At this stage in late autumn, most deciduous trees have lost their leaves and are preparing for winter. It signifies the season and nature’s way of protecting the tree itself. Losing the leaves minimizes the destruction from heavy snow loads causing large limbs or even whole trees to collapse under the weight that trees would amass.
The barren structures reveal an intricate network of branches and trunks. The solid foundation, with significant structural components from the base, branches out to a network of more limbs and twigs. Yet all emanate from a single firm base. This time of the year, it becomes evident how finely crafted and necessary this interconnection is to produce the magnificence of the tree we enjoy each day. And stripped of its colorful cloak, there is beauty.
The bareness reveals both inner splendor and majesty. We expose our core when we strip away the leaves that cover us. If the values at the foundation are not strong, how can we expect that the branches, limbs, and twigs will grow with certainty to produce a strong tree? As with trees, we reveal the weaknesses, and when the base is unsteady, the tree becomes that, and in time will be the eventual demise.
As individuals and organizations, what do we reveal when we are stripped bare to the foundation? We expose our values and, in organizations, reveal our culture. The strength in the core is what is the power in the whole. And regardless of the foliage, we place around us, the trunk is ever-present.
