The Office -- and finally, The End of the Day

Getting synchronized on a team project is an acute learning experience. And if all team members have put in some management mileage over the years, one quickly learns that the other person doesn't expect you to lead. If you are the kind of person who is used to calling her own shots, your executive decisiveness is not appreciated all that much by the other team member. And if the other team member is used to being a CEO, he is likely to fall back into the misconceived idea that his team member is somehow going to be all that his past support people have been, even though she was never really successful in that role.

Even mature people can get really discombobulated -- and they can get grumpy. They can get stubborn and throw up their hands and become petulant and "strikish."

Even if there are only two people, they can get into the sort of doldrums inferred below.

Not My Job

This is a story about four people named Everybody,
Somebody, Anybody and Nobody.
There was an important job to be done, and Everybody
was sure that Somebody would do it.
Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it.
Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody's job.
Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized
that Everybody wouldn't do it.
It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when
Nobody did what Anybody could have.

(I am indebted to Debbie at this web address for the above office-humor items. http://www.seark.net/~rixshaw/intro.html)

Then along comes lunch and some vitamins and a dose of sunshine or laughter. You get back to business and sort maybe one or two things out. You tuck the rest under the blotter for next time.

After that and a nap and a nice dinner and a game where the Phillies beat the Mets, it all looks quite benign. You give thanks for each other and you agree together that you will work again on this project tomorrow because it is important to both of you -- it's worth moving through the exasperating bits.

People often use the expression "...at the end of the day..." in the same way as they have used "...the bottom line...," or "...when all is said and done..." . I really like "...at the end of the day..." It means night crickets and the fresh sheets, a little story or a pun and a bit of chuckling. Even maybe a little song, and a little hug. "'Night, darling." "'Night, love." "God bless."

One thing about people of a certain age is that they have sorted out what seems worthy enough to spend patience and struggle on, so that at the end of the day it actually feels sweet to have done it.

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