Where There is Unity There is Prosperity

Prosperity and success flow from unity.  It is necessary for a company (marriage, family, team, church, trade organization, nation etc). to become as one, speaking the same language, planning, imagining and working in unity to achieve success.

Recently I was intrigued by a headline I saw on Facebook: “80 Amish Guys Move a House.”

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/80-amish-men-pick-move-house-article-1.1742835  

It’s an amazing video to demonstrate the ability of these men to work in unity to do something that you would think would be impossible. You can see their feet moving in unison to accomplish something that no man could accomplish on his own. At one point, they got stuck and the team patiently waited for instructions from their leaders and then followed them! I’m not saying that debate is bad. Yes, we should have healthy debate about processes but not when we already know what works. It’s not about the how – it’s about the what. Outcome always trumps process (as long as the process does not violate shared values).

I think this is worth repeating.  If a company (marriage, family, team, church, trade organization,nation etc…) become as one, speaking the same language begin to plan, imagine and do something in unity together, then NOTHING that they plan or imagine and do will be impossible for them.

How do you build unity? Humility fosters unity. Humility says:

• I consider others more important than myself.
• I consider my own interest but I also look to the interest of others.
• I’m not self-focused and I’m not interested in looking good, but I’m interested in doing the right thing.
• I’m not interested in finding acceptance, but respect.
• I respect authority and submit to it. If the boss wants me to do something a certain way, then I do it. By serving the authority in my life it shows respect and by showing respect I will earn respect. Humility brings honor and riches in life.

However, humility is not low self-esteem or weakness; it’s just a quality of having a modest opinion of your own rank or importance. Humility quietly goes about its work, not bringing attention to itself. Humility minds its own business and does the work that it is given. Humility wins the respect of others by doing its work daily, in a dependable and consistent manner. Humility embraces correction from others. Consider an old proverb that says “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but the person who hates correction is stupid.”  Wow that’s blunt.  If you hate correction does that make you stupid? Correction can sting but you should respond to the correction by:

1. Thanking the person for bringing it to your attention and consider it.

2. Be honest with yourself and sleep on it.

3. Be honest with others who you trust and get some council.

4. Be honest with God and pray about it.

Humility always comes before wisdom.  Wisdom is being able to take the facts that you know and discern what is true. Then, being able to make the right judgement in how to take action going forward.

Hire for attitude and train for skills. This reminds me of a technician who asked his service manager if he could be excused from class. He said, “I’m an oil guy and I’m not a salesman and I’m not going to change nothing. I only want to do my job for a few more years, retire and I’m out of here.” The service manager agreed and allowed him to skip out of class. Others in that company followed the same attitude in a passive aggressive manner and not much changed for the group because there was no unity of purpose and everybody was serving themselves. This group was not united in anything.

Pride destroys unity.  Living from yourself and for yourself always produces pride and then fear. Pride says:

• I have a high opinion of myself, my importance and my superiority.
• I consider myself before I consider others.
• I’m the boss and I need a special parking place.
• I’ve been an oil guy all my life and I’m not going to become a sales person and try to get my average ticket up.
• I’ve worked here thirty years and could not possibly learn anything new.
• I point out the flaw in others before admitting my flaws.
• I will manipulate people through shame

Shaming suffocates creativity. The owner, CEO, manager father mother who shames the employee or child shames out of pride. The shamed person always becomes the person who shames.  Shame is a very powerful emotion that makes a person aware of something that they did improper or dishonorable. The little league kid who stuck out and lost the game brought shame upon his father because of the fathers pride. So the father shamed the child in front of the team and crowd. This happens in our businesses too and it is used to manipulate and control people. The technician who was shamed as a kid for mistakes he made will not risk making mistakes at work. The operations manager who had a good idea that did not work and was ridiculed by the results will not bring any more ideas. This is what creates the herd mentality. The boss feels good about but nonie tells him about the bridge that’s out down the road.

Pride leads to calamity among teams and nations.  As the old story goes, a nation who spoke one language came together and decided that they would build a tower to heaven. It was called the tower of Babel.  God decided that he would confuse their language so they could not understand each other and work in unity. The nation was building this tower to make a name for themselves.  Due to their pride, God stopped their project by attacking their unity.  Pride is a very serious thing and it is a part of our nature.  Unity will never come without humility. Humility will not come to the company without a humble leader. The culture of the business flows from the leader and the apple never falls far from the tree.