You are Never Not ReLeading
Protecting against Organizational Rust
Completed on January 5, 1933, The Golden Gate Bridge is an iconic structure linking San Francisco to Marin County. Despite celebrating its 90th anniversary this year, the Golden Gate Bridge has been in a state of repair, repainting, and revamping since its inception. More than 34 full-time painters are constantly at work, fighting to protect the steel from the unending assault of wind, sea air, and fog.
This is ReLeadership.
Once you rebuild that bridge across the chasm in your organization, your job is not even close to finished. I have been the Lead Pastor of Victory Church for 9 years now. I spent the first 3-4 years rebuilding the wreckage from my predecessor's moral failure. But I’ve come to realize that my job is far from over. Like the 34 full-time painters of The Golden Gate Bridge, for the last 5 years, I have been fighting off the ever illusive presence of what I call, “Organizational Rust.”
The Rust Factor
There's a phrase you'll often hear when talking about the Golden Gate Bridge:
"It is never, not being painted."
There is not a single day in a 365-day calendar that someone is not painting The Golden Gate Bridge. Why? Because there is not one day in a 365-day calendar that rust is not attacking it.
The constant interaction between the bridge's steel and the salty, humid sea air makes it a perpetual candidate for rust and corrosion. If ignored, this rust would weaken the structure, leading to its eventual collapse.
I would have never known this without my friend Google, but the actual molecular formula for rust is 4Fe + 3O2 + 6H2O → 4Fe(OH)3. I have no idea what that means, but I do know that over time, rust turns solid steel into vulnerable flakes. A once strong, impenetrable piece of steel built to hold thousands of tons, can be torn apart by hand. It doesn’t happen overnight, in fact, it’s impossible to watch it happen with the naked eye, but given the right time and conditions, it will weaken to the breaking point.
This is such a great analogy for how strong organizations fall apart over time. Like a piece of steel, there is a formula for the rusting of our organizations.
What are these elements that create rust in our organizations? Every organization is filled with a multiplicity of variables and scenarios, but for my paid subscriber community, below are just a few of my thoughts about organizational rust and what causes it.