This is the story about how I stood up to my abusive boss!
Me in my earlier years in the face of an angry boss: “I’m so sorry, Sir, of course you are right, Sir. How clumsy of me. Please accept my apologies. It will never happen again.” Placating, people-pleasing, thoroughly cowed suck-up. Ugh!
Diffusing tension usually meant that I dropped having my own back.
At some point in my life, I could no longer bow and scrape at my own expense. I needed to stand tall in myself, no matter how much anger, judgment, or bullying was coming my way.
In 2015 the universe gave me the golden opportunity.
I’d temporarily left my counseling practice in LA to move to Delaware to help care for my stepdad who’d had a stroke. A few months later, savings spent, I suddenly found myself waiting tables again at an old, well-established Italian restaurant. With a patriarchal bully of an owner (I’ll call him Mr. Z).
From day one I felt like I was being tested. Would I cave and start shoe-licking? Or would I stand up?
I’d enter the kitchen to pick up food to owner standing in front of the line screaming, “YOU IDIOT! WHAT? You not have EARS? You hear the BELL, you get the FOOD!” (Stream of blasphemous cursing)
I’d be smiling cheerfully, look him straight in the eye, “Hi Mister Z, it’s nice to see you this evening.” Calmly plate my tray, “Thanks, Chef, looks great.” Then turn to find a sputtering Mr. Z blocking my path, I’d smile again, “Excuse me, Mr. Z, gotta go serve this food!” as I walked straight towards him with my tray, giving him the choice of either getting out of the way of the door or getting a chest full of steaming hot food. He wisely got out of the way.
This went on for several months until the fateful employee meeting.
The meeting started off fine with the owner’s adult son giving an encouraging talk. But the minute the son left, the owner started on a blistering tirade, “STUPID, LAZY, IMBECILES! GOOD-FOR-NOTHING!” blah blah blah.
I stood up, calmly gathered my sweater off of the back of my chair, the server next to me whispering furiously, “What are you doing?! You can’t leave yet!”
As I picked up my purse, I replied in my normal voice, “I respect myself way too much to sit here listening to this nonsense.” And I walked out of the room with Mr. Z bellowing in rage at my back.
Did I lose that job? Yes. Was it one of the best things that ever happened for me? Definitely yes.
I stood up and my world leveled up to meet me. The restaurant staff broke out in spontaneous applause when I picked up my last check. Within days I was given an opportunity to go to Europe to teach conscious healing. Fast-forward a few years and I’m fulfilled to overflowing doing my soul’s work of teaching, writing, and facilitating deep soul-level healing.
It was like the universe was saying to me “Are you really ready to be a leader?” And I was responding, “Yes, I’m ready to be a leader.”
Stand up, and the whole world will rise to meet you.
Last Sunday I offered an online healing session on this very topic.
The event was called “Stand Up To Authority with Peace” Here is a link to receive the healing if you missed it: https://vibrantfreedom.simplero.com/page/270812