Big Is The New Small

If I had a dollar for every time that I’ve said these words myself or heard someone else utter the words, “I should have listened to my gut” I would be rich.  Listening to your gut is about responding to the intuitive feeling that’s rumbling inside of your stomach.  It often pertains to decisions, or an overall personal feeling about an individual or situation.

As we draw closer to God, it’s about listening to God’s whispers and being sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Wherever you are and whatever you call this intuitive feeling, start listening.  A good ol’ gut feeling will often times chart the correct path way before our little ol’ minds point the way.

“Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you’re generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don’t make.” ~Donald Trump

Listen To Your Gut!

Share your thoughts and experiences.

Last night I completed my book… Done!  Done is a great feeling.

Thanks for the prayers, encouragement and commitment to pick up a copy when it lands in a bookstore or digital device near you.  Of course done with writing, equates to the beginning of all of the fun stuff with publishing, marketing and getting the word out.

My prayer is that this book will be a tool to help foster the necessary conversations and begin changing the fact that Sunday is The Most Segregated Day Of The Week.

The only feeling that’s as good as being done, is the feeling of just getting started.  Today, I’m experiencing both.

What are you in the process of completing or just getting started?

dream BIG. think BIGGER.

I can’t believe it’s almost here.  The “It” that I’m referring to is the release of my book.  Currently, I’m finishing up all of the final details with the help of the great folks over at New Leaf Publishing Group.  Now it’s time to go ahead and lock down the cover.  My man Kyle over at EIGHTDAY STUDIO came up with some amazing cover comps.  It was really hard to narrow the designs down to the top two or three, nonetheless, that’s where we are.   I would have never thought about a red cover, but that’s what I ended up liking.

HELP ME CHOOSE MY BOOK COVER!  (I’m giving away 5 personalized copies)

I would love for the readers of BigIsTheNewSmall.com to help pick the cover for my book, which is scheduled to release in April.  The rules are quite simple…  Leave a comment and state whether you prefer Cover #1 or Cover #2 and why. We probably won’t be making any changes to the designs, so simply just pick #1 or #2 and your selections/opinions will choose the cover.  If you don’t like either of the covers, that’s fine… Just pick the one that you like best, out of the two.

I will select 5 random comments and give away 5 personalized copies of the book.  Simply leave a comment below and please share this post with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.

Church Diversity Cover #1

Church Diversity Cover #2

Thanks for helping me choose my cover.  For the record, if I don’t agree with your selection, I reserve the right to make an executive decision.

Would you like your picture and maybe comment to be in the book?  Stay tuned for the opportunity to upload your picture to be featured in the book.  (Details Coming Soon)

Thanks in advance… ~Scott

Contrary to the popular belief of Wannabe-Super-People, You Can’t Do It All!  Leaders stop fooling yourself and more importantly stop robbing yourself of the opportunity to lead at an high altitude through delegation and empowerment, because of your desire to want to do everything.   We live in a society that is all about busy, busy, busy and go, go, go.  In the midst of all of our business and going, we must realize that we can’t do it all.

You can’t run every meeting, have every answer, make every appointment, know every detail, be every expert… so stop trying.

This is not only true for leaders in the workplace, but rather parents and people in general.

Albert Einstein once said, “Insanity – is doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results.” If you keep fooling yourself into thinking that you can do it all  – You’re Insane!

That assignment will be there tomorrow, that appointment can be schedule little further out and that meeting is probably not necessary.  Prioritize the things in your personal life and work life and make the necessary adjustments to communicate, “You Can’t Do It All!” Step #1 is that simple acknowledgement and admission of the fact that, “You Can’t do It All!”

Do you suffer from insanity?  Do you try to do it all?

dream BIG. think BIGGER.

#11. Top 11 Posts of 2011

I was recently doing some consulting with a team of sharp ministry leaders.  During the course of our conversation, the discussion of someone being “too young to lead” came up.  This is actually a frequent conversation that I have with leaders.

There are varying opinions on the continuum of being too young and it carries on through all stages of a leaders life.  There are 20 year olds not ready for XYZ position and 40 year olds not ready for ABC executive position.

My thoughts are simple:  It’s the person, experience, capacity, potential and belief in the person that matters — not the age.  The more important question than, “Are they to young to lead?” is the question, “Are you too old, shallow-minded and stuck in your ways?”  that you can’t see that God is raising up King David type leaders at a much earlier age.

Believe in the next generation, open your mind, open your heart, drop your stereotypes and you will have a different perception about being Too Young To Lead.

What do you think?

Yesterday our church kicked off a 21 day fast.  For most participants, it will be the Daniel Fast.  Last year was the first year to do this as an entire church family and it was truly amazing.

My wife and I look forward to this corporate fast and spiritual connection.  I will do about 3-5 days of water only and then join her in the Daniel Fast.

We are fasting, praying, reading His word, believing, dreaming BIG and thinking BIGGER.

2011 is The Year…  No Excuses!

Does your church do any sort of fast?  If so what type?

How can I pray for you?

If you have been around BigIsTheNewSmall.com for some time, you know that the inspiration for the name came from Seth Godin’s Small Is The New Big.  In my opinion and the opinion of many other Godinites, Seth is a genius.  I read his blog daily, I’ve read every one of his books and appreciate the way he thinks.

I have been “hanging” with Seth Godin via his blogs and books for about five years now.  I have not personally hung out with Seth, although we have exchanged e-mails over the years.  That’s the beauty of blogs and social media, you can “learn and hang” with some of the brightest minds on the planet via their blogs, twitter and facebook updates.

One of many things I have learned from Seth Godin is: “If you can say it in less words… do it.”  In the words of Bill O’Reilly “Keep It Pithy.”  BigIsTheNewSmall

In 2011, one of my many goals that have been inspired from hanging with Seth Godin is to write shorter, simpler, wittier and more thought provoking posts, in as few words as possible.  I am not Seth Godin and You Are Not Seth Godin…  I even wrote a post about it here.

What have you learned from Seth Godin or other Authors/Bloggers?

What do you think about shorter posts?

Around this time of year, there are always lots of predictions about what the upcoming year will bring.  Do to the evolutionary and ever-changing nature of social media, there are always lots of predictions about Social Media.  Personally, I have lots of thoughts about what 2011 will bring for Twitter and Facebook.  I could make a nice little top 10 list; however I think it’s important to point out only “One Thing.”   The one thing 2011 will bring out in the world of Social Media.

2011  ”The Year Of The Social Media Consultant.”

Social Media is no longer just about having a presence for businesses.  Having a presence is the basic starting point; however the need for leveraging social media is crucial for personal and business brands.  Brands are now faced with asking these questions:

• How is my brand being perceived?
• How is my brand being received?
• What are people saying about my brand?
• How can I change the perception of my brand?
• How do I respond to comments, perceptions and thoughts about my brand?
• Do I need to re-brand?
• Who can I go to for advice?
• How can I navigate the social media waters for my brand with a personal touch?

The questions of How, What and Why is a very lengthy list that keeps going and going.  The answer to these questions will be found in the minds of The Social Media Consultant.  There are tons of experts, gurus, and software programs out there, but that’s not what I’m referring to.  I’m talking about a real life strategy firm or individual. Many will try and only a small percent will succeed.  Cream always rises to the top, or at least that’s what I’ve been told.

Brands don’t want to rely exclusively on software, as it looses the human touch and human strategy.  They don’t want the wanna-be expert and gurus.  They want and will need an individual or firm to walk alongside them. They need someone or some people to help them navigate through the questions and someone to place their brand in the finest position for optimal success.

Imagine if your business or any fortune 500 company had Seth Godin or a Seth Godin like firm help them to answer the above questions.  It’s difficult to measure the bottom-line impact and value of consultants and strategists.  There will many successful consultants and consultant firms that will emerge in 2011.  If you don’t believe me stay tuned to a Facebook post or Twitter update near you.

2011  ”The Year Of The Social Media Consultant.”

What do you think?

Share your thoughts on this prediction or any other Social Media Predictions that you have for 2011.

Update: 6 Months Later – About 6 months ago I shared the post below titled 11 Ways To Guarantee Success In 2011. I always like to take a look at my progress towards outlined goals on a quarterly basis; however 6 months in, is always a great place to reflect and look ahead.  Read this post below from the perspective of the Goals, Aspirations and Plans that you had for The New Year 2011 and where you currently stand as it relates to achieving those goals. Remember No Excuses!

As each New Year approaches everyone is generally so excited, because “This is going to be the year that {fill-in-the-blank} happens.”  Fitness Center memberships are off the chart, people want to stop smoking, go to school, get a better job, go to church, get involved, manage their money better and the “Self-Help/Life-Improvement” list goes on and on.  All of these things are great and well intentioned; the problem is they don’t last.

The quote, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions” is definitely applicable when it comes to this time of year and New Year’s Resolutions.  According to the research from Proactive Change, nearly 50% of American Adults will make at-least 1 New Years resolutions and the majority of these resolutions won’t be maintained for more than 30 days.  The study also shows that 75% of the resolutions will be broken in the first week and by the end of the year 97% of New Years Resolutions won’t be kept.

Personally, I have set many goals for this year and the majority of them revolve these two words: “No Excuses.” I really believe that 2011 is going to be the year of BIG things happening, No Settling, No Excuses! Not only is it going to be “A BIG Year” for me, but I believe it can be “A BIG Year” for you as well.  Here are 11 Ways To Guarantee Success In 2011:

• 1. Put God First- Seek Him, Read His Word, Pray, Serve, Give, Listen to God’s Whispers…
• 2. Make Family a Top Priority- This should be a “No Brainer,” unfortunately it’s often neglected.  Involve your family, make time for your family, have a family night… Be The Family!  Gather together and set individual and family goals for 2011.
• 3. Set SMART Goals- Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Based.  There are variations of this Acronym, click here for more.
• 4. Simplify- Stop making things so difficult, do what’s right and do what’s necessary.
• 5. Don’t Talk About It… Be About It- If you say that you’re going to do something, Do It!
• 6. Get Accountability- Share your goals, visions and desires with someone and ask them to hold you accountable.  Don’t just ask them for accountability, let them truly hold you accountable.
• 7. Assessment- Re-valuate and assess the status of the various aspects of your life.  Evaluate monthly and make necessary adjustments at-least quarterly.
• 8. Try Something New- Get out of your comfort zone and try something, do something and fail at something.  Life is change and Failure is inevitable.
• 9. Just Say No- Not only should you say “No” to drugs but there are plenty of things that you have said “Yes” to in the past, that you need to say “No” to in the future.
• 10. dream BIG. think BIGGER.- My blog and overall life tag-line is “dream BIG. think BIGGER.”  Thinking is the next step after dreaming and is the action of making your dreams reality.
• 11. No Excuses – “No Excuses!” is my motto for 2011, you should make it yours. I wrote a blogpost about No Excuses, click here to read it.

One thing that you can definitely guarantee is this: “If you aim at nothing, you are guaranteed to hit it.”

2011 is going to be “The Year of No Excuses!”  I’m expecting BIG things for 2011, how about you? Share your thoughts, goals, resolutions, strategies, failures…

At the conclusion of each calendar year I start to plan, plot, dream, think and prepare to make things happen in the upcoming year.  I have a “System for Success” that I line out, that contributes to making things happen in the upcoming year. I’ll probably write another blogpost, sharing my “System for Success” or “Strategy for Success.”  There isn’t really a formal name for it, it’s just something that I do.  2010 was definitely a year where the Strategy or System was definitely working.

As I was thinking of a quote or something to share this morning, the simple thought of “No Excuses” came to mind.  I will often use this in leading my family, my team and as good ol’ encouragement for others.  What is “No Excuses” all about?  It’s simple “Stop making excuses and start making it happen.”

I remember my college days when I was pledging to become a member of my fraternity (Alpha Phi Alpha).  We used to always recite this little saying, over and over and over.  “Excuses are tools of incompetence, used to build monuments of nothingness. Those who specialize in using them seldom amount to to anything… Excuses, Excuses!”

This week my family will gather at the table to set individual and family goals and game-plans.  I will encourage everyone to dream BIG. think BIGGER. with the caveat of “No Excuses!”

2011 is the year to make things happen… No Excuses!

What is your motto for 2011?  Will you adopt the “No Excuses” motto?