The Mission is Bigger than the Conflict

“If I had a formula for bypassing trouble, I would not pass it round.  Trouble creates a capacity to handle it.  I don't embrace trouble; that's as bad as treating it as an enemy.  But I do say meet it as a friend, for you'll see a lot of it and had better be on speaking terms with it.” 

~Oliver Wendell Holmes

This week I had to remind myself that the mission that I strive for and the type of work that I love to do is far more important than any conflict I may encounter along the way. I find myself fighting the insecurities that can build up when I analyze how do other people perceive me? Simply by asking myself that question and over analyzing the possible answers has prevented me from making my own choices. Instead I become influenced by other people’s perceptions and assumptions, and I make those opinions matter over my own.

I have strong work ethics and passion. I have gifts that allow me to be an amazing person. However, I also have vulnerabilities that have the potential to subdue my gifts. This is what I encountered this past week. Conflict entered into my realm of work and I questioned what was I doing here? I questioned the benefits of the gifts I had been given, and I was ready to walk away. O, but thankfully I have people who mentor me along the way! Because I’m telling you I almost walked away and stopped pursuing the type of work that I know I love to do. Have you been there? Have you felt so compelled to walk away?

I was just there, and I’m so thankful that I did not. One, I have to say that conflict only makes you better equipped for future inevitable situations. Handling it in a professional and sincere demeanor will only strengthen your capabilities, for it has truly strengthened mine. Two, I must say that walking away would have put a dent in the mission of multiculturalism which I believe in so much. How dare I leave something that is bigger than any conflict I may encounter? This mission touches my heart and the core of who I am. I cling to it as much as it clings to me. I have an obligation to learn how to deal with conflict, with self-doubt, and with the perceptions and assumptions of others so that they will no longer affect my capabilities and strengths.