The year was 1991 and the young woman was being interviewed for a job as a furniture salesperson. The owner of the company studied her resume and then looked at her and said, “Your resume is impressive but I see that for the past five years, you were not working.”
“I was working,” the woman replied.”I was putting in eighteen hours a day raising four children. Though I wasn’t paid for my time, I consider my work as important as any other job listed on that resume.”
The owner looked at the woman and smiled. “You’re hired,” he said…”When can you start?”
You may have figured out by now that the woman was me and the lesson I learned that day was important. Don’t ever apologize for the chapters in your life that led you to where you are today! I believe that I got that job because I exuded self confidence in who I was. What if I hadn’t been raising children and had decided to take time out to see the world, or volunteer in a third world country or perform stand up comedy in every little town in America? All those experiences would have helped shape me into the person I was the day I applied for that job.
Every experience in life helps us grow as individuals and makes us more interesting and better prepared to face whatever the future holds. As a furniture salesperson (or consultant as they liked to call us) I could relate well to my customers because I was a Mother of a large family and I understood their budget concerns. I built up a loyal clientele because I was patient and I listened!! (Also learned from Motherhood).
Remembering that every chapter in your life is significant will come across in a positive way if you truly believe it!
