win-win!
Relational health does not happen outside a win-win situation, but it thrives in an environment of mutual benefit. Just as physical health empowers people to achieve and enjoy things they could not if they were not healthy, relational health also enables people to take their interactions with others to a new level. When both people are free to be who they are, they are safe and secure. That gives both of them the freedom to grow and the power to experience, accomplish, and together enjoy things they could never do on their own.
B EYOND W IN -W IN
Think about advertisements you’ve seen for amazing new products. Often, near the end of the pitch, an announcer says, “But wait! There’s more!” He goes on to promise that if you order right now, you can get two products for the price of one, plus some extra little gadget guaranteed to help you in some way.
I have written about the necessity of win-win relationships and the advantages that can result from them, but I need to say, “Wait! There’s more!” You see, some relationships bring “double bonuses” into our lives. These are not inexpensive or gimmicky things, like certain products on TV. These are rare treasures that go beyond win-win and offer even more than mutual benefits do. These are the relationships that maximize our lives. They provide to both our friends and to us an unspeakably powerful and valuable dynamic called synergy.
Before I define synergy , let me say that I believe it was the key to the greatness of the Dream Team; they moved beyond win-win and into synergy. Simply put, synergy means people, groups, or things come together to produce something greater than any of them could ever produce alone. Synergy is much greater than the combination of their abilities; it is win-win in every way, exponentially . Synergy is to relationships what multiplication is to mathematics. While 10 plus 10 equals 20, 10 times 10 equals 100.
Relationships that bring synergy to your life will not only be win-win for you, they will add exponential value to you. They will multiply your potential and your impact so your abilities, plans, natural gifts, skills, and everything about your life functions at its optimum.
T HE O NLY A TMOSPHERE FOR S YNERGY
At the dawn of biblical history, God established an unwavering and vital truth: “It is not good that man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18 NKJV ). This was true for Adam, it has been true for every human being who has lived since Adam, and it remains true for you and me today. In this verse, God committed Himself to make Adam a helper and companion, so He created Eve. I believe God’s message to us through this story is, as it was to Adam, “You cannot do it alone.” Adam could have easily done what so many of us do, saying, “I am strong; I am smart; I know what’s best. I really do not need any help. I’d rather just do it myself.” But God knew that an independent attitude was not good, so He put Adam into an interdependent relationship from the start, letting Adam know that he needed Eve and she needed him. They were to exist in a mutually beneficial, synergistic relationship with each other in the context of shared dependence on God.
In Genesis 1:27 we read: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” ( NKJV ). Immediately, the first thing God said to these two people in the first relationship on earth was: “Be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:28 NKJV ). We do not ever see the terms win-win or synergy in Scripture, but here in the Bible’s first chapter, the principle is clearly established. God knew mutual benefit and multiplication could only happen in the context of relationship.
Every living being is designed to grow and thrive. Left to grow and increase by ourselves, the process is laborious and lonely, and the results are often unimpressive. But within right relationships lies an immeasurable amount of accelerated energy
Relational health does not happen outside a win-win situation, but it thrives in an environment of mutual benefit. Just as physical health empowers people to achieve and enjoy things they could not if they were not healthy, relational health also enables people to take their interactions with others to a new level. When both people are free to be who they are, they are safe and secure. That gives both of them the freedom to grow and the power to experience, accomplish, and together enjoy things they could never do on their own.
B EYOND W IN -W IN
Think about advertisements you’ve seen for amazing new products. Often, near the end of the pitch, an announcer says, “But wait! There’s more!” He goes on to promise that if you order right now, you can get two products for the price of one, plus some extra little gadget guaranteed to help you in some way.
I have written about the necessity of win-win relationships and the advantages that can result from them, but I need to say, “Wait! There’s more!” You see, some relationships bring “double bonuses” into our lives. These are not inexpensive or gimmicky things, like certain products on TV. These are rare treasures that go beyond win-win and offer even more than mutual benefits do. These are the relationships that maximize our lives. They provide to both our friends and to us an unspeakably powerful and valuable dynamic called synergy.
Before I define synergy , let me say that I believe it was the key to the greatness of the Dream Team; they moved beyond win-win and into synergy. Simply put, synergy means people, groups, or things come together to produce something greater than any of them could ever produce alone. Synergy is much greater than the combination of their abilities; it is win-win in every way, exponentially . Synergy is to relationships what multiplication is to mathematics. While 10 plus 10 equals 20, 10 times 10 equals 100.
Relationships that bring synergy to your life will not only be win-win for you, they will add exponential value to you. They will multiply your potential and your impact so your abilities, plans, natural gifts, skills, and everything about your life functions at its optimum.
T HE O NLY A TMOSPHERE FOR S YNERGY
At the dawn of biblical history, God established an unwavering and vital truth: “It is not good that man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18 NKJV ). This was true for Adam, it has been true for every human being who has lived since Adam, and it remains true for you and me today. In this verse, God committed Himself to make Adam a helper and companion, so He created Eve. I believe God’s message to us through this story is, as it was to Adam, “You cannot do it alone.” Adam could have easily done what so many of us do, saying, “I am strong; I am smart; I know what’s best. I really do not need any help. I’d rather just do it myself.” But God knew that an independent attitude was not good, so He put Adam into an interdependent relationship from the start, letting Adam know that he needed Eve and she needed him. They were to exist in a mutually beneficial, synergistic relationship with each other in the context of shared dependence on God.
In Genesis 1:27 we read: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” ( NKJV ). Immediately, the first thing God said to these two people in the first relationship on earth was: “Be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:28 NKJV ). We do not ever see the terms win-win or synergy in Scripture, but here in the Bible’s first chapter, the principle is clearly established. God knew mutual benefit and multiplication could only happen in the context of relationship.
Every living being is designed to grow and thrive. Left to grow and increase by ourselves, the process is laborious and lonely, and the results are often unimpressive. But within right relationships lies an immeasurable amount of accelerated energy
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