Earlier this week, I was
privileged and honored to be a part of some Sport Chaplaincy training that occurred
in Hong Kong, China. I joined Ross Georgiou from Sports Chaplaincy New Zealand,
Andrew Parker from the University of Gloucestershire, Cameron
Butler from Sports Chaplaincy Australia, and Richard Gamble from Sports
Chaplaincy United Kingdom as we led a couple of days and one evening of
training for over sixty people. I will offer more details in an upcoming
report.
One of the most advantageous
and informative ideas I gathered from the Fellowship of Christian Athletes
Leadership Institute in 1999 and 2000 was A Cadence of Decade Rhythm. I have searched
long and hard for its origin, but cannot find it. I would love to make
attribution to its author, but cannot locate him or her. If you know, please
inform me.
The idea is that the
progressing decades of one’s lifetime have particular functions and
characteristics. Certain matters of life best fit one decade, but seem to be a
poor fit in others. Don’t choke on the generality of this model, but simply
take the rhythm as it is intended, as a rhythm. Try to stay in step as your
life dances along. I hope this is helpful to you and to those you serve.
A Cadence of Decade Rhythm
Birth to 10 = Memories
·
In the first decade of our lives, every day is
full of activity, new experiences, and memories, wonderful and painful.
11 to 20 = Mischief
·
This decade of life is usually full of mischief
of all sorts and I won’t presume to list mine, nor to expose yours.
21 - 30 = Majors
·
A person in his or her twenties is normally
making decisions about career, family, spouse, home, and other major phases of
life. In this process, one also learns about success and failure, experimenting
widely to determine what roles and situations best fit him or her.
31 - 40 = Mastery
·
Hopefully, once a person is in his or her
thirties, the field of opportunities and interests has narrowed a bit and he or
she identifies one thing to master. This person finds a great sense of purpose
and joy in this role or task that he or she masters.
41 - 50 = Multiplication
·
Having mastered something, a person in this
decade turns his attention to multiplying this mastered quality into the lives
of others similarly gifted and trained. This decade is less about the
multiplier and more about the others being developed.
51 + = Mentoring
·
The others centered decade of one’s forties
prepares one to be a mentor. One in his or her fifties is suddenly afforded the
respect necessary to mentor effectively. Prior to this, a person attempting to
mentor others is seem to be a pretender. As one ages and stays engaged, the
mentor’s wisdom, experience, and expertise only grow in effectiveness with those
in the process of Majors, Mastery, and Multiplication.
In using this model with
others, my emphasis has been upon the freedom within each decade. Give the
youngest ones lots of freedom to make memories and do so purposefully. Allow
the teens a little room for mischief, but not so much that it kills them. Help
those making major decisions along the course of their twenties enough freedom to
fail, to try out new roles, to experiment with challenging experiences. This is
how they learn their areas of mastery. Help those mastering something the
freedom to abandon some roles and responsibilities that become less central to
their areas of mastery. Help those who begin to multiply by connecting them to
others with similar interests and passions. Feed their lives with people making
major life decisions and those beginning to master similar matters. Finally,
free those younger than fifty from the compulsion to mentor. Prior to their fiftieth
birthday, they may simply find frustration for their efforts. For those who
have passed birthdays # 50 and beyond, find ways to keep them involved with
those younger. Rather than shuffling them off to the senior citizens classes,
shuffleboard games, and retirement villages, keep them engaged with those whom
they can mentor, lead, and advise. Their experience is invaluable and their
wisdom can save everyone involved from errors and frustration.
Feel the rhythm of this
decade cadence. I pray that the decades of your life dance along with joyful
movement.
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