{"id":6058,"date":"2016-03-21T13:00:40","date_gmt":"2016-03-21T13:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/keblog.demoapp.xyz\/?p=6058"},"modified":"2022-11-15T11:31:19","modified_gmt":"2022-11-15T04:31:19","slug":"what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic","title":{"rendered":"What Faith Has Taught Me About Work Ethic"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">This year marks my thirtieth in the Catholic renewal movement.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Eleven thousand days, give or take a few, throughout which I\u2019ve been employed, or in business, or both.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>It sort of goes without saying that this personal walk with God has had many effects on my work life, but I\u2019ll say it anyway.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>I have seen with my own eyes, through the likes of sales concluded, contracts signed, due dates conquered, problems hurdled and monkey business exposed, how prayer works.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">I have experienced, in subtle as well as startlingly distinct ways, how faith and hope and charity do not necessarily untangle knots. Instead, they certainly help when we are trying to.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>And then there\u2019s my attitude towards money \u2013 how it\u2019s made and used \u2013 which has certainly changed, as well as the way I deal with people I have encountered on the professional arena.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Indeed faith has been teaching me, and here, in a small and singular nutshell, is what I have learned.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6059\" src=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-1.jpg 960w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-1-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_26 counter-hierarchy\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">TOPICS<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" style=\"display: none;\"><label for=\"item\" aria-label=\"Table of Content\"><i class=\"ez-toc-glyphicon ez-toc-icon-toggle\"><\/i><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\" id=\"item\"><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class=\"ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1\"><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic\/#Its_Not_All_About_The_Money\" title=\"It\u2019s Not All About The Money\">It\u2019s Not All About The Money<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic\/#It_Really_Is_The_Best_Policy\" title=\"It Really Is The Best Policy\">It Really Is The Best Policy<\/a><\/li><li class=\"ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2\"><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic\/#He_Looks_After_His_Own\" title=\"He Looks After His Own\">He Looks After His Own<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"p5\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Its_Not_All_About_The_Money\"><\/span><span class=\"s1\">It\u2019s Not All About The Money<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">For many years, our export business enjoyed a profitable cooperation with a particular government trade agency.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Whenever they received inquiries for products that we carried, they recommended us, and this resulted in orders which yielded a healthy and fully documented commission for them as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">This association was really heaven-sent.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>We never applied with them.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>It all started with a bolt-from-the-blue phone call which led to our first transaction mediated by their representative, Earnest, and many more followed.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Earnest, who turned out to be true to her name, made our business with the government extremely pleasant.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">She eventually announced her retirement and we projected there would be changes.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>We were right, but not in any way we expected. One day, we were called upon by two young gentlemen who introduced themselves as those who would look after the work Earnest had vacated.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>My husband was in a meeting, so I met with them alone.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Small talk dispensed with, we discussed pending accounts and interesting prospects.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>I was just thinking the meeting was going well when suddenly, one of the young gentlemen asked me, \u201cSo, what about the \u2018<em>for the boys<\/em>?\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">I did a double take, not sure I heard him right.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Buying time, I asked him to explain what he meant, please, and, looking me straight in the eye, he did.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>They wanted to know how we intended to provide a cut for them both.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>I explained that a commission was paid to the agency from our contracts.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Quite brazenly, he clarified, \u201cThat\u2019s for the agency.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>This will be for us.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">In that moment, I prayed.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u201cThis is not right, Lord,\u201d I whispered in my heart, \u201cgive me the strength, give me the words.\u201d<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>I had started to shake, and I felt a cold sweat.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>I took a long breath and as calmly as I could, I told our visitors, \u201cWe don\u2019t do that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p5\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"It_Really_Is_The_Best_Policy\"><\/span><span class=\"s1\">It Really Is The Best Policy<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6061\" src=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"960\" height=\"717\" srcset=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-2.jpg 960w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-2-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-2-768x574.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">One of them replied, \u201cThat would be unfortunate, because then we will probably favor other exporters.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">Again, \u201cWe don\u2019t do that.\u201d It was the best I could manage.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>And in a very quick hurry, they left.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">Well, we never\u2014NEVER\u2014heard from them again.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>And because they were in charge of our business, we never heard from the agency again.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>In fact, the accounts we were servicing died very quiet deaths very soon afterwards.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">To his credit, my husband affirmed my decision, and we consoled ourselves with the knowledge that it was the right thing to do.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Lost business was part of the price we had to pay in order to be good followers of Christ.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>In the light of our years in the renewal, in the light of how God had been working in our lives, we decided it was a fair exchange.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p5\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"He_Looks_After_His_Own\"><\/span><span class=\"s1\">He Looks After His Own<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">In the aftermath of that experience, I sometimes stopped to consider a few things:<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>How much did we lose in that decision?<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Whenever this thought occurred to me though, I arrested it.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>There is no use wondering over lost money, I would tell myself.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>And then, I would change the question:<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>How much did I gain in that decision?<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>How much did my spirit grow?<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>How much did my Guardian Angel rejoice?<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>How much did my Lord take pleasure?<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Always, those are better things to wonder about\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">The story doesn\u2019t end there.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>It\u2019s been many years since that nuclear moment.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>We have said goodbye to exporting, having gone into a new business area altogether. Time and again, there are calls for some tough moral decision-making, complete with cold sweat and shivers.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Through it all, one thing has been certain:<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>On my own it will always be iffy.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>With a faithful God as my Guide and Help however, I sleep well at night.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p6\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6063\" src=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1401\" srcset=\"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-3.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-3-300x205.jpg 300w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-3-1024x701.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-3-768x525.jpg 768w, https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/what-faith-has-taught-me-about-work-ethic-3-1536x1051.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>This article was written by Annie Salvador. She is a steadfast member of the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bcbpkapatiran.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals<\/a>\u00a0(BCBP), a businesswoman, psychology professor, and mother of five, including Kalibrr Content Writer Marga Salvador.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/confirmsubscription.com\/h\/i\/77238488FF110D6D\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Subscribe<\/a>\u00a0to our weekly newsletter and get Kalibrr Career Advice straight from your inbox! You can also follow us on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Kalibrr\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/kalibrr\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/kalibrr\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram<\/a>, or join\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/chats.viber.com\/careeradvice\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Kalibrr\u2019s Viber public chat<\/a>\u00a0for answers to your questions about your career.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This year marks my thirtieth in the Catholic renewal movement.\u00a0\u00a0Eleven thousand days, give or take a few, throughout which I\u2019ve been employed, or in business, or both.\u00a0\u00a0It sort of goes without saying that this personal walk with God has had many effects on my work life, but I\u2019ll say it anyway.\u00a0\u00a0I have seen with my [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":6065,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18],"tags":[99,100],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6058"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6058"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6058\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6058"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6058"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neo-blog.kalibrr.com\/blog\/id\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6058"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}