer down the road. I've particularly loved being involved in the corporate diversity space, so I hope to learn more in that area as time progresses.

5. If you could give one piece of advice, what would it be?

Pursue what you enjoy doing, and don't quit until you find it. Don't settle. Life is too short, and we spend too much time at work, for you to get stuck doing something you don't care about. Someone told me once that most folks don't really settle into their long-term career path until they're 30, and that's really stuck with me. I sure hope it's true because I've definitely hopped around a lot!

6. What is something you feel strongly about (a cause, belief, etc.)?

I'm very passionate about advocating for and supporting LGBTQ youth. When I lived in LA, I volunteered with the Trevor Project (http://www.thetrevorproject.org/), responding to letters from young people who had questions or had faced discrimination or bullying because of their sexual orientation or gender identity or expression. I just discovered the Where Love is Illegal campaign (http://whereloveisillegal.com/) and am inspired to support those who live in countries that are less accepting of LGBTQ people than the US.

7. What's one of the coolest things you've ever done?

I just got back from spending 10 days backpacking around Belize with my boyfriend, and we finished our Scuba certification while we were there and had the chance to dive the Great Blue Hole!

8. Anything we haven't asked that you'd like to talk about.

Since I only got one bit of advice to give above, I'll use this to give another :) In addition to relentlessly pursuing the career that's best for you, do the same to find the person that you are. So many people walk around pretending to be someone that their parents or their friends or their boss wants them to be. There's only one you, so live your truth!