Living your Values in the Workplace
A Christian Leader wants to put Faith into Action in the Workplace
Pre-Work
Though we had not yet met, I had a great deal of information facing me about this man who reported in his advance written work that his values as a Christian were central to him.
His priorities were “God first, family second, and work third.” He also reported that his primary extracurricular activity was participating in Bible Study Fellowship, enrolled currently in the Book of Hebrews.
The man occupied a significant position at a very high level in his organization. The leadership program that brought him to me was reserved for clients often referred to as “High Flyers.” He was on a fast track for further advancement.
At the same time, a review of his 360-degree assessment seem to contradict his reported values and this successful career trajectory. Namely, the data and narrative comments suggested a pretty loud lack of Emotional Intelligence -- his awareness, self-regulation, and relationships appeared dismal.
Described most notably by his direct reports as abrasive, temperamental, impatient and sarcastic, he seemed to bear no resemblance to the man his espoused values suggested.
Our First Contact
We were scheduled for a brief introductory meeting prior to dinner his first evening of the session.
When we met, he appeared to lack any interest in engaging with me. His demeanor suggested one of mere tolerance. When I asked him if there was anything he needed to know about me in order to feel comfortable working together, he replied “Not really.”
Undaunted by his cool attitude, I shared with him that given what I had read in his pre-work about his faith, he might be interested to know that I was married to a pastor and that I, too, was currently immersed in a study of Hebrews.
This prompted a 180- degree shift in his behavior. Suddenly super-engaged, he began to share how central his faith was to him and how important it was that he would be working with a coach who shared his Biblical worldview. It seemed we had vaulted over some hurdle, thank goodness.
Our First Working Session
When we sat down for our lengthy working session later that week, he was eager to get down to business. By then he, too, had seen the same 360-degree feedback I referenced earlier, and he was ready for humility to trump the arrogance the report attributed to him.
One of the first things that distinguishes a faith-based coaching or mentoring session from a secular one, is that we extend the choice to the client to pray as we begin our work.
He eagerly agreed that this would be his preference and so we did just that. We asked God for heavenly wisdom as we reviewed the data, evaluated courses of action, and jointly designed his plan.
As we dug into his key leadership challenges, it became evident that he barely breathed from his often 7 a.m. arrival to his typically 6 p.m. departure. His days were overbooked with back-to-back meetings, often scheduled at opposite ends of the complex.
People often needed to keep him appraised of certain information and needed his endorsement of certain courses of action throughout the day.
Always running, always behind the eight ball, he rarely stopped for polite niceties in transit. Often skipping lunch, his blood sugar was often tanked, and his temperament and patience tanked with it.
Looking for Insight
For this client, the Bible was the leadership textbook for business and for life. What might his primary source have to say about the right intervention in his circumstances? I inquired of him what he thought to be the “key verse” in the book of Hebrews that he was currently studying. As we examined this question together, it led us to the verse, “In God’s rest.” When asked what insight that verse might provide specific to his situation, a look of wonder dawned across his face and he exclaimed, “REST!”
When asked to explain further, he said that rest was clearly the answer; he had to learn to rest more fully in God’s strength and not his own to get through his days. He had been using the strength of his own will to battle all the alligators, but it was exhausting him.
The Right Plan Unfolds
When asked how he might access more of God’s strength and rest than his own, he thought that if he just had a break in the action some time during the day, it would help immensely.
We agreed he would put a lunch plan in place daily.
What else? Well, he excitedly proposed that he could close the door and shut out the light, put his feet up on the desk and listen to Christian music for a portion of his lunch break. Fabulous! He was beginning to like this course of action!
What else? Might it be possible to make life a little easier for not only him, but all meeting attendees and change the meeting length to 50-minute hours vs. 60? That would mean that everyone, not just him, would have the benefit of more margin in their days. Everyone could get on board with this positive move. Everyone would have more time to breathe and work at a more sustainable, healthy pace.
What else? What, if anything, would he want to communicate once he returned to the workplace?
Did he have any relationships that he needed to clean up where he had behaved inappropriately? How much grace were people likely to extend to him if he approached them honestly with what he had learned from their feedback, thanked them genuinely for it, and shared the plan of action he planned to implement as a result of their candor? What could he do to design better feedback loops going forward and increase both openness and skill in feedback delivery and reception in the future?
What people might be developed to take on some of the decision making that rested too heavily on his involvement?
Implementation and Follow-Up
The leader returned to the workplace and was faithful to complete the steps on which we had agreed.
His staff reported a remarkable shift in his demeanor instantaneously which he sustained over time. Deciding he needed to have a better sense of humor than his reputation until then, he gave each of them a half dozen golf-sized nerf balls and invited them to toss one at him at the first appearance of his old behaviors of impatience or abruptness. This ball firing became a playful game that prompted a great deal of levity and camaraderie between them all.
Other leaders became envious of their good fun; team members from other groups started applying increasingly to move to his department! The follow-up survey administered to his original raters bore no resemblance to his pre-program feedback.
He had indeed “powered up” in all the right ways.