I just finished doing a radio interview with James O’Loghlin from the ABC about being a female plumber.
I was asked how I got into plumbing and I explained that my dad was a plumber and he was looking for someone to take over his business. James commented that I didn’t experience discrimination applying for my job and that in essence I had it easy to get into the field.
It’s not the first time I have had that comment. But just because I didn’t get discriminated getting into the trade, doesn’t mean I didn’t experience it while doing it.
However, this post has nothing to do with discrimination. I wanted to encourage you about taking a risk and seeing where it will take you.
When my dad offered me a job in our family business 8 years ago, I was in a well-paid Sales Executive job with a courier company. I didn’t love it but I was getting great results. My new customers were giving positive and unexpected feedback to my Sales Manager about how I had helped them. The day I told my Sales Manager that I was quitting my job to learn how to run a plumbing business, he was in shock because I had been doing so well in a short amount of time.
I remember the churning in my stomach about putting in my notice. I hated the feeling of letting my Sales Manager down by quitting my job. I also fretted about the huge risk of working for my dad and whether I could handle running a medium sized business as well as fulfil my desire of having children.
Sometimes you just have to jump in the deep end and see whether you will sink or swim. I didn’t know how my job would evolve. Yet 8 years later, I’m still swimming. I’m not in the ocean I expected to be paddling in but I’m stroking through new waters that will ultimately be for the greater good for myself and my family.
The Plumbette has opened up amazing opportunities for me in the short while that I have been blogging. My hope is to see that increase as I continue to work hard coming up with new and interesting content each week.
I LOVE writing my blog. And I thank God that He’s been revealing the steps I need to take to create a career out of something I had no idea could be possible.
I questioned whether I was on the right path all throughout my apprenticeship. I would get prayer some Sunday’s at church about clarification and direction. And every time I thought of quitting, there was a mustard seed of faith and a little voice that told me to keep going. And keep going I did.
Sometimes we question our decisions or whether we’re on the right path when the going gets tough, but anything worthwhile doing is never easy. There’s always a battle before the triumph.
So take a risk. Take that leap of faith and see where the waters will take you. Oh the places you’ll go if you do. You will probably have wished you’d done it sooner.
And the trouble is, if you don’t risk anything, you risk even more. Eric Jong
When was the last time you took a risk?
