day 1256: Running Around Like Crazy - Part 2

 "So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches"

"It's a rat race around here". Ever heard that statement? What picture does it conjure up? When I hear that statement I think of a maze with two rats being let loose into the entrance and off they go working their way from one side of the other to get the cheese. Or, I see two rats running after each other, running in circles and swerves trying to catch each other. Minus the rats part, (or not minus, depending on where you work), the picture of running around like crazy or running around a maze can feel just like the office. We so many times feel like we are chasing and going from thing to thing without purpose or definition that we end up feeling like we have wasted time and energy until it just wears us down. We then wonder why we are not springing out of bed in the morning to get to work.

As mentioned yesterday, Paul gives us his tips to winning the race for life and not only does he tell us to run the race to win, he also says to run with discipline and focus. In verse 26 of I Corinthians 9 he says, "So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches". What Paul was modeling for us was efficiency and productivity in reaching a goal and purpose, because we can straighten out the line between two points. When we feel like we are in the rat race at work, a place to start to fix is determining where it is that you are trying go and get very specific on that goal and purpose and "straighten out" the corners and angles that get in your way. And when at work we meander and wander and lose that purpose of why we are here in the first place, we can end up in a maze that takes us quite a bit of time to exit at the goal. The straightening out of work can happen when we part ways with those that drag us down or cause issues for the sake of causing issues, or it might be adjusting our own emotions to filter out the negative attitudes within ourselves that so often can creep in. And, it might be that we need to start afresh today with getting down to business and not spending that extra time worrying or talking about what it is that things should be, but are out of our control. There is a great feeling about finishing a race strong. The same can happen today at work for you by setting your goals and purpose for the day and running straight towards that goal keeping the distractions away until the goal is achieved. A day where on he way home you can feel great about what was achieved is a GREAT day!

Reference: I Corinthians 9:26

day 1208: Split Time

"So listen to me, my sons, and pay attention to my words."

I am constantly challenged with scheduling issues.  It is not unusual for me to get double booked more than once a week.  What I usually try to do is split the difference and make some of each meeting or event. This is probably not the most effective of time and effort management, but it's my tactic in most cases.  When this tactic fails miserably is when in attendance at a meeting, event or even at a dinner, that we allow our minds to drift and we start splitting our time and attention from where we are the time.  I'm guilty of this as well.  Imagine how much more effective and productive we could be if we never split time, but instead kept our energy, focus and attention always full and whole?

We are all so guilt of this spiritually as well.  We go through our day splitting our time and attention away from God.  Life is like one big meeting.  God is sitting across the table talking to us.  We are trying to pay attention, all at the same time keeping the world's smart phone on the desk in front of us, allowing ourselves to be distracted, scrolling through the senseless news feed of the world.  What if we could/would shut the world off for a day, or turn it over so it can't distract us? What if we could make today a day of no split time, but complete focus on what God is saying and asking us to do today?

Reference: Proverbs 7:24 (New Living Translation)

day 773: Do The Right Thing - Part 5: Focus

"Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.

Every day in the workplace a set of choices are made and if those choices are being made about the right things and in the right way, then the matter of focus is being considered. In actuality there seldom is a shortage of things that can be done, or ideas that could be pursued. The harder part is choosing which things to not pursue or chase and having the courage and determination to say no. It's not easy and many a business, especially many start-ups that I have seen end up imploding under the weight of doing too much or reaching too far ahead of themselves. Having a strategic focus to hang onto that acts as a filter for decisions can make the exercise of saying no easier and more palatable. We may never know which opportunities we missed, but if we are focused we can know which opportunities we can achieve.

In our own lives, the same set of choices must be made. Fortunately, we have been given God's Word and His spirit to guide us. But, still we can lose focus and if not careful wake up one day finding many other priorities in our lives that we have put in front of our relationship with the Lord. And, those higher priorities can even be healthful and good things, but still they shouldn't be at the top. It comes down to how focused we can remain and how fixed we can have our hearts on Jesus. None of us are alone in this struggle and challenge. The question we should be asking today of ourselves, is really, at the core, where is our focus? If we can't say that it is on Him and that all else flows from there, then we need to rethink what we are doing. Today, let's think hard on this and let God speak to us about the areas where we put things above Him and how we can realign.

Reference: 1 John 2:15-16 (New Living Testament)

day 218: Intensity

Intensity as defined by Dictionary.com: great energy, strength, concentration, vehemence, etc., as of activity, thought, or feeling: He went at the job with great intensity. We are rewarded in our work for the level of intensity that we bring to our jobs. Those who can singularly focus and get a job done with the level of quality and ahead of time expectations, are usually the people who continue to move forward and upward in an organization. It is hard to bring an intensity and focus to all that we do. We are distracted by the other things in life and also by the subplots of our workplace and co-workers. If we are too focused on just the work and not the people around us we can be tagged as being too self-focused and not a team player. On the other hand if we can't find an intensity and focus against a project or assignment we are not looked at as someone who can bring the ball across the goal line. It is a fine line we walk and whether or not we know it, walk that tightrope day in and day out. In my career I have erred on the side of intensity and focus to the work. I always felt there was a job to be done and "let's go get it done". I do remember one day when I was receiving feedback from a person who worked for me, who I respected greatly, who said, "you know what I would like from you? I would like a 'good morning' each day before you dive into what we need to do today". It was a sobering lesson and one that I have kept with me. Intensity without a counterbalance for people can be hurtful to others. Interesting enough, I have learned that the best counterbalance is also about another focus. In 2 Corinthians 3:18 Paul talks to us about putting the mirror of Jesus in front of us so that we can "brightly reflect the glory of the Lord". He goes on to say, "And as the spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more". Pastor and writer David Wilkerson says that in order to see the reflection in that mirror we must focus and gaze into it intensely. He says we are not to think of this verse just as any other mirror: "They think of a mirror, with Jesus’ face being reflected back to them. But that isn’t Paul’s meaning here. He’s speaking of an intensely focused gaze, as if peering at something earnestly through a glass, trying to see it more clearly. We’re to “fix our eyes” this way, determined to see God’s glory in the face of Christ. We’re to shut ourselves in the Holy of Holies, with but one obsession: to gaze so intently, and to commune with such devotion, that we’re changed." When I read this, I think of the focused gaze it takes to see through a two-way mirror like we use with marketing focus groups. To see into the other side you have to fix your gaze to see beyond the glass and see the depth that is on the other side. It is hard to do and takes extreme focus. So, the balance to our intensity in our work can be the focus on the mirror of Jesus so that we can reflect back to others the glory of Him. God has remarkable ways of taking our strengths and when we turn them over to Him, making them powerful for His work. As we bring our intensity to our work today, let us balance it with the focus and intensity we have towards Him and allow the two to work together to make us the greatest reflection of the good works of Jesus that we can be.

Reference: 2 Corinthians 3:18 (New Living Testament)

day 115: It's A Matter Of Focus

In the business world we do lots of things to try and bring focus to our enterprises and to our work. We create multiple year, forward-looking strategic plans with vision and mission statements that inspire and delineate who and what we are all about. We then turn those strategic plans into annual operating plans that provide even greater clarity to what it is that we are to be doing for the year and within the four quarters of a fiscal year. Many organizations will go even further and distill those documents down into individual roles and responsibilities to ensure that everyone in the company is aligned and all rowing in the same direction. All of this is done to provide focus. Focus is what makes things get done, or not. We all know when we are in the groove and focused and how that feels. Not to mention, the amount of work that gets done when we are in those zones. And, we know what it feels like when we are not focused and we find ourselves scattered in our thoughts and actions. It is in those times that we don't get much, if anything, accomplished. As we try and bring our purpose into our work it is just as important that we focus and we know what to focus upon from the bigger perspective. In Proverbs 21:21 we are given areas to focus and we are also given the outcomes and benefits of that focus: "Whoever pursues godliness and unfailing love will find life, godliness, and honor." I found this verse pertinent to work as the verse clearly states that to reveal something you must focus on finding it first. The verse says that if you want to find godliness, you must focus and pursue godliness. And if we do so, then we not only receive that blessing we also receive the added bonuses of finding life and honor. That is a great return on the investment! But without that focus of pursuit, then we will come up short and not find the godliness that we seek. That being the godliness that we want to take to work with us daily to be the example and model of God that we worship and follow. So, it is a matter of focus and removing the other areas in our lives that defocus us from pursing godliness. Today, at work, ponder these words and see if there is an area that you need to defocus so you can focus on pursuing the godliness and unfailing love which comes from our Lord. You may find that with even just a little sharper focus that you may see things that you have not seen before and find a time and place at work today to exercise godliness and His unfailing love.

Reference: Proverbs 21:21 (New Living Testament)