Blue Masking Tape

Today I enjoyed a great day with my son. In addition to lunch, getting his hair cut and hitting up the store we went to Lowe's to get some supplies for some honey-do projects I've been putting off.

My son decided that our loft would be a good place to demonstrate his new interest in Van Gough. Demonstrating Van Gough's style, Caleb decided to take some markers and do a work on the wall. Hence why I purchased paint and all the tools needed to knock out a room.

The second project comes from a more recent experience where my son and his little buddy decided to use various objects (T-ball stand, vacuum cleaner tubes, etc) as battering rams to attack the screen on Caleb's bedroom window. Upon noticing the hole that was nearly two feet in diameter I realized I'd need to work on that as well.

So today I found myself at Lowe's and subsequently repairing screens and painting my loft.
Let me just tell ya... a man gets to thinking when he's painting a room. I'm not going to say that a person can get intoxicated by the fumes (I'm Baptist after all), but the theta waves start to rockin' in that moment.

So I thought... Good leaders use blue masking tape.

To illustrate what I mean let me tell you about the painter we hired when we first purchased our home. (He painted the largest room while friends and I tackled some side rooms). The friend who referred him told me that he was meticulous. I was told that he wasn't cheap but he would give us a fantastic final product. True to his reputation I found him to take his time but I would soon find out why. This guy understood the value of blue masking tape.

He took time to do a LOT of prep-work before he ever actually pulled out a paint brush.
Leaders know the value of blue masking tape. Leaders know the value of Spackle. Leaders know the value of laying down a drop cloth and they know the value of removing outlet covers all before painting. These processes aren't fun. They aren't going to get you any recognition and if you don't have the proper perspective they seem to be stumbling blocks to the "real" task of adding color.

As a church planter who started out too early, I learned the value of laying a foundation the hard way. Over the next few years I've learned the value of taking time to build within your team a vision for the foundation as well. So often times we overlook the planning and preparation process.

One of my joys over the last 12 months was seeing my friend Tadd Grandstaff and his team launch Pine Ridge Church so well. I'm looking forward to the rest of the Pastoring world learning more about how long he took and how much work he put in long before one advertisement ever went out to his community. Teams were formed, visits were made and detailed examination of his core was done before the first baby was checked into nursery. He understood the value of blue masking tape.

If you have influence over another person you are a leader. In the area of your leadership let me ask you these simple questions: Are you taking time to prep before you paint? Do you understand the value of blue masking tape? If you understand this principle you will find that your results are far greater than any you've had before.

** By the way if you're free this weekend and want to help me paint, drop me an email ;)