The difference that one person makes

By Jeff Becraft

I talked about this a few years ago, but tagging onto what was written a little over a week ago about working together and the difference that that makes, and in that context… the difference that one person can make.

What we do when we are doing firewood duty at the camp in Arkansas is there are people cutting the wood with chainsaws, then people rolling it over to log splitters, people splitting the wood and then from the log splitters, we have to get a chain of people to work together to get the logs from the log splitter over onto the trailer to then be able to haul them down where the wood burning stoves are. Once there, we stack up the wood into wood piles so that they are easily accessible.

If there were just a few people trying to do this (and the camp only has a few staff to do grounds work), it would be a mammoth amount of work and take a huge amount of time. That is why the camp is so excited when this group rolls in and is working together to accomplish such a great task. We probably do about 85 to 90% of their firewood that they use for the year… in just three days.

There were 25 of us, then there were a handful of camp interns, and then a few staff.  All in all, I would say there were about 32-34 people involved.

But in that firewood line, just one more person can make a big difference. We actually do it like a zipper, so each one of us is facing one another, every other person. That way, you have to turn less. If we are all facing the same direction, when you get the piece of wood, then you have to turn 180 degrees to give it to the next person. But as a zipper, we can easily pass it back and forth. What we are trying to get to is – no wasted motion.

(This is what Dan Marino’s dad said to him as a quarterback in football – no wasted motion.  During his time, Marino went on to set 40 NFL passing records. Even though many of his records have now been surpassed, he was the one who ushered in the era of mammoth yardage and touchdown passes from a quarterback.)

No wasted motion means great efficiency.

If we don’t have enough people in the firewood line, then you actually have to take a step to give the wood to the next person, and like I said, you are making that 180 degree turn to pass it on to them. There was more than once, even in a short firewood line, where we would call out, “Is there anybody else who can get in this line? Can we get another person in this line over here?” Or to have 3 people working the wood splitting station as compared to just two… well, it is an enormous help.

That one person makes all the difference.

It goes from being a lot of work to being a much smoother and quicker operation (not to mention the wear and tear on the workers) and a much more efficient work.

So, if you are ever wondering if your life makes any difference, just listen to those who were out in the Arkansas summer heat with monstrous humidity… one person makes all the difference in the world.

The difference that one person makes…

Jeff Becraft is the Director of Our Place of Hope located in Columbia, South Carolina, where people find encouragement to regain meaning, purpose, and hope for their lives. Jeff has dedicated much of his life to helping shift the vision of people’s lives. If you would like Jeff to speak to your group or event, you can connect with him at  [email protected].