054 Making work great again

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Can we make work great again? Leary and Armin are here to say we can. As believers, we have been charged with the mission to work for the Lord — and this means at our day job, too. But all too often we let boredom, fatigue, a lack of confidence, and discouragement get in the way of doing our jobs well and unto God.

In this episode, Leary and Armin ask and answer some tough questions about the work we do and how we do it. They help us identify some of the symptoms of disengagement, and share three principles of Godly work that we should turn to when we need a reminder that we aren’t working for ourselves. And finally, Leary has five practical tips to help us make work great again.

Quotes:

“One of the boldest and most courageous things you can do is get up and do today differently.” — Leary

“When God starts revealing something that might be more transcendent than the role you are currently playing, recruit others.” — Leary

“You can’t out-give God and you can’t predict his rewards.” — Armin

“We have to defy two expectations in our workplace: that we deserve comfort and that we deserve praise.” — Leary

“God is our audience of one. If no one else ever noticed what we do in our work setting, would we do it any differently?” — Leary

“We put more of the burden of responsibility of making work great on our employer and not on ourselves. Some of it should be on us.” — Armin

“We serve a Master, we don’t serve a boss.” — Leary

Action steps:

• If you are a believer, your work is one of the biggest chances to put God’s plan for you into action. Make sure you are engaged with the task at hand.
• How do you know you are disengaged? Here are some signs: boredom, fatigue, lack of confidence, and discouragement.
• If you are bored in your job and at the risk of becoming disengaged, ask yourself: what can I do to re-engage myself so that I am working in the way that God calls me to?
• Here are three principles to help us remember that we are doing God’s work: 1. It’s not about you — we have a Master. 2. The idea of work is in our DNA. It was there from the beginning. 3. We have a mystery. We are to present ourselves to the mission that has yet to be uncovered before us.
• We often limit our choices based on the read of our circumstances. We need to refocus on truth, first. That is the only way that we can begin and continue doing work in a Godly manner.
• We only work to please the audience of One.
• In the Bible, the only thing rewarded in the Parable of the Minas is effort. Not return, but effort. Are we putting in the effort, regardless of the reward?
• Here are five practical things to make work great again: 1. Decide that you are going to serve others. 2. Pray for a mission that is bigger than the task of your job. 3. Recruit others to your mission. 4. Develop an exit plan. 5. Create a simple gratitude journal.

Resources mentioned:

• Connect with Leary Gates on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Google+.
• Connect with Armin Assadi on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.
• The Five Minute Journal: A Happier You in 5 Minutes a Day http://amzn.to/2Dv8Gem