29 December 2012

Moving

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22 December 2012

Poetry: What Her Heart Remembered

What Her Heart Remembered (Mary, A Witness)
By Michael Card:  From the album The Promise:  A Celebration of Christ's Birth













Out in the stable yard
She sees a glow
Could it be angel light?
How would she know?
Shepherds stand wondering
Afraid to come in
But the baby that's born tonight
Will free them all
To never fear again

As He lies in a cattle trough
She kneels by His side
Sweet baby breathing
Soft infant sighs
Soft sounds of swallowing
As soft fingers part
Marvelous memories
She pondered then and hid them in her heart

Like a good
Mother would
She learned His cries
If He'd awake
With a bellyache
From hunger or fright
But now and then
Sometimes when
The dark would descend
He would weep
A dark so deep
For all her love
She couldn't comprehend

Her warm loving carpenter
His strong gentle hands
His dark and bewildered eyes
Can they understand?
That this Baby she's given him
Is theirs for a time
In truth came to give Himself
The Treasure and the
Ransom of mankind


18 December 2012

Snippets: The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Patrick Lencioni's book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team illustrates the process of team building in the workplace.  The majority of the book tells the story of a CEO working to turn a dysfunctional executive team into a strong team, and the principles of team leadership are explored through this narrative.  The book's final short chapter reiterates and expands upon the principles explored in the fictional narrative.
     Lencioni explores five key dysfunctions in his book, and indicates ways in which they can be overcome.  In the last chapter, he describes the dysfunctions in the following way:
1.  The first dysfunction is an absence of trust among team members.  Essentially, this stems from their unwillingness to be vulnerable within the group.  Team members who are not genuinely open with one another about their mistakes and weaknesses make it impossible to build a foundation for trust.
2.  This failure to build trust is damaging because it sets the tone for the second dysfunction:  fear of conflict.  Teams that lack trust are incapable of engaging in unfiltered and passionate debate of ideas.  Instead, they resort to veiled discussions and guarded comments.
3.  A lack of healthy conflict is a problem because it ensures the third dysfunction of a team: lack of commitment.  Without having aired their opinions in the course of passionate and open debate, team members rarely, if ever, buy in and commit to decisions, though they may feign agreement during meetings.
4.  Because of this lack of real commitment and buy-in, team members develop an avoidance of accountability, the fourth dysfunction.  Without committing to a clear plan of action, even the most focused and driven people often hesitate to call their peers on actions and behaviors that seem counterproductive to the good of the team.
5.  Failure to hold one another accountable creates an environment where the fifth dysfunction can thrive.  Inattention to results occurs when team members put their individual needs (such as ego, career development, or recognition) or even the needs of their divisions above the collective goals of the team. (epub edition, 205-06).



The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

17 December 2012

December Reading Log

Here is this month's reading list (to date)
  • The Five Dysfunctions of a Team:  A Leadership Fable by Patrick M. Lencioni
  • Half the Sky:  Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn
  • Good News of Great Joy by John Piper

Review: Half the Sky

Half the Sky:  Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn is in many ways a primer on global development through the lens of women's issues.  The book touches on a wide range of issues, including human trafficking, girl's education, and microcredit.  Their central thesis is that freeing women from the injustices they experience in many countries around the world is key to improving the lives of women, but also for achieving positive changes for men and children in developing countries.
     In many places, the book is difficult to read, as the author's recount the heart-wrenching stories of many women in the developing world.  The book also provides hope, as many of these women overcome their hardships to be leaders in changing their communities.  The book is likely to inspire readers in some places, and cause disagreement in others, as the authors hold to neither a conservative or liberal point of view on many issues, and highlight successes achieved by organizations with different ideological purposes.  This viewpoint, however, makes it quite likely that most readers will disagree with at least some of the author's recommended solutions to the women's issues presented in the book.  However, in many ways, their balanced approach challenges the weak areas in both the traditional conservative and liberal approaches to development.  For example, when addressing the progress of women in China, they write,

So was it cultural imperialism for Westerners to criticize foot-binding and female infanticide?  Perhaps.  But it was also the right thing to do.  If we firmly believe in certain values, such as the equality of all human beings regardless of color or gender, then we should not be afraid to stand up for them; it would be feckless to defer to slavery, torture, foot-binding, honor killings, or genital cutting just because we believe in respecting other faiths or cultures.  One lesson of China is that we need not accept that discrimination is an intractable element of any society (epub edition, 430).

This same realistic, balanced viewpoint is seen in a discussion of spending in impoverished families, as the authors address the different patterns of spending when women have access to money.

Perhaps it seems culturally insensitive to scold the poor for indulging in festivals, cigarettes, alcohol, or sweets that make life more fun.  Yet when resources are scarce, priorities are essential.  Many African and Indian men now consider beer indispensable and their daughter's education a luxury...If we're trying to figure out how to get more girls in school, or how to save more women from dying in childbirth, the simplest solution is to reallocate spending.  One way to do that is to put more money into the hands of women. (epub edition, 405).

In places the book is difficult to read, in places it is inspiring.  Kristoff and Wudunn lead their readers to think carefully about different issues facing women, and to consider how they can be a part of the solution.

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide