Being a Self from the Middle: Differentiation, Hierarchy, and the Work Environment 
Rev. Robert Abram
Defining a self is a lifelong undertaking. In the workplace, this process presents unique challenges—including how one may think about self within a hierarchy. This presentation considers the benefits, pitfalls, and challenges of what it means to define a self “from the middle”: when accountability to a superior, and oversight of those lower in rank in the organization, are a reality of one’s work environment. 

Rev. Robert A. (Bob) Abrams serves as Assistant to the Bishop of the Southern Ohio Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, having been ordained after sixteen years of legal practice focusing on litigation. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Ohio Wesleyan University, a Juris Doctor from The Ohio State University College of Law, and a Master of Divinity from Trinity Lutheran Seminary. He is a graduate of the Natural Systems Academy of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has completed two years of the Postgraduate Program at the Bowen Center, and remains in supervision with Bowen faculty.