Work Efficiency Tip #3

Decide what to do with every email you get, the moment you read it.  If you need to do something right then, DO IT.  If not, put is somewhere that tells you what to do and/or when to do it.  Add it to your to-do list and file the email, or delete it if the information it contains is not crucial itself to completing the task.  If you think you’ll need something, file it for reference.  You can always search your email and find it later.

The amazing thing about this short trip is that I am traveling with a very small bag (no checked luggage!), and no kids.  That’s a miracle.  For the past 6 years, airline travel has felt like a root canal where the dentist asks me to remove my shoes, take off my belt, and put all my belongings in a small grey buckets.  I almost don’t know what to do with myself.  Our kids are excellent travelers and I love them dearly…but this feels nice.  Should I read, should I drink a coffee, should I return emails, should I do all three!?  Yes, all three!

Let’s be honest.  In general, Americans are fairly trusting.  We believe most people are honest.  Most of us are not paranoid that every other person is trying to rip us off.  Sure, it happens, but it’s not our greatest fear.  Americans also tend to trust people who speak English with an accent.  I don’t know why, but it’s true.  Don’t believe me?  Why is almost EVERY documentary narrated by a British person?  This tendency to trust is a very endearing quality, but it can get us into trouble, and it has HUGE implications when we get involved in overseas work.

As Americans we live in a society where we tend to trust most people.  This is not really because we believe that every person is good, but partially because we believe that MOST people are good, and that in general, the laws will help protect us from the BAD people.  When we DO get taken advantage of in our home country, we often find that we are repaid or compensated somehow.  But, those assumptions, for the most part, need to be checked at the door when we leave the Western minded world.  I assume you’re aware of the fact that there are cultures where ripping off an outsider is viewed as a gift, a talent, a sign of superior knowledge and skill.  This mindset says, “If I am able to rip you off, then you deserve it, and I deserve what I took from you.”  It’s almost like a chess game in their minds.  This is not my observation, but a confession of an Eastern European man I know.

People in other parts of the world rarely trust everyone, and often have such a small level of confidence in the laws of their land, and the people who enforce them, that they are either more BOLD, or more CAUTIOUS, depending on what side of society you tend to be on.  I believe that this sentiment is further increased in certain nations that have been dominated by certain religions and government systems.

For some of these reasons, and many more, trusting Americans (and Westerners in general) tend to be easier targets.  Most of the time when we Westerners get taken for a ride, it’s because we’ve violated a basic principle of healthy, sustainable missions work.

Another factor that can play into this is the special connotations that come along with being from America, and a few other select nations.  We are often viewed by people (who have never been to America) as incredibly rich, able to make as much money as we want,  spend as much as we want, go where we want to go, and do what we want to do.  This perception is not entirely unfounded, especially when compared to the oppression and isolation that many people in the world have lived under.  But, when you meet a recent immigrant who is trying to live in American, England, Germany, etc, they soon discover that life is not all roses.

The attitudes, mindset, and experiences are what one would expect perhaps in the business world of foreign nations, but it’s often just as prevalent in the humanitarian work, and church missions work that takes place in developing regions as well, maybe even more so.  How can that be?  Well, I submit that it’s often the Westerners who want to help, who feel the most compassion and heart-ache when they see the great needs, who feel a compelled duty to respond.  And perhaps, that compassion often blinds us to wisdom, and we are not always as street smart as we should be.

I heard someone say recently that as givers of financial support, we modern Western Christians are not as “trusting” as we used to be.  The standard used to be, ‘just give, and trust God with the outcome.’  If it’s true that we are not like that any more, than I THANK GOD.  Because that’s blind management.  We are called to be good stewards, not mindless stewards.  God gave us brains.  There’s a difference between a good decision, a bad decision, and an honest mistake.  We should strive to be more planned, purposed and wise about our financial giving and time involvement in ministry, both at home and abroad.  We should learn from our honest mistakes, and we should avoid wasteful and unwise decisions.  It’s easier than we might think to get taken for a ride when we step into the international sphere of ministry, and it’s not an easy pitfall to avoid.  However, there are a few steps we can take that may help.

1)  Move slowly.  Don’t make promises to early.  Don’t respond emotionally to needs at first, without considering them outside of the immediate circumstances and context.  Consider needs with a group of experienced people for perspective.

2)  Don’t work with the first guy to meet you at the airport.  This is sort of euphemism, but there is a grain of truth in it.  The principle is this.  Sometimes those who are ‘courting’ you, are the very ones you should be wary of.  Why do they seem to have so much time on their hands for you?  Why are they so interested in you?  Where are the people who are so busy that they cannot pick you up at the airport.  Maybe those are the people you want to get connected to.  Just something to keep in mind.

3)  Don’t assume that money is the first or best answer to the problem they are presenting to you.  Most people in developing nations are very resourceful.  They are able make much, and squeeze much, out of a little.  As Americans, we are generally not very resourceful.  We throw out a lot, from a little.  People in other countries can keep cars running on electronic stove sparkers and a clothes hanger, while many Americans have never changed their own oil.   Throwing money at a problem is tempting because chances are that money is the only QUICK and EASY solution for both parties.  You give a few bucks, feel like you made a difference, and if need be, move on feeling good about having “helped”.  They get a few bucks, get what they need or want quickly, are not required to sacrifice, and forget the giver…and next week, someone else comes to their village to “solve” the same problem.

4)  DON’T START HANDING OUT CASH, either US Dollars or the local currency.  I have seen American visitors reach in their pocket to pull out a wad of what to them is just ‘monopoly money’ only to have just handed over $50 worth of local currency to a poor street kid who is being pimped out by a gang-leader.  If you want to help, discover a planned way of making a larger difference.  We had a policy when we lived in Romania; no giving money to people on the street who still have both arms and legs.  We would give food…maybe we had an orange or a granola bar in the car to give the kid begging in traffic.  But, we never gave money.  We told them….”you have to work for money….no one will give it to you.  But here’s an orange for your belly.”  I cannot say this is the only right response.  We all have to answer for ourselves.  But, I’ve seen the cycle enough to know that money was not going to resolve any issues for those young people, and in fact, it has the potential to make things worse.

I am not trying to stomp on peoples impulses to give.  I believe in generosity, and I am working in my own life to raise my level of generosity.  There are times to give, times to help.  And sometimes God’s moves on our hearts to do something that violates common sense.  I realize that.  But let’s not check our brains when we stop off the airplane.  I am not advocating that we ignore the admonition in James Chapter 1 that the pinnacle of religion and the way to truly please God is by caring for those who have no other caretaker, widows and orphans.  We need to do those things, and the more planned, informed, and thoughtful our attempts are, the greater the impact they will have.