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Category Archive: Personal Leadership

One Day At Time

Posted by on April 25, 2017

The Christian life at times can be extremely complicated. We all suffer from the consequences of our bad decisions but sometimes we suffer not because we have done something wrong but as a testimony to the world that God’s grace is indeed sufficient.

I have learned the hard way over the years that the only way to work your way out of one of these black holes of the soul is to discipline yourself to live one day at a time. When you do not know why things have happened and how it is all going to work out it comes down to what can I do right now.

The first practical step in this process is to experience forgiveness for the past. We must first receive it for what we have done wrong and then give it to others who have hurt us and caused pain. We should learn from the past but we cannot live in it.

The second step is to have faith for the future. God is able and He is good so you can rest in the fact that He will meet our needs. All worry and fear will do is to rob us of the spiritual energy we need to live today.

The last and probably most important truth is to embrace His promise of grace for today. Every new day comes with the necessary spiritual power to deal with whatever happens within that twenty-four hour period of time.

If we do not waste that power on unforgiveness for the past or fear of the future then we will be able to live today with eternal perspective. That perspective is that no matter what happens to me in this life that may hurt deeply at the time we win in the end.

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The Incredible Priority Of Personal Development

Posted by on April 19, 2017

I was attending a conference many years ago and heard for the first time this life changing quote, “You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.” I made a commitment on that day to apply this principle in my life.

The people you meet part of this development applies to all of life. There is great wisdom in finding people who know more than you do about your area of expertise or interest and asking them for a meeting so that you can learn all that you can from someone who has already been where you want to go. Every year you should have a list of at least ten new individuals that are successful and willing to invest in your life.

Please do not limit this to your professional life because you can find people everywhere who are great spouses or parents or involved in church and community work. Some of the greatest connections I have ever made were in the normal flow of life because I was always looking for someone who could teach me something.

In the area of reading I have found that for every ten books that I read on a particular subject I will find at least one that will permanently change my life for good. These become the books that you read at least once a year just to remind yourself of all the truths that you need to make sure you are applying in your life.

One of the disciplines I have developed over the years is that I will write the power statements or great quotes on the inside flyleaf of every good book so that I can always go back for a quick review. If you will set a goal of at least one new book a month to start you will be amazed by how much your life will change because as you read your capacity to understand and develop new skills will be exponentially multiplied.

I am sure if this quote were made today it would include some reference to the incredible amount of information on the web. Today you can read blogs and watch videos by some of the greatest communicators on life’s most challenging subjects whenever you want and usually without any cost but your time.

All learning that enhances personal development is an investment in your future that will give you an incredible return on your investment.

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What To Do When You Are Stuck

Posted by on March 17, 2017

When some people face dramatic change, they choose to live in denial as if this is not really happening to me. On the other extreme, others know the change is real to the point of becoming emotionally depressed about their new state of life.

The common sometimes fatal result of both of these mindsets is the paralysis of inactivity. We don’t want to get out of bed, go to work or even talk with anyone.

We must, as Jim Collins said of effective leadership in Good to Great, be willing to confront the brutal facts that sometimes I cannot return to my life the way it used to be.

I must assume personal responsibility to change myself first and start leading myself by making good daily decisions before my life can begin to turn around in different direction. The only way to do that is to do what you can with what you have right where you are and do it today with all your heart.

Change always produces movement. If we let it, this movement can be downward and very destructive. The only way to stop this negative cycle is to start doing the simple things that you are able to do right now that will allow you to accomplish something good today.

You must get on offense and use the power of the momentum produced by activity to turn your life in a new positive direction. You must take some risk today by raising your sails and doing the clear things you know need to be done before you can ever feel the movement produced by the wind taking you to a better place.

Categories: Personal Leadership Productivity | Comments Off on What To Do When You Are Stuck

Principle vs. Precept

Posted by on February 26, 2017

Any good dictionary will help you know the difference between these two important words. A precept is a commandment or direction given as a rule of action or conduct. On the other hand, a principle is a primary truth from which other truths are derived.

In Christian speak, a precept is black ink on white paper where someone quotes you chapter and verse with the understanding that there is one and only one meaning of this truth. Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ period, end of conversation.

To be sure we as churches have beaten unbelievers over the head with our precepts to the point they are totally turned off to the gospel. I am not talking about watering down the truth but when people do still walk into our buildings they just want to know is there any good news for my life today?

On the other side of this issue, many Christians can spiritually rationalize their behavior because they cannot find a clear precept that prohibits certain behavior on their part. Obviously the New Testament was written in the first century so the writers did not cover the part about staying away from internet pornography.

Eating meat offered to idols was a big deal in the first century so the principle of deference was taught to make sure a Christian did not offend a weaker brother or an unbeliever with their behavior. Today there are many contemporary issues that will never be addressed by precepts but the principles that are taught in scripture still apply.

If you have any doubts just use I Corinthians 10:31 as your guide, “therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Just always remember, everything that is for His glory is also for your good.

Categories: Personal Leadership Spiritual Growth | Comments Off on Principle vs. Precept

How To Reach Your Potential

Posted by on February 23, 2017

From a personal standpoint one of the things I love doing is hiking. A hiker is somewhere between a camper and an adventure racer.

One of the great advantages of living in the Atlanta area for ten years is the close proximity to the Appalachian trail in the north Georgia mountains.

My favorite hiking story is about a great one day hike in the Alps. If you start early in the morning you can reach the summit and get back to the car before dark.

About half way up the mountain is this incredibly beautiful rest house where everyone eats a great lunch. The owner of the rest house has noticed an interesting pattern over the years. When everyone reaches the rest house they are all excited about reaching their goal of the summit.

They warm themselves by the fire and about half way through lunch somebody inevitably speaks out what many people are thinking. Ii think I will just stay here while you finish the climb and you can pick me up on the way back down. At that moment everyone must the make decision to stay or go.

For all those who stay the first few hours are incredible. They sit by the fire and tell mountain climbing stories about other great mountain climbers from the past. They may even reminisce about some of their great climbing experiences in the past.

By early afternoon the mood dramatically changes in the room and everyone becomes silent. One by one they make their way over to this huge window in the back of the lodge and they stand there and stare at the summit.

For you see it is at this painful moment that they realize they have settled for second best in their lives.

Someone has well said, “The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it.”

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The Self Leadership Secrets Of Extreme Athletes

Posted by on January 9, 2017

I am convinced that the greatest leadership challenge you will ever face is the ability to consistently lead yourself. Leadership theory several years ago would stress identifying your weaknesses and then work on them until they are significantly improved. Today even though you must be competent in every area, the emphasis is upon knowing what you do extremely well and maximizing that. This post by Michael Hyatt has some practical tips:

“Sometimes leading a business can feel like running a marathon. That’s especially true when our goals seem ambitious, daunting, and a long way off. What could the sport of running teach us about reaching the finish line?”

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Change Your Calendar, Change Your Life

Posted by on December 9, 2016

There are two indicators that don’t lie about what our true priorities are in life, calendars and checkbooks. We have a tremendous amount of leadership responsibility over both areas. Many times our schedules are driven by others but for most of us we waste a tremendous amount of time doing the wrong things. This post by Shani Harmon was spot on:

“Many people treat their calendar the same way – as a picture of what is often a very sad reality. Days either booked back-to-back with meetings or hacked into pieces by a scattering of appointments throughout. No time reserved for mental breaks, much less uninterrupted stretches for thinking and creating.”

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7 Steps To Help You Improve Your Life

Posted by on November 9, 2016

That time is coming when we evaluate where we are in life and start to make promises that we may never keep. This whole discipline of personal leadership should be a twelve month a year process and not a once a year time of reflection. So let’s apply this post by Frances Bridges and create something lasting:

“The end of the year is near, and come the end of December/beginning of January there will be a deluge of articles and blog posts about the best New Year’s resolutions and the best strategies to achieve them. The beginning of the year is a convenient starting point chronologically, but the best time to set new goals and create a plan to accomplish them is now.”

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9 Signs You Have No Work Life Balance

Posted by on November 2, 2016

As I spend a significant amount of time coaching executives, this subject is on the list for areas needing improvement for every person I help. The sheer volume of professional responsibilities force us to either establish personal priorities or feel like failures at home. This post by Rachel Ritlop is spot on:

“Working a 9-5 is a major adjustment in your early twenties, and as you grow into your late twenties it can be difficult to know if what you’re experiencing is just the “daily grind” or a total lack of work-life balance that’s adding to your overall stress levels.

Here are nine signs you have lost control of your work-life balance and some tips to rectify it :

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Finding Real Success In Life

Posted by on October 28, 2016

We owe a great deal to several authors who have written excellent books on how to move from success as the primary goal in your life to real significance. Probably the book Half Time by Bob Buford has made the most life changing impact with people who have worked very hard to be professionally successful in the corporate world only to find their personal life lacked real purpose and meaning.

Significance moves way beyond profits as a definition of success to people and how is my life adding value to others. Success many times is simply about what do we get at the end of the day, while significance is about what are we willing to give away to make a difference.

If you want to have an eternal impact on the people who are a part of your life you must move beyond significance to surrender. When you live a total life of surrender your definition of success is totally determined by the One you are following. This definition alone will give you true significance as He uses your life story to impact other people in ways that will permanently change them for their good.

This means that we must die to the world’s definitions of success as the accumulation of power, position and pleasure and conform our expectations to His perfect will for our lives. This may include the ability to make a lot of money and have great positions of leadership responsibility.

A surrendered life is one that is lived in total partnership, so that He can use us as He sees best to change the world one person at a time starting with us. There can be no greater definition of success and significance in this life.

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