I have written often to exhort leaders to slow down, emphasizing that we are not human doings, but rather human beings. I have sought to remind leadership within our often imbalanced culture that we work to live, not the other way around. I have pointed out that many seek power, fame and glory, only to lose the family, friends, and sometimes even their self.
I do not wish to recant any of this, for I believe what I have written to be true. Having said that, I am finding that it is not enough to relax back to “being” alone. True, we hold the beauty of the miraculous gift of life in our being, and we ought not to lose sight of this in pursuing our doing…but there is much to be said about our “becoming”.
Vulnerably, I have wrestled with what I am “building” often. The question of “why” I would commit myself to any task is sometimes paralyzing for me. If I cannot see enough value in the outcome, then I hold a significant lack of motivation to engage at all. I am not a routine/best-practices guy. I am strongly intuitive, and demonstrably passionate about going deeper…which can rattle those who may prefer the status quo; the comfortable; the familiar. A friend, with similar wiring, quipped that “we are marginally unemployable”.
Though I/we may not always find a compelling purpose within a task, one purpose that is attractive at all times, and of which I have been reminded of late (as I emerge from my mountain trek), is that of optimizing my self. This is not a new thought, for I have invested heavily in personal development (specifically) over the past decade, at significant risk to “stability”, but sometimes I forget.
I forget that inside of every challenge (aggressive or passive) there is an opportunity for growth. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control…can be formed whether we are in difficulty or not. It is our choice…our response that determines.
I addition to character, we may also always have the opportunity to grow our competence. Whether by official education or training streams, or by informal experience, reading or research…we can engage the process of becoming.
A being that is becoming a fuller version of self through purposeful doing. AND, this in turn impacts others positively…I find that compelling…you?
