{"id":369,"date":"2024-06-03T21:05:08","date_gmt":"2024-06-04T01:05:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/messagemediummessenger\/?p=369"},"modified":"2024-06-03T21:19:18","modified_gmt":"2024-06-04T01:19:18","slug":"four-life-lessons-built-inside-home-depot-career-search","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/messagemediummessenger\/2024\/06\/four-life-lessons-built-inside-home-depot-career-search\/","title":{"rendered":"Four Life Lessons Built Inside of Me at Home Depot"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

June\u2019s Kids\u2019 Workshop Creation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

My career took a sharp left turn last fall. I have been networking, searching for a job, and re-tooling my r\u00e9sum\u00e9<\/a> like a racecar mechanic trying to get more horsepower.<\/p>\n

Instead of further building my career as a storyteller (radio, marketing, or book publishing<\/a>), I\u2019m a Pro Associate at Home Depot<\/a>. When I joined the team at the world\u2019s orange-est hardware store, I had no idea that my time here would act as wound therapy to bring about healing from years of work-related mistakes and malformations.<\/p>\n

I never imagined myself returning to retail. Or to wages like I earned during the George H. W. Bush administration. But here I am. I first called this pause in my career a \u201cditch.\u201d I\u2019ve decided to call it a \u201cpit-stop\u201d instead.<\/p>\n

As I was getting my feet under me, author, inspirational blowtorch, and podcaster Dan Miller<\/a> passed away. During his last podcast<\/a>, he asked a question, \u201cWhat does this<\/em> <\/span>make possible?\u201d He said he asked himself that question during every setback or unexpected development in his life. He believes that twists and turns are God\u2019s way of getting our attention. He encouraged his listeners to look up and around for what God was doing instead of navel gazing and worrying about the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat does this<\/em> <\/span>make possible?\u201d \u2014Dan Miller<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, I changed the way I got ready for work. Instead of sitting in my car for a few minutes screwing my \u201ccourage to the sticking place<\/a>\u201d\u00a0before walking into the store with a manufactured smile on my face, I decided to ask \u201cthe question.\u201d Since that decision, I\u2019ve realized that, among all of God Almighty\u2019s many reasons that I don\u2019t understand about this pitstop, I\u2019ve learned these four career search lessons.<\/p>\n

Four Character Lessons Learned While on a Career Search<\/h3>\n\nHow to be singularly focused and love the person in front of me<\/li>\nListen\u2014with empathy\u2014at all times<\/li>\nTo daily remember my dad\u2019s words and be a lifelong intentional learner<\/li>\nTo suck it up and endure\u2014practice longsuffering\u2014from start to finish<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n \ I wish I had learned lessons like \u201chow to trigger the AI in HR software to put me at the top of the list\u201d or \u201casking for what your worth during the job offer process.\u201d Perhaps those lessons are in my future. Please, God, let them be in my future.<\/p>\n