Paralysis of Perfection

Weekly Thought – October 27, 2015

Fred was the master of duct tape . The house and garage bore witness to his creativity and “temporary fixes.” He knew, however, when to focus on a problem to a permanent solution. His ability to prioritize enabled him to accomplish much.

As you consider your year-end giving, would you think about BWF Project and the Breakfast With Fred Leadership Institute? We received a financial gift with the following note: “We always look forward to Tuesdays because that means Breakfast With Fred.” We so appreciate your prayers, notes, and support.

Paralysis of Perfection

Perfectionism does not work well in the imperfect realm of human organization. Any leader who insists on a goal his people cannot attain is foolish. The true perfectionist has a hard time seeing any job all the nothing at all. Psychologists find perfectionism is often a defense mechanism for those who fear failure.

Or to do nothing worth doing. There was an old torch song with the words, “All or nothing at all.” That is unhealthy in relationships and especially in the leadership of people and organizations.

Scholars can narrow their range of study to the point of obscurity. In becoming an authority on the finest points reduces the opportunity for broad recognition of mistakes. The sadness in this is that some of our superb academic minds become experts in areas that limit their application and general usefulness.

An executive’s aim is progress, not perfection. Zero-defect is an idea that years ago became a wasteful management fad. Not many organizations can afford the enormous cost in effort, money, and talent. To move from 99.44% to 100.00% wasn’t even worth it for Ivory Soap!

Since the proper measure of an executive is productivity through the economical use of resources (human and material), the ideal of perfection is counter-productive.

A friend owned a company which demanded excellence from all its employees. One project became excessive in its search for faultless performance. Finally, the CEO stepped in to say, “You are striving for a level of excellence that makes no sense… you are wasting my time, man hours, and affecting my profitability.” Excellence and perfection are not synonymous.

In the parable of the talents, Christ pointed out the management problem of perfectionistic paralysis. The one talent servant who did nothing because he was afraid to do the wrong thing was the forebearer of today’s cautious perfectionists in executive ranks.

This week think about: 1) When do I use perfectionism as an avoidance technique? 2) Where would a little duct tape suffice? 3) What helps me distinguish between excellence and perfectionism?

Words of Wisdom: “Excellence and perfection are not synonymous.”

Wisdom from the Word: “But he said to me, ‘My grace is enough for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ So then, I will boast most gladly about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may reside in me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NET Bible)

Eye of the Beholder

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Brenda’s Blog – October 20, 2015

“The mountains spoil the view.”

Years ago I traveled frequently to the Pacific Northwest. Flying into Portland thrilled me. Leaving the mountains behind made me sigh. On one trip back to Iowa, I sat next to a farmer from Nebraska. As a plane chit-chatter, I said, “Don’t you love seeing the mountains?” “No, I don’t. The mountains block the view.” I was stunned. THE MOUNTAINS WERE THE VIEW! He went on to explain he could step out on his Nebraska porch and see for miles and miles – that was the view he loved.

I realized much of life is based on our own perspective, and experiences. I treasured the majesty of mountains; he resented the way they limited his sight line. For me to establish my preference as the rule would damage any further conversation.

In the last few weeks a dear friend and I traveled through New Mexico, Colorado, and Texas. I eagerly anticipated the ride on the Durango to Silverton narrow gauge steam railroad. The ride through the mountain passes and along the Animas River excited me. My sweet friend politely expressed appreciation for the beauty of the turning leaves, and the mighty rock walls… but with polite reservation.

There were times when the granite cliffs were so close we could literally reach out of the open observation car and touch the rocks. I must admit my breaths were shortened by the altitude and the closed in pathway.

We descended from the heights of Silverton into the open meadows around Durango. “I love this,” was her response as she took a deep breath. To me, it was just high altitude flat lands. To her, it was a place she could finally see the view.

In the next few days we traveled through stark New Mexico into Santa Fe, and finally into Amarillo, TX. “Now, this is what I like!” REALLY? Except for the Cadillac Ranch on I-40 outside town, and the enormous roadside cross, I missed the beauty she saw.

Personality preferences are real. Different perceptions exist. When we only see life through our own framework, we miss so much. My friend taught me to look at acres of Texas Panhandle land with new eyes… and appreciate it greatly. I still love the grandeur of the peaks, but the wideness of the prairie now brings a smile.

Color of Inner Credit

Weekly Thought – October 20, 2015

Fred’s bride of 67 years would have been 100 on Sunday of this week. They met in seventh grade English class, but didn’t date until they both graduated from Hume-Fogg High School in Nashville, TN. In those days many scamps called it Human Frog! Her devotion to Fred lasted until her last breath. On this day in 2004 just weeks before her death, she turned to him in their side by side hospital beds, looked at him and said, “You are a good looking boy!”

Please continue to pray for the Breakfast With Fred Leadership Institute as the 2016 and 2017 planning begins. The ability to begin conversations and create connections is a very real mission. Thank you for your encouragement.

Color of Inner Credit

Texas is my adopted home state. I was raised in Tennessee but gravitated toward the Lone Star state through business (“bidness” to Texans) and Focus Weeks on Baptist campuses. I discovered personalities as big as the hats.

My friend Vivian Mead regaled all of us with stories of growing up in West Texas. Her tales of driving people off the sidewalks seemed perfectly natural.

An anonymous friend was a devoted hunter and ended up with a rather balding old lion after a hunt. His wife ordered a wig and had it fitted on the thinning mane.

Colorful personalities are a tangible asset. I have known many businessmen who borrowed against them. But without an equivalent character, color fades. Too many attempt great efforts with only flashy styles without waiting for the slower methods. This creates a hollowness.

One successful Texas told me, “I had the ability to borrow money before I had to ability to make it.” He said he would have missed out if his profit performance justified the money he needed. He had the talent to bring color and productivity together, but not all do. In Texas they have an apt expression: “He is all hat and no cattle!” This is color without anything to back it up.

I found in Eastern corporations the wide open, personality-driven style created wariness. The “Howdy, podner” was a novelty, but often questioned. The genuine articles won over the skeptical, but the ones who tried to ride in on nothing but personality soon found a cold reception.
Colorful personalities are noticed more quickly than others. But there has to be substance – there has to be some cattle to back it up. I enjoy the bold brashness of my southwestern friends, but I also respect the effort they make to be real.

This week carefully consider: 1) Who are my colorful friends? 2) How much of what I do is personality driven? 3) What can I do to develop depth?

Words of Wisdom: “Colorful personalities are a tangible asset.”

Wisdom from the Word: “He commanded them: ‘Carry out your duties with respect for the Lord, with honesty, and with pure motives.’” (2 Chronicles 19:9 NET Bible)

Ego Capital

Weekly Thought – October 13, 2015

Fred valued the gifts of others. He spent time thinking about his friends and colleagues, considering ways to grow them – or as he said, “stretch others.” He understood his own gifts, but was not concerned with his own ego-centered footprint.

The BWFLI Prayer Network is beginning this month. Our single purpose is to lift up Christian institutions of higher education. We commit to be gap-standers holding them up before our Father God. If you want to join this group, receiving monthly emails please send your name and email address to brenda@bwfli.com

Ego Capital

Folk singer Joan Baez talked on television about American friends who had too much “psychological investment” in socialism to be able to criticize any left-leaning government, no matter how cruel.

Each group finds themselves invested so deeply they are committed often to a logical fault. Many a capitalist is obviously corrupted by wealth – by investment in that system. The intellectual gets corrupted by Marxism or Liberalism or Secular Humanism. The years spent acquiring the knowledge becomes personal, portable property. Each becomes protective of a position where notoriety has been gained. We become immovable at times because our egos are invested.

Sadly, we can confuse our personal interests with the objective truth.

I was once so unkind as to ask a doctors’ group what their reaction would be to a universal pill capable of curing all diseases without any bad side effects. Some laughed. Others questioned the practicality. But others suggested it should be researched until after their retirement. They had a great deal of ego invested in the current system.

I am convinced many leaders hold to thinking which is counterproductive for their organizations because it embodies their ideas, their methodologies, and their histories.

When asked to consult in business conflicts my first statement is “Follow the egos.” Undoubtedly, this will lead to the source of the trouble. I am not suggesting this results in resolution, but it does uncover the headwaters of the quarrel.

Ego, like stress, can be positive and negative. Certainly nothing is accomplished without the clear sense of self. But the pollution of the purpose by the desire for personal gain corrupts. A leader must know his/her gifts and operate from strength. But the true leader disciplines the ego, using the gifts to guide the organization.

This week think about: 1) Where am I allowing my ego to throw me off track? 2) How can I look at myself objectively? 3) What does a disciplined ego look like?

Words of Wisdom: “When asked to consult in business conflicts my first statement is ‘Follow the egos.’”

Wisdom from the Word: “For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think, but to think with sober discernment, as God has distributed to each of you a measure of faith.” (Romans 12:3 NET Bible)

Misguided Good Intentions

Weekly Thought – October 6, 2015

Fred thought ahead so he wouldn’t be surprised. He always thought good executives had the capacity to lead without excessive noise and drama. He demonstrated this in observing: “Some executives build up a legend for sensational saves – shoe string catches – in situations that they should never have gotten into in the first place.”

In these next six months we will introduce two initiatives to serve our Christian institutions of higher education, and the next generation of leaders. Please pray as the BWFLI Prayer Network and the Women’s Leadership Cohort of BWFLI move forward.

Misguided Good Intentions

No executive gains maturity until he or she has fired a friend from a job which is clearly a misfit. Knowing this is in the person’s best interest rarely saves the outcome of a broken relationship, at least for the short term.

One of my friends made this difficult decision knowing it was necessary for his organization – and for the employee. To ignore the situation would be dishonest. Years later, the employee returned to say, “The day you fired me was one of my worst, but now I look back on it as one of the best. This was the wrong job and you had the courage to say so.”

A close friend built up a very successful business. He came to see me to talk over a key personnel issue – his son wanted to join the firm “How will you tell his Mother you are going to fire him?” I asked just like this so he felt the impact on the family, (especially his wife!) not just the business. Long before a family member is hired, they had better think about how they are going to fire them. This may never come, but being surprised leads to bad decisions.

A banker once advised me: “Never use your money to delay a failure.” Out of misguided pity, we often use out time and resources to prolong the agony of a hopeless situation while we ignore the potential of a dozen alternatives.

As a board member and friend of many Christian organizations, I see this way more than I should. The idea of “Christian love” covers up inefficient and ineffective employee relations. People who should be relieved are reassigned or moved to non-essential positions. Our stewardship of people’s gifts requires wise management.

Seeking to be popular is to hand your moral choices over to others. An example is a parent who loves a child too little to administer punishment. We know “love is willing the best for the other.” The willingness to make the tough call for the good of the individual and the organization is the hallmark of strong leadership.

Think about this: 1) How would I deal with the family business situation? 2) Who needs a tough love conversation? 3) Why do others shrink back from confronting me?

Words of Wisdom: “No executive gains maturity until he or she has fired a friend from a job which is clearly a misfit.”

Wisdom from the Word: “The intentions of the heart belong to a man, but the answer of the tongue comes from the Lord.” (Proverbs 16:1 NET Bible)

Jump Up!

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Brenda’s Blog – October 6, 2015

“Resurrect!”

My 14 year old grandson and I are reenactors with Neeley’s Roughnecks, an artillery unit. The battle of Elkhorn Tavern (or Pea Ridge) resulted in the loss of nearly 4,000 lives. Men (and women) fought and died on that rolling farmland in Northwestern Arkansas.

This weekend we shared the experience with hundreds of others. Rarely are the guns overrun. The artillery generally stands strong, firing until the end of the battle. However, this time the infantry fell back, leaving the cannons vulnerable. We fought with our implements but were overcome. We fell to the ground by the guns.

“How long do we have to be dead?” was the question I heard from someone nearby. “Until the battle is over” came back the answer.

Finally, the commanding general shouted, “RESURRECT!” At this point we all rose to our feet, shook hands, and packed up to go back to our urban environments.

I could not avoid thinking about the symbolism and the application to our lives. We are all in a battle, aren’t we? Sometimes we win the skirmishes and sometimes we lose. But the battle goes on.

At some point the general will shout throughout all creation, “RESURRECT!” The dead will rise and those who are still living will join them in the air. What an exciting thought.

Applying this to our daily lives makes us think about relationships we have. Aren’t there some which seem to be dead, but can be revived? Aren’t there friends, children, grandchildren, who seem to be dead in sin but hopefully will hear the voice of the Master calling them to life? What about our hard hearts? We may feel dead, but there is life everlasting which is available to us.

Let’s stay in the battle, but let’s know the call is on the horizon – RESURRECTION DAY IS COMING!