by | Life Application
photo credit: jasoneppink (creative commons)
I have been soaking up Dave Ramsey’s new book EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches
. From someone who has an entrepeneur’s heart along with the heart of a leader, I haven’t been able to get my nose out of it.
Last night I was reading about unity. Whether you are interested in business or not, unit is something that we all need to learn about. Heaven knows I’ve struggled with being unified. Especially with EGR (Extra Grace Required) people. It can be hard to unify yourself with others when you don’t trust them or believe in their ideas.
Ramsey says of unity,
“People don’t naturally unify; they must be led to do so.
I agree. If you’re a leader, are you going in the direction of creating unity in your company? If you are an employee are you doing your part to keep unity with your team members?
Ramsey gives Five Enemies of Unity in the book that I wanted to share with you.
- Poor Communication – A team is only a team by definition when they are unified, they are on the same page. If you want a fabulously unified team and all the good stuff that brings, you will have to work unbelievably hard to create and maintain high levels of communication.
- Lack of Shared Purpose – Shared goals create unity. There is no unity where there isn’t a common goal, a common mission, a common vision, flowing from a common dream.
- Gossip – Hand your negatives up and your positives down. Otherwise it starts to sound a lot like gossip.
Here’s what I have learned about gossip: if you are not part of the problem or part of the solution, then you are part of gossip. Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Small minds talk about people, mediocre minds talk about events, and great minds talk about ideas.”
- Unresolved Disagreements – These paralyze people. They remain unsolved when the EntreLeader doesn’t know they exist. Teach your team to either resolve conflict or openly talk about it with leadership so they can get some help solving the problem.
- Sanctioned Incompetence – Team members will often take their direction from the way you treat other team members. When a team member is incompetent, for whatever reason, and leadership won’t act, the good team embers become demoralized.
We have all been a part of this list of enemies at one time or another, whether in a leadership role or being led by others. Perhaps we should print these bullet points out and place them at our workplace. We don’t even have to let others know the list is there; we can simply use it to remind ourselves of what not to do.
Perhaps if we fight against these five enemies, others will pay attention to it. We are all leaders in one sense. We’re either teaching people what to do, or what no to do.
Pick up Dave Ramsey’s newly released book, EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches. I think you’ll enjoy it.
How have you dealt with these five enemies in any given situation? Be as specific as you would like. Comment below…
by | Life Application
I am still trying to regroup from my experiences at the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta this past weekend. So many speakers. So much truth. So many people. Wow!
Today I want to share some great teaching from Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, with you.
After doing extensive research for his latest book, Great by Choice: Uncertainty, Chaos, and Luck–Why Some Thrive Despite Them All
, he shared what separates great leaders from good leaders, and what separates good decisions from bad decisions.
He answered the question I’m sure many of us have had at some time in our lives:
What distinguishes those characters who achieve greatness in leadership?
What do you think the answer is?
It’s not personality..
It’s not charisma…
It’s humility…
Humility is the essence of leadership.
I couldn’t agree more. I’m learning that leading is about letting our mistakes be known to others around us. Not only so that we can grow from them, but so others can as well.
Collins says, “The only mistakes you learn from are the ones you survive.”
However, humbling ourselves isn’t the only thing we must do to achieve greatness. Greatness requires:
- Fanatical Discipline – The greater the chaos, the more discipline required.
- Empirical Creativity – The world needs us to creatively solve major problems.
- Productive Paranoia – Instead of having fear, we have ask, “What if?” We have to be prepared for the things we can’t predict.
He asked this question as he closed the session:
How do we make ourselves useful in uncertain times?
How are you making yourself useful? Comment below…
by | Faith Lived Out, Life Application
If someone were to ask you today if you were satisfied with your prayer life, what would you say? Yes? No? Maybe? I guess?
So…
I’m asking you, are you satisfied with your prayer life? Perhaps you want to learn more. I know I certainly want to learn more about the power of prayer and how to apply it to my life.
That’s why I’m happy to announce the launch of a new online Bible Study, hosted by me and my fabulous friend Jennifer White. We recently finished hosting The 4:8 Principle Bible Study and it was amazing! Lives were changed. Relationships were restored. Forgiveness took place. Attitudes changed.
I can’t wait to see what God does in this next study.
Want to know the cool part?
Jennifer and I are actually co-hosts, as Jennifer Kennedy Dean, the author of Live a Praying Life: Open Your Life to God’s Power and Provision
, has agreed to join us in hosting the Bible Study. Exciting!
Dean’s book will make it easy to understand prayer—its purpose, process, practice, and promise as they look at prayer through God’s view—His Word.
If you want more detailed information on the study and what the book is about head on over to Jennifer’s recent post and check it out.
Here are the basics:
- Starts Monday, October 10th and goes for 13 weeks.
- Live a Praying Life Bible Study Group on Facebook (click the link and ask to be added). Jennifer, myself, or the author will post assignments, invite you to share from certain parts of the lesson, and more. Our posts will be viewed only by those in the private/closed group. Interaction is welcome, but not required.
There’s still time to order your book. This is a study you don’t want to miss. Get it here today!
Tell your freinds about it and invite them here to learn more.
Is there another Bible Study you recommend that would be great for our next study? Comment below…
by | Life Application
Today is the final day of the Restoration series. Thank you for following me as I have processed truth, emotions, and more truth with you through this blog.
If you’re just joining, you can get caught up here:
The Beginning of Restoration
She Really Answered – Part Two of the Restoration Series
Finally We Meet – Part Three of the Restoration Series
Necessary Memories Exposed – Part Four of the Restoration Series
Saying Goodbye to Denial – Part Five of the Restoration Series
Addiction is just a symptom of a deeper problem.
My dad chose to avoid the deeper problems. It killed him.
I don’t think I really absorbed what I had learned. As a matter of fact, there are moments I am still not sure I have absorbed it. I know God is going to use this truth for bigger things and I just have to continue to trust Him. It’s all a process.
Julie and I continued to talk. We went back and forth from happy memories to sad. We laughed. I think we both wanted to cry, but didn’t.
I sat across from a woman whom I used to hate. When I heard her name I cringed. When I thought of her, my face turned bright red and anger ate away at me. Not that day. There was no anger. There was no resentment. We talked about faith, Jesus, love, anger, sadness, and forgiveness.
“I really want to continue to have a relationship with you,” I said. “I want to ask your forgiveness for anything I’ve ever done to hurt you.”
Her feeling was mutual. Forgiveness was in the air.
One point Jesus! Zero for Satan.
Four hours had passed and we had deeper conversation, filled with more love than we had ever had in our previous time together. It was real. It was straight from the heart. Fear was gone. Safety took its place. God was truly putting pieces of the restoration puzzle together.
It was time for me to go.
Before I left I asked her if I could pray with her. It took me 10 minutes to have the courage enough to do that. She said yes. There we sat, holding hands, putting years of bitterness behind us, as God got the glory for the restoration in our relationship.
“I’ve always loved you,” she said. “I always will.”
“I love you too.”
On the 3 hour journey back home, I was trying to wrap my mind around all that had happened. What started as a simple phone call to say hello turned into a 4 hour truth and forgiveness session. My cup was full. Not only had I left there with a restored friendship, but I left with a new love in my heart for a woman I had shared many years of my life with.
I look forward to the years we will share down the road. The memories. I look forward to her being at my wedding. Taking part in my graduation ceremony from college. Being there when my first book is published.
Today I thank God for heart changes. I thank God for truth, even if it hurts. I thank God for second chances. I thank Him for restoration.
What relationship do you need to start restoring? Comment below…
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by | Life Application
photo credit: flickr (creative commons)
Today is part five of the Restoration series. If you are just now tuning in, you can get caught up here:
The Beginning of Restoration
She Really Answered – Part Two of the Restoration Series
Finally We Meet – Part Three of the Restoration Series
Necessary Memories Exposed – Part Four of the Restoration Series
I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t say anything. I just nodded my head and continued to listen. My heart was dying inside and I was trying everything I could to pretend like I hadn’t heard what she was saying.
If only that would have been the worst of it.
Have you ever known the truth deep inside, but the depth of denial just wouldn’t allow you to let the truth in? I am realizing that I have been in this stage for two years now. This stage of denial is coming to an end and to be honest,
I hate it…
There are some things I want to keep private to honor our conversation, but here is the sum. Though I will never be 100% sure, because only God and my dad know, I am 98.9% sure that my dad didn’t die from cancer. He didn’t die from a bad heart. He didn’t die from the fluid on his lungs. He didn’t die from aspirating.
He died from a drug overdose – a legal drug overdose.
God must have known I didn’t need this truth until now. But it still sucks. It hurts. I’m angry. I’m heartbroken. I’m overwhelmed with truth.
I find myself being so angry with him. He had a second chance at life and he blew it. Again.
He won’t walk me down the aisle at my wedding. He won’t be there to celebrate my first book being published. He won’t be there when I receive my degree. He wasn’t there to see my weight loss. He wasn’t there to see me complete the Table Rock Freedom Center. Why?
Because of an addiction.
Because he never chose to deal with his problems.
Because he chose to die a victim of circumstances.
Because he never took responsibility.
Because in the end, it was still about him, whether he realized it or not.
My dad died a sick man. Sick with cancer. Sick with fluid on his lungs. Sick with a feeding tube in his stomach. My dad was sick with a broken heart that he never tried to heal. It killed him. He used medicine intended to help him. Instead, it took his life.
I know that he loved me. I know that he would never want to hurt me on purpose. But does that make it easier?
Not necessarily.
Do you know what I have left of my dad? A few pictures, a fishing pole, some marble collectibles, and many memories surrounded by addiction that I would like to forget.
Joyce Meyer says, “Hurting people hurt people.” She’s right.
My own addictions hurt people deeply. More than just me.
If you are struggling right now, with whatever it is, please read this blog again. Make it sink in. Play the movie out. What will happen in the end?
Addiction is just a symptom of a deeper problem.
My dad chose to avoid the deeper problems. It killed him. What will you choose to do today?
To be continued…
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