September 1
Thinking Past My Term
Our service term is nearly over. A task can be finished quickly in a way only we understand, or a little more carefully in a way someone else will be able to follow. The difference may be a few notes, an introduction, or an explanation of an arrangement that has always lived in our head. Nobody may notice the extra care now.
Leadership includes some thought for people who will arrive after us. Living one day at a time does not forbid making the next person's work less confusing. We cannot anticipate every change, and our successor may choose a different method. Still, handing over what we know gives them a fair beginning. There is quiet generosity in preparing useful information without insisting that it become permanent instructions. We are helping a responsibility continue beyond our particular way of carrying it.
What would another person need to understand if they took over my responsibility tomorrow?
A few clear notes belong with the handover.
For the A.A. nerds: Twelve Concepts for World Service, Concept IX, discussion of leadership succession and vision.