Loftily away

Was ruminating over a few things....and came to one conclusion - Manage Expectations. Take the issue of church, for instance. I had a good chat with my pastor, and was telling him why I really thought it was time to go to another church and all, and he calmly told me no church is perfect, or for that matter, pastor either. But the best bit was, I was totally floored by his shepherd's heart and genuine care and concern for me. He told me he'd like it very much if I go look for him whenever I need to have a heart-to-heart chat. As for spiritual mentoring, he said I could turn to him or my Ah Kong, so there....where can I find people like them? So I gave him my word that I'd stick around a bit more, and give myself and the church another chance...

Work-wise, I finally submitted a report to my boss for her perusal. Basically I had poured out blood working on it, and was quite satisfied with it. My boss read it, and told me it was a good report. Then came the disclaimer.....that this report will get a few people into trouble. I was not naive and told her I expected as much. Then she tried to prep me and told me I might have to 'amend' it a little. I was like, huh? My lofty idealism kicked in. I told her, as one of the key pillars of corporate governance in the bank, why should we pander to the business units? If they are lacking in such areas, then we should report as such. I even told her, by pandering to the business units, we are no better than 'prostitutes'. (YESH...that was the exact word I used. I had to go shoot my mouth off)

But thank God I have a rather understanding and riotous boss...she laughed when I said that. She could see where I was coming from, so she was like, "Ha...I think we are more like 'maids' than that. At least we still have our dignity". In the end, she decided there's no need to change the report completely, since we have also done a remediation programme for the said business unit. And speaking of the business unit, I have never met such incompetent morons who are relatively senior and make empty promises and expect others to patch up their turf for them. Pathetic.

In retrospect, I am really thankful I have such a patient and understanding boss. She makes it so much easier to work at my current place. Coming from a foreign bank, the culture here still takes some getting used to, and I find that a lot of things are relational, rather than task. I usually prefer a good mix of both, but somehow, everything gears more towards relational.

With my perfectionist streak and lofty ideals, I am really setting myself up for a good jolt every now and then. Perhaps I really need to learn to manage my expectations....of the circumstances, people around me etc., so that when they fall short, I won't feel so "AARRGH"! After all, God is always in control....