Putting Lipstick on a Pig
Note: Before anyone gets too political and/or social work advocate-like, please know this title is not intended to slur or oppress the swine community, but rather is supposed to be funny (emphasis on “supposed to be”). We recognize: 1. That Every Pig Matters 2. That today they will help us make our point, and 3. That they can smell mighty yummy sizzling in a pan.
Let me set the stage here. Our office space needed some cosmetic improvement- not a full face lift but more of a nip and tuck and a can we “look a little less fat” in this dress - type stuff. So I’m standing in the room with a very competent professional contractor displaying our problem area - he eyes the space and readily agrees that, yep, this “gotta be fixed.” So, because he’s the perfect type of contractor who takes pride in his work he explains how they will prep and refine and polish and perfect the job. This will cost 42 zillion 352 dollars and 14 cents. I explain that as a non-profit we can cover the 14 cents and then I change his plan to something akin to, “Let’s just cover it up.” His forehead furrows and his eyes silently say “Are you crazy, lady,” but his mouth says - “yeeeeeees, we COULD do that but then underneath it will be uneven and….” he says more words that I don’t listen to because he’s right and I know he’s right and I’m constructing my next sentence which will explain to him why I’m intentionally making this poor decision.
So he finishes and I say, “ You are right. I know you are right. And here’s why I’m making this poor decision. We need this to “look” better because when people first walk in and it looks shoddy in this way there is an unconscious element that makes them feel …” and at this point I can tell he’s no longer listening to MY words because he’s now constructing HIS next sentence. But I forged ahead with my blathering because I do so like to talk and I end with something like, “In this case, it’s okay for this to simply be ‘good enough.’ This doesn’t have to be perfect. Let’s just put some lipstick on this pig.”
Okay - upon the saying of that - I come to my senses. I have been in the offices of Everybody Matters for over a decade and I have never heard nor spoken words like “it’s okay to just be good enough.” Instead, much like this professional contractor who takes pride in his work, within these walls I’ve talked about how we will prep and refine and polish and perfect the work we do. Then rinse and repeat.
We’ve already shared with you how the program evaluations by both the University of Wyoming and the University of Kansas have documented our efficacy, and you don’t get results like that by accepting “good enough,” or “phoning it in” or “resting on your laurels” or for the love of Pete, “putting lipstick on a pig.”
So, as we launch into our 12th year and welcome a fresh batch of interns next week, they will walk into an office that looks 14 cents worth of “better physically” but continues to be pretty darn close to 100% intellectually, ideologically, ethically, compassionately, professionally, and of course humorously. We have no metaphorical professional pig to be sprucing up here, but there is a slight hint of fresh paint and new carpet.
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