Lady Momentum and the Machine

Momentum must be one fickle female.
One day, hour, moment she can make you feel like the winds' at your back, she's your savior deflector, your soul mate.
And then...?
BLAM!
She shrugs you off, toys with your sense of direction and enables your darkest side.

Lady Mo lives comfortably within the machine.

I have a colleague (who shall remain nameless), hard working and committed to assignment.
Because this person's work historically has cast them in a culture/organizational development light, as facilitator (and keeper) of all things mission, vision, and guiding principles - they have often been misunderstood by those drone elements who can't (or won't) look beyond their spreadsheets or their power walks at the bigger, broader importance of organizational purpose.... the collective priority.

So, one then two and now several (thanks to Lady Mo) are beginning to undervalue these critical priority components and along with this systems devalue they are in turn devaluing the work of my colleague . It is not so funny to see how negative perception (momentum) can catch on like a wildfire, spreading through a workspace or department like no body's business directly caused by children-like adults - playing with misinformation (virtual matches) and standing in some unauthorized kangaroo judgment.

It is damaging.
It is damaging for my colleague (obviously), but is also damaging to every individual within the sphere and most certainly damaging to the organization and the cultural collective.

At a time when public sector budgets are being challenged and re challenged by an economy in total funk - a focused and positive sense of organizational direction (complete with employee buy-in to priorities) should be a critical element to any recipe for healthy machine survival.

Lady Mo isn't interested.
She enjoys the petty interplays.
(and) She plays oh so well on the insecure (and under achieving) minds - the low hanging fruit that they are.

How to reverse this non-productive trend?
At a time when most are closing in, securing hatches and weathering this fiscal storm by looking inward with self-centric motives, the machine (well functioning ones anyway) need all forms of leadership to step forward, continue to share important priority messages and work transparently to develop coordinated consequence for those who continue to allow Lady Momentum to thrive and damage.

The machine survives because of strong channels of communication, open and engaging dialogue and a sense of shared purpose and direction. Without these core elements fully present, this fickle relationship will most certainly continue to break hearts and cultures... within the machine.