From the Inside Out

Life can play cruel tricks on you. Things can change in an instant, and it seems like these changes always occur at the worst times. Of course, many people say there is never a good time for things like this.

I’ve always hated it when people said that statement. The truth is that there are better times than others.

I was just starting to feel like I was climbing out of a long, dark tunnel. One that I’ve been duly climbing for the last year. The massive projects at work that I’ve been sweating blood over have finally been launched. The initial reviews are overwhelmingly positive. Things are looking up. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel. It’s time to:

…bask in success and prepare for the next stage.

…quit working all hours of the day and night.

…Change!

Wait, what was that last one? Change? Seriously?

This week has been packed — participating in back-to-back meetings all day long, attending long rehearsals for the play, doing more work after I get home, coordinating activities for our One Life young married’s group at church, and trying to come up with music for the play, then practice it. I’m not getting much sleep because there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get it all done. Our weekend won’t offer any opportunity for relaxation either. It’s already booked solid with church and drama activities. And now to top it all off…drum roll…I’m sick!

With all of this happening, the last thing I needed was a significant change, but it came whether I wanted it or not. My team is reorganizing, and I have a new boss — surprise, surprise! Now I get to start all over again with someone new — oh the joy.

Not all of it is bad, there are some positive elements, but as much as I hate to say it, “there’s never a good time for this type of thing to happen.”

How would you like to get paid $100K to sit on a beach for six months and write a weekly blog? It sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it?

According to the tourism department in Australia’s Queensland state, it is not a joke. They are looking for an “Island Caretaker” to stroll the white sands, soak up the sun, snorkel the reef, and report to a global audience via weekly blogs, photo diaries and video updates.

The lucky candidate will be flown free of charge to the tropical Hamilton Island on the famed Great Barrier Reef. He or she will stay rent-free in a multi-million dollar three-bedroom beach home. The only qualifications are that this individual must be over 18, be willing to speak to the press periodically and be a “fantastic and charismatic” communicator who can speak and write English.

The job is part of the latest tourism campaign to help promote Queensland’s 18 billion dollar per year tourism industry during tough economic times. Getting the job won’t be easy, though. The website has already crashed once because of the large number of visitors to the site (more than 850,000 within the first day). There’s tough competition for what they are billing as the “best job in the world,” so be creative and outgoing if you plan to apply.

Candidates must submit a one minute video explaining why they are uniquely qualified for the job. Applications are open until February 22. Eleven shortlisted candidates will be flown to Hamilton Island in early May for the final selection process and the six-month contract will commence on July 1.

Job-seekers can apply at: http://www.islandreefjob.com/en/

It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it.

Can your office reveal things about your personality? According to a study conducted at the University of Texas at Austin, it can. Certain aspects of your personality are displayed through the choices you make each day, and it’s no different when you are in the office.

What does your office say about you? Well, according to the study:

• Highly personalized space — Indicates individuals who are secure about their position and claiming their space.
• Empty or Un-Personalized Desk — This indicates either a lack of dedication to the job or someone who is generally dissatisfied with the job—in either case, not a good sign.
• Plants — Plants, whether they are cared for or not, reveal that a worker is planning to stay at the job.
• Candy Bowl/Lots of Supplies — This worker wants people to come visit her and is an extrovert—shy or introverted types would never put anything on their desks that would draw others into their spaces.
• Motivational/Inspirational Items — This is an ambitious person who is dedicated to his job and wants to remain engaged—can indicate someone who wants challenges and a chance to prove himself.
• Family Photos — This can go two ways. If the photos are placed for others to see, it’s usually a status symbol and done more for the appearance. If the photos are placed for only the worker to see, they are usually genuine reminders of loved ones, which can motivate the worker or ease the guilt of spending so much time away from the loved ones.
• Excessive Post-It Notes — Indicates the worker is feeling overwhelmed and not able to keep up.

My desk is a personalized space. It includes motivational items and family photos. It also has way too many post-it notes, which makes me question my sanity at times. I don’t have candy. It’s not that I don’t want to be friendly. I just work from home most of the time, and candy isn’t healthy.

So, that’s my office. What’s in yours?

On Father’s day, my church gave everyone a book written by Andy Stanley, “Choosing to Cheat: Who Wins When Family and Work Collide?.”  I read it the other day, and it hit home.  The author presents an interesting premise –- everybody has to cheat. 

Think about it.  All of us have several things that demand our attention.  Whether it’s our jobs, spouses, families, ministries or hobbies, all of these things battle for our attention.  None should be neglected, but there aren’t enough hours in the day to reach our full potential in all areas.  We must make tough decisions about what (or who) gets cheated.  In fact, the author suggests the issue isn’t whether people cheat; it’s where they cheat.

Andy believes that a collision between work and family is inevitable.  As a career professional in a highly demanding industry, I tend to agree.  Work/life balance is a huge issue in the workforce today.  Companies have taken tremendous strides to enable employees to regain that balance.  They provide the technology that allows them to work from home and maintain more flexible work hours, but the challenge still exists.  How do you excel in one area without cheating the others?  Sometimes it seems impossible.

I struggle with this issue often.  I want to move ahead in my career, but not at the expense of my personal life or relationship with God.  Unfortunately, I tend to follow the pattern outlined in the book –  I cheat at home.  I invest an inordinate amount of time, energy and passion in my work.  My friends and family get the leftovers. 

I talk about what I “wish” I could do if things were different, but I begrudgingly accept the fact that this is my life – for now.  I haven’t given up completely.  I try to limit my work life by investing more in personal activities.  However, it’s just added to my problems.  Now I have even more responsibilities, and I must cheat in other areas of my life to keep up with everything that’s on my plate.  At the end of the day, I’m exhausted and frustrated.  Even worse, as I began to read the book, I started to realize I am seriously cheating God. 

My personal devotions and prayer time have suffered greatly over the last couple of years.  I go to church feeling so thirsty and dry inside.  When I feel God’s presence, I bathe in it, soaking it up like my life depends upon it.  I think it’s because my daily encounters with Him are so limited these days.  He deserves more.  I can’t afford to cheat any longer.

I couldn’t have read this book at a better time.  As I embark on what will undoubtedly be the busiest (and most critical) months of my career, I can’t forget the real priorities in my life.  I must adjust my schedule to reflect what’s most important. 

Matthew 6:33 states, “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  I know it won’t be easy.  There’s a part of me that still says it’s impossible, but “nothing ventured, nothing gained.”  It’s worth trying.

Remember the days when you didn’t want to go to school so you tried to convince your parents that you were sick? Well, it didn’t work for me too often.  For the most part, my parents weren’t going to let me stay home unless I was running a fever.

Maybe that’s why a fever is still my official gauge of how sick I am. If I’m not running a fever, I’m working. Even then, it doesn’t always stop me…especially now that I work from home.

Today was one of those miserable days. I felt horrible, but forced myself to work anyway. That’s why tonight’s blog is dedicated to the “Top 5 Reasons I’d Rather Be Working than Laying at Home Sick”:

5. Hourly conference calls — way more entertaining than watching soap operas and lawyer commercials.

4. The constant stream of IM conversations throughout the day is just so energizing.

3. Gotta save those PTO days for something fun.

2. Sleeping late and getting enough rest is just so overrated.

…and the number one reason is:

1. I can take advantage of that computer monitor radiation and work on my tan.