“There are two kinds of light—the glow that illuminates, and the glare that obscures.”
James Thurber
This quote resonates with my former life of work-work. I remember realising how much impact an individual could have on a workplace. One person.
There were 40 of us in our Branch and we got a new boss. It was amazing to see how much that one new person could change the vibe of the place, how we felt about ourselves and what we were doing. And it wasn't good.
When I became a boss at that level, I thought to myself, you can either be a person who shines a light on your workplace; or you can be the person who casts a really long shadow and I wanted to be the one who cast a light.
I think this light comparison here is similar - and goes to another of my workplace thoughts. I often said (and still do) "every strength, when overplayed, becomes a weakness". And so it is with the light here - if you get it just right, you illuminate, if you overplay it, you end up blinding people. Not helpful
In the end, I think this ramble is trying to get to the point that really, it's always about balance and its always about context. It might be handy to create glare in certain situations, but generally speaking, we should try to get the balance right in life.
James Thurber
This quote resonates with my former life of work-work. I remember realising how much impact an individual could have on a workplace. One person.
There were 40 of us in our Branch and we got a new boss. It was amazing to see how much that one new person could change the vibe of the place, how we felt about ourselves and what we were doing. And it wasn't good.
When I became a boss at that level, I thought to myself, you can either be a person who shines a light on your workplace; or you can be the person who casts a really long shadow and I wanted to be the one who cast a light.
I think this light comparison here is similar - and goes to another of my workplace thoughts. I often said (and still do) "every strength, when overplayed, becomes a weakness". And so it is with the light here - if you get it just right, you illuminate, if you overplay it, you end up blinding people. Not helpful
In the end, I think this ramble is trying to get to the point that really, it's always about balance and its always about context. It might be handy to create glare in certain situations, but generally speaking, we should try to get the balance right in life.
yes xxxx
ReplyDeletethanks Ronnie...
Deletewell said Fiona
ReplyDeletethanks Kate - 'twas a bit of a ramble, but got there in the end, kind of...
DeleteJames Thurber wrote a beautiful children's book entitled Many Moons (I especially like the version illustrated by Marc Simont). Ultimately it is a story about perspective and the clear-eyed wisdom of a child who loves the light of the moon. A perfect fit for this gentle post.
ReplyDeleteSounds beautiful Liz - perspective changes things so much...go well.
DeleteNever a truer word spoken.
ReplyDeleteInteresting isn't it Lesley? Go well.
Deletebeautiful photo
ReplyDeleteThanks Mo - taken during a blackout I believe!
Delete