A previous supervisor of mine reached out to me on LinkedIn recently while I was traveling. She shared that although she was still employed, she had begun exploring what might be next for her career and asked that I send along any opportunities I came across that I thought would be a good fit.
The timing of her message made me laugh.
Just days earlier, I had been interviewing for a role that, truthfully, I knew she would be perfect for. I immediately responded asking her to send me her resume. I shared the job posting with her and told her I would gladly pass her information along.
Many people may think that sounds absurd. Why would I recommend someone else for a position that I myself am pursuing?
My answer is simple: what God has for me is for me, and what God has for His people is for His people.
I have never believed that supporting someone else’s success somehow jeopardizes my own. In fact, I believe one of the greatest tragedies of modern life is how often we view one another as competition rather than community. Support is trusting that another person’s purpose does not threaten your own.
The Psychology of Scarcity
Psychology has a term for the mindset that tells us there is not enough success, opportunity, love, recognition, or blessing to go around: scarcity mindset.
A scarcity mindset convinces us that if someone else wins, we somehow lose. It whispers that there are only so many seats at the table, only so many opportunities available, only so much happiness and fulfillment reserved for us. As a result, we become protective, competitive, and sometimes even resentful of the success of others.
But abundance operates differently.
Abundance understands that another person’s success is not evidence of your failure. Another person’s blessing is not proof that God forgot about you. Another person’s opportunity does not mean your opportunity no longer exists.
Perhaps this is why I had no hesitation sending my previous supervisor that job posting. If the position is meant for her, then I pray she gets it. And if the position is meant for me, then no amount of support I extend to someone else can interfere with what God has already ordained.
The truth is, I think many of us are not actually afraid of losing opportunities. We are afraid of believing there is enough for everyone.
A Heart Like Christ
As Christians, I think we sometimes become so focused on what not to do that we forget one of the most beautiful aspects of our faith is becoming more like Christ.
We focus on avoiding sin. Don’t lie. Don’t steal. Never commit this sin or that sin. And while those things matter, I don’t believe the Christian life is solely about avoiding wrongdoing. It is also about cultivating a heart that looks more like Jesus.
I am human. I will make mistakes. I will fall short. I will sin. But every day, I have another opportunity to choose generosity, compassion, to celebrate someone else’s blessing without fearing that it somehow delays my own.
When I reflect on my own life and all the opportunities I have been blessed to experience, yes, I attribute much of it to faith and hard work. But I also believe that part of my blessing has come from genuinely desiring to support God’s people.
Not just my family.
Not just my friends.
Not just my community.
God’s people.
All of them.
Because this world is far too large, and God is far too abundant, for us to believe that someone else’s success is our loss. There is enough room for all of us to become who we were created to be.
The only question is whether we truly believe it.
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