I had a job that I really did not like, I mean REALLY did not like. When you drive into work and feel your stomach knotting, your head start throbbing and the muscles in your back start tightening – it is not a good sign. I still went in every day and gave it everything I had. I was determined not to let this position get the better of me. And I had people there depending on me – I did not want them to have any idea that I was so unhappy. Then insult was added to injury: there were cutbacks and guess who was cut? Yep, me.
Shortly after this I was in my “miserable me” phase and thinking “What was the point?” I really disliked that job but I was a professional and I was damn good at what I did – why was this happening to me? I was angry, hurt and embarrassed. Yet, life went on and I moved on to another job. Still smarting from the experience, but moving forward nonetheless.
Years later I am thankful for that job, not only for the great experiences that I learned but also for the forced ending. If I had not been forced to end that path I probably would still be on it today. Thank goodness I am not! I can look back and see that position and its ending opened the door to something else, then something else and eventually here I am today!
It was a blessing in disguise. I only wish I had been able to understand that much, much sooner. Better yet, I wish I would have realized at that time, as I do now, that I have choices. I could have seen it as an opportunity rather than a “poor me – what is life doing to me” event.
You see that job did not land me where I am now, but it provided the steps for me to get here. Although the journey was not always a happy skip in the park it had been a tremendous learning experience for which I am grateful. For the people I have met, the opportunities available, the education – there are many positives to be found in a negative road.
Yet I had to make the decision to accept there are positives in negative situations all the windows flew open, fresh air came in and low and behold, I started actually seeing the positives.
You can choose to stay at the position you are in now even though you detest it, that is your choice. And you can continue to be mad at the world for the ending of your last position, again, that is your choice. But let me tell you, as a matter of experience, if you CHOOSE to see your situation as an OPPORTUNITY then doors and windows will start to open up to you.
It is your frame of mind that sets your course of action.
Think that silly? Let’s try a little example – Yellow Slug Bugs a.k.a. Voltswagon Beetles. Have you ever noticed how many Slug Bugs there are on the road these days, and how many are yellow? This week when you are out and about – see if you notice them more than you had before. Once you put your mind to looking for something or even making yourself aware that there is something out there, you automatically start finding it.
On this fine Monday morning, a holiday in memory of a great man and leader Dr. Martin Luther King, think about your choices. The ones you make and the ones you avoid. There are only two things you can control: how you feel and how you act. If you change your mindset on a subject you will automatically begin to change how you act toward that subject. That in turn will open new doors even if they are not the doors you were expecting. It may only open a window, but there will be change and change is good.