Friday, December 17, 2010

What are My Options

What are my options?  This should always be the first question asked and answered when we are confronted with a problem.  I find in my work it seldom is.  All too often leaders and commanders think they must direct solutions to appear strong and assertive.  
In briefings I watch the briefer rush to answer questions, even before they can be fully asked.  It is as if speed is the essential part, and accuracy or correctness just coincidental.  
In meetings where we are discussing the potential expenditure of very, very, large sums of money I watch the commander move swiftly to direct technical solutions without any real consideration of the cost, technical risk, or potential for success.  All too often without the insight or knowledge of what is involved.
What are our options?  Such a simple question.  As we look at our lives, how often do we stop to consider our options?  Each day we awake, we start the morning routine and move forward with our lives.  Do we spend any time considering what choices we have to make?
Prayer, or meditation, or contemplation, or whatever is central to you should be a time to consider your options.  I think far too frequently we spend time wishing for change, or asking for new wisdom or for someone to fix the issue.  Perhaps we should ask “What are my options?”
As our government polarizes in debate between the left and the right, what are my options?  What should I do, what can I do, how can I do it?  If we believe we control our destiny than these questions we must each answer for ourselves.  If we bury our heads, and allow our elected officials to forget they work for us then we have little to complain about when it turns in a direction we do not care for.
If you write; only to complain and never praise then, like a parent who disciplines only when the whim strikes, you can expect a government that seems unrepentant.  What are our options when we talk with our elected officials? 
As we deal with life, and death, we always have options.  Before you act, before you speak, before you walk away, know your options.

1 comment:

Jeannette said...

A "right on" question you have asked...What are my options, what can I do? Where might I have an impact? It is easy to restrict our own circle of influence through polarization, negativity and yielding ground in general through abdication of personal responsibility. Sometimes officials should be praised for their goals and then engaged on whether or not their method will actually get them there...and sometimes praised for their caring and hard work and then engaged on whether their actual goals are appropriate. It is important to honor the office the person holds, and then also honor the person in the office as one tactfully seeks to share information, concerns, needs, etc.

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