Energy,Goals, and Hope

What do energy, goals, and hope have in common? Everything!

Our energy is derived from our goals in life. Well thought out and defined goals will provide the energy we need to get up and motivated each day. Goals provide excitement, which fuels our desire.

Our energy does not come from vitamins or energy drinks. It comes from our inner desire to improve our life and our circumstances.

This is where hope comes into play. Without hope we have little reason to be excited about our future. Hope provides a turbo charged boost to our energy level.

Think about a time in your past when you had little hope. How did you feel?

Now think about a time when you had hope. How did you feel then?

Infuse your life with goals and hope and watch your energy level increase!

Power Supply Syndrome

Have you noticed nearly everything we buy either includes or we can purchase a power supply for it? Cell phones, laptops, Ipad, Ipod, nooks, kindles, whatever. The idea is to keep the unit fully charged at all times.

We have an older laptop which worked while plugged in, but the battery would not charge. It wasn't used for travel so we never paid any attention to replacing the battery. Recently the laptop shut down and would not come back on. I took it to our IT guy and he used a different supply cord and it fired right up.

What is the point? There are times when we concentrate on our lack of energy or strength instead of focusing on the supply point of where our energy and strength actually originates. In the case of the laptop, it was an electrical cord. In the case of our life, it could be many sources which are not renewed daily.

And we wonder why we lack energy and focus! Where do you derive your strength from? Have you feed it lately?

Back In the Saddle

Since my last post on change, the craziest thing happened! We went through a significant change in our life. Thankfully it was for the better. It seems the more things stay the same the more they are actually changing.

I enrolled back in school and soon realized this was not bringing me closer to my goals. Higher education is vital, but increasing our debt level is not. Plus, it took away from my writing time which is more important at this time in my life. I'll resume school at a later date.

We also cancelled our vacation realizing once again our this was taking us away from our short term goals. Delayed gratification is tough at times, but worth it. When we reach our goals vacations will be plentiful.

Change is inevitable and should be embraced.

Change

What is real change? It is not trying something new, it is committing to be better by taking a new approach. You notice I said committing, not trying.

Too many times we say we are going to try to lose a few pounds, or try to pay off bills.

The subliminal message of try is,"it's okay not to succeed because we are only trying."

The subliminal message of committing,"I have to do this, there is no alternative."

Which do you think will yield the best results? Then make a commitment to something important and press forward. Make it public if you need an additional motivator.

Once you make the commitment the change becomes easier, not necessarily easy, but easier.

The Difference

There is a huge difference between people who reach their goals and those who don't. It may be subtle and hard to see. Many call it luck. Others have no clue what it is.

What is it?

The Mental Edge! Developing the proper thought process and sticking to it until the proper habits are formed. It works as follows:

Thoughts become feelings.
Feelings become Actions.
Actions become habits.
This progression is the same for positive and negative thoughts. Be careful what you put in!

It takes about 21 days to create or to break a habit. Start a new, positive thought process and keep it for 21 days. Watch your Mental Edge grow!

Focus

Focus is a high priority action step toward achieving a vision. When you take a picture with an unfocused lens you get a blurry picture. This holds true for our life as well. It is near impossible to reach a goal or create a vision when you lose focus.

How do you maintain focus? Create a daily action plan which lists your 10 most important activities and/ or attitudes. Write and speak these daily and you'll find your focus to be laser sharp at all times.

Are you on the right path?

Where we go in life depends upon our path. There are many paths to choose from. Are we taking the correct one? How do we know we are on the right path?

My wife and I enrolled in Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University last night. We think we are headed down the right path, but how can we be sure?

The best way I know of to confirm direction is to seek wise counsel from those who have been successful in the specific area. If they confirm, move on to another area needing change. If they don't, and ask for mentoring.

Once you identify the mentor you'll need to develop, implement, and follow the plan of action they suggest.

Remember the definition of insanity; doing the same things over and over and expecting different results.

If you want to change your life, you must change your life. The first step is to confirm your path.

Valid Success

The past few months were sort of a re-focusing period for me. Several projects gained priority while others lost theirs. My priority out side of drawing closer to God, and my awesome family are shown below. These are listed in a flexible order (they will change at any given moment).

1. Finish my bachelors degree. I am enrolled online at The University of Oklahoma!

2. Complete the manuscript for Saving Grace . . . Inc. This book has transformed itself from a non-fiction to a full fledged fiction and I love it.

3. Perform my role as Promotional Strategist at Lifechurch for the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit.

4. One article per month for submission to various magazines and online periodicals.

5. Blog daily, this will be the biggest challenge. My blogs will be short and sweet and centered around the Valid Success platform. Valid Leadership, which is near and dear to my heart is actually down line from Valid Success. This is an exciting step in the creation of my ministry.

This blog can be found at Amazon.com and sent to your kindle automatically each time there is an update. Another exciting opportunity for 2011.

Thanks for reading.

When Confidence Becomes Arrogance

Being confident in our ability to lead is vitally important if we are to be successful, VALID leaders.

However, if we overextend our confidence into the area of arrogance we turn the tide backward.

A VALID leader understands all gifts, including the gift of confidence must not be taken lightly.

Confidence is defined as: powers, or reliability of a person or thing. When we are confident we are bold to speak what we believe as stated in Philippians 1:14 (MSG)

Where as Arrogance is defined as; display of superiority or self-importance; overbearing pride. When we are arrogant we are prideful as stated in Proverbs 21:4 (MSG)

A confident leader shows how much he cares. An arrogant leader shows how much he knows.

A confident leader has praise for his people. An arrogant leader has praise for himself.

A confident leader is proud of his people. An arrogant leader is proud of himself.

A confident leader makes the right decision. An arrogant makes sure he is right.

A confident leader promotes others. An arrogant leader promotes himself.

A confident leader takes blame and passes the credit. An arrogant leader takes the credit and passes the blame.

Hopefully you get the point. Please add to the list, thanks and God Bless.

How Do You Spell Success?

Success. What is it? Where is it? How can we achieve it?

The definition of success I like best; the favorable outcome of something attempted.

Based on the above definition, success can be anything we attempt to accomplish. The confusion is generated by the word, favorable. Do you have to actually accomplish a task to be successful or does success come from the attempt?

The technical antonym of success is failure. But do we really fail when we don't achieve a desired result? Or is the failure only revealed by act of quitting before we achieve our goal?

My belief is we can eliminate most of the confusion by setting proper goals. Once we have solid goals in place we develop and implement our daily action plan. Success will show its face as we attain each of the smaller goals. eventually leading up to the ultimate prize, whatever that is.

We may not actually reach the pinnacle of our dreams. However, by not quitting we'll be in a far better position than we started.

Isn't that success?

Goals

It is time to talk about goals again. A previous post on goals is shown below:

Behind any meaningful change there has to be a motivation to change. That motivation is most effectively shown as a goal. Goals can be anything that leads you to sustained action. Goals are usually material in nature because tangible items are easier to see then intangible.

Setting goals can be difficult if you don't have a guideline to follow. Here is your guideline.

1. They must be measurable.

2. They must have a date.

3. They must be realistic.

4. They must be written.

5. They must be believable.

Jason Brader from FASST and I held a seminar discussing goals on Saturday afternoon. Our audience was student athletes and their coaches. The turn out was great and the kids left with a renewed vigor and confidence.

The "V" in Valid represents vision. Goals help you define and reach your vision. The next few weeks will be dedicated to Goals and Vision.

Another significant event which took place on Saturday was the start of my personal coaching venture. Personal Coaching is an extension of my mission, which is helping to restore others. More info can be found at www.seedmin.com.

Proper goals can energize, but poor goals will demoralize.

How do you set goals?

Conflict: Why we need it!

As a leader there are a few labels you don't want to be branded with. Two of them are:

1. Non-Confrontational, which we'll cover in this post.

2. Arrogance, which we'll cover in the future.

In each area of life we encounter conflict and confrontation.They're unavoidable. Speaking from experience these times will create an enormous amount of stress and discomfort if we are not prepared.

To be an effective, VALID leader, we must not back down from conflict. We are clearly commissioned as Christian leaders to confront and face conflict head on.

The bible talks about conflict in 2 Cor. 7:5 (NIV), this body of ours had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within.

And about confrontation in, Gal. 2:11 (MSG), I had a face-to-face confrontation with him because he was clearly out of line.

Defining conflict is simple. Two differing viewpoints toward a similar subject. It is not fighting or arguing to win the battle. When this occurs it is generally due to lack of leadership and/ or misuse of power.

Allowing conflict, in its proper terms, provides clarity. Focusing on the topic and allowing everyone to speak candidly paves the way toward resolution. We can also expect to reach consensus and establish collaboration within our teams. These are far better than settling for compromise. Plus, great decisions often result from allowing conflicting viewpoints.

Don't shy away from healthy conflict. Your leadership and credibility depend on it.

All scripture provided by Bible Gateway.

Character Revealed

I have heard it said many times, character is shaped by adversity. It is also said character is revealed through adversity. Which is correct?

Both.

What others see during our stressful times is a combination of our experience, wisdom, and integrity. These three areas are the primary make up of our character.

Realize though, our character is never fully formed. Every time we encounter a stress point we are not only revealing our existing character; we are also re-shaping and reinforcing it for the next display.

If we are not happy with our reaction to adversity, we can change. Positive change takes time, but in the end pays huge dividends.

Romans 12:1-2(MSG) spells it out perfectly,

So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Remember when our character is tested others see right through the facades into our hearts. This leads us back to demonstration once again.

To be an effective, VALID leader, our character traits must to be real. We all fail at some point in our life. When this occurs, don't make excuses. Make it right and press on!

How Do You Demonstrate Your Leadership

What we do and how we act, or react, is heard loud and clear. Our actions drown out the words we speak. VALID leadership describes this as demonstration. It is the external expression of our integrity. Integrity consists of everything we think, say, and do publicly and privately.

We demonstrate this with every breath we take. Our credibility is formed by our external expression of integrity. It is either developed or destroyed depending on our actions. Building credibility takes time and patience--losing it can take seconds.

It is much easier to preserve our credibility than to regain it. Regaining lost credibility is nearly impossible. I contend once it is breached, it is gone.

Two scriptures from the book of Proverbs express this perfectly. They are:

Proverbs 11:30 (MSG), A good life is a fruit-bearing tree; a violent life destroys souls.

Proverbs 29:19 (MSG), It takes more than talk to keep workers in line;mere words go in one ear and out the other.

Emotional Intelligence has this listed as Self-Regulation or Self- Management. The way we handle our emotions and reactions.

Preserving credibility is a key component to effective leadership in any field. All it takes is to think before we speak, or delay our reactions when faced with a crucial situation long enough to settle our emotions. When we master this our level of integrity will flow and we can build our credibility with others and become a VALID leader.

All scripture is from The Bible Gateway

Who Are You?

Have you ever witnessed duplicity? You know when a person acts differently depending on his surrounding. Or when they change opinions solely because some one else changes their viewpoint. The chameleon comes out. This can usually be attributed to trying to hard to please others.

Acting this way is considered hypocritical and creates serious concern about our integrity. Our relationships at work and home lose stability and eventually the trust factor dissipates. All because we are worried about pleasing others.

James 1:8 states, a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

Webster's dictionary defines Duplicity:contradictory doubleness of thought, speech, or action;especially : the belying of one's true intentions by deceptive words or action

I contend most of us know duplicity hurts our character, then why does it exist? Why do we fall into the trap?

The Biblical answer is found in Romans 7:7-25. Our spirit is at war with our flesh. Causing us to act in ways we know are wrong, yet we cant seem to stop it.

Be bold and stand up tall for what you believe in. When you feel squeezed, remember God holds the answer. Pray for wisdom and don't back down from what is right.

All Bible Scriptures from Bible Gateway.Com

How are you treating others

This morning one of our employees asked me to handle a situation for her. She had to switch a driver from a brand new shiny, beautiful tractor into an older dusty, dirty tractor. The switch was for a recall and required maintenance. Already knowing the answer, I asked her why she needed my help?

Her response as expected, “He is miserable and grumpy. He’ll complain and give me a hard time. He’ll probably call off work the rest of the week.” I told her she'd do fine and I’d help if need be.

I happened to be outside when he drove up in his personal vehicle so I stopped him to say hello. We discussed the warranty issues and the tractor he was to drive and everything was great. He had no issues and understood completely. He even said he would stay with the old tractor until his was fixed completely.

This leads me back to the title of this post. This particular driver is labeled as grumpy, miserable, hard to deal with, and many other descriptions which are similar. Yet to me he is easy to get along with, but it was not always this way. What changed?

The way I handled him changed. By refusing to buy in to other's opinions about him I formed a relationship with him over time. He trusts me and knows he can talk with me and I’ll listen.

Building trust in any relationship takes time and effort—by both parties. I contend people reflect our attitude toward them back on us. When we are happy, others usually reply with a happy response. When we are unhappy, we get unhappiness back.

We can’t change or control what others think, say, or do. We can control how we react. We can also control how we approach others. Stephen Covey puts it this way, "We can act, or be acted upon." He also states, "Between stimulus and response, man has the power to choose."

So what is our choice? We can either respond with in kind and perpetuate the tension or use the Platinum rule, which states, Treat others the way they want to be treated.

Once you master this you’ll reap the joyful fruit of blossoming friendships instead of the prickly thorns of poor relations.

MBWA or MBSA? You make the call!

How many of you have heard of MWBA? Management by Wandering Around. It is a proven method and quite effective as well.

My staff got quite a laugh when I explained this the first time. I had to physically prove the method was real by showing them a text book containing this philosophy.

Lately I felt stagnant at my job. The wandering around and talking with everyone was not pumping me up. I prayed for a few days for guidance and wisdom and here is what was put on my heart.

Instead of walking around and visiting, I actually moved out of my office and made a new work area out on the floor of the Operations department.

The new philosophy could be called MBSA. Management by sitting around. Pretty catchy dont you think?

What do you do when you feel stagnant?

Leadership Taken Way Out Of Context

Several weeks ago I was listening to CNBC. One of the analysts on this particular show made a comment which caught my ear. His statement in effect was, "I will recommend this stock when it finally takes it's leadership position in the market." He has made this statement many times over the years.

At first I thought, "What an interesting way to describe his thoughts on this stock."

A few days later my thought changed to, "What a bizarre way to discuss his position on the stock."

Today while driving my son home my thought was, "That makes no sense at all and is actually quite a cop-out."

How can an inanimate object such as a stock become a leader? Stocks rise in price when there are more buyers than sellers and vice-verse. They don't practice leadership techniques or go to seminars.

In reality his statement actually diminishes the role of a leader. We don't simply wake up one day and assume a leadership role. Leadership is hard work and takes a tremendous amount of time to accomplish.

Maybe when this analyst assumes a leadership position and actually gives worthwhile advice I'll start listening again. Maybe!

VALID Leadership

VALID Leadership

The pursuit of sustainable leadership concepts has been the passion of many. This quest remains fertile ground for new ideas and philosophies because leadership is a personal venture. Leadership is something we are, more than something we do. Concepts, which work well for some, do not always transfer to others successfully.

The very definition of leadership differs significantly. Seldom do you get the same definition from multiple leaders. I would venture to say, the number of leadership concepts is only eclipsed by the number of leadership definitions. What is my leadership concept and definition?

A Leader is defined as: One who sets a vision and provides his followers with the resources and guidance to bring the vision to fruition. Leadership then is the act of doing so. Valid is defined as: sound, just and well rounded; producing the desired effect.

VALID Leadership (VALID) is how we lead consciously and sub-consciously to produce the desired effect. Valid leadership consists of five factors. The first three, “V”, “A”, and “L” comprise the foundation and must be present in all leaders. The “I” and “D” are variable and intangible factors. These can be adapted to the individual to help in the areas needing improvement. The factors of VALID are as follows:

1. V = vision. Without vision there is no need for leadership. Vision is seeing the future and blazing a trail toward it. (Proverbs 29:18 NASB)

2. A = association. Our inner circle is crucial to our success. Do we protect who we let populate our inner circle? How well we get along with others? (Proverbs 11:14 NASB, 2 Tim 2:23 MSG)

3. L = love. Leaders need to love others. If you dislike being around other people, you will not make a good leader. (Romans 12:8-10 NASB)

4. I = involvement, intuition, improvising, and ingenuity.

a. Involvement is being a participant, not a spectator. There is much more to leadership than being the boss. James 2:14-26

b. Intuition allows you to feel what is going on around you.

c. Improvising lets you adapt quickly to any situation effectively.

d. Ingenuity brings out new ideas needed to keep the vision alive.

5. D = discernment, determination, demonstration, and development.

a. Discernment is insight and keen judgment, which every leader needs. 1 Chron 22:11

b. Determination to succeed means never quitting, regardless of the obstacles ahead. Phil 1:6 Romans 12:8

c. Development of skills never ends. Change is inevitable, but self-improvement is optional. Your improvement program will be the difference maker at some point in your life. Joshua 1:8,

d. Demonstrating your leadership by being engaged sets a positive tone. It also brings your commitment into action. Leaders go first and this has to be demonstrated, not discussed. Heb 10:24-25

These areas are flexible and matching the “I” and “D” factors will produce great synchronicity. Understanding where you are in your journey, and where you want to go will guide you to the area with the highest priority. If you are a new leader you may need to work on all areas.

Applying the VALID concepts of leadership will help you produce the desired effect. And this what we are trying to accomplish, isn’t it?

An Overview on VALID Leadership

A key leadership behavior is discernment. Can we be an effective leader without this ability?

Discernment is the basis behind situational leadership. Having keen insight and sound judgment allows us to interpret how others need to be led. We can then take the appropriate measures to lead them properly.

The other side of discernment which is often overlooked is how critical we are to our own ideas and philosophy's.

Not everything we experience in life is good teaching material. There are certain traits and abilities each of us have which work for us, but are not universal and cannot be taught. For example, you can teach a running back the playbook, but you can't teach him speed and quickness. You can teach them how to grow stronger through weight training, but you can't teach them when to make a cut or spin move. These traits are intuitive and come from game experience.

It may be easy to view our methods and concepts as infallible, but this can be a costly mistake. As VALID leaders we must be able to identify and change strategies which prove to be ineffective.

A good system needs strong basic concepts which are easily duplicated. Combining the basics with our personal strengths is what makes VALID leadership so powerful.

Over the next few weeks I'll be breaking down the various components of VALID Leadership. I hope you get as much out of it as I did developing it.