The following is a timed writing reflecting on a short video lecture. I know it will be well thought out and cogent, but at it is certainly nothing more or less then my opinion based on what I think I know. (I don't know that much)
Who am I following? Who did I enroll?
- Who am I following? I follow my faith, my wife, and a guy I work with. I also follow a number of business authors and others who probably spend too much time on twitter, but at least they have something to show for it - i.e. real products and companies.
- What does it mean for me to be enrolled in that journey? It means I'm a member of a faith community and I can't think of a better thing to be enrolled in considering the climate today. I mean climate as in people not temperature. Faith helps keep your head on straight and surrounds you with like minded people to help you along your way. If I don't follow my wife I'd probably get lost. Family keeps be focussed on the important things like relationships and responsibilities. Without family I'd probably binge work, read, or bicycle. All good things of course, just in slight moderation. I follow the authors and co-workers because I've lived in two organizations for my adult work life. Outside opinions and ideas keep my brain working. Not thinking is not an option.
- What commitments are you making and what compromises do you refuse to make? I'm making the commitment to try to continuously learn more and hopefully become a better leader. It isn't always easy but I will not cheat. When I scan the rearview mirror I want to be proud of what I've done with no compromises.
- Now that I considered the people I'm enrolled with, what would it mean for someone to be enrolled in following me? It would probably be a disaster. With all the people I do follow, I do lack the focus needed to tie it all together. I think the focus is narrowing, but at this point I'm too (self-diagnosed) ADD to put it all together. It would mean an exercise in exploration and not always being content with what is. It is a bit of irony that as a service employee I despise paying others to do service work for me. Not because I don't trust, but because I want to do it on my own.
- Are they getting the same satisfaction as you are? No. The people I follow seem to have a purpose, ideas, and a focus that keeps them moving each day. I move a lot, in different directions. People following me would probably get a tummy ache.
- Are they making the same commitment?
- What are they seeking?
- Think about the C people in my organization and then figure out what about their role makes them act like C people? Are there round holes for these round people?
I'm skipping 6-8 simply because I don't know how to answer those at the moment. I think #8 is a simple yes. There are round holes for everybody, they just don't have to be in my organization. They are C people (those waiting to be told what to do) because they are either afraid to take the initiative, don't want to take initiative because it isn't "worth it", or they simply aren't motivated to think while at work. In a knowledge economy work has to be stimulating, although I think many parts of my job are stimulating and can't understand why others don't share the same excitement. Perhaps they (C's) are just waiting for someone to fire them so they have the permission to get out and try something that really resonates with them.