More from Makgoshi Sindane

The last few years of my corporate career were among the best. I had taken up a new position during the time of writing today’s meditation.

Leading up to this time, I had woken up in the middle of one night and grabbed scrap papers which were lying around in my bedroom. I started writing about my life journey in the organization where I had worked for almost thirty years. This gave me the time to reflect on the great opportunities the organization had granted me and express my appreciation. However, at the time, my relationship with the leadership there had deteriorated and had become unbearable. I continued to write until I had a stack of pages. After writing all I felt I needed to, I asked myself, So what? I then took another paper and wrote what I wanted in my career moving forward. I put down a request for a new position in social responsibility, which did not exist within the organization.

The next morning, I delivered my unprofessional, handwritten manuscript to the chief executive of the organization with whom I had a cordial relationship. I politely told him to do whatever he wanted with what I labeled as his “bible” as I passed the papers to him.

After a few days, my direct line manager called me into a meeting and offered me the same position I had asked for in the manuscript that I had given to the CEO. I learned later that the board of the organization had instructed management to establish the position urgently to take care of the social responsibility of the organization. After following due process, I was appointed to the new role.

In this role, I would no longer report directly to executive management. This was the first good—I would move out of my old reporting line. Because the position was new, there was the possibility for the role to report to three different executives, each of whom didn’t wish to take up this additional responsibility. So I was tasked with determining where the role should report. This discretion was the second good.

As soon as I began the position, I was eager to dig in my heels. I started working on a Corporate Social Responsibility strategy, but the executive I spoke to refused to approve the strategy I submitted to him. I later realized that this was a third good, as he chose not to have a say in the program. He further instructed the line manager not to approve the submission I had made. This fourth good meant the line manager would also leave everything to me.

This left me with no option but to go back to the CEO to table my strategy. He gladly gave direction and approved my submission. This was the ultimate good—my unintended direct report to the ultimate authority, who embraced the program. By default, this meant I directly reported to the board.

The same voice that had nudged me to write and request a new role also guided me and directed what I needed to do. Due to the management excluding themselves from accountability for my position, I reported directly to the board. And the board provided me with instructions on the budget and gave me guidance on focus areas. Management chose not to direct my work, and this turned out to be good for God’s purposes in the role. I had to discern God’s intentions about serving others who were not privileged and had relatively less opportunity.

I served in this role for the last mile of my corporate life. The impact that role had left me with a deep sense of fulfillment for giving back to communities in need as a service to God. I regarded the organization as a platform for me to serve.