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Lessons from the Oak Tree

by George Garrett, Featured Contributor

ALMOST SEVEN YEARS AGO a category 3 hurricane hit the area where I live. One of my massive oak trees was toppled by the storm. Growing a few feet from the toppled tree was a smaller oak tree that had been canopied by the gigantic oak, which caused it to grow in a crooked fashion.

After things were cleaned nature-concept-treeup, I looked at the smaller oak and made a note to myself to take care of it, though deep down inside I hoped the tree would somehow correct itself and grow straighter on its own. Time passed and other things took precedence. I never did top the tree. I kept telling myself ‘I need to take care of this’, but I didn’t.

Three years later this once little oak was too large for me to handle so I contracted with a tree trimmer to handle it. Unfortunately, my mother passed away the day before the project was to begin causing yet another delay. As a result, more time passed and the oak tree kept getting larger and continued to grow poorly. So much so that it was now endangering other trees on the property as well as my neighbor’s house.

A few days ago I had the matter resolved. However, because of the critical nature of the situation, the cost became a lot greater than the original bid of four years ago. In fact, the tree had grown to a point that trimming was no longer an option. It now took four workers to handle the project. After expending a lot of money, I became angry at myself for letting something once so manageable get so out of control.

Do we do the same thing in the workplace? Do we recognize a problem, but for one reason or another, don’t take care of it? Do we hope that the problem will magically disappear on its own?

Regardless if an issue pertains to people, a poor process or the entire system, we tend to ignore it until we no longer can. As a result, the once smaller issue becomes unmanageable. We are then forced to turn to more radical solutions…and the cost becomes a lot higher and the pain much greater.


George Garrett
George Garretthttp://futurefocusgroup.com/
GEORGE is a founding member of Future Focus Group, LLC, based in Houston, TX. George has spent his entire career in human resources leadership and consulting. He has contributed to, and written extensively, for several publications in both the US and Europe. He is certified by the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) as a Senior Professional in Human Resources. George also holds a certification in Employee Relations Law from the Institute for Applied Management and Law. He is a Distinguished Toastmaster through Toastmasters International and delivers powerful, engaging talks regarding the changing field of human resources. George is a Texas native and co-author of “Evolved…Engaging People, Enhancing Success”, released in late 2014.

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