It Can't be Me

As I sit here in my very messy office, listening to Sufjan Stevens I am reflecting on the possibility that I might be the problem. This morning I finished reading Patrick Lencioni's Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable. It's one of those books that almost everyone involved in leadership or on a team of any kind talks like they read it but in reality they've only heard other people talk about it (I was one of those people until this morning). I think everyone who is not a monk with a vow of silence should read (or listen to) it. It is entertaining, thought provoking, challenging. I laughed, I cried... anyway, it did get me thinking about the 5 dysfunctions: 1)Absence of Trust, 2) Fear of Conflict, 3) Lack of Commitment, 4) Avoidance of Accountability, and 5) Inattention to Results. I am pretty sure that I have never actually been on a healthy team. Regardless of the venue (church, school, work, and even individual relationships) there is a struggle to follow through on any one of these areas. Sherri and I had a conversation recently and dysfunction number 2 came up. My comment was that anyone who is not willing to tow the line of a healthy team cannot live in my house. She ignored me because she knows how I get with an exciting new idea. Anyway, the question I am wrestling with is this, if I have been on teams that are heavy laiden with these dysfunctions, am I the reason? As much as I can identify with the hero in the story, I think I am much more like the dysfunctional teammates. Hopefully that feeling will go away because it just can't be me.

Who Peed?

Ok, so I haven't been doing any updating lately. Sorry. The other morning, Sherri and I are in bed, not quite awake yet. Now, understand that we have been having allergies lately and you know how that goes sleeping with your mouth open so you can breathe. Josh walks in and climbs into bed with us...

(Seeing the drool on the pillow)
Josh: Mommy pee on pillow?
Mommy: No, Josh, I did not pee on my pillow.
Josh: Mommy peed on pillow?
Mommy: No, Josh, mommy did not pee on her pillow.
(Mommy gets out of bed to get ready for the day)
Josh: Daddy, you pee mommy's pillow?
Daddy: (while laughing) No, daddy did not pee on mommy's pillow.
Josh: I no pee mommy's pillow.

I love mornings.