day 389: Slumps

It's early in the professional baseball season but even before 20 games have been played, already some players are being characterized as in a "slump". Slumps are very obvious in sports and sales. In sports there are stats for everything and it becomes obvious when someone is not producing. The same can be said for the sales function in a company. When the leads aren't turning into calls that are turning into closed deals, then sales people can also fall into a slump. Most of the rest of the jobs in business are hard to measure so finitely that slumps become clearly recognizable, even though they are happening. We all go into our slumps at one time or another. We know it by our inability to feel like we are getting as much done or that we feel like decisions we are making get overturned or challenged at every turn. Our slumps can be that we just aren't as sharp or focused as we once were and we can't put our finger on the reasons. The business world is actually quite forgiving as there is not an expectation that every day we perform at our peak. Most companies grade on a sliding scale and watch to see how performance unfolds over time. Not that every company has patience, but most do. You may be feeling this slump right now. What is most important is that we as believers never let our slumps get us down. We don't need to let them affect our attitude or confidence as we have the great promise from Romans 8:28 (which we can't repeat enough); "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them." We know that our purpose is to bring glory to God in our work and all that we do. So, a slump is just part of the process in what will be good. Today, think about embracing the slump and making the most of it so that when good does come from it, you have an even greater appreciation of what you are to do next.

Reference: Romans 8:28 (New Living Testament)