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I return to work tomorrow morning, which will be a huge adjustment. The last day I worked was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving! (Okay so I went into the office for about a half day somewhere in the middle… but that barely counts.)

I’m looking forward to catching up with all my friends at work. I’m sure everything has progressed nicely since I was away - we’re probably still missing deadlines and scrambling to catch up, but that’s okay for now. I’ll miss seeing so much of my son, Isaac each day, but I’ll have to get used to that too. Unless I win the lottery (which would be amazing since I don’t buy tickets), I’m probably going to have to continue to work to pay the bills. At least I enjoy my work and those I work with

The power went out at work today while I was at lunch. When I went to swipe my badge to open the front door - I couldn’t get in! So everyone was given the afternoon off - which is pretty sweet.

It has been quite some time since I had the chance to just enjoy a sunny afternoon - and today is a gorgeous day. Ironically, I bought a new frisbee golf disc at lunch on a fluke. Guess I’ll have to give ‘er a toss and see how she flies. Couldn’t ask for a prettier day to take a long walk in the park.

A recent study of 3,200 U.S. companies conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania revealed that a 10 percent increase in spending for workforce training and development leads to an 8.5 percent increase in productivity, while a similar increase in capital expenditures leads to an increase in productivity of just 3.8 percent.
- John Maxwell, Leadership Wired, Vol 8, Issue 18.

I’m grateful that I work for a company (Lockheed Martin) that seems to genuinely value training and investing in their employees. I’ve already had numerous opportunities to take course that expand my skillset or stretch me as a leader. I’m benefitting from the size of Lockheed, as well. Their training opportunities are much larger because they are such a large company.

The letter I received in the mail today was cordial but firm. My application for a position as an instructor at our local community college is no longer under consideration. I applied early this summer before I had heard anything from Lockheed Martin, my present employer. I had high hopes that a teaching position at the college level might be exactly what I wanted, but I can see now that God has me right where he wants me.

In many ways the letter was actually good news. It was good to see a door close and an option be eliminated, at least for now. It was good to know that I won’t have to interview, or keep pursuing another position. It was good to know that I can focus completely on my current position and not be pulled in another direction. I know it was good news for my wife as well. I’m sure she would have had a much harder time had they decided to interview me. For now it is great to know that I have a good, stable job that is providing wonderfully for our family. I don’t know if I’ve ever been happier to receive a rejection letter!

The past few weeks have continued to improve at work. I knew that my transition into the corporate world (from academia via a small business startup) would take some time and would not be without its challenges and frustrations. However, I must say that this transition has been one of the easiest for me to make.

Our company seems to give new hires plenty of time to get aclimated to the new environment - to learn the local jargon, to discover resources, and to begin to network with others in the company. Now that I sit on the other side of this orientation phase, I can see that the time I spent feeling under-utilized may have been to my advantage.

During that orientation phase, I developed several key sets of knowledge that I can see will be crucial for me to be successful in the future. I now have a solid set of peers that I know well enough to understand their strengths and weaknesses on different projects. I have a good understanding of the general process we use to develop and deliver our products, and know who to ask when I need clarification. I also know the team well enough to know where the holes in our overall knowledge lie, and can pursue training or education that can position me to fill those voids. Finally, I have begun to pick up much of the company’s “lingo” that sneaks into most conversations. Instead of being dazed when acronyms are flying at me faster than I can comprehend, I’m able to track the conversation because I know most of the acronyms now.

My workload has steadily increased, to the point that I now feel I have the right amount of work - not so much that I can’t do anything well, and not too little that I am looking for more to do. I hope to keep this optimal balance, though I know it is the nature of the workplace to push as far as you let it. I’ll have to work hard to not allow the seasons of busy-ness to become the norm. Work is important, but it is just that: work. In my hiearchy of priorities, it cannot be allowed to overtake my family or my faith. That’s what the battle for balance is really about.

I was selected to attend a course on Effective Communication Skills at Lockheed this week, and already have homework! The course is about 12 weeks long, and looks like it will cover three of Dale Carnegie’s books in that time. We meet once per week, and have opportunities to speak with one another and grow in our ability to communicate using the skills we learn from the course.

I think it will be a great course, and as with all things, I know have room to improve. I’ll keep you posted as the course goes along. Who knows maybe I’ll pass on few gems of wisdom I learn from the course.

The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking

Today begins Week Two of my career at Lockheed Martin. I’m still learning where everything is, what everyone does, and a lot of new names to go with the many faces I encounter each day. Everyone seems very nice, and I think I’ll enjoy being part of this team.

I was able to contribute a couple of ideas last week that seem to have helped on some projects. Hopefully this week will be even more successful. I look forward to becoming a key part of our team.

I start my first day at Lockheed Martin at 8:00 a.m. this morning. I’ll be working for them as a Software Engineer, and though I’m a bit sad to leave my former position with Predator Systems, I realize this is a great opportunity, and a good company to begin creating a history with.

Here’s to new beginnings!

I just returned from a business trip to SoCal this evening. It was a short trip, just overnight, but I was surprised how much it wiped me out. I’ve been running around the house trying to catch up on the various tasks that I had to neglect between vacationing for four days and then being away on business for two. Hopefully I’ll be able to catch up by this weekend.

In other news, I’m hoping to start my new job on June 27th. I had initially hoped to start sooner, but it appears the company I’ll be joining has a few hoops they need to jump through before they can bring me aboard. Oh well. It’s out of my hands at this point.

Richard Biggs, author of Burn Brightly without Burning Out outlines five key steps to making wise decisions I consider worth passing on. For the record, this is adapted from an interview provided by LeadershipWired*.

1. Give careful consideration to all the facts and options.
2. Pay attention to your heart, intuition and gut feeling.
3. Once you make a decision, don’t second guess yourself.
4. Act with the knowledge that you’ll probably make more good choices than bad ones in a lifetime.
5. Anticipate success, but don’t be afraid to fail.

Each of these was a great reminder for me. I’d add that I believe there is a spiritual component to step 2 — that is “Seek God’s Direction.” While I believe God doesn’t always give specific direction in every circumstance, when He does I want to be in line with the direction He’s heading.

One other think Biggs said in the interview I find worth repeating was “Don’t let the past completely paralyze you.” It’s all to easy to think that since we failed at something long ago we’ll never succeed at it. I’m not sure why this is, but I know it does seem to show up in my life from time to time.

*Used by permission from Dr. John C. Maxwell’s free e-newsletter ‘Leadership Wired’ available at www.maximumimpact.com