Work

Do You Ever Mistake The Voice Of God?

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment
hortondoors.com

hortondoors.com

If I could change one thing about myself it would be my voice.

I don’t hate my voice, but it’s just not very manly. I have evidence of this.

Over 50% of all my visits to a drive-thru window result in the worker saying back to me, “Would you like anything else, MA’AM?”

It’s not just drive-thrus either. Whenever I call the cable company or the plumber or another phone system the result is the same. “Yes MA’AM what can we do for you?”

It doesn’t help that Alex is a gender neutral name. So people just have to go off what they hear when the voice comes out.

Here’s the worst part – I got mistaken for a woman in person the other day as well. Continue reading →

6 Words To Remember When Nothing Make Sense

/ Alex Doriot / 1 Comment

Millais_Boyhood_of_RaleighI listen to a lot of podcasts. Sometimes with athletes, sometimes authors, sometimes celebrities. (And yes, sometimes professional wrestlers.)

I just love hearing people share their stories. The various paths to success and unexpected detours people face along the way that lead them to their current lot in life fascinate me.

As I listen to more and more of these interviews, there’s one phrase I hear repeated over and over again by the people telling their story- 6 words that I think more of us should remember when life throws us a curveball: Continue reading →

Who Do You Work For?

/ Alex Doriot / 2 Comments

photo-15I get asked one question almost everyday:

“Excuse me sir. Do you work here?”

Who me? The guy with the headset and walkie talkie on, the guy with the nametag and lanyard with the store name on it, the guy who’s putting all the shoes back on the shelf? Why yes, in fact I do work here!

I just don’t get it. To me, it should be obvious to customers that I’m an employee. I can’t quite figure out how some people can’t quite figure it out.

Apparently though, there’s something more I should be doing. My labor is not bearing fruit in their eyes.

Maybe there are other things I should be focusing on. I’m sure I could be talking to customers more, engaging with them instead of doing all the daily tasks of the shoe department. Maybe then people would recognize who I work for.

The whole thing makes me think of that age-old guilt producing Sunday School question: “If you were put on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to find you guilty?” Continue reading →

Monday Morning Music: Roll Away Your Stone

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

Whether you’re a rock star, a pro wrestler, or just an everyday joe, the way you make your entrance is of the utmost importance.

You can tell a lot from someone’s entrance. Are they loud? Quiet? Strong? Weak? Confident? Defeated?

Every Monday morning, you decide how you will make your entrance into the week. Maybe you need a little entrance music to motivate you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O-BwV0DDUY

(Click Here if you can’t see the video above)

A new week can overcome you before it even begins. Your mind may weigh heavy with the consequences of all your past failures from the previous week. Your body may still be reeling from losing an hour of sleep this weekend.

The great thing about Monday is you have the choice to see things in a new way. Today can be a fresh start. You can leave the old you behind on Monday and start seeing things differently. Continue reading →

The Retail Worker’s Prayer

/ Alex Doriot / 8 Comments

photo-10The Folding. Don’t get me started on The Folding.

This holiday, after leaving my full-time job behind, I got a job at a major department store to earn a little extra spending money. I’ve mainly been running the register. But in between customers one of our main duties in the store is The Folding.

It’s incredible, really. You spend a few minutes folding a stack of shirts. Everything on the shelf looks in order. You turn around to check out one customer. You turn back around and a dozen shirts are back on the floor again.

As an employee I begin to wonder what the point is. I wonder why I bother picking up all these clothes off the floor just to see them knocked over and out of place just a few moments later.

But The Folding has to be done. We must go through the motions of The Folding and The Re-Folding day after day after day to keep the store in order. If we deny our duties just one day then the store would go into disarray. Continue reading →

The 40 Year Old Vision

/ Alex Doriot / 3 Comments

40 years ago this week, Bruce Springsteen dropped his second album, The Wild, The Innocent, and The E Street Shuffle, a personal favorite of mine.

The record would go on to become one of Rolling Stone‘s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and help establish the career of a first ballot Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.

But nobody knew that 40 years ago. Continue reading →

Life On The Leash

/ Alex Doriot / 1 Comment

photo-2You’d think a dog would hate a leash.

Not my dog.

By definition a leash keeps a dog from moving freely, tying them to where their owner is walking. Seems like something which would annoy a dog in theory.

When I pull out the leash The Roc recognizes what’s about to happen. I don’t even have to say a word.

He knows where I keep the leash. He knows when I’m going for it.

Wherever he is he starts running. His heart starts racing. His legs can’t contain themselves.

We’re going to his favorite place. We’re going outside. Continue reading →

Monday Morning Music – Silent Sunlight

/ Alex Doriot / 2 Comments

(Click Here if you can’t see the video above.)

Mondays are daunting.

The drive back to the office is dreadful.

The work we’ve been avoiding all weekend has piled up.

Sometimes you need the Monday Morning Music to get you going.

Last week I stumbled across a record for 20 cents at Salvation Army – “Catch Bull At Four” by Cat Stevens. On it was the perfect Monday Morning Music – a song called “Silent Sunlight”.

Today is my first day away from my full-time job in almost five years. Yet this song reminded me the work has only just begun.

You may be out of a job as well this morning. Or you may be stepping into a job you’re not in love with. Or you may be stepping into a project you’ve been putting off.

Whatever Monday you’re stepping into, simply sing a song of love and truth into everything you do. Be strong. Be courageous. Do the work. Rest your eyes. Wake up. Do it again.

Keep pushing through, having faith in what the Lord is bringing you into with each new sunlight.

photo-6I’d love to know – what are you facing down this Monday? How can we support each other as we do the work of a new week?

Prioritize Like Leslie Knope

/ Alex Doriot / 1 Comment

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It’s Friday. The weight of work is overwhelming. You haven’t had a real weekend in months. You have a better relationship with the stapler on your desk than you do your best friend.

It’s time to rethink your priorities. Maybe you should prioritize like Leslie Knope.

Leslie Knope seems like she works 25 hours a day, 8 days a week to keep Pawnee running. But even a hyperactive workhorse like Leslie keeps her priorities straight.

Your work should not define you. Your job should not own your spirit. Take a minute to recognize what’s important today. Put work last for a day. Call a friend. Have a waffle.

When was the last time you made a 2 AM Waffle House run? Or the last time you skipped work to go see a movie? Do something today to make you smile. Your soul needs it. Recharge your happy meter. Ignore the calorie count. Enjoy this day as the unique individual gift it is.

Happy Friday.

Stay Plugged In

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

photo (24)Last week I unplugged for a few days with my extended family. We rented out a rustic log cabin – on Fernandina Beach in Florida.

While spending time with relatives in our untraditional abode I really tried to unplug myself from my iPhone. It was a struggle.

The first couple of days at the beach I found it impossible to not worry about email, Facebook, Twitter and the many balls in the air I had going at the church.

It really wasn’t until the day before I headed I home when I really began to swim away from my phone, only to dive right back in as soon as I shook the sand from my flip-flops.

Do you ever struggle with unplugging? Our phones, jobs, and social media profiles make it nearly impossible to truly break free from the connections which clutter our minds.

I wonder though if unplugging is all it’s cracked up to be. I think we are actually created to be plugged in. Sometimes we just get our cords attached to the wrong outlets. Continue reading →