In a Dream

I had this dream. I mean it was amazing. It was absolutely and totally amazing.

In my dream, I woke up one morning, got dressed, ate my usual quick breakfast and headed off to work. To my job as an in-house corporate compliance specialist.

And, by the way, just to be sure you get it – all of it. I am good at what I do. I’m well educated, highly experienced, thoroughly trained.

To top all that – are you ready? I love my job. I love what I do. I love being in the field of corporate compliance. It’s an important field. It matters. It always, always, always matters.

So, anyway, in my dream, I get to work. And what do I see?

Banners. Streamers. Balloons.

I see a crowd gathered to greet me. They all hold up signs. The signs have messages.

The signs are encouraging, uplifting and celebratory.

My co-workers gather to welcome me. To shake my hand. To say kind words. To tell me how much they appreciate who I am and what I do as a compliance specialist.

The biggest sign – more a banner – has my name on it. In huge letters.

It’s an event. A celebration. A recognition for who I am and all I do for the entire company.

What a welcome they gave me. It was like a whole big deal. A major event. For me. To show they care. To honor the work I do and the caring person I am.

In my amazing dream there’s even a sort of party. With great food. With music. With speeches.

Even the Board of Directors show up. All to honor me. To thank me for the job I do. To show appreciation for how often I’ve saved all of us from making costly errors, of going off track, of tumbling into wrongdoing.

Wow! I mean all this for me? For the work I do? For who I am and always will be as a corporate compliance expert.

Then the band played some great music and we all danced. Board members even danced. Wow! Who knew they were all so human?

It was so great. So fun. So exciting.

Me. Being honored. And thanked. And praised.

Me. Being treated like I really mattered.

Me. Being the center of all that celebrating.

Just as they were offering to organize a parade in my honor – boom – I woke up. Sigh.

But what a dream it was. I felt so good. So valued. So appreciated.

That warm dream glow lasted even after I really did get up and headed off to work.

But once I got there, the dream glow faded. No banners or balloons for me. No music or dancing for me. No speeches. No awards. No cheers.

Just plain old me. In my plain old office. In my plain old job.

But, hey, guess what. The big boss. Top guy. He stopped by my office. Told me I’d done a great job on a recent compliance potential problem. Handed me a bonus check for going above and beyond. Shook my hand.

So, who needs banners or celebrations?

I got a bonus check. Good for me!

© 2024 K. Leet

What do you think?

Rather have a party or a check?

Do you ever feel appreciated?

Why or why not?

These are stories (usually fictional, but not always), based on insights and experiences from the world of compliance & ethics.