Overzealous

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Sometimes folks are a little overzealous. I know I have been at times. Being zealous about something is a good thing most of the time. But if someone puts over in front of zealous, don’t take it as a compliment. Take it as a friendly warning.

Slow down. Ease up. Back off. Hit the brakes. Relax.

Now, sometimes the thing to do is to simply ignore that advice. But if it’s worth listening to at all, it’s likely because the problem is not with your cause but with your readiness. The cause you’re so passionate about might be perfectly noble, it’s just that you’re not quite prepared. The vision that keeps you awake at night might bring good into the world, but you lack the experience to pull it off. The venture you’re fired up about might be innovative and full of potential, but you just don’t have the capital to get it off the ground. The dream you’re ready to sacrifice everything for might very well be worth it, but your immaturity is likely to kill you in the process.

All that said, nothing great has ever happened at the hands of half-zealous people. Only at the hands of overzealous people whose zeal was tempered by the pain of trial and error.

Rodger Otero

I'm a husband-father-musician-pastor trying to make a decent contribution to the world. California is the Motherland, North Carolina has my heart, Georgia is Home. These are mostly my riffs on formation, leadership, and being fully human.

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