the heavy lifting

today has been an interesting day of work. i came in bright and early and encountered a set of emails that highlighted some problematic dynamics of my specific function's operational approach and of the broader organizational culture. meetings and conversations that have occurred over the course of the day have further brought these same issues into focus, which in terms of my function at least, seem to come down to this key point. when it comes to the work of getting better at what we do, we don't seem to have the critical mass of talent capable of or focused on bringing about the needed improvement and innovation in our work.

i have certainly done my best to fill in for the gaps that exist, but i'm one person. there is no way if we are going to get to where we need to get to that i'm going to be able to do all of the heavy lifting on my own. i've known this for awhile but now am experiencing a certain degree of fatigue and even burn out from working so hard to be a leader in our transformation efforts and not experiencing that same level of engagement or commitment from my peers and colleagues.

what's even more challenging is that i truly believe that this is a not a matter of just attitude. i continue to question if we have enough of the right folks with the aptitude to conceive of and execute on our strategies and priorities. what's even scarier is that this is the first place i've worked that has as many of the right kind of talent to bring about this kind of agenda as we do here. yet i'm led to believe from a review of trade journals and practice literature that there are organizations that are doing great work in this space and have done so through focus, perseverance and discipline.

and i guess i just need to take those concepts to heart. certainly it will take time for us to get to where we need to be. i'm just not sure that i'm going to survive the journey without more equally committed and capable sojourners.