The Perfect Match

I recently recommended someone for a job. It seemed like a perfect match, and I was thrilled to be able to do something for someone whose work I appreciated and respected. It turned out, however, that while my "recommendee" appreciated my efforts, she didn't feel up to what the job would require. I contacted the person to whom I'd made the recommendation, and we all moved on.
 
You might think that this is a cautionary tale about recommendations. Actually, it is a story about understanding. In the moment when my friend told me how she felt, I was faced both with sorrow that I wouldn't be able to help her get a job, and with an uncanny understanding of what she was thinking. Over the past few years, any number of people have suggested paths to me and recommended contacts for me, and even thrown my name in the ring for jobs. Yet, from time to time, as grateful as I have been, I have wondered "Could I do that work?" They have recommended me because they have faith in me as a person or as a co-worker. Yet, being a good person or doing a great job in certain circumstances doesn't always mean your talent will come through in every circumstance.
 
So, no, this is not a cautionary tale about recommending people. That kind of networking is invaluable, and has given me some of the best opportunities of my career. Rather, this is a reminder that we don't have to be great at everything to be great. We don't have to be ready to adapt to any job, just because we are good at many. And while we should be careful about underestimating our own abilities, we should also speak up about what we can do and what we want to do. And we should respect our friends and colleagues when they do the same.
 
I will keep playing job matchmaker--it's just a little way for me to make a difference, as people have made a difference for me. It may just be with a new understanding. Because a perfect match is a tricky thing for any of us to find.