day 234: View From The Top

I once was asked to speak at a business conference called, "View From The Top". As I prepared for the session, I felt an enormous amount of pressure being that everyone who was sitting in the audience was expecting something unique and insightful because I was supposed to have some view that was different than everyone else. The view from the top is supposed to be the best view with a vantage point that no one else could have. It's an interesting metaphor but I don't think it holds up totally in business. Just because someone sits in the CEO seat doesn't mean that she/he actually has the best view or point of view. Many times the CEO can get so far away from the customer that they lose all of that perspective. The same can happen with perspective on other parts of the business. They may well know the strategy of the company better than anyone else, but that doesn't mean they have the whole view. It takes, in business, many people with many vantage points and views to put the whole picture together, each having their own view. It's kind of like the eyes of a fly...many, many, many views. Too many companies act like only the views from the top matter, but they are wrong. Each of us bring our own unique vantage point and point of view to the business and if we stand tall with our own point of views, then others will listen and take note. God tells us what the vantage point He wants us to have; "Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates." If our view is always fixed towards watching for the gates of God then our view will never be the wrong one. What we see beyond that view is all additive. At work we all want to see the biggest picture that we can because we believe that the bigger and better the view the more influence we will have in the business. If today you are worried that you don't have a view from the top or not a big enough view, then step back and be glad that God has given you a better view; a view of the top! And when it feels like you can't see what you need to see, then fall back on God and ask Him to open your eyes to what it is that you need to see and to give you a point of view that influences others around you.

Reference: Proverbs 8:34 (New Living Testament)