Boundaries Should be Used to Grow not to Contain

Boundaries are found everywhere and serve a multitude of purposes. When you think of boundaries what comes to mind?

• Communication - city limit and property lines
• Privacy - privacy and security fences
• Contain - A fence to keep in pets, small kids or cattle
• Relationships - Avoid talking about politics or religion
• Prevention - Control plans and process routes
• Protection - lagoons and high voltage areas

What is interesting is how people react to boundaries. As a child you seek boundaries. As a teen you test boundaries. As a college kid there are no boundaries. As a young adult, you once again seek boundaries for comfort and understanding. In the workplace you seek job descriptions and expectations for clarity in your role and those of others.

Using Boundaries to Engage
But what if you didn’t? What if there were no boundaries or constraints? Only engagement.

When I was reflecting on the word “engage” 3 things came to mind: 1) Engage the enemy 2) Put into gear and move forward 3) create a relationship or commitment. In all of these cases, you are moved to action with purpose.

Facing Boundaries
At work, you are faced with boundaries when a process is owned by another organization. If that process impacts your work or team, how do you respond? Do you stare at the boundary and complain to others? Accept it and walk away? Look at the boundary and say “not my job”? Or do you engage the owners of the process and explain the impact on your role? You must engage or move to action with purpose so that the process is not a boundary but a shared process

When there is a tree overhanging the property line, do you say it’s not my property or do you engage the neighbor to find a solution to trim the limbs? When you see a teammate is hurting, do you say, I’m not crossing that boundary between work and personal or do you reach out and engage them as a human and let them know you are there for them?

Boundaries have their purpose and have recognizable value in the basics of relationships. In every case, a boundary serves as a way to separate or segregate. But as we grow, boundaries become opportunities for engagement with others to expand our understanding and influence. So ultimately, boundaries do not limit us but instead expand us to a potential that exists Beyond Today.

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