Yesterday, on Your Caregiving Journey, we spoke with Wilma Naschin, who shared tips on how to rebound from a lay-off. (This is the first of a three-part series on recovering from job loss; up next week: Starting Your Job Search. You can listen to the show via the player at the bottom of the post.) During our discussion, I remembered the story of a friend’s father, James.
James created his own success. Born into poverty, he was blessed with excellent athleticism. He played both basketball and golf at a Division I university. His golf game ultimately created his big break; an invitation to participate in a company-sponsored golf tournament led to introductions that led to his first sales job. He continued to climb the corporate ladder (with the help of his golf game) until he reached his dream job: Vice President of Sales. His position allowed for luxuries, including membership to a local country club (and access to a great golf course).
When he was 60-years-old, he lost his job. His family encouraged him to look for another job, telling him regularly his talents and gifts would be welcome at other companies.
But James convinced himself he was un-hirable. He spent his days watching Fox News and golfing. He drove by the local public golf course to play daily at the local country club. His former company no longer paid his membership. James could not afford the membership fee so he financed his membership with Visa and MasterCard. He continued to golf with his former colleagues, all the time keeping up the pretense that his job loss had not affected his lifestyle.
It seemed to him that what he did and where he did it determined his success.
James died when he was 62-years-old. He left more debt than his family had ever imagined. Even worse, he died still pretending to be something he wasn’t. And, he never had the chance to gain the realization that his success lives in his heart. The greens were merely a replaceable place to play.
Pride and shame can blind us to life’s true treasures. When you loss a job, that’s all you lose. When you let pride and shame gauge your actions, you lose yourself.
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