Do you carry your own cloud wherever you go?

Don't worry, it's only me and I don't have that much to talk about on this Wednesday, March 24, 2010. Relieved? Or, in my case, would you call these to be my famous last words? I am thankful to report that we here in our small company are getting busy again with even more on the horizon. This is a 'praise the Lord' moment for those who work here and for our owner who always gives God the glory for the increased work we are seeing. I may soon have to trade my running shoes in for some roller skates. I never was good on roller skates. In fact, I can't be certain but it seems that I was asked once not to skate at the roller rink because of being mostly out of control on the skates. The story of my life, out of control! Here we are with some huge projects to get done and I'm still trying to figure out how to adjust my training wheels. I am teased here often about not being mechanically inclined. One of my favorite critics likes to wonder out loud how I ever was able to run a large organization in my past life but I can't seem to figure out the simplest of mechanical details. I always tell him that one of the great things I have learned in life is to know what you don't know and then you can get help in those areas. Of course his response has to do with trying to understand how long before I need to quit asking for help, especially on the same issues. We do have our fun!

He knows and I know there are many areas of project management, coordination, and support where he would not be able to function. And, that's where my skill set kicks in. We all have our strengths and weaknesses and its when we cooperatively match them up and work together that we can experience success. Meanwhile, it's okay for him to needle me about this, that, or the other, because it adds some spice to our getting the job done. I work in the OFFICE, therefore, I by definition and designation am a part of the problem. This banter is all in good fun and if it were to cross the line and become a drag we would deal with it. But for the most part we all need to find ways to lighten up a little and smile a little as we get on with the work we have to do. I've worked with folks who couldn't tolerate any kind of kidding and saw every comment as a direct insult. One fellow in particular I am thinking about could pretty well kill any kind of fun just by walking in the room. He was always gloomy and always pessimistic and always overly sensitive to any and all comments. He was technically good at his area of specialty but a huge pain to work with.

I think all of us know that on any given day we can become a huge pain to others but we should not want this to be what we are known for. The fellow I mentioned had trouble finding anything to smile about, when, in fact, he was surrounded by things that would bring laughter. And, so are we! How so? Because we are all people and we are all prone to make mistakes and missteps. I've been called serious all my life and I don't have a problem with serious as it pertains to work ethic and commitment and I know some of this came from the challenging experiences I dealt with growing up. On the other hand, I've learned that being able to laugh at oneself is the best place we all can start if we are to enjoy our life, at work, at home, or wherever we find ourselves. My former co-worker who was always so dour was said by others to have always brought his own black cloud with him wherever we went. Life is way too short to live it like that. Therefore, here is my advice: Go forth today and find someone and something to share a smile or laugh about, and enjoy the life God has given. Amen. .......More later.