Sometimes Busy

I’ve been somewhat busy the past couple of weeks at work.  Nothing out of the ordinary, but I have several new clients, clients that are in the middle of closing on their homes, and several that are out looking for a home. 

Some of them have very unique loan situations that require a lot of set up and processing and thought.  Some clients are very needy and require lots of conversations and coaching.  Some clients are rather aloof, not sending in required documents, not responding back in a timely manner, and constantly needing some prodding.

All of those situations are a normal part of my workday.  But as things are busy like this, my tendency is to stop doing what I normally do to get to the place that I AM busy like this.  I love to get bogged down in the details!  If I only focus on what is happening now, versus focusing on cultivating the relationships with current and future partners/clients as well, I will end up not being busy at all and wondering what happened.

This is the challenge of trying to stay busy while you are already busy.

It reminds me of the story of Mary and Martha. Mary and Martha both were very busy people, always caring for others and taking care of the work that they normally did.  But Mary made the time to hang out with Jesus when he was at their house, getting to know him and listening to his teaching while he was there, while Martha was busy scurrying around taking care of things and not paying attention to anything at all.  Both Mary and Martha had things to do and did them, but one took the time to do and listen and cultivate while the other one just “did”. Luke 10:38-42 (NIV)

A Real Christian Businessman knows we need to be more like Mary than Martha.  Being busy is a good thing, but never stopping at all to listen or learn or cultivate relationships will soon leave us standing around with nothing to do and wondering what just happened.

Remember this week to keep busy when the times are busy, but also to take a moment to cultivate that part of your business and life that is going on right in front of us so that we don’t wake up one day wondering and wandering.

-I wrote a book! Real Christian Businessman: 30-Day Field Manual Vol 1
-I’m featured in this book! iWork4Him: Change the Way You Think About Your Faith at Work