Do you feel you are being overlooked for something you deserve? Maybe it’s a promotion, a reward or a thank you. It might even be a leadership position that you feel you should have been nominated for. If there is a promotion or leadership position that you believe you are qualified for, I have two words for you….Take It.
Just like David did.
There was a great hunter named David…
David didn't actually set out to be a hunter. He was a shepherd. He only killed animals in the course of doing his job. As a shepherd, David’s main concern was taking care of his sheep, keeping them healthy and fed, caring for them, grooming them regularly and guiding them home.
But you see, one fateful day, there was a lion threatening to affect his job by killing his sheep. Killing lions was the job of a hunter, so the situation on ground meant that David needed a hunter in order to be able to do his job. There was no hunter around to do it, so David took the job in order to do his job as a shepherd.
…That’s how David became a hunter.
Interestingly, everybody still saw David as a shepherd, even though he had killed a lion and a bear. David had developed the skills of a hunter, even though no one knew it or recognized it.
Some years later…
There was a great warrior named David…
Oh yes, the same one which was a shepherd and a hunter, then become a warrior. He didn't mean to become a warrior. He was only being a good citizen. His dad asked him to go and give his brothers food at the battle front and on his way, he heard the horrible voice of a giant threatening to destroy his home and people. The shepherd in David couldn't ‘do nothing’. He said to himself, ‘Surely this is the job of a warrior.’ He looked around for one, but there was none. They were all too afraid. No one offered David the job to be a warrior but once again, he couldn't just sit by. He considered his past experiences, his faith and his strengths, and when David realized that he had everything it took to defeat the giant and save his people, he didn't wait for someone to offer him the job of a warrior.
He took it.
…That was how David became a warrior.
There was a King named David…But that is a story for another day.
I took my first job right after NYSC. Halfway through my service year, the person who I was directly reporting to left the organization. I was surprised to come to work one morning and meet his empty chair. He was the IT Help desk Officer.
My first and most pressing thought was, ‘What will happen to all the people that will call the help desk this morning?’ I was so bothered that I did not wait to find out if a replacement had been hired or not. I sat at his desk and started attending to the support calls.
For the first few days I kept on thinking someone would tell me I was not qualified or that I didn't have the required experience but from that day on I became the Help desk Officer and no one ever wondered if I belonged to that seat. I did not feel that I was doing anyone a favor, even though I was still earning the same NYSC pay until I was retained after my NYSC.
Some of us spend so much time waiting for people to validate us. Stop waiting to be validated by convention when your experiences have validated you already. Your ability to spot and fill any need is more important than a person’s ability to spot your ability.
Some of us run even when an opportunity is presented to us. That is because in our own secret corner we run away from challenges rather than embracing and overcoming them. Solving problems that no one knows about, builds your confidence to solve the ones that will make you a star.
Some of us want to be paid, rewarded or recognized before we add value in a bigger way than we are doing. What we don’t realize is this: The only way for people to see your value is when you express it by solving problems.
There are three things I learnt from my NYSC/first job experience:
No one will tell you that you are not qualified to do a job that you are already excelling at.
Challenges are the things that separate warriors from mere men.
If an opportunity opens up, don’t expect that people will immediately think of nominating you for it. If you want it…
TAKE IT