Cut the Fat

Today is Ash Wednesday - the first day of Lent in the Christian Calendar. Many will undertake the spiritual practice of giving something up for the next 40 days. Yesterday was Fat Tuesday – which is the not-so-spiritual practice of going on a bit of a binge before you give stuff up for Lent.

Fasting from something for 40 days reminds us of Christ's sacrifice for us. We forgo something we like or enjoy to create more margin, and we use that margin to reflect upon God's generosity towards us in His Son. Many people “add” something along with their sacrifice: they give up TV and instead write a letter a day to someone who has made an impact in their life. They give up meals and give the money they would have spent on food to a food pantry.

The Lenten Season snuck up on me this year and I’m not prepared – I don’t know what I’m going to give up just yet. As I was pondering it today, I started wondering what “fat” I have at work that I could cut? Things that aren’t necessarily bad on their own, but if I gave them up I could be more attentive at work, more generous towards my colleagues and more “present” with my tasks.

Social media comes to mind. When I have a few minutes between meetings and I don’t have enough time to get into actual work I mindlessly check Facebook or Twitter. Could I use that time more wisely? What could I do with those in-between minutes?

Or podcasts – I plug my ears and I think I’m getting some “professional development” by listening to an educational podcast. But am I communicating to my officemates that I’m unavailable? And would my work improve if I were more focused on it rather than splitting my attention?

I could cut the literal fat – no trips to the vending machine for 40 days. I could replace it with a lap around the building to provide fresh air and re-focus on the tasks at hand.

There’s nothing wrong with social media, podcasts or the vending machine (all in moderation, of course). And these “sacrifices” seem meaningless in the face of Christ, I know. But I wonder if cutting even those small little bits of fat can make a difference in reminding me of the One I work for.

Remember that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return. – Genesis 3:19

Book Review: At Work as it is in Heaven – by J.B. Wood

I found J.B.’s blog - Shrinking the Camel - via twitter and the The High Calling. I immediately liked his posts.

Many people who write about faith-and-work stop after they make the point that it’s important to combine the two, and that God values your work. J.B.’s blog makes those important points, but goes beyond that and includes real-life work situations. You get a glimpse of how he handles challenges, setbacks or success. His tone is approachable and conversational (and occasionally irreverent, which lets you know he’s human). Given that his book is a collection of blog posts, it follows that I really enjoyed At Work as it is in Heaven.

I originally read through the book when I first picked it up downloaded it in September. At that time, I breezed right through it. I enjoyed it, I wished it were longer, but then I set it aside.

As I’ve recently found myself a bit more stationary than usual, I took the opportunity to re-read the book. I started going through it at the same clip as last time, but then I got to Chapter 6. While not the main point of the chapter, Wood wrote about the importance of really thinking about and reflecting on the Scripture you are reading. His book isn’t Scripture, but it reminded me to take more time to reflect on what I was reading and how the different topics applied to my life.

So then I  slowed down and paid more attention to his writing. That chapter, Investing in a Spiritual Economy, is about how our perspective on the economy impacts our feelings of security. Most of the time when we hear the word “economy” our mind turns to money – either our personal finances or the finances of the country. When I think about my own financial economy I get a little antsy. Like most people I’m dealing with some uncertainties: new expenses like a baby (and unpaid maternity leave); or new opportunities like the book. Plus the country’s (world’s?) economy is still shaky and that can make me nervous.

But Wood encourages readers to look at the spiritual economy: one “made of relationships and from giving and loving,” which leads to spiritual security. He doesn’t say the financial economy is unimportant, he just encourages you to realize that your security doesn’t come from there.

“There really is no security in life. That’s the first lesson, numero uno. Which is kind of hard to swallow for us hard-core, independent-minded control freaks. But maybe once we grasp that point, then the verses that follow in Luke 12:22-23 about not worrying start to make sense. Jesus is saying there is so much more to life than the raw economics of money and transactions.

The spiritual economy is going on all around us, right in front of us, and the beauty is that it is based on eternal, unlimited abundance. But we get distracted and driven by the financial economy, which appears to be bigger, more important, more tangible and more threatening.”  (pg53-54)

That chapter caused me to ask myself:  am I hoping to find my security in the financial economy? am I making investments in the spiritual economy?

That chapter also caused me to slow down and really think about what I was reading. I found the book really enjoyable the first time, and a lot more challenging the second time. I could include a ton more quotes from him in here, but instead I’ll just encourage you to read it!

More about the author: Aside from his day job as a Senior Vice President, JB Wood is a Content Editor at the The High Calling. His writing has also been featured in The Conference Board Review magazine, Christianity Today’s Men of Integrity, and The Chicago Sun Times.

Looking for a new job?

I ran into a friend a back a few weeks ago who shared that, after nine months of searching, she’d finally found a job! Following a lot of consideration and prayer about the future, my friend left her job last year to search for one in a related-but-different field.

Her credentials were impressive and her experience was pretty much all any organization in this new sphere could ask for. She pounded the pavement for months looking for a job: doing numerous informational interviews, reaching out to old contacts, making new contacts, submitting countless resumes and applications, going on formal interviews, starting negotiations for specific positions.

She was *this close* to an offer for the type of job she was looking for several times. It looked like everything was lining up, and yet it never quite did.

This job she finally got (and is very excited about) came through just when she was near the end of her rope and near the end of her savings account.

I was reminded of several important lessons while watching her job search:

-       Network, network, network: most of the “close” offers she received were a result of relationships she had built, and being recommended for positions by people who knew her.
-       Be prepared to wait: I’ve heard an anecdotal statistic that for every $10,000 you hope to make in your salary, expect one month of concentrated job searching. It takes that long to network with the right people, for enough of the right types of positions to open up, and for your skills to match with enough of those positions to be considered. I don’t know if her salary lines up with that statistic, but I do know it is rare that you start looking for a new job and find one in the first month or two.
-       Don’t be afraid to say no: while she was getting anxious to find a job, she closed down negotiations on a few positions that were moving towards an offer. She knew they weren’t a good fit for her. Taking the “wrong” job out of fear or desperation just leads to another search in a few months or years. Or, even worse, you could end up being stuck somewhere you dislike for a long time all because you weren’t confident enough in what you wanted to say “no thank you.”

• I know this is a tough one when your finances are tenuous – some people don’t feel they have the “luxury” of saying no to a job because they need the income right away. But even if you have to take a job for financial reasons, keep looking for the “right” job.

-       Follow Up Again: the job she is now working in was a result of an informational interview she did back in the winter. She emailed them a few times between then and now letting them know she was still available and interested. If it were me, I might have taken their first “no thank you” and walked away, thinking that were the end of the conversation. She was persistent, but not pushy, reminding the company of her skills, interest and availability. It resulted in her getting this job.

Finding a new job is hard work – it almost seems like a full-time job itself!  Be prepared financially and emotionally for a longer search than you might want. But network, be patient and keep following up!