Boring Works

I was listening to ESPN radio last week and Colin Cowherd was talking about the teams that were still competing in the NFL playoffs. His big statement that morning was the remaining teams were boring. He wasn't denigrating their style or wishing for something more flashy, but was simply remarking on the consistency of their teams. Colin was actually giving credit to their leaders for their consistency in winning and the way they used their system to achieve that success. They weren't out to make ridiculous personnel moves, but were willing to stick to their solid structure producing proven results.

It's possible to find success through bold, broad strokes of creativity and not have it be part of your systemic structure. This is not how top organizations choose to operate however. Instead it's essential to develop the proper framework that allows for that creativity to take place. Random acts of out-of-bounds activity won't produce a steady stream of prosperity. Instead this describes teams that are desperate for a taste of the victory the "boring" winners are steadily feasting on.

Out of Order

We have been moving offices around this week as we have brought on additional staff and realigned our work space. It is much needed and the end result is going to be worth the effort to get to this point. This week has been the difficult part however, as we have been transitioning from one part of the building to another. People are working frantically around us to get painting done, put furniture together, and figure out the specific alignment of individual work space. It seems like it will never quite be done even though we have fantastic people working at a good pace. I waited until the last possible minute to move down the hall and have spent the last 1 1/2 days putting things in order. I understand the need for change (and contrary to some, actually look forward to it once I've wrapped my head around it) but I need to have some semblance of order in the middle of it as well.

My desire for some structure can be a positive trait in multiple areas of my personal & professional life and actually helps to keep me focused. While things are not always able to stay that way I strive to do what I can to achieve some sense of it--whether it's putting books in order on a shelf, aligning furniture in a way that makes it easy for me to work, or changing a website template. It's an important characteristic for me, but also one that can slow my personal progress down when God chooses to change the pace. It requires adjustments of faith in me that reveal how God has His structure in place even when I feel that things are simply running amok. My sense of order doesn't always match God's and I have learned to grateful that His plans supersede my own.