Complement your boss’s weaknesses without despising him
As we read in the book of Genesis, Joseph, the youngest of twelve brothers, had a lot of people above him. Most of them were not too fond of him because their dad (the boss) had a soft corner in his heart for Joseph.
To add to that, Joseph had a better work ethic than his brothers, and when they messed up, Joseph complained about them to their dad.
To have such opposition is a troublesome thing, especially when you are so young. You can imagine how his brothers would have troubled him at every opportunity.
But that was not the end of it – Joseph had dreams in which he was exalted among his brothers and even his parents. He was so clueless that he described his dreams to the ones who were older than him but would be subject to him! He just didn’t understand how jealous people can be, and what people can do out of jealousy.
As the story goes, Joseph’s brothers first desire to kill him, but then end up selling him to Ishmaelites who sell him to Potiphar, an officer in Pharaoh’s army.
Little did Joseph, and his brothers, realize that everything was working out for Joseph’s good!
But before it became obvious to Joseph that this would turn out for his good, he must have spent many nights thinking about what happened and why it happened and he must have learnt his lesson on how to deal with inferior people who have power over him.
After learning this lesson you don’t see Joseph as a boastful, arrogant person but a deeply respectful person towards Potiphar, the chief jailer, and later, Pharaoh. Surely, those people were not perfect, and would have had many weaknesses, and in some situations may have acted foolishly, unrighteously, and even cruelly. Yet Joseph spoke to them very respectfully. He finally understood how to deal with the powers above him.
This is an important lesson that we must all learn…
If you are a teenager, and you have to live with parents who have power over you but who appear to be senile in your eyes, you still need to speak to them very respectfully and submit to them.
If you are a wife, and you have to live with a husband who has power over you but who appears to do nothing right, you still need to speak to him very respectfully and submit to him.
If you are an employee, and you have to work for a boss who is borderline incompetent, you still need to speak to them very respectfully, and make your suggestions to him very diplomatically and carefully.
It is a great temptation to complain about the person above you to your peers and to their peers and to their superiors, but that is not wise.
You can go one step further, and compensate for the weaknesses of those who are above you, so that they understand your loyalty and they begin to trust you. Do not try to draw attention to you or try to usurp them, but show that you are dedicated to making them successful. Then, when it comes time for God to replace them, you will be the next in line.
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