The basketball life - be safe? Or great?

Life has often thrown me situations where I have had to make a choice - be safe?  Or to go for it, and either be great or end up with egg on my face.  I love to play basketball, so I'll use this example: when the ball is in your hands, (and yes, I'm over-simplifying, even for a game of basketball) there are essentially two choices.  Make something happen, or pass the ball and responsibility to someone else.  If you shoot and make the basket, you're great.  If you miss (and miss, and miss, and miss), you're in trouble.  But if you never shoot, well... you'll never miss.

Quite often, these "safe or great" decision-points also arise at work, because the consequences of work decisions, like a basketball shot, are shorter-term and visible. But longer-term, less visible consequences are obviously important too.

I remember my first job - it was exciting!  After some time, I got good at it, and I knew I was good at it too.  So when it came to the time for job rotation, I declined to move, elected to be a long-term specialist, and stayed in my department, figuring, why change what I know, start a new post which I don't know how to do well, and risk having to impress a new boss all over again?

As it turned out of course, my career completely stagnated.  I continued to do the same things, but just didn't advance.  I must say, stagnation was not *because* I stayed.  Quite often, the right choice really is to stay.  There are many people who succeed because they have found their calling, and stay the course.  But the point is that, sometimes when we choose to make a safe choice, that safety is an illusion.  Because as it turned out, because of my career stalling, I did have to leave, and leave entirely, rather than just making an internal job posting!

And the new job was hard.  I had moved from the public sector to the private sector, and to a highly technical industry.  I didn't know what I was doing.  But again, I learned, and eventually I got good at it, and even got myself a nice promotion after a year.  But very shortly after, I got a visit from my big boss, and she said, would you like to have a job rotation?  Be the staff assistant to the CEO (I wrote about this previously in my post on "Uncomfortable yet?" but bear with me :P)

I thought, oh no, not again!  Even after my previous experience, I still struggled with the decision.  I had just gotten good at my new job.  My boss liked me.  I was a lawyer, doing legal work.  What I knew about the business was purely from the lens of a lawyer.  I knew little about HR, or Finance, or Technology.  Worse - working directly for the CEO?  He'll surely see through me, and realise I know nothing.  Every mistake will be magnified 100x.

But I had to do it.  Especially after what I had learned in my first job.  The safe choice sometimes isn't as safe as it looks.  I liked my employer.  I didn't want to have to leave again.  So I moved.

And I survived.  The CEO turned out to be patient and instructional.  He sneakily asked me what I didn't know how to do, and then promptly and purposely directed me to do precisely those things.  I learned so much in that one year.  Although that one year was certainly not safe, because I blundered through it with insufficient knowledge and made lots of mistakes, it really gave me the opportunity to be part of something big, and do something great.

I've taken that lesson to every work experience and job posting I've had since then.  Don't know?  Figure it out.  Can't do?  Work it out.  As I've taken to telling my colleagues - quite often, it's like we have to put together a 10 piece jigsaw to see the picture, but we know we will only ever have 7 pieces.  Waiting for the other 3 pieces to turn up so that we can be sure and safe isn't a real option.  Just got to get comfortable looking at the 7 pieces we do have, and say, yup, that looks like a giraffe, and then act accordingly.  Are we in our jobs to be safe?  Or to be great?

The same lessons apply elsewhere in life too.  Several years ago, I was comfortably part of church as a member, listening to and learning from pastors and leaders.  I think I was a reasonably good member - I was regular in attendance, and responsible for whatever I was asked to help with.  Then an opportunity came up to be a leader.  I didn't know how to lead.  I didn't even particularly want to lead.  A church leader's work is pretty harrowing - having to care for strangers, spend time with them until they become friends and family, especially at a time when my career was getting exciting, the kids were starting primary school/heading towards PSLE... I was liable to completely mess things up, not only for me, but for others.  Maybe better to conserve my limited time and resources, play safe.

But I really wanted something more than just OK.  I wanted to see God move.  I wanted to see how He could use the little I had, my five loaves and two fishes, and make them more than enough for a multitude (John 6:5-13).  And taking up leadership has turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life.  Every day is full of opportunity, and honestly, I still end up with way too many missed and messed up opportunities to serve Christ, but oh, it's so full with purpose!  Instead of being in the stadium terraces, I'm on the court!

Which brings me back to this.  It's all very well to say, dare to be great, and not just safe.  But risk for the sake of the risk is just... foolishness.  So what are some things I've learned to increase the chances of success?  Too many to share, but I was reminded of one thing this week.

I play basketball with a bunch of secondary school friends on a fortnightly basis.  We go back to our old school and play in the evenings.  Last month, I remember thinking to myself after the game, wow I'm awesome, I made so many baskets!  Then just last Thursday, I went back and played, and after two whole hours, I didn't make a single basket.  You basically have to be purposely trying to miss to do that :D

I thought to myself, what happened?  I'm the same person after all.  And I realised this - success is helped when you are surrounded by people who make you better.  It's not that your team is bad.  Just that sometimes, you don't fit your team.  So for example, if you've got a good outside shot, it really helps to play with someone who can play close to the basket, so the defenders are more likely to sag towards the basket and give you space on the perimeter.  Conversely, if you are great near the basket, then it helps to have a shooter on the perimeter so the defence won't collapse on you.

And just as important is this - the players around me don't exist just to help me play better.  The world doesn't revolve around me!  If I can do something well, whatever it may be, then it's my job to help make others better too.  It's a quid pro quo.

And so I spend time mentoring my children.  I spend time being a leader to my church friends.  I spend time teaching younger colleagues and sharing life lessons with them.  I spend time with the underprivileged, being a friend, a listening ear, and praying for them.  Or like my wife, who right now, as I'm writing this, has just spent the entire morning out counselling a friend in need.  Because on their respective basketball courts of life, I am a person who can make them better, and I owe it to them to do so.

Conversely, on my own court, I am thankful to God for all the people He's put on my team, so that He can speak to me through them, if only I were humble enough to listen - people who are wiser, more skilful, more experienced than me - my church leaders, my work colleagues, my wife, my family and friends, who teach me where I'm going wrong, what I can do better or need to find out, and who I need to turn to.

My wife says I'm funny - play basketball also got life lesson.  But I'm thankful that I have such a loving God, who constantly speaks to me, even when I've shot 0 for 20 from the field!