President's Message
My three kids are creative and inquisitive. While each of them shows a natural affinity for the arts, my youngest (The Boy) seems to be the only one so far who wants to learn how to play guitar. Judging by the picture in this week’s message, perhaps it is time to get him a properly-sized instrument.
As parents, we learn quickly that our kids watch everything we do. Whether we like it or not, they use our behaviors as models or examples in their own lives. In this case, The Boy decided to follow Dad’s lead and pick up the guitar. While the prospect of playing guitar with him fills my heart with joy, he could very well pick up all my bad musical habits as well if I don’t approach this thoughtfully. It should go without saying that “Do as I say, not as I do,” is not a position of strength for a parent of young children.
All this is not to say that we can’t make mistakes. As the poet Alexander Pope wrote in An Essay on Criticism, “To err is human...” If others use our behavior as examples, what is to be done when we falter – when we fail to live up to our own expectations? With my kids, I try to admit the mistake and ask for forgiveness. If I teach them nothing else, please let it be that my kids can own and grow from their mistakes. Alexander Pope’s quote is actually less about making mistakes than it is about the grace of humanity that we can absorb our mistakes and learn from them in more profound ways:
“Good nature and good sense must ever join; To err is human; to forgive, divine.”
Some thoughts as we look (ever so longingly) to the end of 2020:
Why is it that in business, so many of us were taught that apologizing is a sign of weakness?
Does your workplace culture allow for healthy risk taking and honest mistakes?
Which of your colleagues could benefit the most from a little extra forgiveness?
Which of your colleagues could use help breaking out of their comfort zone and risking failure?
How does this quote fit uniquely within the cooperative principles?
Cooperatively,
Bruce
