Corporatology 004: Ceilings Made of Courtesy - Part II

Leadership, loss, and staying human

“Adversity introduces us to ourselves.” — Albert Einstein

And Yet... I still believe.

After all the rules I broke, I expected emptiness.
It's all my fault, I should've been more this or that or whatever or moremoremore
No doubt, it was jarring to stand in a field of dry bones when I was once oh-so-important.

Corporate America has rules that deserve a standing ovation when they’re broken.
Glass ceilings. Silence. Misogyny. Discrimination. Pay disparity.
Courtesy that keeps people small.

All of heaven rejoices when the captive is set free.

But not everything I pushed against was a cage.

Some of what I held—what I refused to loosen my grip on—wasn’t control or compliance.
It was Truth.
Policy.
Accountability.
The Basics We Learned in Kindergarten.
The kind of guardrails that keep people safe when power gets sloppy.

Break the rules that cage people.
Keep the ones that keep them safe.

So, as promised, I present to you: The rules I believe in, as it were.

1. The Rule of Accountability

“Just get it done.”

No.
Do it right.
Tell the truth about it.
Own what’s yours. Fix what you break. Make it repeatable.

Accountability isn’t punishment — it’s adulthood.
It’s how teams trust each other.
It’s how systems don’t collapse under pressure.

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.” — Luke 16:10

Trust is built in the honest work.

2. The Rule of Guardrails

“Use your judgment.”

Yes — but not alone.

Policy exists so power has limits.
This far. No more.
Not to control people, but to protect them.

When policy disappears, ethics get improvised —
and someone always pays for it.

“Let your ‘Yes’ be yes, and your ‘No,’ no.” — Matthew 5:37

Clear lines save everyone time, pain, and regret.

3. The Rule of Humanity

“It’s just the business perspective.”

It never is.
People are not collateral.
Not expendable. Not acceptable losses.

Money matters. Outcomes matter.
But not without heart.

“What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” — Mark 8:36

If success costs our humanity, it costs too much.

4. The Rule of Strong Grace

“Be compassionate.”

Always.
But compassion without justice isn’t grace — it’s avoidance.

When policy is violated, accountability follows.
Not to punish — to protect.
Not to shame — to restore order.

“The Lord is compassionate and gracious… yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished.” — Exodus 34:6–7

Strong grace tells the truth and stays present anyway.

5. The Rule of Proximity

“Lead from the top.”

Nah, I prefer the middle —
in the trenches, in the work, in the mess.

Not the head of the table.
Any chair will do.

“Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.” — Matthew 20:26

Authority earns trust by showing up.

6. The Rule of Truth

“Read the room.”

Then tell the truth.

No spin. No politics. Transparency.
No performing agreement to stay safe.

“Speak the truth to one another.” — Zechariah 8:16

Clarity costs less than pretense — every time.

"Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind. Soft talk is not clarity.”
— Brené Brown

7. The Rule Beneath All the Others

“Have a backup plan.”

I did.
And then I didn’t.

When the title fell away.
When the badge stopped working.
When there was nothing left to protect—

Jesus stayed.

“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.” — Lamentations 3:24

Not as strategy.
As shelter.

Jesus is the Plan A, Plan B, Backup Plan, Strategic Plan, 5-Year Plan, Longterm Plan, Still Standing Plan.

Stay There

If you’re standing at a line you don’t want to cross, stay there.
If telling the truth might cost you, tell it anyway.

The hard, right things rarely come with applause.
Sometimes they don’t even look like success.

But they leave you intact.
And faithful.

And that — quietly, steadily — is how a life worth living is built. 🤍

“The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.” — Proverbs 11:3