Ingrid by Alexandra (@AlexandraZion)

Image Source: Glowville

She was between a rock and a hard place. The clock seemed to tick louder than usual and the world appeared to move in circles. The task stood gallantly before her and the door of retreat was shut.

‘I’m supposed to be moving forward’ Thoughts ran through her mind; thoughts that could not expressed in words.

Life for Ingrid was likened to being between the devil and the deep blue sea. The letter kept staring at her. It was folded on the table and she saw no reason to read it. Pamela already told her the content and Ingrid could feel sweat coming out from her own hands.

This was the case: Ingrid was chosen two weeks ago by the management of the organisation she worked with to fill the position of the cash operator. Before then, millions of Euros had been missing from the organisation’s profits and balances. The cash operators had been punished, one after the other, by a letter of dismissal. Here was Ingrid with her feedback letter staring at her from the top of the table.

Eventually, Ingrid summed up courage and picked up the letter from the centre of the marbled and square-shaped table. The letter was packaged in a cream-coloured envelope and it was printed in a letter head format. As Ingrid’s sweaty fingers intertwined and unfolded the paper, her lips, coated in red, fell apart after few seconds of reading.

Her instincts were…wrong.

Ingrid got a promotion letter, owing to good management, honesty and effectiveness. The new position made her Supervisor of Cash Operations. It came with accommodation and transportation incentives. She was overjoyed.

This is it. Sometimes, we are just like Ingrid. Before we begin to disagree or attempt to relate Ingrid’s story to our lives, let us know what the problem was.

Ingrid Parks was hardworking, efficient and effective and when her qualities were put to the test, she was too scared of its result. First off, she subjected herself to a general opinion. Often times, we would rather base our belief and perspective on that of others, rather than critically examine them. This shadows our opportunities and puts up a wall between a breakthrough and our present level.

How? Life is a personal and individual journey. The structuring and outcome of our lives do not depend on others. We can be influenced by others along the way but we should never come under their governance. Pamela, probably, had concluded that Ingrid was going to be dismissed since it had happened to others (generic) but she was not certain. It was however still up to Ingrid to accept Pamela’s words and leave the envelope sealed or otherwise.

The essence of this is to portray the importance of these usually ignored habits that we have built ourselves on. It does not have to be an official work like Ingrid’s but the attribute of difference is one we should adopt in our mentalities. It is also necessary to ignite fire to conquer our fears to reach out to the unknown. I am not saying that it will always turn out fine but just what if it does?

Stay full of courage.