You have to be on the lookout always and everywhere for the wisdom and insights that can help in creating strategic impact.
I get a lot of insights from attending daily mass.
Even there, though, the insights can come through ways you would never expect.
Yesterday’s mass was celebrated by Fr. Mirco Sosio, AVI. He was filling in for our pastor, who has been filling in for the usual priest, who is visiting his family in the eastern US. Fr. Sosio is from Italy originally, and he is serving as a temporary associate pastor at our parish for a few months. This was the first time I’d seen him.
During his homily, Fr. Sosio talked about the parable of the mustard seed. He likened it to a sentiment that the Franciscans (the orders of priests following the model of St. Francis of Assisi) have of embracing “small, possible steps.”
Small, possible steps?
The phrase "small, possible steps" struck me strongly, because it speaks to exactly how I view strategy and creating strategic impact: First figure out what you’re trying to accomplish, and then you’ll understand any incremental move that gets you going (and staying going) in the right direction.
I grew up in Hays, KS around Franciscan priests, including going to a high school they operated. Yet I’ve never had a phrase from my youth to explain my strategic perspective, or even a recognition that it might have been shaped by the Franciscans.
But there it was staring me in the face at mass yesterday.
While we’re all a tapestry of what we’ve learned, experienced, and imagined, it is remarkable how many business lessons I’d have otherwise credited to my secular business career surprisingly surface in church with no recognition on my part that might be where they originated.
So as this started, be sure to be on the lookout always and everywhere for the wisdom and insights to help you in creating a strategic impact because you never know where they will emerge. – Mike Brown
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