In addition to that Philip Gulley has been the pastor of a Quaker Meeting for 23 years. And in that position he's been subjected to 23 annual reviews.
So in this month's column Philip writes about that process and how he decided to give various family members a long overdue review, starting with his wife of 35 years, who did not respond well. So he had to put a note in her permanent file that will now follow her the rest of her life. She did not seem concerned.
Next he reviewed his four year old granddaughter. He discovered her work habits were somewhat checkered and if this carried over to kindergarten she might not get into her college of choice. But she also wasn't concerned and wanted them to play together with her Barbies. But this, however, was problematic because Barbie does not wear underwear. She too (Barbi) got a bad review.
A while back, Scott Maxwell, a popular columnist with The Orlando Sentinel, did his own take on reviews. Several people, in response to an issue he'd taken on, told him he was an a-hole. (Please, not my word and I've cleaned it up.)
So, Scott decided to go home and get an unbiased answer as to whether or not he was an a-hole. His wife and daughter assured him he was not. His teenage son, however, had a different take. Let's just say two out of three isn't bad.
Both Philip and Scott had funny, insightful columns about being evaluated. Here's the reality about reviews for people who write and speak for a living. You are constantly being evaluated. Every piece of work is an audition for the next.
I'm glad that part's over for me.
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