For months Elizabeth has been trying to learn how to overcome her anxiety about becoming a boss. As much as she knew she deserved the position, just as much of her knew she did not want to create tension in her office. She knew the promotion was coming and Mr.Thomas, the current manager, had already sent her up for the recommendation. Too late to back out now. Elizabeth was known because of her work ethic. However, she never interacted with anyone outside of working hours. She didn’t believe in mixing business with pleasure. Too risky she’d always thought. ~~~~~ End of the week.
Today was the day. It’s Monday morning and Elizabeth is sitting in the parking garage looking at herself in the rearview mirror. Deep breaths Liz. Inhale….exhale….inhale….exhale. You’ve been preparing for this moment for weeks girl! Do not let anyone intimidate you, okay? You need this promotion. Elizabeth took one more deep breath and got out of her car. Elizabeth was a very noticeable woman. She was about six foot, three inches tall. She had a smooth bronze tone and a sassy short bob. Elizabeth was gorgeous! But as beautiful as she was, Elizabeth had her points of insecurities. She was always insecure about her height. She worked hard to not allow height to be a determining factor in how people received her. In other words, she didn’t use height as a scare or intimidation tactic against her co-workers. She worked to be treated according to her character, nothing else. Aside from her looks, she was as intelligent as they come with a dash of street smarts. To Elizabeth’s knowledge, she did not have any enemies…at least not yet. ~~~~~ Entering the office.
“Alright! Everyone, gather ’round. I have an announcement to make.” Mr. Thomas said aloud. Everyone moved towards the center. As far as everyone knew, nothing new had happened so their curiosity was a bit high. “As you all know, I have been looking to fill the Office Manager’s position. Many of you inquired and some of you met some of the qualifications.” Everyone started looking at one another. Partly because no one disclosed to each other that the other was applying. Mr. Thomas started, “At any rate. I am happy to announce that your new Office Manager is …….” Everyone waited in anticipation. He laughed and said, “Man! You guys are really that interested in knowing who your manager is going to be?!” They all chuckled a bit, to ease the tension amongst themselves. Mr. Thomas spoke again, “Everybody, I’d like to introduce to you all, your new manager Elizabeth Morris!” Elizabeth walked to the front and for the first time since she has worked here, she saw everybody. “Congrats Liz!” someone finally said. Everyone else flashed brief disingenuous smiles. Tory Lynn came up and hugged Elizabeth. “Don’t you worry about these assholes. You’re going to be great Liz!” Mr. Thomas shook Elizabeth’s hand and let her know that she had some paperwork to sign and he’d walk her to her new office. Everyone dispersed back to their cubicles…and the whispering began. ~~~~~ Off to her new office space.
Elizabeth and Mr. Thomas entered her new office and he let her know that her work life as she knew it will be turned upside down. “Liz, I know how hard you have worked for this company and it has not gone unnoticed as you can see. But I am morally obligated to let you in on something.” Elizabeth felt the bottom of her gut fall out. She had an idea of what was next. “You’re a woman, a black woman, in a very important position. There are higher ups who don’t think you deserve this position or this office. I fought very hard for you. I need you to understand that how well you do falls on you and ME. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me for any assistance. I’m going to help you pick an assistant to help you out with your transition.” Elizabeth listened with open ears and a feeling of regret. Before he walked out, he turned and said “Oh, and another thing. You are now an enemy to many in this office. A lot of people applied for this spot. Expect a target on your back for a while, or at least until everyone isn’t pissed anymore.” Mr. Thomas jokingly said as he left. With that, Elizabeth dropped her head on her new cherry wood desk and began to cry. ~~~~ New chapter…or is it?
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