3 more weeks

Just yesterday, I blogged about my beautiful granddaughter and all the things that has happened in the past three weeks since she’s been born.

What I didn’t tell you, blogosphere, is that yesterday I gave three weeks notice at my current job.  I wanted to give my boss the opportunity to hear it from me first.

For the past year, my life has been changing rapidly.  I quit my job at our family business in August of last year, where I had been employed for about 12 or 13 years, or possibly even longer because who keeps track in a family business?

I left there to go to work at a manufacturing company in town.  I went through their interview process, was offered a temporary job, did the drug testing, was ready to start on Monday morning, and I got a call from the manager that hired me and he said the corporate office put a hiring freeze on that day effective immediately and I couldn’t start. 

I decided that God (obviously) has other plans for me.  I accepted a job offer at a third party medical billing office 30 minutes away from 6am – 5pm Mon-Thurs.  The job was challenging for me, in that it was quite a drive from home, the pay wasn’t the best to start with, the hours were long, and I felt, literally, like I was on “lock down” 24-7. 

A couple of months after I started working there, a friend of mine approached me about a job.  It was a project management job for a few months, then moving over to Quality Control in a rubber manufacturing plant.  The plant was 2  minutes from my house, the pay was about the same as the medical office, and it seemed like a no-brainer.

Besides, I had no clue what God was doing with me in my life.

So, for the past 9 months, I have worked at a rubber plant.  (Yes, many days I wake up and sing “Oops there goes another rubber tree plant”)

I know this is a long story.  If you’re bored, stop reading, skim to the last paragraph and leave a comment.

I should really devote a month of posts on “things I’ve learned working at a rubber manufacturers plant”.  But, one of the things I believe God has done in me in the past 9 months is to show me what a godly boss looks like.

My boss is a Christian man.  He doesn’t wear a Christian badge or hand out tracks to his customers and vendors.  In his work, he lives a life that is pleasing to the Lord…. in word and deed.  He treats his employees, his customers, and his vendors with dignity and respect.  He has been a model of a Christian businessman to me – the entire time I’ve been employed there. 

When I was frustrated because I didn’t think I’d ever figure out certain aspects of Quality Control, he encouraged and reassured me.  When I asked the same questions twenty five times, he answered them twenty five times. 

I have learned a lot about Quality Control while I worked at this job.  But, more valuable to me, is the lessons I have learned about business management as a Believer. 

These things are why it was difficult for me yesterday to go into his office and give my three week notice.  But, these things are the very things I needed to learn in the past nine months to push me to follow my dreams and start my own business.

Yep.  I did it.  I walked away from an hourly paying job.  I walked away from the security of knowing that I would be getting a paycheck every week as long as I attended.  I’ve decided to venture out on my own and do what I love.

It’s scary…. and frightening…. and I’m pretty sure at times in the past twenty four hours I’ve changed my mind and then changed it again.  But, this morning, once again, I’m very very very excited.  I have been dreaming of all the directions my own business can go… dreaming of the day I hire my OWN first employee and can offer the same management style that was modeled to me by Vern.

And today… I’m encouraged, and challenged, and dreaming, and shaking in my boots…. all at the same time.

Don’t worry – I’ll give you all the details on my new venture.  I just don’t want you to read any more of my book-post. :)