Competing with one’s self

Competing with one’s self

Luke 6:36-38. Because the standard you use will be the standard used for you

The prayer for serenity, courage, and wisdom is a very beautiful prayer because it makes us reflect about our reasonable controllables and non-controllables. One thing I learned in studying a critical realist view of causality is the inescapable influence of social structures and culture on our personal agency. We are placed in different contexts; some abundant in blessings, some more challenging.

The fairest comparison we could have is only to ourselves and the standards we hold ourselves accountable to. In a sense, competitions are both inspirations and distractions; they can inspire us through role models, but without full appreciation of context, they can impose unreasonable expectations.

What I love about the concept of flourishing and excellence is that it is not about rankings. In theory, everyone can flourish and excel. Integral human development is not a zero-sum game. As we learned from the parable of the talents, what matters is how a person maximizes one’s potential no matter how small one starts with.

The challenge: can businesses and organizations come up with policies that promote flourishing instead of rankings? It is possible.

And perhaps business schools should take the first step and lead.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 73: MARCH 14, 2022]