Becoming Y – Part V

Last updated on: August 24, 2016 at 2:08 pm by Adrian Crawford

Becoming Y – Part V 2016-08-24T14:08:56-04:00 Adrian Crawford

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Becoming Y

In the 1960s, MIT professor Douglas McGregor developed two competing theories on human motivation and management. Theory X focuses in on the importance of strict supervision, external rewards and penalties. While Theory Y emphasizes job satisfaction and encourages workers to approach tasks without direct supervision. The two models are founded on general assumptions of how workers are motivated. Theory X managers suppose that the average employee has little to no ambition, evades work or responsibilities and is individual goal oriented. In contrast, Theory Y managers assume that the average employee are internally motivated, enjoy their role in the company and work better without a direct reward in return.

One of the major things I have witnessed firsthand is a lack of production by Christians in their work places, causing managers to work from a Theory X assumption. We stamp the name of Jesus on laziness in order to appease our conscious and justify our terrible work ethic. If we want to truly begin to add value and be irreplaceable, this cannot continue. Laziness takes many forms; at times it has been called “lack of talent”, “lack of higher education”, “busyness” or anything else that can support our case for not wanting to go the extra mile.

We have come to the inexplicable idea that mediocre work is acceptable. Not only, but we pray God would rescue us from the burdens of job responsibilities. Instead of attempting to cast off our job responsibilities, as Christians we should embrace one of the biggest opportunities we have for improving our workplace, by making a dent due to excellence! Those who are successful in the market place are constantly learning, even outside of work, about their field. They are eager to sharpen their customer care skills, learn new concepts and desire to grow in knowledge and ability. It is not honoring to the Lord if we are satisfied with the bare minimum. These successful traits extends to those who are not Christians, but who also ultimately want to be prosperous at their jobs. What makes Christians different at times is that we are quick to put God’s name on a sloppy job. We try to hide behind the name of Jesus, coming up with excuses on why we are unavailable for extra projects at work, or unable to go above and beyond what is required. Please, don’t stick the Jesus flag in a pile of crap.

If you fall into this camp and a boss is unhappy with you, or even more extreme you get fired, this is not the Lord moving you. It is your fault you were fired because you were performing poorly. Hear me, God will work it out, this is his promise, but there are consequences that come from laziness and other bad choices.

So now what, how do we work hard? I think it breaks down into 3 simple focuses:

Be present: many times we are not excellent because we see our current employment as a pit stop and not truly part of the journey. The fact is, people who make dents are people who are always present and focus on the current situation even if they’re planning for something beyond where they currently find themselves.
Find help: get a mentor. It doesn’t matter if they are Christian or not Christian, find someone who is good at what you do and is able to help you get better.
Work: be willing to work and be willing to work hard. We live in a day and age where 40 hours a week is not the normal work week any more. Take a Sabbath every week, but honor God the other 6 days with the same heart by doing your absolute best.

Take a moment and read Psalm 104. This writer is telling of the many wonders of God. They write from lions looking for prey, the sun rising in the morning and in verse 23 it highlights mankind going to work. This is a miraculous deed of the Lord according to this psalmist. Going to work is a miraculous sign of God! Work and how we work matter to God, it should matter to us as well.

So let us not substantiate Theory X managers who feel that they must be consistently over their employees’ shoulders in order to maintain the quality and quantity of the employees’ labor. Rather, let us work in such a way that we become the most precious assets in our workplace, changing the staunchest Theory X manager into a Theory Y manager.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

August 18, 2016

Competitive Advantage - Part IV

Next Post

September 2, 2016 My Beautiful Affliction - Part I

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month July 2017 June 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who was David's great-grandmother?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Bathsheba Ruth Tamar Rahab