Work

You Can Take the Stairs

Zig Ziglar tells of visiting the Washington monument. As he and his party approached the monument, he heard a guide announcing loudly that there would be a two-hour wait to ride the elevator to the top of the monument. However, with a smile on his face the guide then said, “There is no one waiting to go to the top if you are willing to take the stairs.”

King Duncan, King’s Treasury of Dynamic Humor, Seven Worlds Press, quoted in Bits & Pieces, Vol. T/No. 17, p. 23

Guidelines for Managers and Others in Authority

Paul’s letters have much to say to believers as we live out our faith in the work world. As he does here in Colossians 3:22-4:1, Paul usually speaks to both leaders and workers about the tough character and choices required to honor Christ in a difficult workplace environment. For example:

Finance

• Workers deserve payment for their work (1 Cor. 9:7-14).
• You are accountable for fair employee compensation (Col. 4:1).
• Handle wealth very delicately (1 Tim. 6:9-10, 17-18).

Work Relationships

• Bring your walk with Christ into each business relationship (2 Cor. 7:1).
• Value people highly (Gal. 5:14-15; Eph. 4:31-32).
• Treat and motivate employees with respect rather than threats (Eph. 6:5-9).
• Have a reasonable view of yourself (Rom. 12:3).

Communication

• Accusations must be verified (Matt. 18:15-35; 2 Cor. 13:1; 1 Tim. 5:19).
• Communication should always be gracious and truthful (Col. 4:6).

Responsibility

• Fulfill your commitments (Rom. 13:6-8).
• Remember your accountability (1 Cor. 3:9-15).
• Care for the poor and the weak (Rom. 12:13; Gal. 2:10).
• Learn how to handle times of bounty and leanness (Phil. 4:12).
• Remember, God’s Son gets the ultimate credit (Col. 1:17-18).
• Be sure to care for your own family (1 Tim. 5:8).
• Discern needs and meet them (Titus 3:14).
• Management
• View time not only in terms of time management, but also in light of the long-term implications of your decisions (2 Cor. 4:16-18; 2 Pet. 3:8-13).
• Help each employee discern the best thing to do (1 Thess. 5:14-15).
• Be willing to change your opinions (2 Cor. 5:16-17; Philem. 10-14).

The Word in Life Study Bible, New Testament Edition, (Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville; 1993), p. 706.

Guidelines for Workers and Those Under Authority

Tasks

• Don’t try to get out of your current situation too quickly (1 Cor. 7:17-24).
• View stress and trouble in perspective (2 Cor. 4:7-18).

Supervisors

• Develop a respect for authority (Rom. 13:1-8).
• Do your work wholeheartedly and respectfully (Eph. 6:5-8; 1 Thess. 5:12-15).
• Give your employers obedient, hard work (Col. 3:22-25; 1 Thess. 4:11-12).
• Honor bosses, whether they are believers or not (1 Tim. 6:1-2).

Coworkers

• Develop a reasonable self-estimate (Rom. 12:3).
• Acknowledge differences and accept the contributions of others (1 Cor. 12:1-8).
• Help others, but do your job (Gal. 6:1-5).
• Learn to speak appropriately and sensitively (Col. 4:6).
• Understand others and treat them respectfully (1 Tim. 5:1-3).
• Develop a reputation for good relationships (Titus 3:1-2).

Responsibility

• Give your whole self to God (Rom. 12:1).
• Develop the art of discernment in order to live responsibly (Eph. 5:15-18).
• Do your work as if working for God—you are (1 Cor. 3:13; Col. 3:17).
• Don’t let your responsibilities weigh you down with worry (Phil. 4:6).
• Take responsibility for yourself (1 Thess. 4:11-12; 2 Thess. 3:8-9).
• Develop a godly “workstyle” (Titus 2:9-10).

Finances

• Live frugally and do not steal—including pilfering (Eph. 4:28).
• Care for your family (1 Tim. 5:8).

The Word in Life Study Bible, New Testament Edition, (Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville; 1993), p. 706

Five Workstyle Categories

Description	Issue	Application
“obedient to their own masters”	Authority	Do you follow instructions? Do you comply with industry standards? Do you pay your fair share of taxes?
“well pleasing in all things”	Excellence	Do you.take pride in your work? Do you use the right tools for the job, in the right way? Do you work just as hard even when the boss isn’t around?
“not answering back	Conflict	Do you seek to resolve conflicts in a healthy way? Do you respond with honesty and courtesy? Do you promote constructive cooperation instead of destructive competition?
“not pilfering”	Honesty & Integrity	Do you. keep an honest accounting of your hours? Do you pay for personal expenses rather than charge them? Do you to company expense accounts? Do you avoid making personal long-distance calls on the company’s phone?
“showing all good fidelity”	Loyalty & Dependability	Do you. keep your word? Do you do what it takes to meet deadlines? Do you honor what your company stands for?

The Word in Life Study Bible, New Testament Edition, (Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville; 1993), p. 759

What Was the Curse God Put on Creation?

What was the curse that God put on creation (Rom. 8:20)? One of the most stubborn myths in Western culture is that God imposed work as a curse to punish Adam and Eve’s sin (Gen. 3:1-19). As a result, some people view work as something evil. Scripture does not support that idea:

1. God Himself is a worker. The fact that God works shows that work is not evil, since by definition God cannot do evil. On the contrary, work is an activity that God carries out. See “God: The Original Worker,” John 5:17.

2. God created people in His image to be His coworkers. He gives us ability and authority to manage His creation. See “People At Work,” Heb. 2:7.

3. God established work before the fall. Genesis 1-2 record how God created the world. The account tells how He placed the first humans in a garden “to tend and keep it” (2:15). This work assignment was given before sin entered the world and God pronounced the curse (Gen. 3). Obviously, then, work cannot be a result of the fall since people were working before the fall.

4. God commends work even after the fall. If work were evil in and of itself, God would never encourage people to engage in it. But He does. For example, He told Noah and his family the same thing He told Adam and Eve—to have dominion over the earth (Gen. 9:1-7). In the New Testament, Christians are commanded to work (Col. 3:23; 1 Thess. 4:11).

5. Work itself was not cursed in the fall. A careful reading of Genesis 3:17-29 shows that God cursed the ground as a result of Adam’s sin—but not work:

“Cursed is the ground for your sake;
In toil you shall eat of it
All the days of your life.
Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you,
And you shall eat the herb of the field.
In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
Till you return to the ground,
For out of it you were taken;
For dust you are,
And to dust you shall return.”

Notice three ways that this curse affected work:

1. Work had been a joy, but now it would be “toil.” People would feel burdened down by it, and even come to hate it.

2. “Thorns and thistles” would hamper people’s efforts to exercise dominion. In other words, the earth would not be as cooperative as it had been.

3. People would have to “sweat” to accomplish their tasks. Work would require enormous effort and energy.

Most of us know all too well how burdensome work can be. Workplace stresses and pressures, occupational hazards, the daily grind, office politics, crushing boredom, endless routine, disappointments, setbacks, catastrophes, frustration, cutthroat competition, fraud, deception, injustice—there is no end of evils connected with work. But work itself is not evil. Far from naming it a curse, the Bible calls work and its fruit a gift from God (Eccl. 3:13; 5:18-19).

The Word in Life Study Bible, New Testament Edition, (Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville; 1993), p. 552

God Is a Worker

God is a worker! Perhaps you’ve never thought of Him that way. But that’s how He first appears in Scripture. In the creation account (Gen. 1-2) He wears no end of occupational hats: strategic planner, designer, civil engineer, real estate developer, project manager, artist, and many more. Using these skills, He created something that was “very good” (1:31). How good? As good as God! No wonder the creation is said to “glorify,” or praise God. His work is worth honoring, and it honors Him. (See Is. 43:7; 60:21.)

Furthermore, God continues to work (John 5:17), maintaining the creation and providing for His creatures. He also carries out the work of salvation. And He uses people to help Him accomplish these tasks. Think what that means:

1. Work itself is inherently good. God didn’t mind “getting His hands dirty,” so to speak, in creating the universe. Genesis says He “worked” to bring it into existence (2:2). But that means work must be good in and of itself, since by definition, God can only do what is good. It also means work reflects the activity of God. The engineer who designs a bridge, the zoologist who studies animals, and the farmer who raises crops all carry out jobs that God did at the beginning of the world.

2. Your work is important; it matters. The work that God gives you has dignity to it. In fact, God created you “in His image” (Gen. 1:26-27). Just as He works, so He has created you to work. Genesis even says that God has placed human beings in authority over the creation as His managers. As you use the abilities He’s given you, you can be a partner, a coworker with Him to carry out His work.

For example, God can use: the nurse to meet the health needs of patients; the grocer to distribute food to customers; the researcher to provide accurate information; the lawyer to promote justice for clients; the career homemaker to nurture growing children. God values these kinds of jobs because they help to carry out His purposes in the world. These things matter to Him.

3. There’s no such thing as “secular” or “sacred” work. God certainly uses ministers and missionaries to meet spiritual and personal needs around the world. But they are not the only people doing “God’s work.” God is just as interested in the physical, emotional, intellectual, and other needs that people have. He also cares about the management of the earth itself. It takes all kinds of skills, and all kinds of people, to do what God wants done in the world.

4. You should do your work in a way that honors God. Your work has dignity; you’re created in God’s image as a worker; you’re a coworker with God; you have God-given abilities to carry out important tasks that He wants done. All of this says that what you do for work and how you do it should bring glory to God. He should be pleased with it—and with you as you do it.

The Word in Life Study Bible, New Testament Edition, (Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville; 1993), pp. 346-347

Selling In

Once upon a time, the typical American found a job, made a living. That was “success.” today the typical American may change jobs six times or more, wants a life not just a living, and is looking for “satisfaction.”

A recent Newsweek article reported, “Half of all Americans would choose a different line of work if they had it to do all over again.” It also referred to a growing trend, “selling-in”—giving up a successful career for a career that brings more satisfaction.

In Other Words, September, 1998, p. 2

Important Qualities in a Job

Americans Rate the Most Important Qualities in a Job

47%	Feeling of Accomplishment
22%	High Income
17%	Chance for Advancement
8%	Job Security
4%	Other
2%	Short Working Hours

The Official Guide to American Attitudes by Susan Mitchell, 1996, by New Strategist Publications, Inc.

Americans’ Attitudes Toward Work

• 65% of Americans would keep working even if they had enough money to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
• 63% of Americans agree that their standard of living is at least somewhat better than their parents’ was at the same age.
• 45% of Americans believe their children’s future standard of living will be at least somewhat better than theirs is today. Twenty percent believe it will be the same, and 21% fear it will be worse.
• 69% of Americans believe that hard work rather than luck is the key to getting ahead.

The Official Guide to American Attitudes by Susan Mitchell, 1996, New Strategist Publications, Inc., quoted in The Promise Keeper, 1998, p. 6

Quotes

• Never allow your sense of self to become associated with your sense of job. If your job vanishes, your self doesn’t.
• Average number of jobs an American worker has held by age 40: 8 - Source: What Counts: The Complete Harper’s Index, edited by Charis Conn.
• There are three kinds of workers. For example, when a piano is to be moved, the first kind gets behind and pushes, the second pulls and guides, and the third grabs the piano stool. - Anon
• In an elevator, “I don’t know what makes the boss tick, but I sure know what makes him explode.” - Orben’s Current Comedy
• God gives the birds their food, but He doesn’t throw it into their nests.
• I never like to drink coffee on the job because then I toss and turn at my desk all day. - Gladys Coudy, quoted by Matt Weinstock in Los Angeles Times
• The sign in the store window read: NO HELP WANTED. As two men passed by, one said to the other, “You should apply—you’d be great.”
• What advantage does man have in all work Which he does under the sun? A generation goes and a generation comes, But the earth remains forever. Ecclesiastes 1:3,4 NASB - God’s Little Instruction Book for Men, (Honor Books, Tulsa, OK; 1996), p. 138.
• Men for the sake of getting a living forget to live. It is vain for you to rise up early, to take rest late, to eat the bread of [anxious] toil—for He gives [blessings] to His beloved [in sleep.]Psalm 127:2 AMP - God’s Little Instruction Book for Men, (Honor Books, Tulsa, OK; 1996), p. 33.
• It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular, it is why he does it. - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men....It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Colossians 3:23,24 NIV - God’s Little Instruction Book for Men, (Honor Books, Tulsa, OK; 1996), p. 10.
• Buffalo Bills offensive lineman Glenn Parker speculated as to why NFL linemen are generally cheerful: “There are not a lot of well-paying jobs for 300-pounders. We found one, and we’re happy about it.” - Chicago Tribune
• If it were not for labor, men could neither eat so much, nor relish so pleasantly, nor sleep so soundly, nor be so healthful, so useful, so strong, so patient, so noble, nor so untempted. - Jeremy Taylor, 17th century English bishop
• Every job is a self-portrait of the person who did it. Zig Ziglar
• “The hardest thing about milking cows,” observed a farmer, “is that they never stay milked.” - Bits & Pieces, August 18, 1994, p. 3.

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You Haven’t Missed a Thing

Seeking the Democratic presidential nomination in 1960, John F. Kennedy visited a coal mine in West Virginia, where a miner asked him, “Is it true that you’re the son of one of our wealthiest men?” Kennedy said it was so.

The miner continued, “Is it true you’ve never done a day’s work with your hands all your life?” Kennedy nodded.

“Well, let me tell you this,” the miner replied, “you haven’t missed a thing.”

Today in the Word, April, 1998, p. 9

He Likes to Play the Game

Robert Klenck writes,

“Over two decades ago, I happened to be in Yankee Stadium on a night when a rookie infielder named Brooks Robinson made his major league debut, entering the game in the middle innings after the regular third baseman was injured. The first play in which he was involved brought to him, simultaneously, a wickedly skidding baseball (thrown by the center fielder) and a pair of slashing spikes presented by a sliding base runner. Robinson made the play with skill and courage and the Yanks were retired.”

“In 1977, near the end of his career, Baltimore fans had a ‘Special Day’ for Brooks Robinson, their great third baseman. Tributes were paid by teammates and opposing players. A large gift was made in his honor to the Johns Hopkins Hospital Children’s Center, one of his favorite charities. Brooks was saluted for his remarkable career; His brilliant play, fine sportsmanship, team leadership. When asked by a reporter how he would most like to be remembered, he replied, ‘Say, “He liked to play the game.’”’

That’s a great insight for all of life. The writer of Ecclesiastes was cynical about work until he got past the idea that you can’t take it with you. He finally concluded: “There is nothing better for a man than that he...find enjoyment in his work.”

Morning Glory, Sept./Oct., 1997, p. 39

Poor Conductor

Did you hear about the man who tried to run a symphony and did such a bad job they decided to electrocute him? But they couldn’t, he was such a poor conductor.

The Bell, the Clapper, and the Cord: Wit and Witticism, (Baltimore: National Federation of the Blind, 1994), p. 6

New Policies

New Sick Leave Policy

1. SICKNESS: No excuse. We will no longer accept your doctor’s statement as proof, as we believe that if you are able to go to the doctor, you are able to come to work.

2. LEAVE OF ABSENCE (for an operation): We are no longer allowing this practice. We wish to discourage any thought that you may have about needing an operation. We believe that as long as you are employed here, you will need all of whatever you have and should not consider having anything removed. We hired you as you are and to have anything removed would certainly make you less than we bargained for.

3. DEATH (other than your own): This is no excuse. There is nothing you can do for them, and we are sure that someone else in a lesser position can attend to the arrangements. However, if the funeral can be held in late afternoon, we will be glad to let you off one hour early, provided your share of work is ahead enough to keep the job going in your absence.

4. DEATH (your own): This will be accepted as an excuse, but we would like a two-week notice, as we feel it is your duty to teach someone else your job.

New Restroom Policy

Too much time is being spent in the Restroom. In the future, we will follow the practice of going to the Restroom in alphabetical order. For instance, those whose names begin with ‘A’ will go from 8 A.M., ‘B’ will go from 8:05 A.M. to 8:10 A.M., and so on. If you are unable to go at your time, it will be necessary to wait until the day when your turn comes around again.

Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don’t turn up at all.

Sam Ewing, quoted in Reader’s Digest, p. 37

Making Shoes Right

Any task we do as Christians should be done with wholehearted dedication, for God is never satisfied with a halfhearted effort. H. A. Ironside learned this early in life while working for a Christian shoemaker. Young Harry’s job was to prepare the leather for soles. He would cut a piece of cowhide to size, soak it in water, and then pound it with a flat-headed hammer until it was hard and dry. This was a wearisome process, and he wished it could be avoided. Harry would often go to another shoeshop nearby to watch his employer’s competitor. This man did not pound the leather after it came from the water. Instead, he immediately nailed it onto the shoe he was making. One day Harry approached the shoemaker and said, “I noticed you put the soles on while they are still wet. Are they just as good as if they were pounded?” With a wink and a cynical smile the man replied, “No, but they come back much quicker this way, my boy!”

Young Harry hurried back to his boss and suggested that perhaps they were wasting their time by drying out the leather so carefully. Upon hearing this, his employer took his Bible, read Colossians 3:23 to him, and said, “Harry, I do not make shoes just for the money. I’m doing it for the glory of God. If at the judgment seat of Christ I should have to view every shoe I’ve ever made, I don’t want to hear the Lord say, ‘Dan, that was a poor job. You didn’t do your best.’ I want to see His smile and hear, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant!’” It was a lesson in practical Christian ethics that Ironside never forgot! - H.G.B.

In all the daily tasks we do,
Bible helps us clearly see
That if the Work is good and true,
We’re living for eternity.

D.J.D.

In God’s eyes it is a great thing to do a little thing well.

Our Daily Bread, January 7

Good Craftsmanship

If you’re into bumper-sticker philosophy, you’ve probably seen the axiom, “I owe, I owe, so off to work I go.” For a vast portion of the workforce, that’s the best reason they can muster for going to the job each day. According to one poll, only 43 percent of American office workers are satisfied with their jobs. In Japan, the figure dips to 17 percent. In the first century, Christian slaves had even less reason to be enthusiastic about their work. But Paul gave them a way to grasp a glimpse of glory amid the grind. He wanted them to “adorn the doctrine of God,” that is, to show the beauty of their faith in Christ by how they work (Ti. 2:10).

A significant and often overlooked way that we serve God is in our everyday tasks. Martin Luther understood this when he wrote, “The maid who sweeps her kitchen is doing the will of God just as much as the monk who prays—not because she may sing a Christian hymn as she sweeps but because God loves clean floors. The Christian shoemaker does his Christian duty not by putting little crosses on the shoes, but by making good shoes, because God is interested in good craftsmanship.”

Our Daily Bread, September 5, 1994

Workday Rules Dated 1852

Do you ever feel overworked, over-regulated, under-leisured, under-benefited? Take heart. This notice was found in the ruins of a London office building. It was dated 1852.

1. This firm has reduced the hours of work, and the clerical staff will now only have to be present between the hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. weekdays.

2. Clothing must be of a sober nature. The clerical staff will not disport themselves in raiment of bright colors, nor will they wear hose unless in good repair.

3. Overshoes and topcoats may not be worn in the office, but neck scarves and headwear may be worn in inclement weather.

4. A stove is provided for the benefit of the clerical staff. Coal and wood must be kept in the locker. It is recommended that each member of the clerical staff bring four pounds of coal each day during the cold weather.

5. No member of the clerical staff may leave the room without permission from the supervisor.

6. No talking is allowed during business hours.

7. The craving for tobacco, wine, or spirits is a human weakness, and as such is forbidden to all members of the clerical staff.

8. Now that the hours of business have been drastically reduced, the partaking of food is allowed between 11:30 and noon, but work will not on any account cease.

9. Members of the clerical staff will provide their own pens. A new sharpener is available on application to the supervisor.

10. The supervisor will nominate a senior clerk to be responsible for the cleanliness of the main office and the private office. All boys and juniors will report to him 40 minutes before prayers and will remain after closing hours for similar work. Brushes, brooms, scrubber, and soap are provided by the owners.

11. The owners recognize the generosity of the new labor laws, but will expect a great rise in output of work to compensate for these near Utopian conditions.

Bits & Pieces, May 26, 1994, pp. 13-15

I’m Loosening Your Pin

A manager and a sales rep stood looking at a map on which colored pins indicated the company representative in each area. “I’m not going to fire you, Wilson,” the manager said, “but I’m loosening your pin a bit just to emphasize the insecurity of your situation.”

Bits & Pieces, May 26, 1994, p. 9

Resources

• Calling, Work, & Rest, P. Marshall, The Best in Theology, Vol. 3, pp. 193ff
• Ask Him Anything, L. J. Ogilvie, Word, 1981, pp. 207ff.
• The Fight, J. White, IVP, pp. 202ff.
• D. Stuart Briscoe, What it Means to be Real, (Word Publishing, England; 1988), pp. 147ff.
• Sketches of Jewish Social Life, A. Edersheim, Eerdmans, pp. 182ff.

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Do All in the Name of the Lord Jesus

“Do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col. 3:17).

When I was a boy, I felt it was both a duty and a privilege to help my widowed mother make ends meet by finding employment in vacation time, on Saturdays and other times when I did not have to be in school. For quite a while I worked for a Scottish shoemaker, or “cobbler,” as he preferred to be called, an Orkney man, named Dan Mackay. He was a forthright Christian and his little shop was a real testimony for Christ in the neighborhood. The walls were literally covered with Bible texts and pictures, generally taken from old-fashioned Scripture Sheet Almanacs, so that look where one would, he found the Word of God staring him in the face. There were John 3:16 and John 5:24, Romans 10:9, and many more.

On the little counter in front of the bench on which the owner of the shop sat, was a Bible, generally open, and a pile of gospel tracts. No package went out of that shop without a printed message wrapped inside. And whenever opportunity offered, the customers were spoken to kindly and tactfully about the importance of being born again and the blessedness of knowing that the soul is saved through faith in Christ. Many came back to ask for more literature or to inquire more particularly as to how they might find peace with God, with the blessed results that men and women were saved, frequently right in the shoeshop.

It was my chief responsibility to pound leather for shoe soles. A piece of cowhide would be cut to suite, then soaked in water. I had a flat piece of iron over my knees and, with a flat-headed hammer, I pounded these soles until they were hard and dry. It seemed an endless operation to me, and I wearied of it many times.

What made my task worse was the fact that, a block away, there was another shop that I passed going and coming to or from my home, and in it sat a jolly, godless cobbler who gathered the boys of the neighborhood about him and regaled them with lewd tales that made him dreaded by respectable parents as a menace to the community. Yet, somehow, he seemed to thrive and that perhaps to a greater extent than my employer, Mackay. As I looked in his window, I often noticed that he never pounded the soles at all, but took them from the water, nailed them on, damp as they were, and with the water splashing from them as he drove each nail in.

One day I ventured inside, something I had been warned never to do. Timidly, I said, “I notice you put the soles on while still wet. Are they just as good as if they were pounded?” He gave me a wicked leer as he answered, “They come back all the quicker this way, my boy!”

“Feeling I had learned something, I related the instance to my boss and suggested that I was perhaps wasting time in drying out the leather so carefully. Mr. Mackay stopped his work and opened his Bible to the passage that reads, “Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of god.”

“Harry,” he said, “I do not cobble shoes just for the four bits and six bits (50c or 75c) that I get from my customers. I am doing this for the glory of God. I expect to see every shoe I have ever repaired in a big pile at the judgment seat of Christ, and I do not want the Lord to say to me in that day, ‘Dan, this was a poor job. You did not do your best here.’ I want Him to be able to say, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’”

Then he went on to explain that just as some men are called to preach, so he was called to fix shoes, and that only as he did this well would his testimony count for God. It was a lesson I have never been able to forget. Often when I have been tempted to carelessness, and to slipshod effort, I have thought of dear, devoted Dan Mackay, and it has stirred me up to seek to do all as for Him who died to redeem me.

Illustrations of Bible Truth by H. A. Ironside, Moody Press, 1945, pp. 37-39

Five Stages of a Project

• Stage 1: Excitement, euphoria
• Stage 2: Disenchantment
• Stage 3: Search for the guilty
• Stage 4: Punishment of the innocent
• Stage 5: Distinction for the uninvolved

MSC Health Action News, April, 1993

Nine Workplace Attitudes Bosses Hate

• NMJ—not my job
• NMM—Need more money
• WCT—Wastes company time
• PPP—Promises, promises, promises
• NMH—Needs more help
• ACD—Always complaining and disagreeable
• CWS—Clock watcher’s syndrome
• TTM—The trouble maker
• SRM—Supports rumor mill

Spokesman Review, March 18, 1993

Wandering Aimlessly

Architect Frank Lloyd Wright once told of an incident that may have seemed insignificant at the time, but had a profound influence on the rest of his life. The winter he was 9, he went walking across a snow-covered field with his reserved, no-nonsense uncle. As the two of them reached the far end of the field, his uncle stopped him. He pointed out his own tracks in the snow, straight and true as an arrow’s flight, and then young Frank’s tracks meandering all over the field.

“Notice how your tracks wander aimlessly from the fence to the cattle to the woods and back again,” his uncle said. “And see how my tracks aim directly to my goal. There is an important lesson in that.”

Years later the world-famous architect liked to tell how this experience had greatly contributed to his philosophy in life. “I determined right then,” he’d say with a twinkle in his eye, “not to miss most things in life, as my uncle had.”

Focus on the Family letter, September, 1992, p. 14

More Leisure Time

Women who never have children enjoy the equivalent of an extra three months a year in leisure time, says Susan Lang, author of Women Without Children. If that figure seems high, remember that the average mother spends 3.5 more hours a week doing housework than would a woman without children, plus 11 hours a week on child-related activities. This adds up to an additional 754 hours of work every year—the equivalent of three months of 12-hour, 5-day work weeks.

Signs of the Times, May, 1992, p. 6

Charles Schwab

When the company founded by Andrew Carnegie was taken over by the U.S. Steel Corporation in 1901 it acquired as one of its obligations a contract to pay the top Carnegie executive, Charles M. Schwab, the then unheard of minimum sum of $1,000,000. J. P. Morgan of U.S. Steel was in a quandary about it. The highest salary on record was then $100,000. He met with Schwab, showed him the contract and hesitatingly asked what could be done about it.

“This,” said Schwab, as he took the contract and tore it up. That contract had paid Schwab $1,300,000 the year before. “I didn’t care what salary they paid me,”

Schwab later told a Forbes magazine interviewer. “I was not animated by money motives. I believed in what I was trying to do and I wanted to see it brought about. I canceled that contract without a moment’s hesitation. Why do I work? I work for just the pleasure I find in work, the satisfaction there is in developing things, in creating. Also, the associations business begets. The person who does not work for the love of work, but only for money, is not likely to make money nor to find much fun in life.”

Bits and Pieces, May, 1991, p. 2

Do All to the Glory of God

The work of a Beethoven, and the work of a charwoman, become spiritual on precisely the same condition, that of being offered to God, of being done humbly “as to the Lord.” This does not, of course, mean that it is for anyone a mere toss-up whether he should sweep rooms or compose symphonies. A mole must dig to the glory of God and a cock must crow.

C. S. Lewis in The Weight of Glory.

Old Ledger

The first governor-general of Australia was a man by the name of Lord Hopetoun. One of his most cherished possessions was a 300- year-old ledger he had inherited from John Hope, one of his ancestors. Hope had owned a business in Edinburgh, where he first used this old ledger. When Lord Hopetoun received it, he noticed that it had inscribed on its front page this prayer, “O Lord, keep me and this book honest!”

Source unknown

You’re Not the Supervisor?

A retired friend became interested in the construction of an addition to a shopping mall. Observing the activity regularly, he was especially impressed by the conscientious operator of a large piece of equipment. The day finally came when my friend had a chance to tell this man how much he’d enjoyed watching his scrupulous work. Looking astonished, the operator replied, “You’re not the supervisor?”

Howard A. Stein in Reader’s Digest

More People Want Leisure Time

When given a choice of two different career paths, 78% of men and women surveyed opted for flexible full-time hours with more time left over for family pursuits and slower on-the-job advancement … only 13% decided on the traditional work ethic—inflexible hours and a faster climb up the career-success ladder.

Robert Half, in Homemade, June, 1990

Phone Calls

The average employee spends 14.9 minutes a day making personal phone calls. On an annual basis that adds up to 62 hours—a work week and a half.

Success, 1989

Hours Per Week

Percentage of middle-level executives:

• who spend 50 or more hours per week on their jobs: 77
• Who spend 60 or more hours each week: 26.

Roper Organization for U.S. News & World Report, 1/16/89

Two Kinds of People

My grandfather once told me that there are two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was less competition there.

Indira Gandhi, Bits and Pieces, April 1990, p. 11

Survey

Each day across the USA 50,000 people quit their jobs. In a recent survey of workers across the USA, nearly 85% said that they could work harder on the job. More than half claimed they could double their effectiveness “if (they) wanted to.”

Managing the Equity Factor, R Huseman, J Hatfield, 1989

Curled Radishes

About six years ago, I was speaking at a luncheon held in the civic auditorium of a city in Oklahoma. I settled myself at my place at the head table. I picked up my fork and noticed that two rose-petaled radishes adorned my salad plate. Someone had take the time to pretty up two radishes, just for me. Then I noticed that each salad at the head table had two neatly curled radishes. I turned to the lady sitting to my right. “I’m impressed by the radishes, “ I said. “You’re impressed by what?” she asked. “The radishes,” I said. “Look, each salad plate at our table has curled radishes.” “Yes,” she said, exercising a questioning smile. “They’re pretty.” “They’re more than pretty,” I said. Someone took special care to do these.” “Don’t they all have them?” she asked, gazing out at the tables. I looked and was astonished. Each salad plate was adorned with two curled radishes! “They are curled! That took a lot of time!”

“I’m not on the planning committee, but Gertrude is,” my table mate responded. She turned to get the attention of Gertrude, three chairs down. “Mrs. George wants to ask you something about the radishes, “she whispered. “The what?” Gertrude mouthed “The RA-DI-SHES!” “Is there something wrong with your radishes?” she asked. “No. They are fine. I just thought it was nice to have them all curled.” “Oh, Marietta does those.” “All of them?” I knew the head count in the room and was astonished. “That’s almost eight hundred radishes!” “Yes, but Marietta wants to do it. Would you like to meet her? She’s in the kitchen.”

So Gertrude and I went into the kitchen, and there I met Marietta, the lady of the radishes. “Gertrude tells me you curled all those radishes. They’re lovely. Each salad looks so...festive.” “I don’t mind doing it. It just takes time,” Marietta replied. I didn’t know what more to say so I left.

Later, I spoke, and there was an encouraging response. Afterward, ladies scurried past me with murmured greetings, and a few lingered to speak of God in their lives. When we finished, it was raining heavily so we hurried across the parking lot to the car. Through the rain, I could see a lady, carrying a large polka-dot umbrella that had collapsed on one side waiting by our car. It was Marietta! She was smiling as though we had found her on a sunny day in an especially delightful garden. “I had to see you. I heard your speech. It was good!” she said. “I have to go home now.” I slipped inside the car. Marietta crouched down close to the window and called to me, “Just remember this. You keep telling people about Jesus, and I’ll keep curling the radishes.” The rain and my tears splattered the picture of her face as we started to back out of the driveway. Ah, dear Marietta, I haven’t forgotten. We are to do our jobs in the love of him who does all things well.

Jeanette Clift George, Travel Tips From A Reluctant Traveler, 1987

Doing the Floors

There is nothing boring in life except ourselves. The most humble work does not have to be boring. I remember Madame Duval, the old woman who cleaned the floor in my place in Gargenville. I think of her with profound respect and reverence. She was 80 years old. One day she knocked at my door and said, “Mademoiselle, I know you don’t like to be disturbed, but the floor, come and see it; it shines!”

In my mind, Stravinsky and Madame Duval will appear before the Lord for the same reason. Each had done what he does with all his consciousness. When I said this to Stravinsky, who knew Madame Duval, he said, “How you flatter me, for when I do something, I have something to gain. But she, she has only the work to be well done.”

Nadia Boulanger, pianist and teacher, in Wisdom for our Time, edited by James Nelson (Norton)

Time Theft

Time theft—deliberate waste and abuse of company time costs the U.S. economy over $120 billion a year. This loss is three times more than it is for recognized business crime. At some companies 20-40% of employee time is stolen. Office employees are 30% worse than blue-collar workers, perhaps because supervision isn’t as close. Workers under 30 are the biggest offenders. Watch out for executives who set bad examples. If the boss is a time thief, employees will be too.

Source unknown

Family—the Strength and Foundation of Society

The evidence is convincing that the better our relationships are at home, the more effective we are in our careers. If we’re having difficulty with a loved one, that difficulty will be translated into reduced performance on the job. In studying the millionaires in America (U.S. News and World Report), a picture of the “typical” millionaire is an individual who has worked eight to ten hours a day for thirty years and is still married to his or her high school or college sweetheart.

A New York executive search firm, in a study of 1365 corporate vice presidents, discovered that 87% were still married to their one and only spouse and that 92% were raised in two-parent families. The evidence is overwhelming that the family is the strength and foundation of society. Strengthen your family ties and you’ll enhance your opportunity to succeed.

Zig Ziglar in Homemade, March 1989

Quotes

• The management regrets that it has come to their attention that workers dying on the job are failing to fall down. This practice must stop, as it becomes impossible to distinguish between death and the natural movement of the staff. Any employee found dead in an upright position will be dropped from the payroll. - Anon
• One researcher has estimated that 50-80% of working Americans are in a job that does not match their abilities and is therefore unfulfilling. That may well be the force behind the statistic that the average worker will change careers two or three times before retirement. - Cynthia Spence in Homemade, May, 1989.
• How common is employee dishonesty? According to one recent survey: Falsifying time sheets was admitted by 5.8% of workers. Stealing merchandise was admitted by 6.6%. Among people working in retail stores, 57% said they abused their employee-discount privileges. - Dr. John Clark, in Homemade, Nov., 1985.

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