Only Human

This week, Kobe Bryant yelled a homophobic slur at a referee. He was fined and shamed, as he should have been for saying what he said. In his comments after the incident, he noted that "the concern that I have is for those that follow what I say and ... look to me as a role model." Kobe is used to living in the spotlight, where people pay more attention to his actions and expect him to be above reproach to a certain extent. It seems like almost every couple of weeks, another public figure is caught doing something that they shouldn't be doing. Sometimes, it's easy to forget that they are just human. I'm not making excuses for what Kobe or anyone else has done. Nor am I saying that they shouldn't be subject to high standards given the tendency for others, especially young people, to look up to such public figures. But really, they are, after all, human. All too often, I think we forget that our bosses and coworkers are also human in one of two ways. In the first way, we set super-human expectations for them and are disappointed when they don't live up to those expectations. It's important to realize that the people around us make mistakes. Your boss is going to make mistakes. When he or she does, it's important to understand that this person is just someone else in need of a Savior. In the second way, we see the people around us almost as uncaring robots, who interact with us but are devoid of feelings and needs. This is dangerous because it gives us a false loophole in the command to love others: Jesus tells us to love other people, but maybe our coworkers and bosses don't count. The reality is that we're all only human. We make mistakes. Your boss makes mistakes. Your coworkers make mistakes. Your subordinates, your clients, your venders, they all make mistakes. Rather than expecting someone to be perfect, look for ways that you can show love to people in spite of their shortcomings. God did that for you.