Well, actually, Pooped-Out-Quittin’-Time-Girl. I accomplished absolutely nothing on my own To-Do list. But I somehow managed to get all of Kerry’s To-Do list for me done. Whew. At least I can leave the office for the Holiday weekend knowing I’ve done all I could in the time I had. That’s a good feeling.

I was talking with Kat last night about work and realized that working for Kerry is a lot like working for Ken W. at PHE (Paramount Home Entertainment). Ken was probably the best boss I ever had (aside from my dad, who was my first boss). He was very laid back, quiet kind of guy — a Mormon, so he never cussed. Heck, Ken never got angry. He’d get frustrated at times, but even that was low-key. He never had the screaming cussing fits most senior executives in the entertainment industry have. Laid back, low-key, wicked, wicked sense of humor — we used to have cola wars over the AmTel machine (he was a Pepsi man; Me, I’m a Coke girl!) What a blessing he was as a boss!

On top of that, he answered his own phones. WooHoo!! You wanna win me over as a fan, and have me as an employee forever? Answer your own phones. I hate answering phones. It’s more the disruption of what I’m doing that gets me frustrated than it is the interaction. I don’t mind talking to people, I just hate having to stop what I’m doing and change my focus to what they — that disembodied voice on the other end — wants me to focus on. It can be especially annoying when I’m working on a project that requires concentration.

Anyway, Kerry is very similar to Ken in most ways. The exception is that Kerry is not as laid back as Ken. Nothing seemed to rattle Ken, or shake his confidence that the world wasn’t going to fall apart if Eric’s (the President of the PHE) every demand wasn’t met. And that was a tall order considering Eric was your typical Type-A, neurotic, overly needy industry senior executive. Yikes this guy was uptight.

Kerry has some of Eric’s uptight-ness. Not a lot of it –and he’s in no way close to Eric! But it’s there nonetheless. That sense you get when the exec is just too burned out to think straight anymore. And no wonder. The guy’s been through hell this last year, for a variety of reasons. He really needs a long vacation away from any sort of communications devices. I doubt he’ll get it. Or take it if he did. But he needs it.

Other than his tightly wound springs, Kerry could be Ken’s twin… Smart, hard working, respectful, kind, generous… I think he’s got Ken’s sense of humor too, but it’s taking a little time for him to feel comfortable enough with me to let it out. Or maybe I’m just a little too on the weird side for him. Which is entirely possible. My sensahumah ain’t for everybody. I discovered that truth the hard way…

The other thing they both share is the respect and esteem they give me. Ken would often ask my opinion on things, and he actually listened to me and took my opinions and thoughts seriously. Do you know how rare that is?? Let me tell you, it doesn’t come along but once, maybe twice in a career for an executive assistant. And Kerry treats me in the same manner. He actually seems to value my opinion, wants and seeks out my thoughts and ideas. Very rare. And very cool.

I know I have good stuff, quality stuff to offer the world. Not to everyone, I realize. At least not at first. I couldn’t tell Larry how to improve his sand sculptures in a million years. But let me get down in the sand and work with him on a dozen or so and I can pretty much guarantee that I’d have suggestions and thoughts and ideas. Would he listen to me, even though he’s been doing it for 24 years and I’d been there only a few months? I think he would. Because he’s my friend.

But it’s a different story when you’re digging in the sand with your boss. They tend to be, well… bossy. 🙂 They have their ideas, their ways, their wants and desires, and I’ve learned that to have a “happy” workplace I must make the boss happy, regardless of how I feel about the matter.

And that’s really as it should be. It’s his name on the line, after all, not mine. At the end of the day, I go home and that’s that. At the end of Kerry’s day he’s still carrying around the multiple crosses he’s been given by the president. It’s the price he pays for the VP title. And he gets the wages as compensation. Personally speaking, I think I’d rather have my life as compensation and just take the miniscule wages of an assistant, and the crap of an executive on stress overload, as my price. From my perspective, my seat on the bus is the better one. But that’s just me… I like life better than work. And I don’t see my work as my life. And I’m drifting way off topic.

Kerry and Ken are those rare breeds of bosses that actually let their assistants help shape the ideas, designs, projects and final products. I often lamented that I let Ken slip through my fingers… he wanted to hire me, came just shy of begging me to stay. But I was already committed to going overseas as a missionary. Being Mormon, he had a deep respect for that calling on my life, so he let it alone. Once overseas, I desperately missed all that Ken was and begged God for another chance at working with him one day. When I came back last year, I met his assistant and quit asking God for that. Ken has THE MOST incredible assistant. She is perfect for him in every way. And I would never deny him the blessing of her, just to satisfy my own selfish desires. So instead I started praying for another boss like Ken….

Now I have Kerry.

But there’s a twist to this particular story that I don’t think I’ll get into here, because this post is too long as it is. I’ll sum my dilemma up by repeating what I told Kat last night: “I have a real problem with organizations that mix Christianity and politics. It’s not that I don’t think Christians should be politically active. It’s that I don’t agree with Christians using the external forces of politics to shape culture when what Jesus calls us to be is Soul Revolutionaries: shaping culture from the inside out. Change the laws and you just have strict laws which the people resent (and if you don’t think the people resent the morals-based voting take a look here or here as a couple of examples). However, change people’s hearts and what they value and you’ll actually shape culture. From the inside out. The way Jesus did.”

I’ll address this issue more in a future post….

For now, however, let me just meditate on a small revelation that came as I typed the last couple of paragraphs…. I asked God for another Ken… and got Kerry. God’s kept the doors to all other jobs resolutely closed at the moment. Frustratingly closed. CMT didn’t ever call back. I’ve applied at EMI three times now. Thomas Nelson could plaster their walls with my resume. I’ve applied for so many jobs. Even temp agencies aren’t calling back. Do I have “Loser” stamped in invisible ink on my resume or something????

Or… is God doing something here, something He’s choosing to keep a little hidden from me at the moment?

Sure wish I knew.

In the meantime, I’m still a Workin’ Girl. Grateful to God for the income — it doesn’t cover all my bills, but it sure helps keep me outa the po’house. And grateful for the boss. It’s nice to be respected for the intelligence and creativity I bring to the table.

But, really. Who are we kidding… Who can resist my delightful charms!

…why are you laughing?