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It’s more than teamwork (as cool as teamwork is). It goes beyond the organized, it becomes this spontaneous, almost self-fueling, “thing” that has momentum.
“Look, we’ve come a really long way. We have achieved what we wanted to achieve. We don’t need to jeopardize all we’ve accomplished.” That is a phrase you will hear when you are driving for change. Why? Because to arrive at your destination you most likely will need to “cement” your changes. And that normally means facing some final, large obstacles.
Chapter 31 of Genesis ends with Laban departing Jacob. You and I, if we were in his shoes, might say, “I’ve done it. I’m free!” Jacob might rationalize, “Why bother to go back to my brother? All it will do is open up old wounds.” Yet stopping now is stopping short of the Vision—God’s Vision.
“It’s a mess.” That is what I thought. We were in the middle of trying to transform ourselves, and our company. When you are halfway there, you still have “large chunks” of your life, your work, your company—that when you look at them—it appears as if nothing has changed. You know you cannot go back to the way things were. What do you do?
I have been suggesting that as we read chapters 30-32 of Genesis, we are witnessing the transformation of a man and a family. This is not just any family. It is the family God will use to launch the nation of Israel…
It is one thing to live into a new culture in a season when everything is going well. It is quite another to live your culture amid envy, affliction, and even hatred. Many companies and many people seek to create a new chapter in their lives—be it a new corporate culture or a new and improved individual personality. Trying to turn the corner is hard. Doing it in a swamp of jealously and loathing is more than difficult. You try to hold onto your newfound principles and stay above it. Yet even the most motivated, newly-minted saint will falter. What does this have to do with Genesis 30?
There are lots of ideas and resources about delegation available today. I have found that many of these processes miss a key component: relationship. In today’s age of collaboration and teamwork, relationship is king. In order to successfully delegate, I’ve devised a process, where at the start, you address the relational nature of your specific situation.
The daily and weekly grind—the grind—that is how many refer to their jobs. Work is... well, it is work. It is why we’re usually paid to do it. How do you feel about work? For me, my struggle is the other way. Too much of my identity is tied up in my work. If I am successful at work, then I am successful. If I am not successful then, somehow, I allow my failures to infiltrate my sense of worth.
Ever hung up the phone with your boss, or walked out of her office, and thought, “Why is she working on that? Isn’t that supposed to be my job?” Many of us have had this experience – maybe all of us. So, what is the answer to, “Why is she working on my stuff?” I used to conjure up the worst possible scenarios in my head, and (I’ll admit) think some really non-flattering things about my supervisor. Have you ever done that? Nothing good comes from it!
Can you, at any given moment, know whether you are leading, or managing? DAM POC is my blunt tool so I always know. I like acronyms. My little gray cells need shorthand ways to get ahold of a topic...