Holding Back Help
August 10, 2009
Last night someone told me that they were laid off from work. This person is close to me, closer then most people you ever deal with. I however am faced with a dilemma. I know that if I walk into my boss’s office this morning I can get the person a temporary job that will tide them over until they find something more permanent. Its not a glamorous job but it will do the trick.
Here is my problem… I do not trust them to act mature enough to not jeopardize my position. So I cannot go and get them the temporary job. I know that for a week or two they would be on their best behavior. But then they would start doing the things that led to losing their last job. Joking around, not taking their job seriously and generally not being an employee that is grateful for the fact that they have a job.
It is sad to me that I cannot reach out and help. I am disappointed and feel a terrible tug inside myself that I feel this way. But in the end your track record speaks so loudly that this is all people will listen to when times get rough. You might have changed overnight… but your past life screams out before you regardless of your current words.
Take stock of your reputation and put in the work now to fix it for the future when you truly need someone to reach out and hold you up.
Christina Helwig
