Sir William Osler stated, “Live for the day only, and for the day’s work…the chief worries of life arise from the foolish habit of looking before and after” (Watson, 1951, p. 214).

I agree that living for “the day only and the day’s work” is incredibly important in leadership (Watson, 1951, p. 214). There is a verse in the Bible, Matthew 6:34 that states something similar,

“Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (ESV).

This verse brings me comfort and peace when my mind races ahead and worries about things I have no control over. Anxiety is something I am prone to, but lately have experienced a lot of freedom from it, thanks to God teaching me a lot through difficult circumstances. Occasionally, anxiety still rears its ugly head and that is usually when I am trying to “take control” of things again and not trusting God with something.

One thing I would disagree with Osler on is how far he takes this lesson, especially when he used the metaphor of the “ocean liner” with students at Yale (Watson, 1951, p. 215). Osler stated,

The way of life that I preach is a habit to be acquired gradually by long and steady repetition. It is the practice of living for the day only, and for the day’s work, living in “day-tight compartments.”…The chief worries of life arise from the foolish habit of looking before and after (Watson, 1951, p. 215).

Though I agree it is effective and wise to live for the “day only”, for both productivity and peace of mind; one thing I have discovered as a leader, is if you do not look ahead and plan accordingly, you suffer the consequences of poor planning (Watson, 1951, pp. 215). Especially in my context of student ministry, I have to be intentional with my time and plan an overall rough semester outline. This outline helps me to make the most of my time doing ministry, since the semesters are so short.

Going through ministry or any job, with no bigger aim, vision or clear path, will leave you wandering aimlessly and frustrated. Therefore, though I agree in part with Osler’s “way of life”, I would say it is also important to think ahead with vision, purpose and mission in order to make the most of the time you have in each day (Watson, 1951, pp. 215-216). This becomes especially important when you have either assignment and/or work deadlines, as losing that bigger perspective could be foolish and lead to unnecessary stress.

One final thought about Osler, stated by Watson (1951) is,

Though he himself is gone, his “way of life” remains a vital influence, helping people do their day’s work in confidence, without letting the mistakes of the past paralyze the efforts of today…without letting needless anxieties about the future waste their energies or destroy their peace of mind (p. 217).

What stand out to me is the statement, “without letting the mistakes of the past paralyze the efforts of today” (Watson, 1951, p. 217). However, to sharpen it, I would emphasize that “compartmentalizing”, which seemed to be Osler’s way as he often talked of “compartments” on the “ocean-liner”, will never help you deal with hard experiences that happened or mistakes you made (Watson, 1951, pp. 215-217). Eventually those difficulties from the past will catch up with you, “paralyze you” and then you have to deal with them (Watson, 1951, p. 217).

Additionally, sometimes the day will require us to focus on things from the past, because a past experience needs to be emotionally and/or spiritually processed. As a leader, processing emotion from past, present or future situations is not a waste of time; it is a way that we can help our “future selves” to not be “paralyzed” by trauma, fears and repercussions of the things we have faced in the past (Watson, 1951, pp. 217). Being a leader who is gaining freedom from past baggage, is the best and most effective way to lead, as it will help us lead better in the present and into the future.

Question: What do you think of Sir William Osler’s “way of life” on pp. 214-219 ? Do you fully agree? Disagree? 

Would love to hear your thoughts!

Monica

 

Header photo: pexels.com by Pixabay shared under Pexels (BY) license.

References

Watson, L.E. (1951). Light from Many Lamps. New York: Simon and Schuster.