The List Lives On

For years, I have kept a mental list of the people I'd go to if I were building a production team--co-workers and bosses who made my work life easier, or more fun, and who were hands-down great at their jobs. "If I am ever in charge," I'd think, "these are the people I would have around me."
 
More often than not, I am not in charge. I am hired, not hiring, working with, not choosing. So the list grows, but only in my head.
 
Every so often, however, I see a job posting that so reminds me of one of my "list people" that I pass it along. While this won't mean I will be working with the people on my list, it means that someone out there might get to.
 
I used to think that the passing on of job leads was just my reaction to so many of us being out of work after ABC. A lot of time has passed since then, though, so it must be about a little something more. It's about sharing the talents of people I know. It's about saying "thank you" in some small way for their making my work life better over the years. It's about making sure the "good guys" get all the chances they deserve.
 
My "list" lives on. Whether or not it will ever be a hiring list for me is hard to say. For now, it will just be a reminder of where I've been, and a bit of a road map for how far we can all go.