So, what happens when you are in the midst of a struggle?
You do all you can. You fight for it.
This can be said of any struggle really. At least any struggle that truly matters. (Figuring out the difference between important ones and unimportant ones is another matter)
When the job is on the line, you do whatever it takes to make it work. When a life is at stake, you do all you can. When you see something that needs to be changed, you do all you can.
As someone once told me, “Just take the next step. Do the next thing.” You may not know where you are going. But you can see where you’ve been and where God looks like He’s taking you. Go that way. Move towards that. Keep getting better at your craft. Keep refining yourself. Even when the road looks like a dead end, there is something you can do. Sometimes that something is to wait, but there is always something.
Go forward with confidence, and go with God. He can tell you where to go, but He doesn’t make you do it.
Time to step up.
[ Image by rbrwr ]
One thing I’ve been realizing lately is that awareness by itself is not enough.
It is not sufficient to just be aware of a problem. If I am aware that I have cancer and yet do nothing to kill and destroy it, the cancer will still kill me. Only when I take action against the cancer does it ever go away.
Raising awareness is good. Knowing your enemy is good. These things will prepare you for the battle.
But there is still a battle.
As it says in a song I like, “How can you expect to win this war if you’re too afraid to fight.” And the fight will be hard, but it is better than not fighting at all.
Be aware. But also take right action.
[ Image by mendhak ]
So, here’s one for all of us who tend to act before we think. Sometimes, we make an assumption that is incorrect. Others, we go on ahead without full knowledge. Still others, we just plain do something stupid.
Now that you’ve done something, you can’t go back and do it over again. Ok, now what?
Take Responsibility
There’s not much I dislike more than someone who has obviously made a mistake try and act like it wasn’t really their fault. Own up to mistakes that are truly yours. It takes some honesty on your part, and it isn’t very fun. But it’s the right thing to do. Sometimes, the mistake is not completely your fault. Even then, take responsibility for the part that was yours. Don’t let people walk over you, but own your own actions.
Learn From Them
Now that we’ve taken responsibility for our goof, learn from the blasted thing! In other words, don’t do it again. Take stock of what led to your mistake, and note what choices you made that were wrong or not the best. Sometimes the decisions you made will not initially seem wrong or less than optimum. Next time you are in the situation, remember the previous outcome. With that in mind, you should be wary of decisions which lead there again. Don’t waste a mistake!
There’s not much else. Pretty simple.
Also, remember your mistakes when someone else makes one. Some mistakes deserve hard consequences, but do not act as if it makes that person anything less. It’s not like you’re perfect either!
What mistakes have you learned the most from? Which ones do you laugh at in retrospect?
Something I was reminded of today. Attitude reflects leadership.
As a leader, your performance affects the rest of your team. If you lead with an iron fist, your followers will mostly obey, but only out of fear. Not a fun environment. If you lead like a servant, your followers are more willing to sacrifice for you and for the vision. When you are willing to dig in and fight with your team, it makes the team more willing to fight with you.
I think a part of our culture is skewed when it comes to this. We think that we lead by force or by right. While strength, talent, and wisdom are all important leadership qualities, we need to remember that unless we lead like a servant, our leadership is not whole.
So, how do you lead? How does your team think you lead?
