“We are our boundaries.” ~ George Simmel, Sociologist
I read this quote on a blog by one this blog’s supportive readers, bwinwnbwimusic. The quote showed up just as I was thinking about a project I’m currently involved with. The Universe is so wise; it knew exactly the encouragement I needed. The project is not fun – difficult partners and a difficult team to manage. I was nashing my teeth a bit over how to proceed. I felt like my efforts, and even my creative abilities, were blocked. I was stuck, and quickly time was flying by.
Meditating on boundaries
I decided to sit down, close my eyes, and really focus on this quote from George Simmel. If I feel blocked, there must be some boundary I am trying to cross over and that boundary doesn’t have any give. What is the boundary? What lesson is it teaching me? How do I either traverse it, or find an authentic way to incorporate it into my plan?
Finally, an answer surfaces
Yes, the partner on this project is difficult. Yes, there’s a leadership vacuum and a team that is not proactive. The boundary though, the real boundary that I was wrestling with, was me. I’m the one who needed to grow and change because I am the only individual I really have control over.
It starts and ends with me – that’s leadership
The partner was difficult because I had not set firm guidelines with them. There is a leadership vacuum and I will need to fill it. The team is not proactive and so I need to be more prescriptive with them. I have the ability to influence and if the project is to turn out in a way that I’m proud of, then it is up to me to find a way to motivate, inspire, and bring all the disparate pieces and parties together. In this way, I am learning that leadership requires the close examination and then acceptance of boundaries. It’s back to the oldage of once I accept myself as I am, then I find that I can change.
Christa Avampato 