FRIDAY STORY

The Worthy Opponent

Wherever Janet looked, there SHE was.

She was like bad news, all over the place.

Whenever Janet raised her hand, she could count on HER hand going up to say something better or something contrary.

And no matter what Janet did, she would find a way to get the credit, improve on it and get control of it.

Janet was foaming and after five years of this, she was murderously mad.

“Breathe, Janet, calm down,” Judy told her in the bathroom while Jean guarded the door to make sure that SHE did not show up even there.

“How is it possible that I present the project and she gets the direction?” Janet managed to say between huffs and puffs.

“You’re going to hyperventilate, for God’s sake!” Judy warned. “Breath slowly and deeply. Inhale fully. You must calm down.”

Janet did not want to calm down. She wanted to kill that bitch!

“Thanks, Judy,” she said, doing her best to breathe slowly. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Ever since Janet began working in this corporation, Melba had been her worst nightmare.

“What have I ever done to her?” Janet asked.

“It’s envy,” Judy said. “She’s bitter and envious of you, that’s all.”

“That’s plenty!” Janet says. “She doesn’t give me any breathing space. She constantly gets in my way, throws a wrench in all my projects and when she can’t, like now, because they are too good, she sabotages them.”

“This was more like highjacking,” Judy corrected.

“Why does the boss keep giving in to her?” Janet muttered between tight lips.

“Well, she’s worked here forever,” Judy said.

“Or maybe she’s sleeping with the boss,” Janet considered.

“That would be a scandal. They’re both married,” Judy warned.

“Like that doesn’t happen all over the place,” Janet spit.

“Do you have any evidence?” Judy asked.

No, she did not. She had seen nothing; heard nothing to back up her accusation. But what else could be happening? Why did Melba get away with murder? Why was this woman so intent on screwing everything she did?

When Janet got home she threw her keys carelessly into the ceramic bowl in the console… and it broke.

She took the two pieces of the bowl in her hands and was about to curse when she saw a flash in the mirror above the console.

Melba’s face grinned at her malignantly.

Then it was gone, and Janet was looking at her own angry, exhausted, dejected expression.

She threw herself in bed and fell deeply asleep.

There was a battle. It was back in time, for people were fighting with swords.

She got off her horse to join the battle and someone jumped in front of her.

Melba in an armor suit, brandishing a long, shiny sword.

Janet fell back, surprised.

Melba stroke.

And Janet woke up with a jump.

Did they know each other from past lives? Was this dream a past life vision?

That would mean that Melba has been getting on her way for centuries, throughout life times.

The thought was scary enough, but what called Janet’s attention was something else.

“Why did I get off my horse? I had the advantage staying on the horse!” she thought.

“And why did I fall back? How could I be surprised that someone attacked me in the middle of a battle?” she also thought.

It was then that the truth in her relationship with Melba became crystal clear to Janet.

Like a sudden flash of revelation, she saw how she got off the horse in every project she presented.

She made the project with Melba in mind. She was so eager to defeat Melba that she created projects that were perfect for Melba to manage because the truth is that she wanted to be like Melba.

Melba was a great project manager. She got things done. She was good with details, and she got people to work together and deliver the goodies on time.

“I’m more of a lais·sez-faire type of person; more about the creative process, quality and vision.”

She had an advantage in staying “on her own horse,” on creating projects that played to her own advantage. Janet was highly creative, had design and visual art skills and was great at branding, long-term holistic projects and projects involving creativity, content and collaborating with the community.

Instead, she created projects that were highly detailed oriented and technical, emphasizing time management and interdepartmental coordination, and she played to Melba’s skills. Of course that the boss would see that Melba was more suited for these projects.

“But why? Why do I do this to myself?” Janet wanted to know.

Deep inside her the answer rose, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth.

“Because I do not value my own creativity. I believe that a true executive is a project coordinator, a supervisor, a detailed-oriented person; but I am careless with details and have never applied myself to improve. That’s how I hand things over to Melba.”

The next project Janet presented was a highly creative, long time re-branding of the company’s magazine. Melba had no expertise required in the project. However, Janet did something that would have surprised her two months before. She requested that Melba was recruited as management consultant to her.

And for the first time, the two women worked together, helped each other, and both came up on top.

That night Janet had a dream. She held the winning banner as she galloped on her beautiful horse.

“I’m grateful to my Worthy Opponent,” Janet spoke to the army, mostly made of their co-workers. “For she helped me to stay on my horse in my way to power.”

Shamanic Tool: A Worthy Opponent is a formidable challenge, enemy or limitation that you must overcome in order to fully embody your purpose and graduate into your Life Mastery. It shows up as the most difficult challenge you’ve met, your nemesis who keeps showing up and messing up your life or a severe limitation —like a physical challenge— that demands your highest powers to overcome or transcend.

What is your Worthy Opponent right now?

You are welcome to share.

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