God is Always Hiring • Be the Miracle • God Never Blinks
An excerpt from God is Always Hiring
Once you decide who you want to be, it doesn’t matter what others call you.
People do it all the time. Ask someone, “What do you do for a living?” And they’ll use that nasty four-letter word “just.”
“I’m just a janitor.”
“I’m just an orderly.”
“I’m just a bus driver.”
“I’m just a secretary.”
Just?
I love when I run into people who can’t wait to tell you what they do for a living. They create their own job titles and celebrate who they are.
The woman who paints nails who calls herself a Nail Technician. The guy who repairs pianos who identifies him as Director of Piano Technology. The man at the amusement park who fixes the merry-go-round sees himself as a Ride Technician. The person who cleans the city pool who calls herself the Aquatics Manager. The hotel security worker who calls himself Director of Loss Prevention.
What’s in a title?
Nothing and everything. It all depends on what the title is, who gave it to you and whether it expands or limits you. Instead of shrinking to fit a job title, sometimes you have to expand the box you’re in and create a title that fits.
The key is to do what’s in the job title you have and squeeze in room to do what matches the job title you want to have.
Too many bosses put people in a box. Whatever box they put you in, expand it. Better yet, break down the sides, smash it to the floor and turn that box into a wide open blank slate and write whatever you want on it.
Don’t ask. Just do it. As they say, it’s better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission. Every morning before work, decide who you want to be and go be it. It’s up to you, no one else. No one is in charge of building your resume, or giving you challenging work, or making your 9 to 5 day meaningful except you.
I love those famous words by poet Lucille Clifton: “What they call you is one thing; what you answer to is something else.” That part is up to you.
Always.
It doesn’t matter what the world calls us. We get to decide who we really are.
And it’s up to each of us to take the word “just” out of our job title.
“The first day I picked up a Regina Brett book, my life got a little lighter. Her words are soooo good…I’ll confess I have stolen a quote or two! Her books are my go-to gifts for friends and family—I like to pass them on.”