Von Trapp, Inc.

"Nothing comes from nothing
Nothing ever could
So somewhere in my youth or childhood
I must've done something good."

My mother sang these lines to explain the honor of having shared most of her life with my father, who passed away in June.

I relate it to work, because I'm a drone born accidentally in human form. I could blame it on the TV, which rotted my brain. (Yes dad, TV bad.)

"The Sound of Music" and "The Wizard of Oz" more closely resemble the job search process. After all, who has the opportunity to join a "family" as an outsider? Orphans, nuns and foster kids? For most everyone else, that symbolic family would be a company, corporation or bureaucracy.

Maria applied to teach and lead seven underlings, while evading the Nazis; and Dorothy, to take charge of three lost souls and save all of Munchkinland from the Wicked Witch of the West. However, Maria and Dorothy actually finding home is a different story entirely.

Granted, I've had to curb my enthusiasm for identifying surrogate parents, siblings and friends at work due to my confusion. This destroys any work/life balance and is a serious mistake, as is treating the workplace as your personal living space.

It seems only natural to let it all hang out eventually, to be accepted completely by default. But, this is ill advised, even on the home front.

There's just not that much space for us in other people's lives, much like the Twitterverse with only 140 characters to communicate one's character. It's important to choose and edit carefully before hitting the send button.

Once you are placed in a box that you've helped design, it's difficult, if not impossible, to escape. It requires new territory, geography and population, and a different approach. The problem is... wherever you go, there you are.

So, do something good; even if it means diluting your personality. This is called Prudence. It's on the A-list of virtues.  Don't confuse it with the cliché of being a prude, which is unpopular with horny teenage boys.

Reap what you sow. Do so mindfully when an invitation presents itself. Not having an answer is better than throwing something at the wall and seeing if it sticks. Don't be the student that shouts out wrong answers in the lecture hall. Be patient. All good things come to those who wait, which gives you a chance to find your heart's desire and prepare for it.

"Better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt."