The Next Level

My life over the last month...


Thankfully this does NOT represent the kind of boss I have, just the inability lately to handle my current plate of tasks very well. :(


I happen to love life and every stage I've lived so far. I loved my childhood, loved being a teenager, loved my twenties, loving my thirties. I reflected a lot on the lessons learned along the way and often look back on them, thankful for them and yet HOPEFUL to NOT have to revisit them. :) As much as I love life, I do NOT want to relive any certain stage. :) So, the thirties so far have been heavy on lessons regarding my professional life. I knew I was turning a huge corner in life when I turned 30 in '09; I felt such clarity about who I was personally and was so thankful for the 10 years of one-on-one work so to speak God had done on me. I couldn't wait to turn 30 and rock at this new race I was starting with all this self clarity! :) I figured it would be tough, being a full adult and all, but was so romantic about the tough times to come that I wasn't afraid! Figured I would fight through them like some superhero (cue in "Eye of the Tiger" from my beloved Rocky movies)....

Well, that first year was tough on the job as my eyes were opened to some insecurities. Second one too...started this blog by then, so you can tell from the few posts I wrote last year. :) I realized I needed work boundaries (the book pictured was a HUGE help! my favorite by Dr. Cloud so far) and to find a voice on the job. Then I realized they were going to be put to the test as I faced my biggest giant on the job to date (think of the Russian in Rocky IV). He was the contact for a conference our church was hosting and challenged my newly found voice for the six months we worked together. I never backed off, but shed maaaaany tears along the way. By the time we met face-to-face though I wasn't afraid of him anymore. It wasn't a good thing, but God used it to toughen me up...all things work together for good to them that love God.


Now this year...January was good, then February hit. Work lessons aren't over yet. My plate was overflowing but since I was NOT about to revisit my boundaries' lessons, within my work structure this plate of mine had to get taken care of! I had discovered Stever Robbins last year when I was dealing with boundaries and have been following his tips ever since on working smarter. One thing he recommends are Do-It Days. They are designed for extreme productivity, where you are accountable to someone every hour with what you had said the previous hour you were going to accomplish. I did my first one thinking it would take care of my plate completely! Nope, barely dented it. Did another, and another, and another. No progress and I was WORN OUT. Reverted back to working past my scheduled hours, hating it the whole time because I knew it wasn't right. Ok...time to take a  step back to get a better view of what my problem actually was so I could implement the right solution...


Leadership. I wasn't being a good leader. I wasn't aware of my lack of delegating skills and empowering others' skills. By this time, I was concluding the book of Exodus and feeling right there with Moses as he had just been given the most overwhelming to-do list imaginable on building the tabernacle. But, what I had NOT seen was what God said after the to-do list...chapter 31...He proceeded to let him know WHO and HOW the task was going to be fulfilled, given his heavy work load already.

Exodus 31:1-7: And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee; The tabernacle of the congregation, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy seat that is thereupon, and all the furniture of the tabernacle, ...

Wow. Moses was given the task, but was NOT expected to fulfill it himself! Not something I had considered before.

Delegating. Simply put, a delegate is a person acting for another. On one of my Do-It Days, the person I was checking in with offered to take something off my plate. I was speechless for a minute as I processed her offer...can I do that, these tasks were all given to ME to take care of, can I pass them off to someone else, is that allowed, do I have that right, that authority??? My time in Exodus then came to mind. God was providing the WHO to fulfill a certain task. I gave her the one most suited to her skills set, not caring if there would be any repercussions later. There weren't and she did a MUCH better job with it then I could have done. I was given the task but God chose another to act for me and carry it out. She gave me the final result and it was perfect. Great lesson learned!


Then on to those tasks I can't delegate, they're mine to execute. My title isn't Executive Assistant for no reason, I need to learn to execute better!! I realized that when I put together a team to assist me with an event, I remained involved in all the details. I wasn't fully empowering the team leader over each area of the event. Empowering. Simply put, to give official authority or legal power. It's not that I had a control issue or pride issue, I just hadn't thought about the possibility that I could "officially" let go of a task...it was my responsibility after all. I suppose all these lessons lately have to do with how I view myself. I'm listening. My eyes are open. And with my current church-wide event, am trying to replace these old habits with new ones...growing pains for sure!

Throughout these "aha" moments, I was fully engaged and proactive in how to change the things I was realizing. I thought attending the Ultimate Leadership conference would be the magical solution to getting me to this next level in my leadership skills, but in consulting with a recent attendee, he felt it wasn't what I needed at the moment and to just pray for WHATEVER it was that I needed. I hadn't even thought to look outside the UL box so off I went to pray and seek. I instantly found the author Scott Eblin and the first blog post I read of his was like it was ME writing it! Amazing! I ordered his book, The Next Level, after reading the first chapter online that again was like it was ME writing it, and can't wait for it to arrive so I can dive in!!!


I'm still in "growing pains" mode, but am fully aware of what's wrong and what I need to do. I still have a loaded plate, but I'm not scared or defeated by it anymore. :) After all, Rocky DOES always win in the end, no matter how beat up he gets in each round. :) God takes us through the necessary rounds each battle requires of us and will ALWAYS give us what we need to make it to the end victorious. And of course, each battle builds the character we need to then face the next one. Still lovin' my thirties... :)


Til next time! EK

With our Office Manager, Rachel (on her wedding day yesterday!), who offered me the helping hand mentioned above!