Good Advice: Make the Boss Look Great

 Many years ago, someone gave me a piece of very good advice: “The trick to success in the working-world is not to make yourself look good–it is to make your boss look great.” When you make the boss look great you become an invaluable asset to him/her. I’m not talking about flattering the boss and making them “feel good” so they grant you favors. Instead, you focus on the supervisor’s goals and tasks and find ways to make him or her more successful (careful not to take the acclaim for yourself).

This worked like magic for me in several jobs. Bosses loved me, not just because I did my job, but because I made them look good in the process. It helped me rise above other employees who focused only on their own interests.

Now, as a writer I am considered self-employed. But there’s a twist (we writers love twists). As a Christian writer, I consider God to be my boss. 

In our worship service this past Sunday, our talented worship team led the congregation in the song “From the Inside Out.” It talks about the struggle in giving God control over our lives. A few of the lines struck me as very poignant.

Your will above all else, my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing You praise

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame

...And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise

Normally, I think of “bringing praise” as when I tell God how wonderful I think He is. But now I stumbled over those words, “BRING You praise.” What does it mean to bring Him praise?

Could it be more like that old piece of advice? Our job as Christians is not to make ourselves look good (that’s pretty tough), but to make our boss look great–to bring HIM praise. Not just our praise, but those who view our lives. We cannot add anything to God’s majesty and we do not earn His grace through our actions. But, we can make it our life’s goal–the cry of our heart–to bring Him the praise.

It’s time to make our boss look great. We know there’s no one greater.