One of my favorite stories from the Bible is the story of David and Goliath. In the story, David, a shepherd boy, takes his brothers, who are fighting in King Saul’s army, some food on the front lines of a battle with the Philistines. The Philistines have sent their giant, Goliath, out to taunt the soldiers of Israel. It’s a classic, “You want to fight? Fight me!” moment in scripture.
David can’t tolerate the taunting and tells the leaders he will fight Goliath. At first they balk at having the young man take on the mighty warrior, but eventually they relent. But before they put David out to fight, they encourage him to try on King Saul’s armor. David tries it on, but declares that it doesn’t fit and it doesn’t feel right. As such, he takes off the armor and goes to get what he’s comfortable with: his sling and five smooth stones. The rest, as they say, is history. David defeats Goliath.
Every day you are going into battle in your work place. No, not a fight with a giant per se, but in a fight to win the deal, make the profit, create the product, teach the students, or lead the community. Whose clothes are you wearing? Are you putting on the clothes that others have laid out for you or are you wearing what’s comfortable? It’s important that you wear your clothing. Psychologists would call this “being your authentic self.” It’s critical that you take you – your authentic you – into your work each day. When you’re authentic, you use your strengths to take on giant challenges and find ways to be successful.
What should you do if you’re not able to put on your own clothes for your work? In other words, what happens if you’re not able to be authentic where you are? I think there are three possibilities:
- Change clothes. Figuratively speaking, of course. But in reality, if you’re not in a place of great fit, have the courage to start looking to make a change. You get one life and you want to make the most of it. Carefully consider if a large-scale change is what you need.
- Work with a tailor. If you’ve carefully considered your options and don’t believe a wholesale change is in order, work with your leaders and a coach to tailor your apparel to the task at hand. Maybe you can find ways to use more of your strengths in your current situation. Maybe your leaders can make some little adjustments to help you be the most comfortable and productive. It doesn’t hurt to ask.
- Grow into your clothes. If you don’t believe a change is necessary and your tailoring efforts aren’t fruitful, gracefully grow into your clothes. You may find after a period of growth, that things fit a little better.
If you need help processing your current apparel situation, feel free to reach out. I can help make things a little better each day!
Phil Harrison Coaching 