Friday; July 8

I have recently started driving a different car. There are several things I like about it, but soon after I started driving it, I heard a strange sound as I was backing out of the driveway. I stopped and rolled down my window and realized it has one of those back-up beepers on it. Whenever put it in reverse it sends out a warning. At first I thought about disabling it – I didn’t want to sound like a garbage truck when I was backing out of parking space – but the more I got to thinking about it the more I liked it. When I set my preconceptions aside, I figured there was value in letting the people around me know when I am backing up. Even if I forget to look behind me, they have a chance to get out of my way and avoid being hurt. Backing into a pedestrian or bicyclist would make for a terrible day. Giving them a little extra warning could keep them and me from experiencing a tragedy!

As I reflected on this, I got to wondering if applying an “early warning system” might be a good idea in other aspects of our lives. What if we were upfront with people when we weren’t having a good day? How many conflicts could we avoid if we simply said, “You know, I am just not on my A-game today. Would you be okay if we put off this discussion until tomorrow?”. No, it might be as annoying as the back-up beeper on my car, but it might be just as effective at avoiding tragedies.

Let’s learn to cope with our bad moods, but when we don’t, let’s practice transparency. It may delay some decisions, but that might not be a bad thing if it keeps us from getting crossways with people.

Think About It!

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday; November 29

The biblical story of the Good Samaritan has changed our world. Notice I didn’t say that it had change religion or even Christianity, it has influenced the world. There are very few people who don’t know the moral of Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan. In fact, the phrase has become a common description of everyday people doing good to their neighbors. While Jesus’ parable from Luke 10 shares several spiritual lessons, one of the most practical is that good can be done by anyone. You don’t have to be a church official to do good, it is not only possible for each one of us to help, it is required of all of us. If a Samaritan can be good, so can we! After presenting the parable, Jesus asked the man who had originally asked the question about being a good neighbor which character in the story was a good neighbor, “… he said, ‘The one who showed mercy toward him.’” at which point, the discussion from theoretical to personal, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’” (Luke
Read more

Thursday; January 12

The other day I was watching a television show that used a rather common term applied to overcoming challenges. When organizations experience unexpected setbacks – especially when they lose key people – they rely upon the concept of “Next Man Up”. In essence, when our starters (or stars) go down, effective organizations rely upon their next levels to step into the vacancy. While this is an effective response, have we given much thought as to how we prepare to be the “next people up”? First, we must know our job. Even when we aren’t the primary players, we need to be preparing ourselves to be ready when we get the opportunity to shine. Second, we must do our best when we get the chance. Knowledge is important but what turns potential into talent is effort. Yet, maybe the most underappreciated aspect of this concept is a willingness avoid excuse-making and whining about the unfairness of our situation. When we complain about the circumstances that caused the need for replacements
Read more

Monday; September 25

When I was a youngster, I remember hearing about this thing called the Generation Gap. I was a little bit too young to be active in the social movements of the 1960s, but I do remember listening to the challenges the generations were experiencing way back then. Interestingly, now that I have been on both sides of the aging process, I have to admit that the Gap of the 1960s was nothing new. With the development of each generation comes conflict. The young people don’t feel like the older people understand them and the older folks tend to believe their input is being underappreciated. Too often trust is the casualty when two generations collide. The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be this way. When we can capture the innovation and energy of the younger folks and harness the wisdom of those who have been around for a while we can develop a winning combination. No, we won’t always see things eye-to-eye nor will we necessarily speak the same emotional language, but when we app
Read more