Being desperate is not shameful.

Ever hear the story about how, when a bear chases you through the woods, your fight or flight response kicks in?  

This is not that story.

It's the story of when the bear finally catches up to you.

I stand corrected from an earlier post about shame.  In that post, I had written that shame doesn't serve a function. It does. 

The recommended tactic for surviving a grizzly bear attack is to put yourself low to the ground, bury your head, and place yourself in a position of shame/vulnerability.  

This position is meant to signal to the attacking grizzly that you are not a threat and back off.  
Shame is for grizzly attacks.  

On a completely unrelated, yet related note, LinkedIn has offered a new feature. You can now place a friendly green circle on your name that signals you're #opentowork. As a recruiter, I find the green circle helpful. I instantly know who to help!  

I posted my thoughts about the green circle here.  

Here's what's interesting...

The post was encouraging job seekers not to be ashamed of letting others know that they're looking to work.  The message of not being ashamed for who you are is so powerful that 7,000 others saw the post. It's trending as I write.  

So here's what I don't get.

Should we feel that letting others know we're looking for a job, publicly, is the equivalent of a grizzly bear attacking us? And, if so, why?  

Why do we keep ourselves from doing things that matter to us? How can we be so afraid of ourselves?  

Because we've been conditioned to fall in line.  
Go to school.
Get the job.
Do the job.
Put your head down,
Get your raise,
Get your promotion,
Go home!

I don't know about you, but I'm not playing that game.  

My life is worth a bit more.

Is yours?