Paradox of Owning Part II

Importance and owning used to go hand in hand.  There was no real way of being the most important person in the company, church, non-profit, school without being at the top of the pyramid.  I'm the owner, I'm the most important.

I was sitting down for breakfast with an x-CEO.  He had retired a year previously and was enjoying his mid seven figure buy-out he had received.  He told me that during his two decade tenure he had never once been late to a meeting.  I told him I understood that punctuality was important.  He laughed and said no he wasn't always on time, it just so happened that every time he walked in the room the meeting started.  He then looked down at his bacon and eggs and sighed, "nobody waits for me to do anything anymore" he said.

Have you ever seen a babies face when you walk in the room and the meeting suddenly starts.  Or your dogs sheer excitement at your newfound presence after a day of work.  Importance is, as it turns out, very important.

So one way we strive to fill our importance tank is by owning things.  If I'm at the top of the pyramid than I am important, even if I really don't want (or am incapable) of filling that position.

Wanting to own a business without wanting to run a business is foolishness.  When you say things like "I could hire somebody to do that part!" what you are really saying is "I want the position without the responsibility".

The oddity is that importance is available.  Go be a big brother or a big sister and become the most important person in somebodies life.  Go work in a shelter where you know the work you do matters.

But most of all, get into a relationship with God, it turns out that it feels pretty important to be important to the most important person in the universe.

A Job Well Done

Some things are more important than other things, or so mothers believe as they push their children to get real degrees in college.  A great doctor is more important than a great dancer.  A great scientist is more important than a great writer.  A great teacher is more important than a great athlete.

A great doctor add years to your life, watching an amazing dancer can add life to your years.  A great scientist can uncover new things about the universe that were hidden, a great writer can uncover things about you that were hidden from even you.  A great teacher can inspire a student to push their minds potential, a great athlete can inspire you to find your own bodies potential.

In a world that seems finite, we live for a few years and then we die, we want to do things that go beyond us.  This lures us into believing some things are more important than others.  But in a world that is infinite, we live in what we know as life now and then we will live in what we know as life then, what we value starts to shift.

Jesus is the best example of a self aware infinite being living among us.  He did not disregard the small things, rather he seemed to enjoy them all the more.  He drank wine and ate food.  He handcrafted wood tables and chairs.  He had one on one conversations with people who were insignificant.  He drew in the dirt.  He cried.

Whatever it is that you do, if you do that job well, it has significance.  Our goal is to one day hear "well done...", it is we who put the emphasis on the what.

All that matters is that no matter what the "it" is, we do it well.

Paradox of Owning

So much of what we do is tied to ownership.

We work hard to save money to buy things, to own things.

We quit jobs to work for ourselves, because when you act like an owner you act better.

We sell things to others to help them become owners.

We work on self betterment, and the easiest way down that road is good habits that we've earned, habits that we own.

We degrade renting.

We don't like to borrow things.

Marketers know this better than anybody.  The reason a 30 day free trial or a money back guarantee work almost 100% of the time is because once it's in our hand, in our garage, in our life, we own it.  When we pay for it is of little consequence.

And yet we are not good owners.  Almost nobody I know is great at owning all the things they own.  There is that juicer that I never use.  That car I should change the oil on more often.  That house that needs to be painted.  That closet full of clothes that needs to be organized.

This is just the tip, maybe there is an iceberg, we will see in later posts.