Community Post: What (or Who) Holds You Back in Your Work?

This week at The High Calling, we’re focusing on "what holds you back in your work." Here on the Community page, several members of our diverse writing network offer their unique insights on the topic.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Some of the names, people and relationships in this story have been changed in order to protect people's identities. We share this story with High Calling readers because so many of us find ourselves in the same place as "Paul."

A new position opened recently, and my husband was uber qualified to fill it.

But it was out of state and involved a lot of travel. I wearied of weighing all the options of what life could look like should he apply and be accepted. Would I move with him? Or would I stay here?

I fretted over how this would affect our extended family, how it would affect our marriage. But in the end, I didn’t want to be the one to hold him back. I simply had to let it all go, support his decision to apply, and wait for the next step.

You know, let God have it.

We talked about that the other morning over oatmeal, about the mixture of disappointment and relief because a decision had been made. Our thoughts trailed here and there like toast crumbs across the counter, and ended in a conversation about our friend Paul.

Paul didn’t believe he had the qualifications to apply for a promotion, and so he let an application deadline slide.

A new guy, Roger, got the job, becoming Paul's boss. But Roger definitely wasn’t qualified. He lacked several skills, including how to manage a budget and how to deal with people. He did, however, excel at storytelling and scapegoating.

Roger told tales about his past educational experience and extracurricular activities that proved to be untrue. And when things went awry at the office, he was adept at shifting the blame.

If Roger was responsible for an incomplete job, he told his own boss he’d assigned it to someone else, but they’d failed. He magnified minute mistakes.

Paul had run in to one of Roger’s past co-workers who told him Roger never stayed longer than a year or two in any one place. “Watch out,” he’d said. “Heads will start to roll, and then Roger will be gone.”

First Roger fired Karen. Then Joe quit.

Paul was good at his job, so it never occurred to him he’d lose it. In fact, he told us he’d decided he was more qualified for Roger’s job than Roger, and he planned to apply for that position as soon as it opened up again.

But late one Friday afternoon, Roger called Paul into his office.

“This is your last day,” Roger said. “You’re done here."

Just. Like. That.

No warning.

No reason.

Someone from Human Resources walked Paul out the back door. He couldn’t even say goodbye or retrieve his things.

Paul’s attorney had told him there wasn’t much he could do except try to negotiate a larger severance package—which he did. He also told him he believed Paul would end up with a better job in the end. He’d seen it happen time and again. We all hoped he was right.

And, as it turned out, Paul was not unemployed for long.

He found work with a major, well-respected company and now holds a higher position that fits him like a well-tailored silk suit. It utilizes all his experience, expertise and gifts. He loves the company, and the company loves him.

I picked up our bowls. As I rinsed them under the faucet, I glanced out the window at the shed that used to house our chickens, and before that, my father-in-law’s peafowl. I realized that this would likely be my view for some time to come, because my husband didn't change jobs after all.

“You know,” I said, “if Paul had applied for that job, there’s no guarantee he would have gotten it anyway, and if he hadn’t gotten fired, he wouldn’t be where he is now.”

I scooped the toast crumbs strewn across the scratched counter into my hand. I remembered how everything fell into place when we returned to Michigan from out of state and were able to buy back the family home, and how I’d announced I’d be buried under the porch.

“And if you hadn’t found out that job didn’t really pay enough to justify a change, I wonder where we’d be now.” I smiled, then half-joked: “Maybe I could have had a new kitchen.”

Your Turn: What has held you back in your work that ultimately pushed you forward? Have you ever felt responsible for holding someone else back?

Sandra Heska King scatters word crumbs from the 150-year-old-plus farmhouse where her husband grew up. Connect with her on her blog, Facebook and Twitter.