When Strategies Fail

I am in the midst of a time of great change.  Things that are really important to me are at stake.  All the quick fixes and even deliberate strategy over a long time have not resulted in the changes I hoped to see.  So what do I do, what do we do, when strategy fails?  

Despite our best efforts, there are times when we cannot put the pieces together they way we wanted to.  Some areas of our life may be going well but other areas, important areas, just will not work.  When all available resources have been exhausted we have to face the fact that not everything is in our control.  Sometimes life is messy and we become the responders.  

When the only option available to us is to respond to change that we did not want, we can still act in powerful ways.  It starts with asking questions... How can I respond well to the situation I am in?  How would I feel looking back on this time, knowing that I had responded well?  What would I see?  What would other people see? 

There are some things that responding well is and some things that it is not:

• Responding well is taking action that is consistent with our core values
• Responding well sets us free to be more of who we are and to contribute deeply to others around us
• Responding well may involve great personal cost

• Responding well is not about being safe or comfortable
• Responding well is not about perpetuating the status quo
• Responding well is not about pleasing others

At the end of their day, when we are faced with change we did not want, responding well is a legitimate and powerful strategy when all other strategies have failed.  

Daniel

The best mosaics have a lot of pieces...