Have you ever been in a moment when everything comes together and you see “the light”? That was me on that morning of March 2003.
Let's say that my early days in Canada were not the way I had imagined them to be (there was no money falling down off of trees as I had predicted) ; but I was happy. It was my fourth month working at a radio station. I was not getting paid but I was having good times. I was learning a lot thanks to a mentor who became a very good friend over the years. I was working on a project that, in time, would generate money for the radio station ( I was hoping there would be enough to secure me a contract) and my mentor was teaching me how to do it.
Long story short, the radio got the money, but to my great surprise, I could not get hired because there was a statement in the grant contract that made me ineligible for the job. I did all this work for somebody else! How great! But I kept a positive attitude though. At least I had learnt how to write grant proposals (the glass is always half full with me ). So, the hiring process began but we did not have too many candidates for the job ; this was mainly because many applicants were not eligible.
At that time I had made a couple of friends among which included one guy on the sixth floor of our office building. He was a self made man who liked helping new immigrants. One day he called me and told me that there was a lady who was looking desperately for a job. He thought our radio station would be a great fit for her. I met the lady. Desperate she was. I told her I would take her resume but I was not the one pulling the trigger. She had to go through the interview process like the others.
I was amazed by my new home, but I was so homesick. I would spend countless hours on the Internet sending e-mails to my friends back home. I was a little bit surprised by the number of e-mails I was receiving from different people back home, all of them thanking me for what I'had done for them.
I never realized I had done all those things they were talking about. I was just having fun, doing what I loved to do and enjoying every bit of them. Along the way , I made a difference in people's lives without even realizing it. What a story!
That was my commercial break.
Coming back to the radio station lady. After her interview, I got a call from the president of the radio station asking me to contact the lady to let her know that she had got the job. I did. I wasn't able to get through to her on her phone, so I left her a message. As I was reading the bunch of e-mails I was still receiving from my friends back home ( at this point, you may be thinking that I was not working because I was checking personal e-mails at the office, but I was), I was listening to a tape from a coaching program I was part of. The guy on the tape was so funny but he was talking about good stuff. Towards the end of the tape the guy said: “There is a purpose for your life. You may not know it, but there is. And you will meet the people at the right moment, who will be there for a reason ; to teach you something.”
That was amazing. Then, the phone rang . It was the lady on the other end of the line. She got my message. She was in tears. She thanked me so much, but I did not take the credit (maybe I should have, just so that I could look good). What baffled me the most was what she said to me. She went: “I am glad I got the position, but most importantly I am so blessed because I will be working with you”. She did not know that she was coming to replace me (me, being ineligible for the position). What could I say after that?
All of a sudden, everything came together at that moment. The guy on the tape, the e-mails I was reading, the lady in tears on the phone.....I got it. I found my purpose!!! My job here on this earth is to make a difference in people's lives doing what I love to do without expecting anything in return.
That was it. The lady on the phone was there for a reason. She was there to take my job (that was not the most exciting part), but she was also there to make me realize how my life had been so far ; Giving unconditionally.
I started crying. I cried like a baby. I went to my mentor's office crying and I told him what happened.
His look was comforting. He had been there. He understood (he did not even mention my ugly face when I was crying).
Since that day, I have known what my job is. And I believe that you are part of it too (aren't you reading my blog?).
Moral of the story: Do you want to know what your life purpose is? Just check your personal e-mails at the office (just kidding....)
Always a pleasure.
Patrick
The Journeyman
pbizindavyi6@gmail.com
Let's say that my early days in Canada were not the way I had imagined them to be (there was no money falling down off of trees as I had predicted) ; but I was happy. It was my fourth month working at a radio station. I was not getting paid but I was having good times. I was learning a lot thanks to a mentor who became a very good friend over the years. I was working on a project that, in time, would generate money for the radio station ( I was hoping there would be enough to secure me a contract) and my mentor was teaching me how to do it.
Long story short, the radio got the money, but to my great surprise, I could not get hired because there was a statement in the grant contract that made me ineligible for the job. I did all this work for somebody else! How great! But I kept a positive attitude though. At least I had learnt how to write grant proposals (the glass is always half full with me ). So, the hiring process began but we did not have too many candidates for the job ; this was mainly because many applicants were not eligible.
At that time I had made a couple of friends among which included one guy on the sixth floor of our office building. He was a self made man who liked helping new immigrants. One day he called me and told me that there was a lady who was looking desperately for a job. He thought our radio station would be a great fit for her. I met the lady. Desperate she was. I told her I would take her resume but I was not the one pulling the trigger. She had to go through the interview process like the others.
I was amazed by my new home, but I was so homesick. I would spend countless hours on the Internet sending e-mails to my friends back home. I was a little bit surprised by the number of e-mails I was receiving from different people back home, all of them thanking me for what I'had done for them.
I never realized I had done all those things they were talking about. I was just having fun, doing what I loved to do and enjoying every bit of them. Along the way , I made a difference in people's lives without even realizing it. What a story!
That was my commercial break.
Coming back to the radio station lady. After her interview, I got a call from the president of the radio station asking me to contact the lady to let her know that she had got the job. I did. I wasn't able to get through to her on her phone, so I left her a message. As I was reading the bunch of e-mails I was still receiving from my friends back home ( at this point, you may be thinking that I was not working because I was checking personal e-mails at the office, but I was), I was listening to a tape from a coaching program I was part of. The guy on the tape was so funny but he was talking about good stuff. Towards the end of the tape the guy said: “There is a purpose for your life. You may not know it, but there is. And you will meet the people at the right moment, who will be there for a reason ; to teach you something.”
That was amazing. Then, the phone rang . It was the lady on the other end of the line. She got my message. She was in tears. She thanked me so much, but I did not take the credit (maybe I should have, just so that I could look good). What baffled me the most was what she said to me. She went: “I am glad I got the position, but most importantly I am so blessed because I will be working with you”. She did not know that she was coming to replace me (me, being ineligible for the position). What could I say after that?
All of a sudden, everything came together at that moment. The guy on the tape, the e-mails I was reading, the lady in tears on the phone.....I got it. I found my purpose!!! My job here on this earth is to make a difference in people's lives doing what I love to do without expecting anything in return.
That was it. The lady on the phone was there for a reason. She was there to take my job (that was not the most exciting part), but she was also there to make me realize how my life had been so far ; Giving unconditionally.
I started crying. I cried like a baby. I went to my mentor's office crying and I told him what happened.
His look was comforting. He had been there. He understood (he did not even mention my ugly face when I was crying).
Since that day, I have known what my job is. And I believe that you are part of it too (aren't you reading my blog?).
Moral of the story: Do you want to know what your life purpose is? Just check your personal e-mails at the office (just kidding....)
Always a pleasure.
Patrick
The Journeyman
pbizindavyi6@gmail.com
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