The Apostle Paul said it best when he said For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. (Rom. 7:15) It can get so hard sometimes trying to do what's right when we constantly struggle with wrong. Now everybody has their own form of wrong doing. It doesn't even matter what your religion is you do something that you would rather be freed of. Everybody, no matter who they are, can improve in some areas of their life, there are just some who's areas that need to be improved on is more visible to outside observers.
The thing is though, no matter what it is that we're struggling with, we're not the only one with that issue. The bible says that "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man" (1 Cor. 10:13). We have things that we struggle with, except our struggles are common struggles. The only reason why we feel like we're the only one going through what we go through is because people never really fully admit what it is they're going through. Nobody likes to expose themselves unless they're comfortable in their mess. But the good thing about our struggles is the second part of 1 Cor 10:13 that says "but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it."
We may go through things sometimes but it's not more then we can bare. The proof of that is we're still here. Sometimes people do continuously put themselves in situations that for some reason or another will feel like life is hopeless and so they take their own life. But life is filled with ups and downs. It's what makes us who we are. We grow through adversity. Sometimes that adversity is self inflicted. But as long as we don't give up then we will be able to move forward stronger than we were before going through. It's like lifting weights. When you life weights you're adding resistence to your body with the intended purpose of ripping your muscles. But when your muscles heal from your workout session they'll be stronger than they were before. The various trials and tribulations that we go through are meant to strengthen us. But we get so distraught when we're going through something or when we are victims of our own carnal desires. But say for example you're addicted to drugs, when you are healed or delivered from your addiction then you stand as a testimony to somebody that is going through what you went through. You can be their support. But what do we do, we'll be delivered from something and then say that we're not worthy of mentoring somebody because of what we went through or we'll allow our past indiscretions to disqualify us from operating in the church or in a role that would make us somebody with authority. But those are the types of people that are the best at being a leader in any aspect because they've been through hard times and got through them.
My whole point in this is don't be discouraged if you're going through something that may be a bit disheartening and don't allow your sins to cause you to condemn yourself. Do what you can to move past your indescretions and allow your eventual deliverance be a testimony to somebody else that is going through the same thing.
One last note, it doesn't matter if what you've done has gotten you in jail for life, if you've learned from your mistakes then you can be the voice of reason for somebody on the inside or somebody that might be headed in your direction. No matter our situation, no matter where our sins have gotten us in life, we can still be a testimony to others. Some sins do have far greater consequences than others, but that doesn't mean somebody isn't out there that can't learn from your mistakes.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Feelings
I've talked about feelings in previous posts and a little bit in my book. This is my pet peeve, people that are led by their feelings. We all do it from time to time, but some people do it a little more than they should. Feelings have no place on the job or in any environment where people come together to achieve a common goal. By feelings I'm talking about negative feelings. I'm not talking about compassion, or love, or anything of that nature, I'm talking about hate, envy, anger, depression...etc. Feelings that can disrupt forward progress. We as leaders cannot let feelings dictate the way we operate. Not only can this lead to an ethical dilemma but it can severly hinder the momentum of the mission at hand.
Too many times I've seen forward progress halted because of the way somebody was feeling. I've had to pull subordinates aside and let them know the world doesn't stop because they're angry or sad. Life goes on regardless of how we feel. This is why we cannot let how we feel enter into the work place. When you do it will change the way people feel about you and even worse about your organisation. It's bad enough when people within your organisation knows that you're unstable but when people outside your organization sees it they might not see you but who you work for. Then that will inadvertantly change the overall view that people have about your organisation. This is why it's also imperative that as leaders we don't let those working for us and our peers operate like this. We must nip this in the bud. We can't baby people or let people bring their personal issues to work. If we do we'll allow a precedent that will be hard to break.
If people know that you're not led by your feelings and they know that you don't except it in the work place it will slow down this way of thinking and acting. People act the way they're allowed to act. If somebody knows that all it takes to get attention or get sent home early is to have a breakdown and start crying then they'll do it. But if people know that this type of behavior will not be tolerated then they will think twice before falling victim to their emotions. Because at the end of the day it's either allow our emotions to drive us or accomplish what needs to be done.
Too many times I've seen forward progress halted because of the way somebody was feeling. I've had to pull subordinates aside and let them know the world doesn't stop because they're angry or sad. Life goes on regardless of how we feel. This is why we cannot let how we feel enter into the work place. When you do it will change the way people feel about you and even worse about your organisation. It's bad enough when people within your organisation knows that you're unstable but when people outside your organization sees it they might not see you but who you work for. Then that will inadvertantly change the overall view that people have about your organisation. This is why it's also imperative that as leaders we don't let those working for us and our peers operate like this. We must nip this in the bud. We can't baby people or let people bring their personal issues to work. If we do we'll allow a precedent that will be hard to break.
If people know that you're not led by your feelings and they know that you don't except it in the work place it will slow down this way of thinking and acting. People act the way they're allowed to act. If somebody knows that all it takes to get attention or get sent home early is to have a breakdown and start crying then they'll do it. But if people know that this type of behavior will not be tolerated then they will think twice before falling victim to their emotions. Because at the end of the day it's either allow our emotions to drive us or accomplish what needs to be done.
In Leadership: Be Consistent
One of the most important things for not only a leader but a decent human being to be is consistent. People need to know that they don't have to walk on eggshells around you just in case you're having a bad day. Consistent doesn't necessarily mean that you're a kind hearted person that always has something nice to say to everybody you see. Consistent can also mean you're a distant person that's always about business and wants things done by the book. Somebody that might fire somebody for coming in 5 minutes late. Consistency is people can trust you to be who you are no matter what.
I prefer to work with consistent people instead of erratic people. The main reason is I have to know where I stand with you. I personally need to know if I can trust you to uphold the standards to the degree that you're going to hold me accountable, or you're going to be scamming every chance you get so I know not to trust you when it comes to work or anything else for that matter.
I remember I once worked in an office that never held people accountable for anything, or so I thought. People came and went as they pleased, you could come in 1-2 hours late without an excuse if you wanted to. You could take 2 and 3 hour lunches and you could leave an hour early just about daily, and nobody would ever say anything to you about it. During my time in this office we were tasked to have everybody take a test, and we were the office conducting the test. I don't remember knowing the deadline, but while the testing phase was going on I had taken a week off so I could go visit my daughter. When I came back I found out that I had missed my deadline and all of my certifications were lost. I was pretty upset since this was the office that decided to take people's certifications, and nobody outside the office would know one way or the other, and it was an open book test. But this was the thing they wanted to hold me accountable for and they made an example of me. All for a test that like I said was open book and only about 20 questions.
I understand that in the above example it would have been unethical for me to expect my office to show me any favoritism in how to discipline me for missing the deadline. I should have been treated exactly how anybody else would've been treated had they missed the deadline for taking the test also. The thing that upset me the most was I don't remember seeing anybody ever get in trouble for anything in this office, there was a real informal atmosphere where people just came and went as it pleased them, and then this happened. Now if this office was known for it's strict adherence to the standards then that would've been my mindset and I would've acted more carefully with missed deadlines.
This was my example because it also shows how not to be as a leader. When leading people we must always have established standards in place and stick to them no matter what. If we are inconsistent as leaders then when it comes time to discipline people they might not even know why it's happening or resent you for making it happen. Being a leader is hard enough with having to deal with the different personalities and attitudes that people bring with them to work on a daily basis but, inconsistency in our own personalities will make it more difficult for us to be taken seriously as a leader.
Another reason being consistent is imperative as a leader is if you are consistently you, then eventually the bad parts of your personality will come out, and when they do people will notice them and eventually say something to you about it and you can work on it. If you're inconsistent you might not ever show your bad side and you won't be corrected on it. I used to have a really bad habit of using unprofessional language all the time. To the point that I didn't even know what was coming out of my mouth. Until people started telling me about it. All the time it'd be, Patrick you need to watch your mouth, this is a professional setting we're not supposed to use that kind of language. Even when I got married my wife used to get on me about it. After awhile I really started to feel bad because I just couldn't help it. Then one day people noticed I wasn't cussing anymore. They were as shocked as I was. Now I don't use that kind of language.
I try to be me no matter where I'm at, whether it's church, work or home. This way if there's something that needs to be worked on I'll be told about it at church, work and home and I'll work on it at church, work and home. Being consistent isn't just being the same only at work or church, but being consistent in all aspects of your life to everybody you know. I know this can be hard, but if you want to gain respect as a leader it's a must.
I prefer to work with consistent people instead of erratic people. The main reason is I have to know where I stand with you. I personally need to know if I can trust you to uphold the standards to the degree that you're going to hold me accountable, or you're going to be scamming every chance you get so I know not to trust you when it comes to work or anything else for that matter.
I remember I once worked in an office that never held people accountable for anything, or so I thought. People came and went as they pleased, you could come in 1-2 hours late without an excuse if you wanted to. You could take 2 and 3 hour lunches and you could leave an hour early just about daily, and nobody would ever say anything to you about it. During my time in this office we were tasked to have everybody take a test, and we were the office conducting the test. I don't remember knowing the deadline, but while the testing phase was going on I had taken a week off so I could go visit my daughter. When I came back I found out that I had missed my deadline and all of my certifications were lost. I was pretty upset since this was the office that decided to take people's certifications, and nobody outside the office would know one way or the other, and it was an open book test. But this was the thing they wanted to hold me accountable for and they made an example of me. All for a test that like I said was open book and only about 20 questions.
I understand that in the above example it would have been unethical for me to expect my office to show me any favoritism in how to discipline me for missing the deadline. I should have been treated exactly how anybody else would've been treated had they missed the deadline for taking the test also. The thing that upset me the most was I don't remember seeing anybody ever get in trouble for anything in this office, there was a real informal atmosphere where people just came and went as it pleased them, and then this happened. Now if this office was known for it's strict adherence to the standards then that would've been my mindset and I would've acted more carefully with missed deadlines.
This was my example because it also shows how not to be as a leader. When leading people we must always have established standards in place and stick to them no matter what. If we are inconsistent as leaders then when it comes time to discipline people they might not even know why it's happening or resent you for making it happen. Being a leader is hard enough with having to deal with the different personalities and attitudes that people bring with them to work on a daily basis but, inconsistency in our own personalities will make it more difficult for us to be taken seriously as a leader.
Another reason being consistent is imperative as a leader is if you are consistently you, then eventually the bad parts of your personality will come out, and when they do people will notice them and eventually say something to you about it and you can work on it. If you're inconsistent you might not ever show your bad side and you won't be corrected on it. I used to have a really bad habit of using unprofessional language all the time. To the point that I didn't even know what was coming out of my mouth. Until people started telling me about it. All the time it'd be, Patrick you need to watch your mouth, this is a professional setting we're not supposed to use that kind of language. Even when I got married my wife used to get on me about it. After awhile I really started to feel bad because I just couldn't help it. Then one day people noticed I wasn't cussing anymore. They were as shocked as I was. Now I don't use that kind of language.
I try to be me no matter where I'm at, whether it's church, work or home. This way if there's something that needs to be worked on I'll be told about it at church, work and home and I'll work on it at church, work and home. Being consistent isn't just being the same only at work or church, but being consistent in all aspects of your life to everybody you know. I know this can be hard, but if you want to gain respect as a leader it's a must.
In Leadership: Mentoring is Crucial
We as leaders must reproduce ourselves. One of the ways we can do this is through mentor-ship. We must mentor the newer members of our organization. It seems some people are threatened when new people come on board. We treat them like they're trying to take our jobs. We outcast them until we get to know them. This can make people feel unwelcomed and create tension in the organization between the new and the old.
I will usually try to make it a point to build a rapport with new people as soon as possible. I do what I can to make them feel at ease, because I know what it's like to be the new person. I know what it's like to receive poor training or being out-casted because I'm not a part of the governing clique. We should never have to "warm up" to the new people or get them to earn our respect. We should just welcome them with open arms and start the process of getting them acclimated to the way we do things in the organization. It's also important during the mentoring process to not complain about where you work, or other coworkers. Because here this person is in a new environment trying to learn what they have to do to fit in to their new position and here you come telling them about how crappy the company is, who is sleeping with who, what people to stay away from, how they can get way with scamming on the job...etc. This is not mentoring or helpful. But this is common. I have experienced this everywhere I've been, both in the military and outside the military.
We can't turn people off of the job before they even start working. You should always be as professional as possible with new people and let them come to their own conclusions about whats going on around them. As a mentor your primary concern should be in helping them adjust and teaching them the ways that they can succeed in the organization. Teach them the things that you wish people would have taught you.
I remember when I became a Deacon at my church, one of the Ministers there was always correcting things I would do wrong, and point out areas that I should be monitoring that I didn't know. He would show me how to make sure the church was ready for service every service. There is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes for every church service, and by him mentoring me he gave me the insight that I needed know at my level so nothing would be dropped. This is what a mentor does, they show you the ropes in a way. There's so much that I know because somebody was willing to mentor me, and there's so much that I had to learn on my own because nobody was willing to take the time to show me what I needed to know.
We live in a time when so many people lack the understand they should have in order to be a quality worker. Instead we teach people just enough to know their job and nothing else, this isn't mentoring. A mentor should get as in depth as they possibly can to teach the importance of why you do what you do. This way when it's time for this person to mentor somebody else they can teach them the same, instead of this is what I was taught and this is the way we always do it. Its like we don't want to know more then we have to and don't want to train more then what's needed. It's amazing that there hasn't be some devastating economical crash because of the all the mismanagement that's been happening in the recent years and the lack of general knowledge and understanding of the people... oh wait.
By people not willing to mentor anybody anymore we start seeing bad things happening at all levels of leadership, not just at the bottom. The recent recession is proof of this. The lack of proper training, and mentoring, and just all around good judgment and ethical behavior caused a crash across a variety of businesses in a variety of markets. There's a saying, it's the small fox that spoils the vine. The meaning of this is fox's that are too small to be able to reach up and grab the grapes will nibble on the base of the vine which will cut off the flow of important nutrients to the rest of the vine. Just be cause we at lower levels think that our job is insignificant, doesn't me it is. Our job is more important than we might know. But since we're too small minded to see the big picture, we're not concerned with what our actions do to the rest of the organization.
Mentoring is crucial because it's through mentoring that we pass on the knowledge of a generation. If this knowledge isn't passed on then little by little the reason for why we do what we do will be lost, and the mindset of excellence will fade away leaving people doing a job that they have no idea the importance of. As I said in a previous chapter people want to feel like what their doing is important, but if we as leaders stop mentoring, and teaching people the importance of their job then the quality of work will deteriorate because the people will just not be motivated enough to do a good job.
Mentoring is also good for job retention. If you take the time to work with somebody one on one it can cause them to be more loyal to your company. People just need a reason to either stay or leave. If they feel they're being mistreated or even ignored then they have no loyalties working for you. Mentoring can offset this mindset. It'll make people feel like you as a manager has them earmarked for something greater then where they're at. The people you're leading might not understand the importance of them being mentored, but we as leaders need to let them know how important it is by doing it. The more time and effort we put into mentoring, the more it will get in their minds that mentoring is important.
I will usually try to make it a point to build a rapport with new people as soon as possible. I do what I can to make them feel at ease, because I know what it's like to be the new person. I know what it's like to receive poor training or being out-casted because I'm not a part of the governing clique. We should never have to "warm up" to the new people or get them to earn our respect. We should just welcome them with open arms and start the process of getting them acclimated to the way we do things in the organization. It's also important during the mentoring process to not complain about where you work, or other coworkers. Because here this person is in a new environment trying to learn what they have to do to fit in to their new position and here you come telling them about how crappy the company is, who is sleeping with who, what people to stay away from, how they can get way with scamming on the job...etc. This is not mentoring or helpful. But this is common. I have experienced this everywhere I've been, both in the military and outside the military.
We can't turn people off of the job before they even start working. You should always be as professional as possible with new people and let them come to their own conclusions about whats going on around them. As a mentor your primary concern should be in helping them adjust and teaching them the ways that they can succeed in the organization. Teach them the things that you wish people would have taught you.
I remember when I became a Deacon at my church, one of the Ministers there was always correcting things I would do wrong, and point out areas that I should be monitoring that I didn't know. He would show me how to make sure the church was ready for service every service. There is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes for every church service, and by him mentoring me he gave me the insight that I needed know at my level so nothing would be dropped. This is what a mentor does, they show you the ropes in a way. There's so much that I know because somebody was willing to mentor me, and there's so much that I had to learn on my own because nobody was willing to take the time to show me what I needed to know.
We live in a time when so many people lack the understand they should have in order to be a quality worker. Instead we teach people just enough to know their job and nothing else, this isn't mentoring. A mentor should get as in depth as they possibly can to teach the importance of why you do what you do. This way when it's time for this person to mentor somebody else they can teach them the same, instead of this is what I was taught and this is the way we always do it. Its like we don't want to know more then we have to and don't want to train more then what's needed. It's amazing that there hasn't be some devastating economical crash because of the all the mismanagement that's been happening in the recent years and the lack of general knowledge and understanding of the people... oh wait.
By people not willing to mentor anybody anymore we start seeing bad things happening at all levels of leadership, not just at the bottom. The recent recession is proof of this. The lack of proper training, and mentoring, and just all around good judgment and ethical behavior caused a crash across a variety of businesses in a variety of markets. There's a saying, it's the small fox that spoils the vine. The meaning of this is fox's that are too small to be able to reach up and grab the grapes will nibble on the base of the vine which will cut off the flow of important nutrients to the rest of the vine. Just be cause we at lower levels think that our job is insignificant, doesn't me it is. Our job is more important than we might know. But since we're too small minded to see the big picture, we're not concerned with what our actions do to the rest of the organization.
Mentoring is crucial because it's through mentoring that we pass on the knowledge of a generation. If this knowledge isn't passed on then little by little the reason for why we do what we do will be lost, and the mindset of excellence will fade away leaving people doing a job that they have no idea the importance of. As I said in a previous chapter people want to feel like what their doing is important, but if we as leaders stop mentoring, and teaching people the importance of their job then the quality of work will deteriorate because the people will just not be motivated enough to do a good job.
Mentoring is also good for job retention. If you take the time to work with somebody one on one it can cause them to be more loyal to your company. People just need a reason to either stay or leave. If they feel they're being mistreated or even ignored then they have no loyalties working for you. Mentoring can offset this mindset. It'll make people feel like you as a manager has them earmarked for something greater then where they're at. The people you're leading might not understand the importance of them being mentored, but we as leaders need to let them know how important it is by doing it. The more time and effort we put into mentoring, the more it will get in their minds that mentoring is important.
Friday, October 28, 2011
In Commitment pt. 1
Commitment is not only a great leadership quality but a great quality to have as a decent human
being. Nowadays more and more people are becoming less committed, in all aspects of their lives. We're not committed at work, to our friends, in relationships...etc. We come and go as we please, we quit when it gets hard and we're only as dependable as far as our feelings will allow us to be.
People refuse to just commit. We're afraid that if we commit either we'll be mistreated or we'll get bored or miss something better. We can't continue to live our lives like this. We must pick something that we're compassionate about and commit to it. How do we do this?
First we must know what we're committing to. We must know that what we commit to will better us as a person. Because lets face it some people commit to things or people that will destroy them and their future. You don't become committed to anybody or anything that is spiraling out of control. We do that sometimes in relationships whether in a friendship or with a significant other. We'll be loyal to somebody that is going nowhere in life. Instead of being the person that they turn to we get caught up in their mess, and when we try to get away from them they guilt us into coming back. So many people's lives have been ruined because they pointed they're loyalties in the wrong direction. If we're in a job that we know is wrong or going to a church that we know is crooked then get out of there, but don't give up on committing because of on bad apple.
Second we must put our feelings aside. If we are committed then our feelings can't be involved. I don't mean feelings like love or compassion, I mean feelings like hate, envy, anger...etc. We can let our hurt feelings dictate whether or not we will continue to be committed. If we work somewhere and our boss cusses us out we don't quit. If we go to church and the Pastor preaches something that we don't "agree" with we don't get up and find another church. We as a people now are swayed by whatever direction the wind blows. We need to stop this. Our feelings have nothing to do with our commitments and vice versa. We need to leave our feelings and disagreements at home, and if our commitment is our marriage then we need to be careful how we point our feeling at our spouse. If your feelings get hurt, who cares.
Third we should let our commitment to the organization be above our commitment to people. People will let you down period. This is just a fact of life. Not necessarily because they're out to get you but because they have lives that they live outside of their relationship with you. We all come from different upbringings, in different regions of the world. We all have our own personalities and our own version of what's right and wrong. Even if we grew up in the same house we'd still be our own person. What this means is people will rub you the wrong way from time to time. We have to just use it as a learning experience and move on. The mission of the organisation that we're apart of is what's important anyways. We do what we do to move our organisation forward. Whether it's a church or you're in the military or you work for McDonalds. We have to all learn to get along with one another for the sake of the organisation. But so many times things will be dropped because of people's dislike for one another, or people will promote their friends over people that deserve it. We must try to steer clear of this way of thinking. Our feelings for people must not be involved in our day to day decision making. As easy as that is to say and yet so hard to do we must make sure we do it. We cannot let the mission fail, no matter what the mission is, because of how we feel about certain people.
being. Nowadays more and more people are becoming less committed, in all aspects of their lives. We're not committed at work, to our friends, in relationships...etc. We come and go as we please, we quit when it gets hard and we're only as dependable as far as our feelings will allow us to be.
People refuse to just commit. We're afraid that if we commit either we'll be mistreated or we'll get bored or miss something better. We can't continue to live our lives like this. We must pick something that we're compassionate about and commit to it. How do we do this?
First we must know what we're committing to. We must know that what we commit to will better us as a person. Because lets face it some people commit to things or people that will destroy them and their future. You don't become committed to anybody or anything that is spiraling out of control. We do that sometimes in relationships whether in a friendship or with a significant other. We'll be loyal to somebody that is going nowhere in life. Instead of being the person that they turn to we get caught up in their mess, and when we try to get away from them they guilt us into coming back. So many people's lives have been ruined because they pointed they're loyalties in the wrong direction. If we're in a job that we know is wrong or going to a church that we know is crooked then get out of there, but don't give up on committing because of on bad apple.
Second we must put our feelings aside. If we are committed then our feelings can't be involved. I don't mean feelings like love or compassion, I mean feelings like hate, envy, anger...etc. We can let our hurt feelings dictate whether or not we will continue to be committed. If we work somewhere and our boss cusses us out we don't quit. If we go to church and the Pastor preaches something that we don't "agree" with we don't get up and find another church. We as a people now are swayed by whatever direction the wind blows. We need to stop this. Our feelings have nothing to do with our commitments and vice versa. We need to leave our feelings and disagreements at home, and if our commitment is our marriage then we need to be careful how we point our feeling at our spouse. If your feelings get hurt, who cares.
Third we should let our commitment to the organization be above our commitment to people. People will let you down period. This is just a fact of life. Not necessarily because they're out to get you but because they have lives that they live outside of their relationship with you. We all come from different upbringings, in different regions of the world. We all have our own personalities and our own version of what's right and wrong. Even if we grew up in the same house we'd still be our own person. What this means is people will rub you the wrong way from time to time. We have to just use it as a learning experience and move on. The mission of the organisation that we're apart of is what's important anyways. We do what we do to move our organisation forward. Whether it's a church or you're in the military or you work for McDonalds. We have to all learn to get along with one another for the sake of the organisation. But so many times things will be dropped because of people's dislike for one another, or people will promote their friends over people that deserve it. We must try to steer clear of this way of thinking. Our feelings for people must not be involved in our day to day decision making. As easy as that is to say and yet so hard to do we must make sure we do it. We cannot let the mission fail, no matter what the mission is, because of how we feel about certain people.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
In Leadership: Mentors
We as leaders not only need to be mentors to those under us but most importantly we need to be mentored. One of the most important things that a leader can have is a mentor. Somebody that they can get advice from. We as leaders are setting both ourselves and our people up for failure if we don't have a mentor. We cannot ever think that we know everything about leadership. We must always have somebody that can tell us when we're leading people in the wrong or right direction, somebody that has been through more than us and seen more than us. We don't know it all and never will, and if we have somebody that we can trust that can mentor us we will never go into battle empty handed.
When we don't have a mentor we are so confident in our own wisdom and abilities to lead people that we're saying no matter what we know we're right. Every situation that you come across will be different. Not only the good, but also dealing with the bad. We need somebody that we can go to that can help us with difficult decisions. We also need someone that we can turn to to figure out if we're doing things correctly. Having a mentor can also set you up for success, because we usually have mentors that have accomplished something in our career field.
Mentors are especially good when it comes to having to discipline somebody that we lead. I have never counseled sombody or written somebody up without first seeking advice. This is important because if we don't we can be disciplining somebody based on an emotional reaction instead of doing it because it's something that needs to be done. Sometimes advice that we may get we may not ever use for ourselves but pass on to other people. I've gotten information from people that have mentored me and kept it in an email or put it up and when other people had occasions that the information would help them out I had it available for them and just forwarded it on to them.
As I said having a mentor is crucial as a leader because they will always give you something that you can pass on to somebody else, whether advice or documents or research materiels or a template that can cut time from writing something up. If we have a mentor then we can be a mentor to somebody else. Having a mentor will not only help you but help others as well.
When we don't have a mentor we are so confident in our own wisdom and abilities to lead people that we're saying no matter what we know we're right. Every situation that you come across will be different. Not only the good, but also dealing with the bad. We need somebody that we can go to that can help us with difficult decisions. We also need someone that we can turn to to figure out if we're doing things correctly. Having a mentor can also set you up for success, because we usually have mentors that have accomplished something in our career field.
Mentors are especially good when it comes to having to discipline somebody that we lead. I have never counseled sombody or written somebody up without first seeking advice. This is important because if we don't we can be disciplining somebody based on an emotional reaction instead of doing it because it's something that needs to be done. Sometimes advice that we may get we may not ever use for ourselves but pass on to other people. I've gotten information from people that have mentored me and kept it in an email or put it up and when other people had occasions that the information would help them out I had it available for them and just forwarded it on to them.
As I said having a mentor is crucial as a leader because they will always give you something that you can pass on to somebody else, whether advice or documents or research materiels or a template that can cut time from writing something up. If we have a mentor then we can be a mentor to somebody else. Having a mentor will not only help you but help others as well.
Friday, October 21, 2011
In Christianity: Live Peacably with all Men
So I'm a christian. With that being said I know that I cannot push my religion on people or make them feel uncomfortable in my presence. I also can't get hurt or defensive when people attack my religion or religion in general. It frustrates me when I see other christians getting in arguments or super aggressive when it comes to religious conversations. When that's not the way we're supposed to be. We are supposed to spread the Gospel but not to the point that people are offended by us or people feel uncomfortable when we come around. We are supposed to be an example by being consistent and a person people can trust to come to us for advice when needed. I'm am not the type of person to attack somebody's beliefs or get into an argument with an idiot for ignorantly attacking mine. Instead I listen to what people say and I speak my mind if it won't cause an argument, and that's it.
I think the problem comes in when we don't study our craft. It's easy to get offended when somebody attacks our beliefs when we're ignorant of the very foundation of what it is that we believe in. I know the bible says "study to answer", but if we don't study then it's no wonder that we can't answer. But as a professional and somebody that is supposed to let my light so shine I can't ever cause myself to be led into a heated debate because of somebody's hatred of my beliefs. If somebody wants to talk about God then I'm all for it. If somebody has questions about what I believe then no problem, hell if some idiot wants to ask a question to try to make me look stupid and I can answer it then that's what I'll do. But we can never allow our "idiot" to come out and argue with their "idiot." It's unprofessional and unchristianlike. The bible in proverbs says to "answer not a fool according to his folly." Sometimes if we can't maintain our dignity the best thing to do is to remain silent. That might speak more for you and what you believe in then any answer you might give out of anger or resentment.
I think the problem comes in when we don't study our craft. It's easy to get offended when somebody attacks our beliefs when we're ignorant of the very foundation of what it is that we believe in. I know the bible says "study to answer", but if we don't study then it's no wonder that we can't answer. But as a professional and somebody that is supposed to let my light so shine I can't ever cause myself to be led into a heated debate because of somebody's hatred of my beliefs. If somebody wants to talk about God then I'm all for it. If somebody has questions about what I believe then no problem, hell if some idiot wants to ask a question to try to make me look stupid and I can answer it then that's what I'll do. But we can never allow our "idiot" to come out and argue with their "idiot." It's unprofessional and unchristianlike. The bible in proverbs says to "answer not a fool according to his folly." Sometimes if we can't maintain our dignity the best thing to do is to remain silent. That might speak more for you and what you believe in then any answer you might give out of anger or resentment.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
In Christianity: Saved?
For Christians to ask themselves,
If you accept Jesus Christ in your heart as your personal Lord and Savior, and then go back to living
the way you were, are you really Saved? Or do you have to actually live according to how Jesus Christ wants you to live. How can we show others the Light we have in us if we live in the dark? The way we live should be a testimony to others as to what Jesus Christ has done for us. The way we live should show others, that we've been delivered from the lifestyle that we had prior to surrendering to Christ. But instead we carry on doing what we've been doing, and tell other's it's alright, I'm saved, I can ask for forgiveness.
If you can really believe that, then do you really love God? Did you really Surrender? We call ourselves
Christians but don't read the bible, Hardly go to church, believe everything the world tells you, but doubt the Validity of the Bible. A Christian is a Disciple of Christ. Disciple means Student. A few definitions of the word student are: any person who studies, investigates, or examines thoughtfully, One who studies something, An attentive observer, someone who by long study has gained mastery in one or more disciplines. Now if you apply any of these definitions of student to your walk with Christ does it fit? Are you a person who studies Christ, or an attentive observer of Christ, do you examine the Bible thoughtfully? If upon Getting "Saved" you didn't do anything else, can you really call yourself one of Christ's Disciples?
Did you know that in the Bible it talks about how when Christ called some of his disciples they dropped everything to follow him. They didn't say okay I'll follow you, but give me a week or let me get right 1st. They justs followed. Were they automatically given the power of laying hands on people to heal them or of prophecy, or were they able to preach the word of God? No, all that came later in their walk, but to get there they had to surrender to Christ, and show him that they were serious about following him.
Being a Christian is hard, especially in the beginning. But it's also something that takes your attention. You have to literally devote your life to it. You can't just accept Christ and say now that that's over with let me go back to the strip club, let me go get high with my friends. What you should do is say let me hang out with my other brothers and sisters in Christ so I can learn what this is about. Let me talk to my Chaplain, or Pastor, or one of the ministers to see what I need to do to grow, or let me joing my local church and find out what it's like to serve God's people. You have to learn how to build a relationship with God, and find out what it is that he wants you to do, and ask him to show you the way that you need to get there. You need to learn the different qualities that you should have to be a Christian, like love, joy, and peace. You need to Pray, and Praise. It's a continuous journey of love, discipline and learning what God wants us to do. This isn't a
game. God is not to be played with. It's like getting married but still carrying on like you're single. When you get married you can't still go out on dates, you can't flirt with members of the opposite sex, and try to get to know them better. You have to build your relationship with the person that you get married to, and think about starting a family. When you become a Christian you have to build your relationship
with God, and start thinking about Building your NEW family.
If you accept Jesus Christ in your heart as your personal Lord and Savior, and then go back to living
the way you were, are you really Saved? Or do you have to actually live according to how Jesus Christ wants you to live. How can we show others the Light we have in us if we live in the dark? The way we live should be a testimony to others as to what Jesus Christ has done for us. The way we live should show others, that we've been delivered from the lifestyle that we had prior to surrendering to Christ. But instead we carry on doing what we've been doing, and tell other's it's alright, I'm saved, I can ask for forgiveness.
If you can really believe that, then do you really love God? Did you really Surrender? We call ourselves
Christians but don't read the bible, Hardly go to church, believe everything the world tells you, but doubt the Validity of the Bible. A Christian is a Disciple of Christ. Disciple means Student. A few definitions of the word student are: any person who studies, investigates, or examines thoughtfully, One who studies something, An attentive observer, someone who by long study has gained mastery in one or more disciplines. Now if you apply any of these definitions of student to your walk with Christ does it fit? Are you a person who studies Christ, or an attentive observer of Christ, do you examine the Bible thoughtfully? If upon Getting "Saved" you didn't do anything else, can you really call yourself one of Christ's Disciples?
Did you know that in the Bible it talks about how when Christ called some of his disciples they dropped everything to follow him. They didn't say okay I'll follow you, but give me a week or let me get right 1st. They justs followed. Were they automatically given the power of laying hands on people to heal them or of prophecy, or were they able to preach the word of God? No, all that came later in their walk, but to get there they had to surrender to Christ, and show him that they were serious about following him.
Being a Christian is hard, especially in the beginning. But it's also something that takes your attention. You have to literally devote your life to it. You can't just accept Christ and say now that that's over with let me go back to the strip club, let me go get high with my friends. What you should do is say let me hang out with my other brothers and sisters in Christ so I can learn what this is about. Let me talk to my Chaplain, or Pastor, or one of the ministers to see what I need to do to grow, or let me joing my local church and find out what it's like to serve God's people. You have to learn how to build a relationship with God, and find out what it is that he wants you to do, and ask him to show you the way that you need to get there. You need to learn the different qualities that you should have to be a Christian, like love, joy, and peace. You need to Pray, and Praise. It's a continuous journey of love, discipline and learning what God wants us to do. This isn't a
game. God is not to be played with. It's like getting married but still carrying on like you're single. When you get married you can't still go out on dates, you can't flirt with members of the opposite sex, and try to get to know them better. You have to build your relationship with the person that you get married to, and think about starting a family. When you become a Christian you have to build your relationship
with God, and start thinking about Building your NEW family.
In Writing: Writing a Book is not Easy
So I just finished and published a book this past week, and I realized it wasn't easy to write. I went ahead and self published through fastpencil. One thing I learned is it's difficult to write a lot on one subject. My first book only has 72 pages and even though I feel I made my point in it, I don't see how people can write thousands of pages. I guess it's a learning thing. The more I get used to writing the longer a future book that I write might be. But I know that it takes time and patience to get it done. Now my next goal will be to actually get it marketed and sold.
The book was written on leadership. A topic that has always interested me. I've noticed that being a leader is a lot easier said then done. Something I noticed while writing my book. Writing it made me take a look at myself as a leader and helped me see areas where I've fallen short. I put examples of other people that were both good and bad leaders in there however in the end I had to focus on how I measured up as a leader and realized that I have some ways to go until I become the leader that I want to be. I guess that's why in writing my book I couldn't really put any directions in what you should do but just sort of wrote is as a testimony of what I've noticed.
The writing process wasn't as difficult as far as just letting the words pour onto the page. However it was difficult in wanting to make it something that was long and drawn out and super deep. This will definately be a growing process. Although writing a book has never been something that I've wanted to do before, it is definately something that I'm interested in now. I'm kind of interested to see the response if any to my book. That might help me with future books. Next time I won't just jump into it, I'll have to plan and focus on each chapter individually.
I also learned that I must reread the book multiple times before releasing it. It's crazy how you don't notice any errors until after it's already published and you're reading your own ebook in the iBook app on your iPhone. It's fun how that happens. Next time I might even have a few people look over it for me to see what they noticed. I can admit to being a little impatient to get it out, however I did look over it quite a few times, but apparently not enough. If any of you are interested to look at my book feel free to read it and let me know what you think
The link is
http://www.fastpencil.com/publications/3152-Lessons-Learned
I made it super cheap to begin with. Hopefully that will draw readers in. Also if you have any suggestions on how to get my book out there more as far as advertising or marketing. This whole writing thing is new to me. But I'll learn as I always do.
Patrick Forbes
The book was written on leadership. A topic that has always interested me. I've noticed that being a leader is a lot easier said then done. Something I noticed while writing my book. Writing it made me take a look at myself as a leader and helped me see areas where I've fallen short. I put examples of other people that were both good and bad leaders in there however in the end I had to focus on how I measured up as a leader and realized that I have some ways to go until I become the leader that I want to be. I guess that's why in writing my book I couldn't really put any directions in what you should do but just sort of wrote is as a testimony of what I've noticed.
The writing process wasn't as difficult as far as just letting the words pour onto the page. However it was difficult in wanting to make it something that was long and drawn out and super deep. This will definately be a growing process. Although writing a book has never been something that I've wanted to do before, it is definately something that I'm interested in now. I'm kind of interested to see the response if any to my book. That might help me with future books. Next time I won't just jump into it, I'll have to plan and focus on each chapter individually.
I also learned that I must reread the book multiple times before releasing it. It's crazy how you don't notice any errors until after it's already published and you're reading your own ebook in the iBook app on your iPhone. It's fun how that happens. Next time I might even have a few people look over it for me to see what they noticed. I can admit to being a little impatient to get it out, however I did look over it quite a few times, but apparently not enough. If any of you are interested to look at my book feel free to read it and let me know what you think
The link is
http://www.fastpencil.com/publications/3152-Lessons-Learned
I made it super cheap to begin with. Hopefully that will draw readers in. Also if you have any suggestions on how to get my book out there more as far as advertising or marketing. This whole writing thing is new to me. But I'll learn as I always do.
Patrick Forbes
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