What is job security – really?

If you pay a visit to Crystal glass in Cochrane to get your windshield fixed or a window replaced, chances are you’ll meet Amanda. Amanda is one of the most positive, helpful, and enthused people you’ll ever meet. She’s always smiling, always ready to be of service.

For a long time I thought she owned the shop, until I found out she was employed as a customer service professional.

“How do you stay so positive, especially when you are dealing so often with demanding, negative customers?” I asked her.
“My grandma. She inspired me to always smile.” Amanda replied and then she showed me the tattoo on her arm.

“Just before Grandma died, I had this tattooed on my arm. In part to honor her, in part to remember her, and in part to keep being inspired by her.”

“You know you could have a job in a lot of places with your attitude,” I told her.

“I know,” she said. She then opened her desk drawer and pulled out a stack of business cards two inches thick. “These are all the people who have offered me a job since I started working here.”

Amanda reminds us all that job security is an inside job. It doesn’t come from your employer. Job security comes from your employability. If you bring value and the right attitude to the marketplace, the marketplace will reward you in return.

While the best leaders will do their best to make the workplace safe and secure, there is ultimately no true security in the world.

Security is determined by your philosophy, not by the economy.