Sometimes, all you have to do is ask....

One of my favorite bloggers, Andrea Scher @ Superhero really got me thinking when she put this blog post up: Go here to read it.

Sometimes when we really need things in life, we need to ask for them. I have been feeling stagnant at my job, so I have asked God to give me something else to fulfill me. I thought it would come my way in the form of a hobby or other time-wasting, fulfilling activity. Instead, it came to me in an opportunity of all places...at work.

I was asked to help my boss' wife with her store in downtown Holland. Many of you know that I work for a heavy equipment dealer (read: bulldozers, man-lifts and other non-girly items). My job is challenging because we all know I am a far cry from being anything close to a construction worker, or even someone who likes to play in the mud. I come here, I do my job, I learn about the industry on a regular basis and I have fun while I am here. But, there has been a lack of passion about the product and the industry I am in. (Curtis is disagreeing with me, thinking about the moments in Amsterdam where we had to pause to take a picture of a JLG boom-lift) Accounting is a broad field and we accountant-folk fit into all business types, so it is to be expected that I could even work for a pig farmer, and well, I would still do my job and do it well.

Today I went and met with the other owner, my boss' mother-in-law and we discussed how I could help them. I went in not really prepared to be 'hired'. I mean, I already have a job! The idea was for me to see if I could help, but in no way did I expect that she would be so open to me helping her out. She was outwardly impressed with the skills that I have. She even called me a "Godsend". I felt all giddy and nostalgic, like the girl who just graduated from college and was told by her first 'real' boss that she was a good employee; that she mattered to the business, to the field that she was in. I think I have lost a bit of my self-confidence in this field. I am taking it too personally that the place I have put two years in, doesn't want my opinion on certain things. They are stuck in their ways. "Mother-in-law" is stuck in her ways too, but she wants help. This is something I have been yearning for. An answer to prayer.

There are two parts to this story that are even better:

I have received one raise in 2 years of working here. I work hard. I play hard, too. I have been wanting an increase in vacation and/or a raise for awhile now. Not because I am greedy, but because I want some... just a smidgen, of recognition. To know that I matter here and that what I am doing is benefiting this company. Today, I asked for a raise. And I am going to get one. See, all you have to do is ASK! How easy it was, too.

The second great part of this story is that the place in Holland is a high-end women's clothing and shoe store. I will be able to mix up my weeks with going from the mud-slinging shop that I currently work in, to a store filled with candles, and jeans, and purses, and shoes....Oh. My.

Sometimes, all you have to do is ask.....