Leading A Puppy.

I have a 10-week old lab puppy named Kiwi.

We have been on two runs, about a mile each.

That’s about her max right now.

My job is to guide the way.

Teach her the basics of running next to me.

Have some fun.

To push enough that she can continue to grow in her capacity.

Not let her run so much she passes out.

Just the right amount. Leaning into her edge.

It’s slow to a medium-paced jog.

In about 6 months, she will be able to outrun me.

Distance and speed.

She was made to run.

Breed hundreds of years ago to be a hunter’s friend.

I’m ok with this.

I have to be.

A fit and lean lab can run up to 30 miles per hour.

A fit man can run 8 mph (A fit man with a bum knee runs at 7mph…)

I can teach her how to run with me.

I can do that well.

But running. She has that covered.

Same at work.

I’m not the best edger. Matt tells me he wants to be.

I’m not the best epoxy mixer — I’m too clumsy. A bucket will tip over.

I’m not the best machine operator — I can do it. But I might hit a floor outlet.

If I were in charge of paying the bills — I would forget some.

If you needed me to prepare your project — I would be rushing to get something here overnight rather than purchasing a week before to plan.

I have a sense of style but can’t develop a graphic.

I tell the team I never miss when shooting the compound bow, but it’s Jared who never does.

My team tells me I might overlook some details when there is a process to follow. I can do most of our business at an average to a slightly above-average level. Some things are not even close.

Leading is working with people who are the BEST or have the capacity to be the BEST in these things AND being ok with everyone being better than me.

We are all given different gifts.

Mindsets and ways we work.

My job is to guide the way.

Teach the basics. I make the connections between roles and the work that needs to be done. Knowing a little about ‘A’ and a little about ‘B’ and creating the flow between the tasks.

I push enough that we can continue to grow in our capacity.

Not to go so hard, we burn out.

Just the right amount. Leaning into our edge.

As Dennis, our Business Manager says, ‘Meeting people where they are, leading them to where God calls them to be.”

That’s the leader I want to be.