Success: To laugh often and much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends, to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded!
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
I had the opportunity to hang out with my man Coach Christ Hogan from Gainesville Faith Academy (Gainesville, TX). Last night we were both guests on TBN’s Praise The Lord Program. I love his heart and this story. What’s happening at Gainesville Faith Academy through his leadership is special and not just because of the video above.
Another example of how it’s the small things in life that matter. It also poses a great question: “What are we doing to make a difference in the lives of others?” This video was very touching to me, I used to be the Warden of a facility just like the one featured in this video.
Share your thoughts on the video, the story, the potential and examples of what we can do to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
Often times our life stories and the various chapters of our life stories are written based upon the questions that we ask ourselves. Some people may be reading this an wonder what in the world I’m talking about.
The reality for most of us, is that we participate in self-talk and ask ourselves questions all of the time. Can I Do This? If I do this, what will happen? Do I have what it takes? Will I ever…?
We have to change the way we think and begin to ask new questions:
Instead of asking: Where will I be in 5 years?
Ask: Where will I be next month or next quarter? The answer to those questions will pave the way for where you will be in 5 years.
Instead of asking: If I do so and so, will I make so and so happy?
Ask: If I do so and so with a great attitude, great effort and with integrity will it make God happy?
Instead of asking: What if I try to stop the sin or break the habit and I’m unsuccessful?
Ask: What if I try to stop the sin or break the habit and I succeed?
Instead of asking: How can I make myself look good?
Ask: How can I make others look good?
Instead of asking: What if I’m wrong?
Ask: What if I’m right?
Instead of asking: Why am I not getting the opportunities and promotions?
Ask: What can I do to get better?
Instead of asking: What does so and so think and say about me?
Ask: What does God think and say about me?
Instead of asking: What if I fail?
Ask: What if I don’t fail?
Do you need to ask some new questions? Do you think the questions that we ask ourselves, affect our life stories?
The term “Leader” carries a great deal of responsibility. Once a person obtains the title of Leader, they also get the bonus baggage of “The bucks stops with you!” No matter how you slice, sugarcoat, twist, manipulate or excuse organizational outcomes; the bottom line is that “It’s All Your Fault!”
Leaders are generally comfortable carrying the “It’s All Your Fault” tag when their team, area or organization is experiencing success. When things take a turn for the worse, wins are hard to come by and “Big Mo” has left the building; the excuses will begin to roll like Alabama. Stop with the excuses, stop blaming your team and look in the mirror, because “It’s All Your Fault!”
Sometimes it may not seem fair for the leader to take all of the blame, as they don’t have control over each and every variable. Leadership is not about fairness, and the responsibility nature is just part of the game. I once had someone ask me if a particular area under my tootelege was successful because of the particular leader leading it or in spite of that particular leader. My answer was absolutely because of that particular leader. If things were failing it wouldn’t be in spite of that particular leader, it’s a two-way street.
DeaLeaders, if your organization is failing, people are leaving, people are not being developed, people are unhappy, leaders are not rising to the top, momentum is long gone and you can’t seem to spell suczcess… “It’s All Your Fault!” If things are great and success is happening, enjoy the season because “It’s All Your Fault!”
There is no need to complain about the outcomes, just embrace the reality. Next time your boss starts complaining and making excuses, simply look them in the eyes and say “It’s All Your Fault!” Remember, just because it’s their fault doesn’t you mean they won’t pull a Donald Trump on you and look you in the eyes and say, “You’re Fired!”
The person who complains about the way the ball bounces, is likely the one who dropped it. ~Lou Holtz
What do you think?
I went back and forth on the title of this post, I was deciding between “Get Your Priorities Straight” and “Your Family Is More Important Than Your Desire To Take Care Of Your Family.” Either way, I’m thinking, feeling and writing the same thing.
It seems like I have been a part of at least 4-5 conversations in the last couple of months with individuals who are struggling with getting their priorities straight and somewhat of a “Where do I go from here?” dilemma. Each and every time the conversations centers around what they are doing professionally, what God has called them to do, the amount of time they are spending with their family, putting people and success over family, putting their job over their marriage and putting their drive for success over their kids etc.
There is always tension in the area of “Getting Our Priorities Straight.” This past weekend while my wife and I were at our son’s track meet in Texas, I received a short e-mail from someone that I don’t know, that made me think about priorities. I’m sure the e-mail is a result of me sharing my kids/family business via social media. The e-mail simply read, “Scott, your care for your children is the bomb! I don’t often see folks so willing to tote their children so many places when they’re involved in in so many extra curricular activities. You’re a great example.”
The crazy thing is I receive random Twitter, Facebook & email notes from people all of the time with some mention of mine or Lakendria’s interaction with our sons. It can be the simplest things, even our weekly barbershop and Sonic run that people make mention of. Those notes always remind me of the simple fact that we have to get our priorities straight. I’m not saying our priorities involve weekly Sonic runs or being involved in lots of extra curricular activities. I am saying that our priorities are this simple:
Everyone has different priorities, it’s important to sit down as a family and figure out what those priorities are. Some people may think our priorities are jacked up, because we spend so much time toting our kids around as the e-mail read. I thank God for the freedom to choose and the freedom to prioritize. My current reality consists of quite a bit of traveling; however those events always run through my priority grid. My 8yo’s piano recital, family vacation, track meets, date nights etc. are more important to me than speaking to thousands of people at a conference.
Sometimes scheduling conflicts will occur; however when I have the ability to choose… I will choose to get my priorities straight.
Share Your Thoughts on Getting Our Priorities Straight?
Most organizations and leaders would love to have “High Capacity” leaders to fill the slots within their organizations. The sometimes overlooked challenge is the fact that with “High Capacity” leaders, comes the need for those leaders to lead at uhh… a “High Capacity” in addition to releasing their creativity.
This will sometimes leave organizations scratching their head and asking the question what do I do with so and so? They are knocking it out of the park, they have an entrepreneurial spirit, their potential is off the charts and they actually have the leadership margin to spread their wings.
Spreading their wings means different things for different leaders, but it boils down to how can I steward their talent/potential and continue to allow them to make a positive impact within the organization. Many times organizations make the decision to do one of two things: 1. Bury that talent and therefore putting a lid on the height of that “High Capacity Leader.” 2. Get rid of that team member because of insecurity or simply not wanting to deal with the challenges these types of leaders bring to the table.
It’s like the Parable of the talents: The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. The one with the two talents gained two more. But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’ “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?Matthew 25:25-26
If your organization, team, staff or business has been blessed with some great talent, Don’t Bury It! There is a new type of harvest to be sown with this “High Capacity” seed.
If you figure out a way to maximize the potential of the “High Capacity” talent that you have been blessed with, you will be rewarded. This may require you getting creative, dreaming BIG, thinking BIGGER and setting some clear expectations; however the potential of the harvest is immeasurable.
Take a look at Google, not only are they ranked the #1 Website, they have also been ranked as fortune magazine’s best place to work. Not only is their work environment ridiculously amazing, they do a great job of not burying their talent. They not only do they recruit and hire “High Capacity” talent, they seek ways to release and empower the creativity.
An example of releasing “High Capacity” talent and creativity, is Google allows employees to spend twenty percent of their time to work on their own project, independent of their workgroup. Google believes that no one should leave in order to pursue their personal passions. Letting employees do this results in over twenty percent of Google’s new product launches has stemmed from these personal projects. There can and should be a marriage between “High Capacity” talent and great organizations; they are not mutually exclusive.
If organizations manage their talent wisely, they may get this response: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ Matthew 25:25
Don’t Bury Your “High Capacity” Talent!
dream BIG. think BIGGER.
Share your thoughts on burying “High Capacity” talent and the Google Strategy.
There has been this on-going argument of Leaders vs. Managers and which category people fall into. After reading countless books and being in a number of leadership roles in the non-profit, corporate, political and ministry sectors I have definitely witnessed the difference between the two.
In it’s simplest form, Leaders Develop Followers and Managers Manage People and Things. Leaders don’t have subordinates, because they are in the business of developing followers and developing other leaders. Managers have subordinates, because with managers it’s all about positional equity and telling “Subordinate Joe or Subordinate Sally” to go make these widgets and make them this way.
A leader on the other hand is not worried about positional equity or formal authority, because they are in the business of creating followers and developing more leaders. Following is a voluntary action and often times managers don’t realize this. The challenge for most managers is they confuse their management with leadership. A great self-assessment question to determine whether you are leading or managing is this:
If my position, title, role and formal authority was removed, would the people that I’m leading gladly follow me? If you can’t answer that question, as those closest to you to give you a candid answer.
Managers tell their subordinates what to do, while leaders develop followers and develop leaders. A manager points and says “Go!” and a leader points and says “Let’s Go!”
What do you think? Share your thoughts on this post and/or your experiences with the difference between managers and leaders.
When someone is struggling, having limited success or not reaching their potential, more times than not they suffer from the “I Can’t Syndrome.” This syndrome usually develops when individuals have been exposed to the “You Can’t Virus.”
This virus is highly contagious, especially when the contact is from friends, family, parents, spouses, supervisors, teachers etc. Often times you will see this virus develop from self inflicted exposure, as individuals begin to buy into the lie of “I Can’t!”
I Can’t Syndrome can be easily cured and it begins with taking a few basic steps and changing a few basic thoughts.
I could go on and on about an individuals need to change the way they think, the need to think positive thoughts, the need to believe in themselves and the need to take what the naysayers have to say with a grain of salt.
The bottom line is this, the “I Can’t Syndrome” has less to do with others and more to do with a self diagnosis. If you think you can’t, chances are that you are probably right. The same is true about believing that you can.
I’d much rather be an optimist who is sometimes wrong, than a pessimist who is always right.
If you or someone that you know suffers from “I Can’t Syndrome” remember the story and motto of The Little Engine That Could. As the Little Engine was faced with the difficult and somewhat impossible task of climbing the hill, it said over and over: “I–think–I–can, I–think–I–can.” As it finally reached the top of the hill after shaking off any symptoms of “I Can’t Syndrome” the Little Engine began congratulating itself by saying, “I thought I could, I thought I could.”
I Can’t Syndrome
Do you or someone that you know suffer from this?
Can You Recognize A Social Media Influencer, When You See Them? Well the obvious answer is yes, absolutely you can. Think of some of your favorite Social Media Influencers, why you choose to follow them and how they influence you personally. Although many of the effective principles are paralleled, leading and influencing in the world of social media can sometimes be more difficult than leading/influencing in a traditional leadership/work settings.
The social media influencer has to lead purely through relational, cause and content equity. There is no positional equity, hierarchical leadership or formal boss. The social media influencer has to answer this daily question for their followers: “Why should I listen to, or follow you?” In other words, what are you providing that makes people want to follow you; especially when there are thousands of others who are only a click away.
Social Media Influence is not simply about the numbers but rather about value. @Oprah has nearly 6 million followers on Twitter, however she wasn’t a social media influencer until recent months. She didn’t start actively tweeting until @MCHammer showed her the value and potential of Twitter when he appeared on her show. He showed her how to extend and leverage her influence to the world of social media. MC Hammer is a big-time social media influencer and even owns several companies that deal with aspects of social media. @Oprah definitely had potential, but so does every single person in the world of Social Media. Remember This – Potential unrealized is just potential. MC Hammer helped Oprah to reach her potential.
On the other hand @revrunwisdom is probably one of the most influential individuals on Twitter. If he’s not the most influential, he’s definitely at the top of any list. He is the most re-tweeted Twitter user of all-time. Why is Rev Run so influential? It’s quite simple, he provides daily value to every single person in his twitter stream. He has found his unique voice, which happens to be sharing consistent daily morsels of wisdom. This is an extension of what he did for years prior to joining Twitter at the end of his TV Show Run’s House. He would close out his show with a quote typed onto his blackberry and end with a “God Is Love… ~Rev Run.”
Actress @Alyssa_Milano is a social media influencer, not because she is an actress but rather because she adds tons of value by sharing relevant content, promoting causes, sharing her life and being herself. Pastor @shaunking is a social media influencer, he started an organization that leverages social media for social good for those in need around the globe. The list of influencers goes on and on…
5 Ways To Be Recognized as A Social Media Influencer:
Ellen DeGeneres or @theellenshow does a great job at all of the above.
Who influences you in the world of Social Media and why? Share your thoughts or other ways to be recognized as a social media influencer.
Pastor Charles Jenkins of Fellowship Church in Chicago gives an amazing and inspirational speech asking God for wisdom and guidance for the City Of Chicago. This speech was delivered at the Mayoral Inauguration for Mayor-Elect Rahm Emanuel.
This speech was well crafted, well delivered and well needed for the City Of Chicago. The even better thing about the speech is the fact that it was delivered by a great man of God, gifted leader and visionary with a true passion for the City Of Chicago. Charles is a great friend of mine and Chicago is blessed to have this young visionary leader in Windy City.
The speech is the 1st 5:13 of the video segment.
Share your thoughts on the speech.
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