written 7/11/2013
Title:
The Trenches
“Being
in the trenches with others”.
What
do you think of when you hear that statement? Are you aware of what
it means to be in the trenches? Those of us old enough to relate it
to certain wars,Vietnam in my case, will immediately have pictures in
our mind of scenes from movies and shows such as “Tour of Duty”.
The trenches are a place we go to when there is a lot of gunfire and
we are on the frontline of action. The trenches are a simple yet
vital place to regroup, protect ourselves, communicate, reload a
weapon...pray. The trenches means there is a war going on. And
there IS a war going on...always and everywhere. I am not referring
to the war between countries. All of humanity is at war with itself
and we, with our own selves... and we humans are also at war within
ourselves. It is a Spiritual war. It is a war with consciousness.
Accepting that this is a constant and continuing state of things and
is the undertone of all life, is essential. There is no reason or
need for us to walk around feeling heavy-hearted about this war.
Just a simple yet respectful and mindful acknowledgement of it should
suffice- an awareness, if you will.
I
have a new job. At my job I have been sent to another state to train
for the work I will do when I return to my office. This whole
process is exactly the same as real war.
My brother was a U.S.
Marine. The government sent him to train (boot camp) at Camp Le
Jeune and then later at Pendelton. Eventually he went oversees and
was embroiled in the war with IRAQ until he was killed in his second
tour of duty. We just saw the 9th anniversary of his
passing on July 5, 2013. Anyway...my brother trained for his job
(war). There is no other way to see it because the climate around
our world at the time of his enlistment was...war. His training was
grueling. I am sure plenty of men and women didn't complete the
training. He did. But the intensity of the training, designed to
really replicate the experience the Marines would have in a state of
war on foregin soil, was helpful...honest...but nothing really feels
like when you are completely immersed in war. This relates to my new
work experience. The training itself was so intense and focused...it
was easy to hope that the work itself would be easier than that. But
the truth is, the training is NOT what makes you a success. I will
repeat this statement.
The
training is NOT what makes you a success.
Arriving
into my new work environment was initially exciting. I wanted to see
what I was made of. I wanted to show myself I could do it. Our
perceptions of what it is we will be experiencing are often different
from the actual experience. This was one of those times. I was
neither pleasantly nor unpleasantly surprised. In fact, I really
wasn't surprised in the least because after many years, with my now
advanced age (38, lol), I am one of those women who has “been
there, done that”. I went in with very few expectations. Rather
than show up with a preconceived idea or expectations, I arrived with
an open heart and mind and ready to listen, learn, be taught, pick up
my gun and fight...I think you get the point. Everybody in my office
is on the frontline. There are no corner offices. No one is better
than anyone or higher than anyone. We all carry certain
responsibilities that contribute to the team itself being successful
and we manage our part of this responsibility chain in order to allow
growth within our core group and also for the individual Agents in
our store. So the best thing I could do was have acquired a great
amount of product and technical knowledge from my training to bring
back into the Store. I sure wish I had!
I
am not the greatest “book learner” so to speak. I cannot easily
memorize details and then furnish them upon request. Nor do I have
the greatest organizational skills where I have a file-o-fax
(remember those???) neatly stationed with each detailed resort or
destination or regulation at my fingertips. I wish! I wish I could
plug my brain into some master computer and just download the
information into my knowledge base. It doesn't work like that.
These things come with time and experience and repetition and
unfortunately, some of the best learning comes from actually failing
a few times! Hearing “no” makes us stronger. It makes us work
harder, cleaner, neater...it makes us refine our approach and our
thinking. You just cannot let the “No” scare you or silence you
or stop you from working. Sales can be a tough job. It is exciting
too, though...especially when you can successfully match a person
with a product and then after all is said and done, they come back
and say it was perfect. Once you can create that cycle and repeat it
a few times, I think then you can say “I have arrived”. I think
it is at that point when you can truly know you are expertised in
your field. Until that point arrives, I am there, I am THANKFUL to
be in the trenches with the women who sit in my office with me. They
are some of the most amazing people I have ever met in my life.
In
my new job, the sales people are the frontline. We are the movers
and shakers of this business and we make things happen. Without the
work we do, our company would not have the means to financially
maintain the support team of administrative personnel that keep the
company in order. We are all connected. I take a lot of pride in
what it is I do and more so in who it is I stand in the trenches
with. For me the “who's” in the game of life are much more
important than the “what's”. I believe that the 5 other women I
work with feel the same way and we all approach life from that same
point of view. I love that we have different backgrounds, family
structures and ages. We are more similar than different and that is
important for compatability! That one thing is often overlooked in
offices but my Team Leader is astute and chose people who could LIKE
each other...people who would HELP each other and most importantly
people who were tolerant of others. Tolerance is of extreme
importance in a workplace. We do not all have the same tolerance
LEVEL...but we are all tolerant of each other and this creates a kind
of trust and warmth between us that is fairly unusual to find.
I
have had a lot of success in workplaces. For the most part I am
likeable and I work well in most environments. The difference now is
that I have a lot riding on my career at this stage in life. I have
to be willing to put myself “out there”...front line...in the
trenches...work harder and realize more financial and professional
success. I need to be the CREATOR of this success. This is a step I
have NEEDED to take for a long time and it will take some time to get
there so, off I go. There are people I feel I am leaving behind. I
cannot help it in a way. My work is very consuming now. I worry
that my children are not getting the best of me but that is because I
have always been their primary caregiver on a daily basis and now I
cannot be what I used to be for them. I have to learn to depend on
others and it is SCARY and it makes me feel VERY SAD sometimes. Just
sharing these feelings with all of you is making me teary-eyed. It
hurts me to let go of them a little so I can focus on being at my job
100%... immersed... and doing my job. If I was in Iraq, would I jump
out of the trenches to go get my son a juice box? We all know the
answer to that. It is not what I need to be doing at that moment.
This is the most difficult part of having a career and a family at
the same time.
I
have the support of many great women who have done this before me. I
see the outcome of their lives...their children...their careers and
family and marriages. I feel encouraged. I will say thank you to
you ladies. I will say thank you to women like Fiona Sanders, who
(for me) pioneered the way. I believe in myself because she showed
me I could do it, because she did it and not without difficulties
along the way. I will thank Dottie Rudoph for the same thing. There
are many, many others. Your sacrifices and passion have
inspired me. The inspiration of that has fueled my faith... and my
faith brought me to Liberty Travel and Flight Centre. When I got
there, I met 5 other amazing women and many more people at training
(mostly women), who are also doing it. So here I go! Back to the
trenches. Love and peace to all of you.
Lilac
