Albinism is the “congenital absence of any pigmentation or coloration in a person, animal or plant, resulting in white hair, feathers, scales and skin and pink eyes in mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish and other small invertebrates as well.”Varied use and interpretation of the terms mean that written reports of albinistic animals can be difficult to verify.
For ages, Judith had a feeling that she would struggle to become pregnant. There wasn’t a medical explanation for this — it was simply a niggling fear.
She and her husband struggled to believe they would ever become parents after years went by without her becoming pregnant. “I found myself getting anxious and desperate,” Judith first wrote on Love What Matters.
“The fear remained no matter how hard I tried to stay positive. However, Eight years down the line, my husband and I decided to go for our second round of IVF. The first of which failed, as well as other various procedures and fertility treatments. Every ultrasound visit after that was horror”
Judith
The couple could hardly contain their joy when that second round of IVF proved successful.
Judith was carrying twins — a boy, Kamis, and a girl, Kachi.
It felt remarkable that after all these years, their aspirations and dreams of a family were about to be real.
However, mum’s joy quickly turned to horror as doctors broke the news that Kachi was “at risk and might not make it”. “Every ultrasound visit after that was a nightmare as Kachi was far behind in growth whiles Kamsi did great.
“Finally, at 37 weeks, I had to be induced immediately because I was told that Kachi had stopped growing..” After the birth Nurses let Judith hold her daughter briefly before she was whisked to the NICU.
“The first time I saw her, I wondered if the nurse was handing me my baby, or someone else’s,” Judith said. “I waited a few seconds for someone to tell me there was a mix-up?” “Soon the joy of seeing them both healthy surpassed any other feeling at that instant.”
“How did I get black and white twins?”
Several days later Judith and her husband were told that their baby girl had albinism.
“I loved my princess like every mother would love her baby but worried about her condition,” Judith said.
“I worried about her future, how society would treat her, how she’ll be accepted.
“Gradually, worry turned to sadness and I started questioning “I envied other black babies and thought, ‘Why me? Why was I the one to have an albino baby?’
“How did I get black and white twins?”
“I threw the braille sheets in the garbage”
Unfortunately, medical professionals were quick to affirm Judith’s worst fears and told her that Kachi would struggle to see and would likely need to learn to read braille.
“I couldn’t imagine Kachi reading with braille and threw the braille sheets in the garbage.” She said
“She’s so smart and has a strong personality. She knows what she wants and will always go for it. “I always tell her how beautiful she is, because she really is.
“I’m not sure she`s aware of her uniqueness at the moment, but eventually she’ll know.”
“It’s my responsibility to educate her and teach her to love herself no matter what.
Albinism
Albinism affects the production of melanin, the pigment that colours skin, hair and eyes. It’s a lifelong condition, but it doesn’t get worse over time.
People with albinism have a reduced amount of melanin, or no melanin at all. This can affect their colouring and their eyesight.
Albinism is caused by faulty genes that a child inherits from their parents.
Symptoms of albinism
Hair and skin colour
People with albinism often have white or very light blonde hair, although some have brown or ginger hair. The exact colour depends on how much melanin their body produces.
Very pale skin that burns easily in the sun and doesn’t usually tan is also typical of albinism.
Eye colour
Someone with albinism can have pale blue, grey or brown eyes. Eye colour depends on the type of albinism and the amount of melanin. People from ethnic groups with darker pigmentation tend to have darker coloured eyes.
Eye problems
The reduced amount of melanin can also cause other eye problems. This is because melanin is involved in the development of the retina, the thin layer of cells at the back of the eye.
astigmatism — where the cornea (clear layer at the front of the eye) isn’t perfectly curved or the lens is an abnormal shape, causing blurred vision
photophobia — where the eyes are sensitive to light
nystagmus — where the eyes move involuntarily from side to side, causing reduced vision; you don’t see the world as “wobbling” because your brain adapts to your eye movement
squint — where the eyes point in different directions
Some young children with albinism may appear clumsy because problems with their eyesight can make it difficult for them to perform certain movements, such as picking up an object. This should improve as they get older.
How albinism is inherited
The two main types of albinism are:
oculocutaneous albinism (OCA) — the most common type, affecting the skin, hair and eyes
ocular albinism (OA) — a rarer type that mainly affects the eyes
Autosomal recessive inheritance
In most cases, including all types of OCA and some types of OA, albinism is passed on in an autosomal recessive inheritance pattern. This means a child has to inherit two copies of the faulty gene (one from each parent) to have the condition.
If both parents carry the gene, there’s a 1 in 4 chance that their child will have albinism and a 1 in 2 chance that their child will be a carrier. Carriers don’t have albinism but can pass on the faulty gene.
X-linked inheritance
Some types of OA are passed on in an X-linked inheritance pattern. This pattern affects boys and girls differently: girls who inherit the faulty gene become carriers and boys who inherit the faulty gene will get albinism.
When a mother is a carrier of an X-linked type of albinism, each of her daughters has a 1 in 2 chance of becoming a carrier and each of her sons has a 1 in 2 chance of having albinism.
When a father has an X-linked type of albinism, his daughters will become carriers, and his sons won’t have albinism and won’t be carriers.
If you have a history of albinism in your family or you have a child with the condition, you may want to talk to your GP about getting a referral for genetic counselling.
A genetic counsellor provides information, support and advice about genetic conditions. For example, you can discuss with them how you inherited albinism and the chances of passing it on.
Albinism is usually obvious from a baby’s appearance when they’re born. Your baby’s hair, skin and eyes may be examined to look for signs of missing pigment.
As albinism can cause a number of eye problems, your baby may be referred to an eye specialist (ophthalmologist) for tests to check for conditions such as nystagmus, squint and astigmatism.
Electrodiagnostic testing is also sometimes used to help diagnose albinism. This is where small electrodes are stuck to the scalp to test the connections of the eyes to the part of the brain that controls vision.
As I was assisting in the 3’s class in the childcare center where I work, I listened intently as the teacher spoke of the Rainforest layers. I was intrigued by the names of each layer of the Rainforest. The Canopy is the uppermost layer where all the trees grow tall and form an umbrella or canopy like layer over the rest of the rainforest. Most living things live in this layer. The second layer is known as The Understory, and this layer receives very little light, so the leaves of the plants in this place are wider in order to absorb as much sunlight as possible as it filters down. Most plants at this level are stunted and grow no taller than 12 feet high.They are sometimes all tangled up in each other from reaching out further and further looking for more light.The Forest floor is the final layer, and this is sparsely vegetated. This is the place where everything that dies above, drops to the ground and decays; providing much needed nutrients to the rest of the Rainforests inhabitants.
Now I tell you all this, because I was so struck by how similar we are to the Rainforest layers. Most people only see our Canopies, our outermost layers, where most of the activity of our lives happen. But we all have Understories, deeper layers where some things are tangled up, and we are reaching out, seeking light for those dark places of pain and confusion. And each of us has a forest floor, where the dead things in our lives fall to the ground and decay into nutrients for the rest of our lives. I believe this is part of why Jesus speaks to us and says,
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.
John 12:24-25
So, tread gently, dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ. Tread kindly as we may not know the Understories of other people’s lives. Do not be too quick to judge or think you know the “Why?” to the lives of those around you.Only God knows the reasons why we are where we are, or how to set us free at this level. The Understory of each person is a very sensitive place. God will choose the things that need to die and drop to the lower levels where He can break them down and use them to bring Glory to Himself. He “prunes” our branches so we may bear more fruit. (John 15) I have found that He is using those weak places, those things that I thought no one should be allowed to see, My faults, failures, mistakes and wounds.He is the Master of my Understory.He is the Master of yours, so trust Him to do His work in those deeper places in your life. And tread gently as you begin to see the Understories in the lives of others.
A nine-strong committee look pretty similar: eight white men and white woman. This is the body that guides Britain’s economy and that is suppose to represent the diverse community the UK now represents.
Their monthly votes on interest rates ultimately determine how far our money goes.
Yet they don’t look anything like the people whose lives they have so much influence over, why is that? Its because the Bank of England has a Diversity Problem
The UK population is made up of different ethnicities. 87% of people are White, and 13% belong to a Black, Asian, Mixed or Other ethnic group and Women make up half of the UK population. Astoundingly 0% of the Monetary Policy Committee belong to a Black, Asian, Mixed or other ethnic groups and women make up one ninth of the committee. Shocking!
Mark Carney current governor is in fact, the 120th in a continuous line of white men to have headed the Bank.
It’s plain obvious the Bank has a diversity problem. But this is not a isolated issue as many other organisations in Britain have this very same problem.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said last month that the Bank was some way off its diversity targets for next year “with little evidence the gap is closing quickly enough”.
Joanna Place the Bank’s chief operating officer also said: “In terms of diversity and inclusion, we have done a lot more than just gender and ethnicity.
“We have a number of staff networks. We have inclusive events. We have a wellbeing policy. We have done a cognitive diversity survey. We have started to look at social mobility,” she added.
Unfair
The Bank’s search for a new governor kicked off earlier this week and many are hoping that this could herald the start of a new era with a black governor at the helm for the first time in its history. However, Wendy Carlin, a professor of economics at University College London, says the problem is not with the Bank of England, but the economics profession itself.
Minorities quit Bank of England as it fails on diversity
More troubling were the committee findings into the proportion of BAME employees at the organisation, with an increase of just 3 per cent between 2015 (15 per cent) and 2018 (18 per cent), and no increase between 2017 and 2018.
Just 5 per cent of employees working at senior management level came from a BAME background in 2018. This is not a coincidence.
Ethnic minority employees are leaving the Bank of England in disproportionate numbers and feel less comfortable with the organisation’s culture, according to internal research.
The Bank’s non-executive directors admitted that the “BAME [black, Asian and minority ethnic] resignation rate was above that for the Bank as a whole” and said that it was actively addressing the problem, according to minutes of a recent meeting. But that’s not enough.
Statistics already show that BAME workers in UK are third more likely to be underemployed — report and probibly less likely to study economics, let alone get a job in the sector. TUC says study highlights a waste of black, Asian and minority ethnic talent and urges more effort to tackle discrimination at work
“We know this is part of a much bigger story. BAME workers are more likely to be unemployed, paid less, and aren’t getting enough of the top jobs. Employers and the government cannot afford to ignore these problems. They must now take real action to tackle underemployment and pay discrimination.”
The former business secretary Sajid Javid had called on businesses to do more to support the careers of black and minority ethnic (BME) workers and commissioned Ruby McGregor-Smith, the chief executive of the facilities management company Mitie, to undertake an independent review of BAME progression at work. The review is due to report by the end of this year.
Dr Heffernan says the profession itself should try to make sure it is attracting the widest possible pool of applicants.
“How you word a job will define someone’s right to apply. If you’re not getting the right kind of applicants then describe the job differently and see what happens.”
Christian’s can help
If the Church put more effort into actively encouraging its members to work in professions that would benefit greatly from a strong moral compass, and then support them in those roles, just think what benefit to our country there might be.
Facts about the The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is made up of nine members — the Governor, the three Deputy Governors for Monetary Policy, Financial Stability and Markets and Banking, our Chief Economist and four external members appointed directly by the Chancellor.
External members are appointed to make sure that the MPC benefits from thinking and expertise from outside of the Bank of England. A representative from HM Treasury also sits with the MPC at its meetings. The Treasury representative can discuss policy issues, but is not allowed to vote. They are there to make sure that the MPC is fully briefed on fiscal policy developments and other aspects of the Government’s economic policies, and that the Chancellor is kept fully informed about monetary policy.
Each member of the MPC has expertise in the field of economics and monetary policy. Members do not represent individual groups or areas — they are independent.
MPC members serve fixed terms, after which they may be either replaced or reappointed.
The PAC has called on the bank to provide a report setting out the additional steps it will take to ensure it meets its diversity targets by June 2019.
Godinterest’s Manifesto of Ethics
To promote freedom of religion — Violations of religious freedom are increasing globally in scale, depth and blatancy. Carried out by both government and non-state actors, they range from the mundane to the extreme (e.g. genocide).
To promote freedom of expression and internet freedom — Freedom of expression is an essential part of a properly functioning democracy and a free society. People should be free to express themselves both online and offline. But in many parts of the world freedom of expression is under threat.
To be a inclusive social network — We aim to share multiple voices and perspectives. We prohibit and will remove Offensive material that has been reported to contain (e.g., Pornographic material, hate speech, encouraging violence against others, etc)
To respect one’s right to remain anonymous — Our users place their trust in us to keep them safe, and, in some cases, anonymous. We view safeguarding that trust and protecting our users’ private information as vital to what we do.
None of us can run away from doubt, it is always hot on our heels. There is good doubt, the type that keeps you out of trouble, and there is bad doubt, the one that puts you in trouble. The problem is, we tend to get our wires crossed when it comes to our faith.
The question ‘am I a true Christian?’ is one that is often asked by many of us at some point in our lives, but it is the wrong question to ask. This question tends to have a mindset of doing, and not believing. Often, people will start to list the things that make them a good Christian (been there, done that!) such as giving to the poor, observing certain holidays, going to church, being a kind person, showing love, and the list goes on. While those activities and qualities are present in the Christian life, they are not the things that you should measure yourself by because you will always find someone better than you. Comparing yourself to this person will make you doubt ‘how Christian’ you really are.
I had a habit of doing this, measuring myself against other Christians and seeing how I stacked up. It drove me crazy, I tell you. I would find myself listening to different sermons on how to grow spiritually, how to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice, how to be more discerning, how to pray, etc. while trying to listen out for any false messages by the Christians speaking on this teaching. I wanted to be the best Christian that I could be, and so I believed that if I read my Bible religiously every day, or prayed for a certain amount of time a day, then I would be okay. Or if I jotted down in my journal everything that I could possibly think of that may mean something whether it was a dream that I had or something that I noticed around me… It all just became overwhelming because I was doing it for the wrong reasons. I started to doubt that I was even Christian because I was not as good as the others that I was comparing myself to. There was always someone who was more giving, or kinder, or who was more discerning or was more sensitive to the Holy Spirit. In short, I tortured myself with these thoughts, thinking that if I did not get that aspect of my Christian walk ‘right’, then I was not good enough.
Although I did not admit it to myself at the time, I knew that I was doing it to be accepted by GOD. Crazy, isn’t it? Even though I knew that I had asked Jesus to become the LORD of my life, and was washed clean by the blood of the Lamb, I was still trying to earn His approval because I did not think that I was good enough. The bottom line is that I did not understand just what it meant to be redeemed by Him, to be purchased, to be His. In our own futile thinking, we look at our relationship with GOD as though it is conditional: as long as I do this, I am good with GOD. What nonsense. The truth is that GOD does not need a bunch of ‘good’ Christians, He needs obedient and humble Christians who are prepared to do His work.
There is also that mindset that if we do something, then we will get something from GOD. Therefore, our relationship with GOD becomes more about getting something out of Him, and not genuinely appreciating Him. Our GOD is a rewarder, He gives abundantly, but when we look at His hand and not seek His face, we are heading for troublesville .
I believe that the question we should ask ourselves is how committed are we to Christ. When we know our level of commitment, then doubt becomes void because you know where you stand. If you’re a once-a-week type of Christian, then you know that you’re not right with GOD. If you only call on Him when you’re in need, then you’re the ‘user’ type of Christian. If you talk-the-talk but do not walk-the-walk, then you’re a hypocrite. If you have one foot in the Body of Christ and one foot in the world, then you’re a lukewarm Christian who is in danger of being locked out of heaven.
We doubt because we do not understand what GOD requires of us. We base our relationship with Him on the human model which is flawed. Humans love, but we struggle to love unconditionally especially when people have done us wrong. GOD loved the world so much that He gave us His Son while we were still sinners. He made way for us to come to Him, He did not put stumbling blocks in front of us or give us a bunch of rules before we could be saved. He said that whoever believes His Son and confesses Him will be saved- that was it. After that comes our level of commitment to Him.
The Bible says the he who stands firm to the end will be saved, not the one who believed, confessed, and then went back to living in the world. He told us to come out of the world, to separate ourselves. So I leave you with this: if you have doubt about how Christian you are, check your level of commitment.
As soon as Rhys heard the front door open, he jumped up and began shouting for joy, “Mom Daddy’s home, Daddy’s home!”. His heartbeat racing and his brown eyes shining excitedly, anticipating playtime with Daddy. A wide grin spread across Rhys’s face as Daddy acted like a big bear. Daddy quickly dropping down onto one knee so that he’d be at his son’s height to horse around the living room. Sadly this scene is becoming a rear sight to see.
Today let’s talk about the invisible dads, the ones who don’t marry Mummy, don’t support their kids and don’t hang around for the hugs, kisses and nappy changes. There are millions of them around the world, and their numbers are growing.
“Today, more than one in four births is to an unmarried mother, and more than one in 10 births is to a teenager. These numbers portend a future of fragile families. Once considered primarily a racial problem, fatherless homes have increased across a wide range of demographics over the last ten years.”
How have we come to the point where a child with two parents is the exception rather than the norm? It is time that we put the issue of fatherless families front and center on our national agenda.
So who’s the real problem here? And why should we care?
It is time to shift our attention to the issue of male responsibility, and to the indispensable role that fathers play in our society.
Firstly, it would be an oversimplification to assume that two parents are always better than one as there are many courageous and loving single moms and daddy’s who are able to balance the competing demands on their time and attention, to care and provide for their children alone.
However, contrary to the sentiments of our culture and though our society is only beginning to recognize it, the presence of fathers within the home is vital to the moral integrity of a society. The short-term effects are already far too evident as statistics reveal that the loss of fathers is reverberating throughout the world in the form of social pathologies ranging from teen pregnancy to drug abuse.
Fatherless children are five times more likely to be poor and twice as likely to drop out of school as children who live with both parents.
Boys, without proper male role models, look to other sources for the male bonding they need. In the inner cities that often entails gangs while in the suburbs it tends to be online.
“According to the latest statistics, the increase in the proportion of single-parent families accounted for about half of the overall increase in child poverty from 1979 through to 1987.”
The Scriptures warn us about the power of fatherhood, as well as the long-lasting impact that fatherhood has on us all. Exodus 20:4-6.” Fatherlessness is the most harmful demographic trend of this generation
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree
“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” could be both about habits/behavior and also looks. Have you ever thought about that? Do you often find yourself reacting to a situation the way your father did? or scarier yet…do you ever see your mannerisms in your son? The footprint of a father leaves a permanent mark on the soul of a child.
Fatherhood is under assault
We hear a lot about the war on women…but it is the war on Dads that is causing the greatest damage in the world today. It’s not hard to find. If you watch any popular sitcom on television today, you’ll likely notice that fathers are typically portrayed as childish, irresponsible, lazy, incompetent and stupid.
The doofus dad stereotype isn’t new. There’s Fred Flinstone, and even Charlie Brown’s monotone parents. But according to Tierny, the consistency of these new portrayals has slowly created a new norm opposed to what being a father used to mean.
Dads make a difference. Dads can be heroes – if only we give them the chance. We remain optimistic that family still has more influence than media.
We all need another hero
Fathers are representatives of God on earth; as our heavenly father is the giver of life so also are the earthly father’s givers of life. Malachi 4:6 says “And he will turn, the hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”
God understands the importance of a father’s love and cares towards their children and He has set the standard by being the first example of a loving father.
“The SARRI report quotes research which found that “the presence of a father can contribute to cognitive development, intellectual functioning, and school achievement. Children growing up without fathers are more likely to experience emotional disturbances and depression.”
“Girls who grow up with their fathers are more likely to have higher self-esteem, lower levels of risky sexual behaviour, and fewer difficulties in forming and maintaining romantic relationships later in life. They have less likelihood of having an early pregnancy, bearing children outside marriage, marrying early, or getting divorced.”
A father’s touch
The first thing, therefore, that a father can do for his children is to love their mother. Another part of a father’s task is that of a protector for his family. But, Daddy also has another task in the home, which is to combine tenderness with strength, and to model the combination so consistently that the children regard the combination as natural.
Our kids must come to know naturally both that dad’s standards protect them, and that his love makes them strong.
Where have all the fathers gone?
Our courts do not value fatherhood as much as motherhood. In 2015 it is still the case that mothers and fathers do not have equal rights
And herein lies the problem. Our expectation of the role a separated father should play in his children’s lives is so low, that when half of dads who win “access” to their kids can’t even sleep under the same roof as their offspring, academics declare this to be an overwhelming success. One of the fruits of the feminist movement many claim is the idea that a woman is more responsible as a parent than the father is.
“He is not my Dad…he is just someone you sleep with!” How many mothers have felt the sting of those words? That is why God hates divorce. We should too.
Our culture has put asunder things which God has joined together—things such as tenderness and strength. It is the job of the father to put them back together again.
Fatherhood, like Motherhood has is its own rewards – as most dads have found. Sadly, for the others, the invisible ones, it is a gift foolishly squandered.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German pastor, theologian, spy, anti-Nazi dissident, key founding member of the Confessing Church as well as one of the most influential spiritual voices across the globe for decades. It’s a good thing for the modern Church that Bonhoeffer was determined in his course.
Bonhoeffer grew up amid the academic circles of the University of Berlin, where his father, Karl Bonhoeffer, was a professor of psychiatry and neurology and was awarded a doctorate in 1927 at the age of only 21. He also studied at Union Theological Seminary in New York from 1930–1931. During that time he attended Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem and became deeply interested in the issue of racial injustice.
Bonhoeffer’s involvement in a plot to overthrow Adolf Hitler led to his imprisonment and execution on the 9th April 1945.
More than seventy years after his death, Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s writings on faith, the Church, ethics and the nature of God serve as a touchstone for all of us who seek to understand a Christian’s responsibility in the face of injustice and have gone on to have a profound influence on Western Culture and the legions of Christian thinkers who’ve encountered them ever since. He also remains an important symbol of opposition to Hitler.
Here’s a look back at some of Bonhoeffer’s most powerful quotes.
ON GRACE
“Cheap grace is preaching forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
ON JUDGING OTHERS
“Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.”
ON LIFE
“Christianity preaches the infinite worth of that which is seemingly worthless and the infinite worthlessness of that which is seemingly so valued.”
ON SIN
“May we be enabled to say ‘No’ to sin and ‘Yes’ to the sinner.”
ON JUDGING
“Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.”
ON SERVING GOD
“We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.”
ON GOD’S LOVE
“God does not love some ideal person, but rather human beings just as we are, not some ideal world, but rather the real world.”
ON GOD’S WILL
“Being a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and actively doing God’s will.”
ON SERVING OTHERS
“The Church is the Church only when it exists for others, not dominating, but helping and serving. It must tell men of every calling what it means to live for Christ, to exist for others.”
ON OBEDIENCE
“One act of obedience is worth a hundred sermons.”
ON EVIL
“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”
ON AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
“We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.”
ON STANDING UP FOR INJUSTICE
“If I sit next to a madman as he drives a car into a group of innocent bystanders, I can’t, as a Christian, simply wait for the catastrophe, then comfort the wounded and bury the dead. I must try to wrestle the steering wheel out of the hands of the driver.”
ON GRATITUDE
“In normal life we hardly realize how much more we receive than we give, and life cannot be rich without such gratitude. It is so easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements compared with what we owe to the help of others.”
ON FOLLOWING CHRIST
“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
ON INJUSTICE
“We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.”
ON PEACE
“There is no way to peace along the way of safety. For peace must be dared, it is itself the great venture and can never be safe. Peace is the opposite of security. To demand guarantees is to want to protect oneself. Peace means giving oneself completely to God’s commandment, wanting no security, but in faith and obedience laying the destiny of the nations in the hand of Almighty God, not trying to direct it for selfish purposes. Battles are won, not with weapons, but with God. They are won when the way leads to the cross.”
ON ‘DEFENDING’ THE BIBLE
“Do not try to make the Bible relevant. Its relevance is axiomatic. Do not defend God’s word, but testify to it. Trust to the Word. It is a ship loaded to the very limits of its capacity.”
ON REAL MORALITY
“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.”
ON PEOPLE
“We must learn to regard people less in light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.”
ON SPIRITUALITY
“When all is said and done, the life of faith is nothing if not an unending struggle of the spirit with every available weapon against the flesh.”
ON FELLOWSHIP
“The first service that one owes to others in the fellowship consists of listening to them. Just as love of God begins with listening to his word, so the beginning of love for our brothers and sisters is learning to listen to them.”
ON PROOF OF GOD
“A God who let us prove his existence would be an idol.”
ON THE FUTURE
“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.”
Marriage has gotten quite a bad reputation over the years. The butt of a seemingly infinite number of jokes, matrimony is a source of endless social commentary, gender politics, and governmental debate.
According to recent University of Maryland divorce research, you’ve got about a 50/50 chance of growing old with your spouse. If the statistic did not shock you, the reasons many couples decide to separate will not either.
“The relationship was built more on lust than a true partnership.”
“I wasn’t present.”
“We were together 15 years, I was unhappy for 11 of them.”
“We were co-parents, not lovers.”
“We didn’t choose to work on the marriage, day in and day out.”
“It was like we were on opposite teams.”
“Married too fast”
“Bedroom boredom”
I was a full-time manager in the marriage.
“There was no respect.”
“There was no real intimacy.”
Many people mistakenly believe that most marriages end almost exclusively because of infidelity, however, while this certainly is a major factor, the decision to terminate a marriage is much more complicated.
“Conventional wisdom tells us that those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.”
A marriage is a lot like buying a new car. Driving it out of the showroom is bliss. As you cruise off you can hardly believe your luck. Everything feels, sounds, smells and looks perfect. You coast through many months—sometimes even years— of happy driving before the car needs an MOT or service. But like a car, when a relationship eventually breaks down, it’s flabbergasting; you’re left stuck on the side of the road trying to figure out what on earth went wrong and realise that no car or relationship comes with a lifetime guarantee.
Christ-centred Marriage
“Our culture still shapes our thinking and conduct regarding marriage to an incredible degree.”
It’s easy to think that only “other people” get divorced. That your own marriage is somehow immune to heartache, infidelity and fights over who gets the house, car and dog. After all, how many of us would walk down the aisle if we knew for sure that our relationships would end up in divorce court.
Viewing Marriage Realistically
Christian or not, marriage is difficult for any couple to sustain over a lifetime. Life’s trials—the pressure of making a living, of parenting, of resisting temptations to unfaithfulness or selfishness. But Christian marriage offers hope.
“We have to stop asking of marriage what God never designed it to give — perfect happiness, conflict-free living, and idolatrous obsession.”
Christians marriages should be shaped by the cross of Christ, the Word of God, and the Spirit of God.
“Above all things have fervent love for one another, for ‘love will cover a multitude of sins’ ” (1 Peter 4:8).
“Her husband ”¦ praises her” (Proverbs 31:28).
“She who is married cares ”¦ how she may please her husband” (1 Corinthians 7:34).
“Be kindly affectionate to one another ”¦ in honor giving preference to one another” (Romans 12:10).
“Pray for one another” (James 5:16).
“Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself” (1 Corinthians 13:4).
Successful marriages don’t just happen; they must be developed.
Serving Our Spouse
Another key component in a Christian marriage is selflessness, as described in Philippians 2:3-4. The principle of humility outlined in these verses is crucial to a strong Christian marriage. If happiness is our primary goal, we’ll get a divorce as soon as happiness seems to wane. With greater awareness of the principle of thought, many marriages can be saved and even strengthened.
Becoming “one” is about more than sex. It requires a level of vulnerability that opens the door for deep hurt. Both husband and wife must consider their partner’s needs before their own, which requires a selflessness that is only possible by the power of the Holy Spirit who indwells them.
“Focus on your spouse’s strengths rather than their weaknesses.”
“Encourage rather than criticize.”
“Pray for your spouse instead of gossiping about them.”
“Learn and live what Christ teaches about relating to and loving others.”
It is a partnership of love, made richer and deeper through sex. Continue—or revive—your courtship into your married life.
Marriage isn’t always easy and the sad reality is that not all “I dos” end with a happily ever after. However, the primary difference between a Christian marriage and a non-Christian marriage should be that Christ is the centre of the marriage. With a Christ-centered relationship, an other-centered attitude and an unwavering commitment to making it work, your marriage can flourish — just as God designed.
Which of these reasons is most true in your marriage? Please share with me below.
We all know that the more power you have, the better you are able to get the job completed. The problem is most project managers have lots of responsibility, but hardly any authority and since most projects exist outside core business structures, they are forced to develop other methods of influence.
One unspoken evil that is often ignored on project management training courses is the politics of project management. While most of us view politics with disgust; there is no refuting that effective project managers are often seen as those who are equipped and able to employ fitting political strategies to further their project goals.
“In a Perfect World the Best Workers Would Be Promoted on Merit Alone and the Best Ideas Would Be Adopted Regardless of Personal Interest – but We Do Not Live in Utopia”
Have you ever included ‘office politics’ as a risk on your risk register? Probably not. Though, consider the potential implications of ignoring the ugly stepchild of project management?
“The Objective of Office Politics Is to Manipulate a Situation in Order to Achieve an Outcome That Will Benefit One Individual or Group at the Expense of Other Individuals or Groups.”
While it is unlikely that ‘office politics’ would be listed directly as a risk on your risk register, it is quite likely that one or more of the outcomes of it would. As a result, if you want to survive and prosper in the real world you need to combine good work with smart politics to ensure your own success and that of your projects. The biggest mistake a project manager can make is to assume that politics in project management doesn’t exist. After all, politics is human nature and has played an integral part in history since the dawn of civilization.
In a group where working interactions are fraught with tension and individuals have their own personal agendas or want to be “top dog” personal conflicts will often get in the way of the project aims. Issues between members of the team become the over-riding concern both for the individuals afraid and sometimes even the project manager. Meetings can consist of jostling for power or simply trying to justify your position and when that happens progress on the project will undoubtedly suffer.
For most project managers, playing politics is a form of slow, soul-destroying torture where logic, self-control, transparency and trustworthiness are replaced by deception, concealment, and sabotage. However, ignoring the external and internal politics surrounding your project or organization is dangerous. Successful project managers need to understand organizational politics and how to make them work for project success.
In the case of project politics you can use these key techniques in a constructive manner:
Carefully Manage Your Own Conduct
The first rule is to at all times act in a way that commands respect and beyond that, respect others. That means not gossiping, spreading rumors or getting sucked into interpersonal conflicts and arguments. Maintain your honesty!
Be positive as a positive outlook is a choice that you can always make and remain professional.
Be confident and firm but not hostile and make sure you take organizational perspectives, not a personal one when voicing objections or giving criticism.
Always assume things will be disclosed, so don’t rely on confidentiality.
Over time you will learn what works in your organization’s culture and what doesn’t. Try to watch other people and identify successful behaviors that you can model to navigate the political minefield.
Review the Organization Chart
Sit back and watch for a while. Identify the real influencers, those who are respected, champions, those who have authority but don’t use it, the mentors and last but not least the true brains behind the organization. Then re-map the organization chart in terms of political influence as politics will often bypass the formal organization chart.
Understand the Social Network
Once you know who’s who in the organization, you have to understand the social networks. This involves identifying who gets along with whom, groups or cliques that have formed and ongoing interpersonal conflicts. Over time you will learn who has the most trouble getting along with others and the basis for the interrelationship whether it be friendship, respect or manipulation, including how the influence flows between all parties.
Build Good Relationships
Now you need to build multiple networks but avoid aligning yourself with one group or another this way you can keep your finger on the pulse of the organization.
Don’t be afraid of politically powerful people and instead, develop relationships that cross the formal hierarchy in all directions.
Build your relationships on trust and respect and avoid empty flattery.
Use Your Social Network
You will need to learn to use your social network to stay clear of negative politics. You can do this through positive political action.
Use your network to gain access to information, build visibility of your achievements and improve difficult relationships.
Attract opportunities where you can shine and seek out ways to make yourself, your team and your boss look good.
Counteract Negative Play
“The Expression, Keep Your Friends Close and Your Enemies Closer” Couldn’t Be Any Truer When It Comes to Office Politics.”
Your mapping of the organization will help you to identify those people who use others for their own political purposes, and not for the common good. Know that these people typically have low self-worth (that’s why they rely on destructive politicking to get ahead). Always be very careful what you say to them. Understand what motivates them, their goals, and how to avoid or counter the impact of their politics
Remember loyalty is not a reliable factor in the workplace!
“It is easy to become a target if you’re ambitious or if you strive for change. One of the biggest mistakes we make in our career is to assume that everyone likes progress. This is not true’Å —’Å many are content with the status quo and will defend it with their life.”
Projects are rarely easy and office politics can compound other sorts of problems that arise so they need to be dealt with swiftly and firmly.
Former Argent partner Tony Giddings has been confirmed as development adviser on the £1.3bn “Super Prisons” programme, the first of which is already being built in Wrexham.
Chancellor George Osborne and Justice Secretary Michael Gove unveiled the major new prison reform programme including plans to build 9 new prisons in last year’s spending review, with five of the new prisons to be open before the end of this parliament. The government will also expand existing prisons in Stocken and Rye Hill.
Giddings said “he was hoping to instil the Argent ethos of “more collaboration” with construction suppliers into the government’s approach to procuring prisons.”
Giddings will provide support in the provision of management, technical capability, and systems to manage the planning, design, procurement, and delivery of the construction of the new prisons.
Giddings said “He understood the £1.3bn of funding was ring-fenced and highly unlikely to be threatened by recent political and economic turbulence.” and “admitted the prisons programme timetable was “challenging”, with sites still to be acquired, but he said the aim was to be on site with at least some by the end of the year.”
The new programme will apparently modernise the prison estate to make it even more efficient, safer and focused on supporting prisoner rehabilitation while selling aging, inefficient prisons on the prime real estate to free up land for new homes.
But would God Use Prisons to Rehabilitate?
Imprisonment is littered throughout Scripture. As a young man, Joseph was thrown into prison in Egypt (Gen. 39:20). Samson, after having his eyes put out, was made to work in a grinding mill prison house of the Philistines (Jdg. 16:21). Jeremiah spent many of his days in the “court of the prison” (Jer. 32:2).
The modern prison system borrows ideas from the Catholics and Quakers—two different sects of Christianity. But does this mean prisons are biblical? Not exactly, the above examples all occurred in nations not governed by God.
Britain’s Old Prison System
Britain used to punish criminals through swift execution of verdicts, which were generally performed publicly to bring shame and humiliation to the perpetrator and prevent similar crimes from occurring. Typical sentences involved being whipped or a stint in the stockades.
Jails did exist, but they were only used to hold criminals awaiting trial and sentencing. However, the elite in the UK soon saw this system as archaic and inhumane and was determined to improve it through a complete overhaul.
In this newer system, men were placed in a tiny cell and given only a Bible to read. This marked a move toward imprisonment as the primary form of punishment.
Not Much Has Changed in Modern Prisons
Today’s prisons have three basic objectives: punish a criminal by taking away his time, remove him from society (in an attempt to reduce crime as well), and rehabilitate inmates to become functional members of society upon release.
The problems inherent with this system have remained the same for years: recidivism (repeated relapse into criminal acts), overcrowding, cost and, most telling—despite the large amounts of funding—the utter inability of the system to contain crime.
It is claimed that super-prison development will also allow over 3000 new homes to be built, boosting house building in urban areas and helping thousands of working people achieve their dream of owning a home. The Victorian prison site at Reading will be the first to be sold.
By investing in the prison estate, the government said it will reduce running costs in prisons by £80 million a year. The new prison investment will also fund video conference centers, allowing up to 90,000 cases to be heard from prison instead of court.
According to Justice Secretary Michael Gove, “currently half of criminals re-offend within one year of being released, and nearly half of all prisoners go into prison without any qualifications.”
The Government has also claimed that the prison programme will reduce reoffending through creating the physical conditions for Governors to achieve improved educational, training and rehabilitative outcomes, and aims to reduce the cost of transporting prisoners between courts and prisons. This builds on the probation reforms undertaken in the last Parliament, which will reduce the costs of the system and reinvest them into extending probation support to 45,000 short-sentence offenders for the first time, to tackle reoffending.
“We will be able to design out the dark corners which too often facilitate violence and drug-taking.” stated Michael Gove
Around 10,000 prison places will move from outdated sites to the new prisons, significantly improving rehabilitation.
There is little doubt in most societies and religious traditions that prison is necessary for this sin-sick world, however, this is still not what God intended.
While modern prisons are plagued with mounting problems, God’s Way involves swift sentencing and swift punishment.
“God” of Modern Prisons
There is one future case, though, in which God will use a sort of “supermax prison” for His own purpose. A sentence for someone He deems unfixable—but whose imprisonment will yield tremendous results!
On the morning of June 24, the world awoke to a changed Europe. For over 40 years Britain has been part of the European Economic Community and then the European Union.
The leave-vote has caused an “immediate and profound” economic shock in the UK. This has, in turn, had a devastating effect on a number of businesses in the last month.
Christianity in the UK is split, confused, scared of the future and fighting with itself – much like the rest of the country. So what happens now?
David Cameron said “It Was A “Self-Destruct Option” for the Country, Whilst George Osborne Said It Will Tip the UK Into a Year-Long Recession, With up to 820,000 Jobs Lost Within Two Years.”
Brexit campaigners believe that British voters have taken a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to restore Britain’s sovereignty. However, the Brexit job losses have already begun. A number of construction firms and management consultants throughout England have been forced to downscale and many feel as if they are desperately clinging on, waiting for things to get better. Tech companies are also putting projects on hold, which means a slowdown in hiring of software developers, IT architects, and project managers, according to Robert Grimsey, director of Harvey Nash.
If your Facebook feed looks anything like mine, you’re seeing a lot of anger. Remain voters are furious, accusing the Leave campaign of lies and the Leave voters of xenophobia, ignorance, stupidity and worse. Of course, it’s not just the people who voted to stay who are angry. Reports of racist attacks are rising too.
What would Jesus do?
Jesus might have been the Prince of Peace, but he also knew how to get mad. His outbursts against corruption, hypocrisy and bad leadership are hair-raising. We’ve heard a lot of arguments from the UK’s political parties this month, but no one has actually made a whip and driven their opponents out of the House of Commons (so far, anyway).
The people of Britain voted for Brexit in a decision which will transform this nation and Europe forever.
As a former consultant, I want to consider how management consultants, in particular, can continue to not just survive but thrive in these difficult financial times.
At first glance, the prognosis might seem gloomy. The International Monetary Fund has predicted that Brexit will lead to a British recession, which would inevitably hit poorer people hardest. But snap reactions from the markets aren’t a reliable guide to long-term economic effect. And just as British trade didn’t begin in 1973 when Britain entered the EU, it won’t end in 2016 with Britain’s vote to leave. Many smaller nations trade successfully without participating in wider trading blocs; the world’s fifth-biggest economy will be able to do the same.
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. (1 Tim. 2:1, 2)
1. Embrace the Change and Innovate
There is ongoing uncertainty over what will happen once Britain leaves the EU because it needs to make new trade agreements with the rest of the world.
The secret to success in a recession is innovation. It’s time to improvise, adapt and overcome. In fact, in a study by Forrester, 70% of business executives said that in a recession, innovation is a top priority. However, to successfully innovate, companies have to be open to the idea of change – and that’s why the success stories of the recession are the innovators who are open to change.
This is the best time to change, but how? If you find yourself desperately treading water in an attempt to keep staff occupied in the wake of stalled projects, don’t panic. You will have to make some changes, improvise, adapt and seek out the advantages to overcome. It really is a sink or swim mentality.
2. A Long-Term View of the Financial Game
Successful companies look for ways to reduce costs creatively. Start by reviewing your financial model. Review existing contracts and seek to add value and expand. If your biding on a 3-year contract, do you really need to make a profit in year 1. Wouldn’t it make sense to take a long-term commercial view and instead seek to win a contract at cost in order to retain talent as recruiting new employees is so expensive? You can then concentrate your efforts on developing strong client relationships, building trust, performing well and adding value. Pay much more attention to critical components of your client’s operations activities that may often appear to be mundane. This will invariability enable you to make further recommendations that are approved and generate profit in future years.
“In the Corporate World, There Is a Growing Recognition That Strong Relationships With Customers Can Form the Bedrock of Future Innovation.”
Consider though that whilst it is a knee-jerk reaction to cut costs, try not to rely on this as your only business tactic as your competitors will be doing exactly the same thing. The way to succeed in the current market is to be a leader, not a follower, so ensure you have a carefully prepared game plan.
Look at what makes your propositions unique? What do you offer that no one else can? How do you add real value to your customers, rather than just a half-price bid? Focus on what your competitors aren’t offering, and vigorously market it.
3. Be Clever With Your Marketing
Your marketing strategy is more important than ever before – Think creatively and find different ways to grab people’s attention and keep them coming back for more.
4. Leading With Clarity and Commitment
Don’t lie to employees and hide the magnitude of the situation. Honesty is the best policy. Business functional leads at these firms should establish concrete milestones to gauge progress toward clear goals. You can inspire employees not only with motivational messages, but also through incentives such as wage hikes, and investment in developing talent. This approach is as crucial as improving processes and deploying new technology. Though this may sound like a platitude, management must treat employees with respect and dignity if they want exceptional performance and occasional sacrifice during tough times.
5. Embrace the Power of Online
Social media is an incredibly powerful tool through which to reach your target audience. You should start to unlock the power of blogging, building a solid readership and becoming a thought leader in your industry using websites like LinkedIn. As your readership continues to grow, so will your social media following – and by communicating frequently with your followers and potential customers online, you have more chance of drumming up more business and closing that deal. As the economy improves, your loyal followers will stay with you.
These five practices are of equal value for organisations to remain competitive in the long slow climb toward economic recovery.
Although times are very tough for organisations recently, there is light at the end of the tunnel – and those who have been clever and innovative in their business strategies will continue to thrive long after the Brexit recession.
Britain will almost certainly have a new Prime Minister and their first job will be forming our new relationship with Europe.
Learning from the lessons of 2014, UK churches also have a crucial role to play following the EU referendum vote. But it is about more than a church service of unity. Reconciliation requires accepting the hurt and the pain but also working to rediscover and celebrate the image of God in each other.
Atkins has been chosen as the sustainability consultant to develop an environmental sustainability target for Old Oak Common, a £26bn urban redevelopment in London.
“Gentrification has profoundly influenced religion. In the context of Christianity, of course, gentrification takes on a new, existential dimension.”
At five times the size of the King’s Cross redevelopment, Old Oak and Park Royal is London’s largest opportunity area and urban regeneration investment project with an estimated worth of £7bn per annum to the UK economy. Old Oak and Park Royal has the potential to create up to 25,500 homes and some 65,000 jobs, constructing a transport hub to link Crossrail, National Rail and High Speed 2.
Atkins will create a set of sustainability targets to be used for the development in partnership with Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) and its cost control and project management advisor Faithful+Gould. The sustainability targets will be based on six core themes comprising urban form and public space, transport, energy, waste and materials, water, and access to nature, watercourses and green spaces.
Flexibility and adaptability will be a key focus area when developing the sustainability targets together with the combination of green infrastructure with urban planning and design, and the role of fast developing smart technologies.
“The Sustainability Targets Are Expected to Be Used for Anything up to 20 to 50 Years’ and Will Involve a Sensible Combination of ‘Open-Minded Thinking with Real-World Analysis.”
Sean Lockie, sustainability director at Faithful+Gould, said: “Old Oak and Park Royal is a massive opportunity for London to do things that haven’t been done before. “It means creating a vision which sets out clear goals, such as being healthy to live in, flexible over time, affordable, comfortable, and being energy and resource efficient, and then taking a systematic approach to delivery. “We’ll need to come up with some new business models to achieve this but in doing so we have a great opportunity to make a real difference in people’s lives.”
Atkins will lead stakeholder engagement workshops with the OPDC, designers and the local authority until August 2016 and is set to deliver its sustainability report to the OPDC in September 2016.
“Is urban regeneration about more than the material?” It’s about a piece of heaven on earth ”¦ where true expressions of what Jesus did or how he lived actually articulates itself into society.”
The Nigerian construction industry is mostly concerned with the development and provision of projects such as roads, bridges, railways, residential and commercial real estates, and the maintenance necessary for the socio-economic developments contributes immensely to the Nigerian economic growth (Bureau of Statistics, 2015). Butcher and demmers (2003) described projects as an idea which begins and ends by filling a need. However, a project fails when its idea ends without meeting the needs and expectations of its stakeholders.
Nigeria Has Become the World’s Junk – Yard of Abandoned and Failed Projects worth Billions of Naira!
Hanachor (2013), revealed that projects form part of the basis for assessing a country’s development. However, a damming report from the Abandoned Projects Audit Commission which was set up by the Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011 revealed that 11,886 federal government projects were abandoned in the past 40 years across Nigerian (Abimbola, 2012). This confirmed the assertion by Osemenan (1987) “that Nigeria has become the world’s junk –yard of abandoned and failed projects worth billions of naira”.
Abandoned projects including building and other civil engineering infrastructure development projects now litter the whole of Nigeria.
Physical projects do not only provide the means of making life more meaningful for members of the community where the projects are located, successful projects also result in empowerment and collective action towards self improvement (Hanachor, 2013).
This Issue of Abandonment Has Been Left Without Adequate Attention for Too Long, and Is Now Having a Multiplier Effect on the Construction Industry in Particular and the Nigeria’s National Economy as a Whole. (Kotngora, 1993)
PROJECT FAILURE
Project Failure might mean a different thing to different stakeholders. A project that seemed successful to one stakeholder may be a total failure to another (Toor and Ogunlana, 2008). Some stakeholders, more especially the project users and some private owners, think of failed projects as a situation where a completed building project collapsed, a situation where by a completed dam project stopped working after few days of completion, or a completed road project that broke down after few months of completion. Other experienced stakeholders, such as engineers and architects conform to the iron triangle by Atkinson (1999) which states that the most strategically important measures of project failure are “time overrun”, “cost overrun”, and “poor quality”.
Turner (1993) noted that a project fails when the project specifications are not delivered within budget and on time;the project fails to achieve its stated business purpose; the project did not meet the pre-stated objectives; the project fails to satisfy the needs of the project team and supporters; and the project fails to satisfy the need of the users and other stakeholders. Lim and Mohamed (1999) cited in Toor and Ogunlana (2009) clarified that there are two possible view points to project failure namely; the macro-level and the micro-level. They further explained that the macro view point reviews if the original objectives and concepts of the project was met. Usually the end users and the project beneficiaries are the ones looking at the project failure from the macro view point, where as the project design team, the consultants, contractors, and suppliers review projects from a micro view point focusing on time of delivery, budget, and poor quality.
In the early 1990s, the failure as well as the success of any project was determined by the project duration, monetary cost, and the performance of the project (Idrus, Sodangi, and Husin, 2011). Belout and Gauvrean (2004), also confirmed that the project management triangle based on schedule, cost, and technical performance is the most useful in determining the failure of a project. Moreover, a project is considered as an achievement of specific objectives, which involves series of activities and tasks which consume resources, are completed within specifications, and have a definite start and end time (Muns and Bjeirmi 1996, cited in Toor and Ogunlana, 2009). Reiss (1993) in his suggestion stated that a project is a human activity that achieves a clear objective against a time scale. Wright (1997) taking the view of clients, suggested that time and budget are the only two important parameters of a project which determines if a project is successful or failed. Nevertheless, many other writers such as Turner, Morris and Hough, wateridge, dewit, McCoy, Pinto and Slevin, saarinen and Ballantine all cited in Atkinson (1999), agreed that cost, time, and quality are all success as well as failure criteria of a project, and are not to be usedexclusively.
FACTORS OF PROJECT FAILURE
Cookie-Davies (2002) stated the difference between the success criteria and the failure factors. Hestated that failure factors are those which contributed towards the failure of a project while success criteria are the measures by which the failure of a project will be judged. The factors constituting the failure criteria are commonly referred to as the key performance indicators (KPIs).
Timeand Cost Overrun
The time factor of project failure cannot be discussed without mentioning cost. This is because the time spent on construction projects has a cost attached to it. Al-Khali and Al-Ghafly, (1999); Aibinu and Jagboro, (2002) confirmed that time overrun in construction projects do not only result in cost overrun and poor quality but also result in greater disputes, abandonment and protracted litigation by the project parties. Therefore, focus on reducing the Time overrun helps to reduce resource spent on heavy litigation processes in the construction industry (Phua and Rowlinson, 2003). Most times, the time overrun of a project does not allow resultant system and benefits of the project to be taking into consideration (Atkinson, 1999). Once a project exceeds the contract time, it does not matter anymore if the project was finally abandoned or completed at the same cost and quality specified on the original contract document, the project has failed. Furthermore, Assaf and Al-Hejji, (2006) noted that time overrun means loss of owner’s revenue due to unavailability of the commercial facilities on time, and contractors may also suffers from higher over heads, material and labour costs.
Poor quality/Technical Performance
The word “Performance” has a different meaning which depends on the context it is being used and it can also be referred to as quality. Performance can be generally defined as effectiveness (doing the right thing), and efficiency (doing it right) (Idrus and Sodangi, 2010). Based on this definition of performance, at the project level, it simply means that a completed project meets fulfilled the stakeholder requirements in the business case.
CAUSES OF PROJECT FAILURE
A lot of research studies have investigated the reasons for project failures, and why projects continue to be described as failing despite improved management. Odeh and Baltaineh, 2002; Arain andLaw, 2003; Abdul-Rahman et al., 2006; Sambasivan and Soon, 2007; all cited in Toor and Ogunlana, 2008, pointed out the major causes of project failures as Inadequate procurement method; poor funding and availability of resources; descripancies between design and construction; lack of project management practices; and communication lapses
The contract/procurement method
A result obtained from two construction projects which were done by the same contractor but using different procurement methods showed that rework, on the design part which occurs when the activities and materials order are different from those specified on the original contract document, makes it difficult for the project to finish on the expected time (Idrus, Sodangi, and Husin, 2011). This is as a result of non-collaboration and integration between the design team, contractor, and tier suppliers. The rework on the design portion has a huge impact on project failure leading to the time overrun. The traditional method of procurement has inadequate flexibility required to facilitate late changes to the project design once the design phase of the construction project has been concluded.
Nigerian most widely used procurement method is the traditional method of procurement (design-bid-construct) which has been confirmed to be less effective to successfully delivery of a construction project (Dim and Ezeabasili, 2015). And, the world bank country procurement assessment report (2000) cited in Anigbogu and Shwarka, (2011) reported that about 50% of projects in Nigeria are dead even before they commence because they were designed to fail.
The way the construction projects are contracted, in addition to the way the contracts are delivered, contributes to the causes of projects failure. Particularly, among the methods of project contracting is lump-sum or a fixed-price contracting method, in which the contractor agrees to deliver a construction project at a fixed price. The fixed-price contract can be low-bid or not however, once the contract cost has been agreed upon the contract award, it cannot be changed. And, contractors are expected to honor and deliver the contract agreement, failure to do so can result in a breach of contract which can result in the contractor being prosecuted.
Awarding a contract to an unqualified personnel also contributes to project failures. When a contractor places more emphasis on money and the mobilization fee after a construction project has been initiated instead of getting the right workforce and skilled professionals that will execute the project. Instead the workforce chosen will often not be base on competence and required skills rather it will be based on availability. Moreover, poor strategy and planning by contractors who have overloaded with work also contributed to one of the causes of project failure.
Poor funding/Budget Planning
A lot of public projects in the Nigerian construction industry failed as a result inadequate funding, and the difference between the national annual budget and the budget actual released. Most of the Nigerian public projects are signed even before the actual release of the national budget. The difference in budget of the contracted project and the actual budget release can get the contracted company stuck as a result of inflation of prices, scarcity of construction material at the time of the budget release and mobilization to site. Also un-planned scope of work which can be as a result of the contractor working on another contract when he is called back to mobilization to start work. Moreover, poor budget planning is a regular mistake made by some contractors by not undertaking feasibility assessments before starting the design. The construction project should be planned according to the available resources and not according to the unrealistic expectations a client has in mind.
Discrepancies Between the Design and Construction
Limited collaboration between the contractors, engineers, and the architect results in discrepancies between the project designs and construction on site, and further leads to rework. Changes on a project designs, and changing to the scope of work in the middle of construction processes on site can be dangerous, and can lead to time overrun, increase in cost, and most of all can lead to abandonment. Moreover, many cases have been seen where the designs from the architects are not buildable on site, whileIn some cases, most contractors are unable to adequately specify the scope of work for the construction processes on site. Therefore any default on the design by the architect can be an opportunity for the contractor to make more money which might cause the project duration to exceed the time specified on the contract document.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This research starts with a general reasoning or theory which says that the major cases of project failure in the Nigerian construction industry are defined based on time overrun and cost overrun. The findings from the data analysis will help on the decision to accept the theory or not. The research data was collected from the progress report for the month ending of October, 2015 published by the Nigeria of Federal Ministry of works on thirty-nine on-going highway construction projects at the South-South geopolitical zone. The table 1 below shows the information on the data collected which comprises of the project title, contract Number, project description, the contractor that was awarded the projects, the date of project commencement, date of completion and the extended date if any. The scheduled time for each project was specified as follows: project commencement date labeled as “a”,project completion date labeled as “b”, and the extended date labeled as “c”.
Table 1: The analyzed data on the highway project at the South-South zone in Nigeria.
DATA ANALYSIS
The data analysis was done with the use of Microsoft excel. The analysis started by obtaining the number of days between the date of commencement of each project and the date of completion to show the duration of each highway project. And, the number of days between the project completion date and the extension date showed the time-overrun. The project duration and the extended days were obtained with the use of NETWORKDAYS function in Microsoft Excel which calculates the number of working days between two dates excluding weekends and any dates identified as holidays.
The standard deviation between the specified project duration for each highway projects and the extended days was calculated to obtain the extent to which each highway project contract failed on its time of delivery. This was denoted as the degree of failure. The table 1 above showed the projects ranking which was done based on the degree of failure of all the highway projects. The highway projects that were ranked from one to sixteen have low degree of failure and are represented with green color, while the rest are those with high degree of failure and are represented with red color.
FINDINGS
The findings made showed that the successfully completed highway projects have no extended days or time overrun, and the successful on-going highway projects are still on schedule and have no extended days unlike the on-going highway projects that have already failed as a result of the extended dates. Other projects have been abandoned because they have exceeded the delivery date as specified on the contract document, and have no extended date of completion. Thus, no work is going on.
Figure 1: Abundance of failed highway projects at south-south zone, Nigeria.
Figure 2: On-going failed highway projects
Figure 2 above showed that 14% of highway projects are still on-going projects because they have not exceeded the original date of completion as specified on the contract document. However, they are heading towards failure because they have been given an extended date of completion which can be as a result of some critical activities running behind schedule, causing delay on the critical path network of the projects. Moreover, the other 86% completely failed because they have exceeded their completion date specified on the contract document.
Figure 3: Successful on-going highway projects
The figure 3 above showed that 63% of the successful highway projects are still on-going because they have not exceed their completion dates, and they are not yet completed. However, those on-going highway projects might end up as failed projects as a result of poor funding, discrepancy between the design and the construction on site, and conflict between the construction parties or stakeholders.
“Say what you will do, and do what you said” or “Say as you will do it, and do it as you said”
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
The idea of knowing what a failed project is, the factors and the causes is very important in project management. Success in project management can neither be achieved nor measured without the knowledge of project failure, its factors, and causes in the Nigerian construction industries. This work has shown that project failure is as a result of exceeded time of delivery, cost overrun, and poor quality. However, the analysis was only done based on exceeded time of project delivery because of the nature of the data collected.
This work suggested a few approaches to help reduce the number of failed projects in the Nigerian construction industry if properly implemented. Firstly, Having good collaboration between the project stakeholders involved in a construction project at the early stage of project conception is most important in order to accomplish the project objectives, and deliver the project on time, within budget, and quality specified on the original contract document (Othman, 2006).
Secondly, Adopting the ISO 9000 technique which is used for quality management will also help in achieving a successful project delivery. This technique states “ say what you will do, and do what you said” or “say as you will do it, and do it as you said”. This technique is not an indication of high quality but it promotes control and consistency which leads to specialization, and improved productivity and quality. Also, adopting the principles of lean construction will help to reduce waste within the construction and stream-line activities in order to improve the on-time delivery of projects.
Thirdly, Learning from the precedent failed projects, how those projects failed, and the reason for their failures. This will help the project manager to plan and mitigate the risks of project failures in the future. And, finally, more seminars and workshops will help to educate and enlighten clients (the federal government representatives), users, contractors, engineers, and architects on what is project failure, the factors that contributes to abundant failed projects, and their causes.
REFERENCE
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Al-Khali, M.I and Al-Ghafly, M.A. (1999). Important Causes of Delays in Public Utility Projects in Saudi Arabia. Construction management and Economics, 17, 647-655
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Anigbogu, N. and Shwarka, M. (2011). Evaluation of Impact of the Public Procurement Reform Program on Combating Corruption Practices in Public Building Project Delivery in Nigeria. EnvirontechJournal, 1(2). 43-51.
Assaf, S. and Al-Hajji, S. (2006). Causes of Delays in large Construction Projects. International Journal of Project Management, 24, 349-357.
Atkinson , R. (1999). Project management: Cost, time, and quality, two best guesses and a Phenomenon, it’s time to accept other success criteria. International Journal of project Management, 17(6), 337-342.
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Cookie-Davies, T. (2002). The Real Success Factors on Projects. International Journal of Project management, 20(3), 185-190.
Dim, N.U. and Ezeabasili, A.C.C (2015). Strategic Supply Chain Framework as an Effective Approach to Procurement of Public Construction Projects in Nigeria. International Journal of Management and Susutainability, 4(7), 163-172.
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Idrus, A., Sodangi, M., and Husin, M., H. (2011). Prioritizing project performance criteria within client perspective. Research Journal of Applied Science, Engineering and Technology, 3(10), 1142-1151.
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National Bureau of Statistics (January, 2015). Nigerian Construction Sector Summary Report: 2010-2012.
Kotangora, O. O. (1993). Project abandonment, Nigerian Tribune.
Osemenan, I. (1987). Project Abandonment. New Watch Magazine, Vol. 1, pp. 15.
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Reiss, B. (1993). Project Management Demystified. London: E and FN Spon Publishers.
Toor, S. R. and Ogunlana, S. O. (2008).Problems causing Delay in Major Construction Projects in Thailand. Construction management and Economics, 26, 395-408.
Toor, S. R. and Ogunlana, S. O. (2008). Critical COMs of Success in Large-Scale Construction Projects: Evidence from Thailand constructuction industry. International Journal of Project management, 26(4), 420-430.
Toor, S. R. and Ogunlana, S. O. (2009).Beyound the “Iron Triangle”: Stakeholder perception of key performance indicators (KPIs) for large-scale public sector development projects. International Journal of Project management, doi: 10.1016/j.ijproman.2009.05.005.
Toor, R. and Ogunlana, S. (2009). Construction Innovation: Information, process, management. 9(2), PP. 149-167.
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Wright, J., N. (1997). Time and Budget: The twin imperatives of a project Sponsor. International Journal of Project Management, 15(3), 181-186.
London hasen’t reached the density of Hong Kong, but it’s certainly heading that way as the cities population continues to expand. The “London Infrastructure Plan 2050″ aims to tackle the problem and outlines the spending needed for the capital to remain one of the world’s leading cities.
London Mayor Boris Johnson Has Said £1.3tn of Investment Is Needed over the next 35 Years in Order for London to Retain Its World Class Status
“This plan is a real wake up call to the stark needs that face London over the next half century. Infrastructure underpins everything we do and we all use it every day. Without a long-term plan for investment and the political will to implement it this city will falter.”
London School of Economics Professor Tony Travers Said: “the London Infrastructure Plan Is a Necessary Step Towards Understanding the Needs of the ‘10 Million City’ Which London Will Soon Become.
Transport is the biggest focus of the “London Infrastructure Plan 2050” as the population hit 8.5 million in 2014 the largest it has been since 1939. By 2050 it is predicted to exceed 11 million, growing at a rate of 41,000 a year.
Some infrastructure project proposals are already in development, others may not be approved at all, however, these are some transport developments suggested for London by 2050.
Bridge House, Croydon
1. Air con on the Tube, £900m
It was find in the beginning, in fact, conditions were so pleasant in 1906 that the city proclaimed the underground ‘The coolest place in hot weather’. But that was before deep lines and millions of passengers.
Better Late than Never, London’s Tube Is Getting Air-con
In summer, temperatures on parts of the London Underground can become very uncomfortable due to its deep and poorly ventilated tube tunnels: temperatures as high as 116 °F were reported in the 2006 heat wave. New Tube trains, which allow better access for customers, are being rolled out on the Circle line as part of the introduction of 53 new trains on both the Hammersmith & City and Circle lines. By the end of 2016 there will be a total of 191 walk-through, air-conditioned trains covering 40% of the Tube network running on the District,Circle, Metropolitan and Hammersmith & City lines.
2. Inner orbital tolled tunnel, £15bn-25bn
Mayor sets out plan for 22-mile ring-road tunnel under London, which is considered by many to be one of the most ambitious infrastructure scheme ever proposed in the city.
The tunnel will cost an estimated £30 billion to construct and will remove tens of thousands of cars from the crowded streets of London and avert traffic gridlock. With subterranean dual carriageways linking key routes, from the A40 Westway to the A12 in the east, and the A1 route north to the A2 running south.
London Major Boris Johnson, who commissioned work to develop the idea, believes it could dramatically improve quality of life for residents. He said: “I would love the views of Evening Standard readers on this. There are big arguments in favour. There are obviously arguments against.”
Transport for London is working on the concept.
Transport for London
Transport for London has invited Alstom, Bombardier, CAF, Hitachi and Siemens to tender to supply 250 new trainsets for the London Underground
Transport for London has invited Alstom, Bombardier, CAF, Hitachi and Siemens to tender to supply 250 new trainsets for the London Underground
Transport for London
3. Northern Line extension, £1bn
Works commenced on London Underground’s £1bn Northern Line extensionfrom Kennington to Battersea via Nine Elms in the UK in 2015.
Tunnelling work is scheduled to start in early 2017 and will take six months to complete, while the project is expected to be completed in 2020.
The project will reduce journey times to the West End and the city to less than 15min.
4. Cycle Super Highways, £2bn- £4bn
London’s New Superhighway Linking East and West London Will Open on 30 April, Says the Capital’s Mayor Boris Johnson
The route, which links Barking, Canary Wharf and Tower Hill to Westminster, will open less than a week before his term is set to end.
Chris Boardman, the former Olympic champion and policy advisor to British Cycling, said: “This YouGov poll shows us, yet again, that the vast majority of the public want to see more cycle tracks on main roads.
“If this kind of evidence isn’t enough to give politicians and transport authorities the confidence to act, I don’t know what is.”
Last month, Boris Johnson pressed ahead with plans for three cycle superhighways.
5. Bakerloo and Overground extensions, £2.5bn-3.5bn
The extension of the Bakerloo line could help regenerate South East London from Old Kent Road to Catford, improve routes into London and relieve congestion on the main rail services into London Bridge.
6. Crossrail 2 and 3, £23bn- £30bn
TRANSPORT chiefs say it is “full steam ahead” for Crossrail 2 after the Government made an £80million pledge towards the project – but it will be months before passengers find out if a station will be built at Balham or Tooting.
Construction work is due to begin on the rail link in the early 2020s, which would enable the service to be operational by 2033.
7. New Stations, £500m and 24/7 Night Tube service
New stations at Cricklewood, Beam Park in Rainham and Thames Wharf could be built to support redevelopment in these areas. It has also been claimed that night services on the Piccadilly, Central, and Northern Lines are then due to start in September, with all major lines being served by the weekend night tube by September 23.
8. Another channel tunnel, £1bn
The “London Infrastructure Plan 2050″ suggests an additional cross-channel rail tunnel would provide high speed links from the UK to the rest of Europe for passengers and freight.
9. 13 new crossings in London, £1-2bn
The vision for east London includes 13 proposed new river crossings include Gallions-Thamesmead, Belvedere-Rainham, Woolwich- Royal Docks to replace the Woolwich Ferry, as well as the Silvertown tunnel.
Boris Johnson states “By creating more links between the north and south of the river, we won’t just improve day-to-day travelling across the capital, we’ll unlock areas for development and create thousands of jobs and homes.
Lower Thames Crossing: New road crossing linking Essex and Kent (progressing).
Diamond Jubilee: Pedestrian and cycle bridge linking Fulham with Battersea (planning permission granted).
Crossrail 2: New railway line connecting Hertfordshire and Surrey via central London and providing a new cross river link between Victoria and Clapham Junction (consultation).
Vauxhall, Nine Elms and Battersea: Pedestrian and cycle bridge (feasibility).
Garden Bridge: New pedestrian crossing linking the South Bank to Temple station (planning permission granted).
Thames Estuary Airport
10. Thames Estuary airport, 18bn-25bn
A new Thames Estuary Airport has been proposed at various times since the 1940s. Economic considerations have ruled out a new coastal airport, while political considerations have ruled out a new inland airport,leaving planners with an as-yet-unresolved dilemma.
‘Bizarre proposal’ states Rehman Chisthti, MP for Gillingham and Rainham “The airport in the estuary was not the right thing do so we all worked together to oppose it. It’s really good news and we’re really pleased that common sense has prevailed.”
However,Boris Johnson refloats idea of Thames Estuary airport 18 months after it was rejected by Airports Commission. Mr Johnson believes a hub in the east of the capital would offer around double the number of long haul and domestic routes served by Heathrow while exposing 95 per cent fewer people to significant aircraft noise.
‘Grain isn’t the answer’ states Rodney Chamber, Leader of Medway Council “We have said all along that it should never have even been considered as it would have resulted in the mass destruction of habitat and wildlife that could never be replaced.”
Everyone knows a story about a smart and talented professional who has lost his or her passion for a role, who no longer looks forward to going to the office yet remains stuck without a visible way out. Getting on the career ladder is a great thing, you start off at the bottom and work your way up, but sometimes you can get stuck and do not even realize it.
“One in Five Employees Claim They Were Mis-sold Opportunities When They Joined Their Organisation – Kelly Global Workforce Index (Kgwi).”
Commenting on the findings, Debbie Pettingill, Director, Kelly Services UK and Ireland said
“Employee retention will become an increasing challenge for employers as we move out of the recession. As we move into a more candidate driven market, this trend is likely to accelerate. Our findings indicate that this problem is being exacerbated by the misrepresentation of job role or company culture at the interview stage, leading to the dissatisfaction of new hires.”
Most of us know what we are trying to escape a “mis-sold” job resulting in a narrowly defined career, inauthentic or unstimulating work, numbing corporate politics, and perhaps blackmail including direct threats of being used as a scapegoat. A job where you are both overlooked and underappreciated. One may ring true for some of you.
“Fewer than Half of Uk Employees Are Happy with the Way Their Careers Are Progressing According to New British Research.”
Why Would A Company or Person Block Your Move?
Well, this could be because of his or her personal insecurity i.e. as the team works well, why rock the boat? Comfort zone: sometimes the team gets too comfortable? Golden child syndrome: you’re working your butt off and your sponsor or other senior is reaping the recognition from your amazing deliverables?
Working a job you don’t like can leave you feeling stuck, forgotten by God, and asking yourself questions like:
Why hasn’t God opened another door for me yet?
Why is God not moving?
Why would God leave me here in this job I hate?
But the truth is God has not left you. He’s not holding back on you. When you feel God is silent, that’s exactly when He’s moving! Your situation does not change God. He still loves you and is with you no matter what.
Instead of looking at our situation from a perspective of fear and worry, we need to look at it through faith and hope.
What Can You Do About it?
Don’t fret, you can handover your work or completely leave the organisation and still stay sane. You might worry that announcing your intentions will cause your company grief, but ultimately you have to do what’s best for you no matter what!
Think and pray long and hard about how you’re going to drop this bombshell as you will need to give notice. A sound method is required to overcome the assault and possible backlash – including of course more prayer and fasting.
So how are you going to approach it? What’s your reasoning going to be? How are you going to get them to understand exactly why you’re doing this? What do you need to do in order to prepare for the big day?
Easy, you’re going to read this guide.
Strategy 1 – Remote Working Arrangement
This could be a great approach if 80% of your work can be undertaken remotely. However, while there is a very logical argument to be made in favor of working from home, many people equate remote work to a lack of productivity and laziness. These people do not realize that the switch from an office to working from home can actually lead to significant increases in productivity.
Strategy 2 – What’s in It for Me?
What’s in it for me? That question sounds a little selfish, doesn’t it? Maybe you aren’t being compensated fairly, or you’re not happy with the effort vs return. When you know your client and team needs you and you’re willing to stay for a price, don’t mess around. Give them the real number or offer that will make it worth your while to stick it out for awhile.
Strategy 3 – The Budget Cut
The re-structuring. The downsizing. The dreaded budget cut. Whatever name you want to give it, this can be terrifying for a lot of professionals. However, if you’re already thinking about leaving, so maybe it doesn’t have to be such a scary thing. In fact, maybe it can be extremely positive for both parties.
Strategy 4 – The Ease Out
Still feeling weary about leaving the organization. Propose easing yourself out of the post. Pick a time frame, maybe four weeks or so, and come up with a plan for slowly taking yourself out of the position. This also allows you some time to slowly ramp down your time commitment.
Strategy 5 – Burning Bridges in the Industry
“Sometimes it’s about networking and being nice to people and not burning any bridges – but remembering to draw line where you must.”
There’s no harm in an early exit from a job you never plan to mention again or an interim role where you have clearly agreed on a start and finish date. But if your manager is well connected to your industry you should try to leave on a good note. Why? Because it’s a small world and the next hiring manager may put in a call to his or her former colleague (a.k.a., your new manager) to get the unofficial scoop. It happens, so if you’re going to leave anyway then try to fulfill your end of the deal.
Strategy 6 – Get Moving Fast
Imagine, for example, that you were hired to help the company manage multiple programmes and projects across the globe, but a recent change in leadership means all efforts moving forward will be focused locally.
If you’re spending your days just trying to find ways to be productive or are undertaking a role you never signed up for, you have every right to pursue new opportunities. Of course, the first course of action should normally be to discuss this with your manager to see if there are other roles you can take on. But if you know that this isn’t going to happen in the new world, get moving fast.
Strategy 7 – Your Dream Job Awaits
“When you’re being interviewed, always treat the interview as a 50-50 thing,” says Andy Dallas, a director at Robert Half International, recruitment consultants. “Ask what you can expect to be doing in your first week, month and three months. Ask what a successful year looks like.”
Dream jobs don’t come every day. So, if you have a chance at yours, take it quickly and congratulate yourself for being strong enough to leave when you were unhappy.
Strategy 8 – Remeber to Be Patient
We will not always be in a job we desire. Maybe you are fresh out of school and are working a job that has nothing to do with the degree you just earned. Maybe you are in a situation where you are working at a job where you are overqualified, overworked, and fed up. Maybe, for the most part, you love your job but get discouraged by the mundane tasks that take up time from doing the aspects of your job you love most.
“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.” – James 4:10 NIV
Here’s the thing: God will still use this season to grow, develop, and prepare you. Any season that humbles us is preparing us for what God has next.
Compared to people in other industrialized nations, Americans work longer hours, take fewer vacation days, and retire later in life. Busyness, once seen as the curse of the disadvantaged, has become equated with status and importance. Our work increasingly defines who we are.
“Godly rest (distinct from play, relaxation, or sleep) is inextricably tied to our identity as children of God.”
The solution perhaps is to be “Lazy Intelligent”?That sounds like something an unsuccessful, lazy slacker would say, isn’t it? Actually, it’s the opposite. One of America’s most influential and controversial science fiction authors Robert Heinlein uttered these words during his time. Despite his nod to laziness, Heinlein went on to pen hit titles such as Starship Troopers and Stranger in a Strange Land.
Productive laziness is not about doing absolutely nothing at all. It’s not about just sitting around and drinking coffee or engaging in idle gossip while watching the non-delivered project milestones disappear into the horizon. In fact, this behavior would lead to a very short-lived project management career.
Laziness Is Not Synonymous with Stupidity
Instead, productive laziness should be viewed as a more focused approach to management. Adopting this mindset means concentrating efforts where it really matters, rather than spreading yourself thing over unimportant, non-critical activities that in some cases don’t need to be addressed at all.
According to the Pareto Principle — Also Known as the “80/20 Rule” — 80 Percent of the Consequences Stem from 20 Percent of the Causes.
While the idea has a rule-of-thumb application, it’s also commonly misused. For example, just because one solution fits 80 percent of cases, that doesn’t mean it only requires 20 percent of the resources needed to solve all cases.
The principle, suggested by management thinker Joseph M. Juran, was named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed that 80 percent of property in Italy was owned by 20 percent of the population. As a result, it was assumed that most of the result in any situation was determined by a small number of causes.
Rest Is at the Center of God’s Design
Every smart but lazy person should consider the 80/20 Rule each day. For managers, the principle is a reminder to concentrate on the 20 percent of work that really matters.
Contrary to belief, 80 percent of success is not just showing up. In fact, only 20 percent of what you do during the day will produce 80 percent of your results. Therefore, it is important to identify and focus on that 20 percent during the working day.
When genius and laziness meet, the results can be magical. Being just the right combination of smart and lazy can bring you to have a real edge over others. Interestingly enough, smart lazy people are generally better suited for leadership roles in organizations. These people make great strategic thinkers and leaders. They do things in a smart way in order to expend the least effort. They don’t rush into things, taking that little bit of extra time to think and find the shortest, best path.
They question, contradict, and show dissent against inefficient methods or unnecessary tasks.
“Whenever There Is a Hard Job to Be Done, I Assign It to a Lazy Man; He Is Sure to Find an Easy Way of Doing It. — Bill Gates”
Bill’s not the only guy, who believes that laziness doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing. German Generalfeldmarschall Helmuth Karl Bernhard Graf von Moltke was the chief of staff for the Prussian Army for 30 years. He is regarded as one of the greatest strategists of the latter 1800s among historical scholars and is the creator of the more modern method of directing armies in the field.
Moltke observed his troops and categorized them based on their intelligence, diligence and laziness. If soldiers proved to be both lazy and smart, they were promoted to leadership because they knew how to be successful with efficiency. If soldiers were smart and diligent, they were deployed into a staff function, focusing on the details. Soldiers who were not smart and lazy were left alone in hopes they would come up with a great idea someday. Finally, soldiers who were not smart but diligent were removed from ranks.
Like Moltke’s army, the lazy manager is all about applying these principles in the delivery and management of work. You’re likely not stupid since you’ve landed the management position, but how are your lazy skills? Applying smart-lazy tactics will not only allow your work to be more successful, but you will also be seen as a successful individual and a top candidate for future leadership roles.
Think return on investment (time spent versus money earned ratio) rather than busy work and don’t restrict yourself to a certain way of doing things just for the sake of the status quo.
These people make great strategic thinkers and leaders. They do things in a smart way in order to expend the least effort. They don’t rush into things, taking that little bit of extra time to think and find the shortest, best path.
In the wise words of Bill Gate’s and American automotive industrialist Walter Chrysler, “Whenever there is a hard job to be done, assign it to a lazy man or woman for that matter; as he or she is sure to find an easy way of doing it.”
For an overachieving people-pleaser like me, thinking of rest as an innate part of who we were created to be—not as a discipline or something to be earned—is compelling. It is yet another form of God’s infinite grace, one that’s needed today more than ever.
Co-Author Peter Taylor
Described as “perhaps the most entertaining and inspiring speaker in the project management world today”, Peter Taylor is the author of two best-selling books on ‘Productive Laziness’ – ‘The Lazy Winner’ and ‘The Lazy Project Manager’.
