More Than Getting Stuff Done

By Nancy Cullen 

At the UU Danbury Board of Trustees retreat, we got to know each other better, especially our two new board members: Annie Senol, who will also serve as Vice President, and Todd Zagorec.

All of us recently read, Serving with Grace: Lay Leadership as a Spiritual Practice, by Erik Walker Wikstrom. This very short book is easy to read more than once. A central concept in it is that how we accomplish things matters as much as what we accomplish. It also advises prioritizing our relationships with one another over ‘getting stuff done’. Work still gets done, but with a different approach. The book suggests that we view our participation on the board as an opportunity to engage our spiritual values and live them out. My lived experience did not prepare me for this, so it has kept my interest. When something ceases to be my own personal agenda, it is more likely to be of greater service to others. I am also reminded of how different the world would be if national leaders considered this sort of thinking.

We also discussed:

• What should the Board do to make UUCD more visible and promote justice in the larger, outside community?
• What should the Board do to ensure that UUCD is sustainable as an organization/institution?
• What should the Board do to make our internal community stronger and more welcoming?

We listed our ideas and will be focusing on them in the year to come. Congregation members and friends are also invited to offer us their own ideas for how we can address these challenges together.

Thanks for reading, if you got this far.