Boss’s Day, a great lesson

Tomorrow is Boss’s Day, my devotion for today called out something relevant so it’s a bit early but a good reminder for tomorrow;

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you are working for the Lord rather than people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ

Colossians 3:23-24

Whether a person of faith or not, there’s some great wisdom in that scripture.

I was blessed with parents that tried to instill in me to exceed the expectations of those I worked for, I didn’t listen until later in life so it rarely worked out the way it was supposed to.

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Earlier in my career where I tried to fix issues that weren’t mine to fix and begrudged my boss’s for not fixing glaring issues, I quickly learned that even if “right” it usually didn’t go well for me since I was pretty indignant in my pride.

The lesson from scripture is reflected in a conversation I had with a business mentor friend of mine where he asked me what I thought the “best” employees looked like. My mind reeled looking for an answer when he thankfully offered up “they exceed your expectations”.

The more I thought about it, the more it resonated. He was spot on and as a fellow Christian, and a guy with way more smarts than me, I believe that this scripture was his reference point.

Right afterwards I had to go to the mirror again and ask if I am exceeding my customer’s expectations?

I look at the people in my life like they are my coaching clients, my family, church family, friends, and people that work for and with me. How am I doing with their expectations of me?

This is looked at regardless of my expectations of them because if I look at it as a barter system of my performance (you didn’t do what I wanted so now I’m not going to do what you want) it becomes self driven and generally results in an end I didn’t actually want… or isn’t the best solution for me or them.

Funny how some of us have our own immature need to feel validated, respected and valued and how that can cause us to demand it, which results in the opposite effect and yet until realized we’ll do it over and over and over again, wondering why we can’t get to the illusive feeling craved to sooth our own wounded souls.

Learning to please others at the expense of the self (you can do this in a healthy manner you know), is the height of maturity I have not mastered yet, but it is my prayer and petition.

How’s your customer service?

Good Monday to you all. Look around and take stock of God’s awesome creation, which includes you