The Trenches

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 9^th 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