Leadership

5 Practices of Great Leaders

Practice Number 1: Lingering In The Moment

Good leaders are often thinking a mile ahead. Vision, goals, you get the idea. What we fail to do is linger and that’s what great leaders do. Lingering feels like “standing around” and, of course, great leaders don’t “stand around.” (Hint of sarcasm in case you didn’t see it.) Great leaders are people of action, right? While that is true it’s also important for us to linger in the moment. To stand a little longer in a place of beauty. Savor a moment that is especially impactful. Remaining fully present in front of a friend you haven’t seen in a while. Today, simply choose a moment to linger. Choose to be reluctant to escape back to the rigorous schedule that is so desperately calling to you. Just linger…for a moment.


Practice Number 2: Leaning In To The Day

If someone is speaking to me and I can’t quite hear what they are saying I usually lean in. I lean in to get closer, so I can clearly hear what they are saying. Each day that we face as leaders will speak to us in a unique way. Sometimes we need to lean in, even if the day is being rude to us, and hear what it’s saying. We shouldn’t go into our day reluctantly but with great

,

Multitasking vs Mindfulness And The Winner Is?

,

Multitasking, we all do it and some of us do it better than others. Some would say they were born with it, some would say they learned it or had to in order to survive. Some are born with a larger capacity for it and those who have the ability usually want more. What is multitasking exactly?


Multitasking is engaging in two or more activities at the same time.


Now, when I look at that definition I think to myself, “I wish I could do more than two things at the same time!” My experience in talking with several people about the topic it seems like guys struggle with the idea and ability to multitask whereas the gals seem to almost be predisposed to it.


The question, the big question is this,
“Is multitasking healthy?”


Well, apparently, it’s not.
There is significant research that suggests multitasking is not just unhealthy but downright bad for us. I know, right? How else would we get it all done? How else would we get anything done?

When we multitask

Leaders: Why A Text Isn’t A Substitute For A Touch

I realized something about myself this past week. I communicate a lot and connect less. I’m not sure when this happened or why but it did. I can’t point to a moment where it happened it was more of a subtle drift to complacency rather than an intentional effort.

Over the last few weeks I have been asked the same question over and over in one for or another. I have answered this question on medical forms, school paperwork, website subscriptions and in person to the guy sitting next to me at Starbucks. The answer is “I communicate.” The question, “What do you do for a living?”

How can a person who says they communicate for a living feel like they aren’t connecting? I am probably telling you something you already know but here it goes, communicating with someone is not the same as connecting with someone.

I send texts, e-mails, make phone calls, leave voice mails, Skype and communicate verbally all throughout the day. I write stories, communicate through a Blog, speak to audiences and yet oddly enough I feel this is only surface level stuff.

Like a proverbial rock skipping along the surface of the water until it eventually looses momentum and falls desperately to the bottom in quiet sleep (Usually around 11:00 o’clock).

I have replaced connecting with

,

15 Minute Anxiety Detox For Leaders

,

It’s easy to write about how to get rid of anxiety in a blog. Put it in four steps and your done. Deep down I know that four steps won’t cure anxiety in your life or mine so I don’t want to mislead you into thinking that if you practice these four steps our anxiety will be thing of the past, it won’t. However, a few friends of mine have been contemplating a “detox” of sorts.

If you Google the word “detox” you will find diets, supplements, prescriptions, plans, recipes, tests, blogs, pictures, foods and tea. However, not one program to cleanse anxiety and that’s the one I could really use!

I guess the question we should start with is why? Why are we anxious? If we remove all the deep language anxiety is directly connected to fear. Fear of what will happen, fear of what’s next, fear of what’s coming, fear of failure. I’m not sure how many of us look back at the past week and feel anxiety, My guess is it’s a low number. It’s usually when we look ahead that anxiety sets in. The bottom line, we're afraid of uncertainty.

Philippians 4:11 Paul says we can learn to be content

, ,

4 Reminders For Raising Polite Kids

, ,

As a parent, do you ever feel like you are repeating yourself?

Repeating ourselves is part of a parent’s job description. We are reminded in Deuteronomy 6:7: “Repeat them [the commands] again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.”

When I see or hear the word “repeat” within the context of parenting, I get exhausted. “Can you please turn off the light? Turn off the light, turn it off, turn it off, turn it off! Can you please take out the trash? Take out the trash, take it out, take it out, take it out! Can you please turn off the game? Turn off the game, turn it off, turn it off, turn it off! Can you please pick up your clothes, pick up your clothes, pick them up, pick them up, pick them up!”

The word “repeat” in Deuteronomy 6:7 is translated from a Hebrew word that actually means “whet.” No, not wet, whet. The best way to understand this word in a modern way is to think about how to sharpen a knife. I don’t know how

Leaders: Don’t Expect God To Do What You Won’t Do

I know, the title sounds unspiritual doesn’t it? “Don’t expect God to do what you won’t do.” Aren’t we supposed to wait on God expectantly? (Psalm 25:5)

As a leader and as a parent I am reminded that not everything is accomplished by prayer. I know, sounds unspiritual again, but I can pray until I am red in the face that my lawn gets mowed but until I get out of the house and behind a lawn mower, it’s not going to get done. I can pray that my budget at work comes together but until I pull out my computer and do a little planning it just won’t come together.

How about situation where we really need God to show up? Our marriages, our soul care, our parenting? I wonder how many times I have continued to beg God for something when the reality was that it was going to take a little work on my part. Sure, I have experienced some water to wine, blind to seeing miracles in my life but most of the time the miracles in my life have been “time delayed” because I

,

God Restores…But Why? How? + Bonus Audio

,

This post differs from many in that it’s more of an audio post. A few weeks ago I spoke at David C Cook’s Tru Gathering at Willow Creek. The topic, God Restores. I spent some time exploring the what and why of restoration but what got me was the how.

I have written out a few thoughts with verses on the topic but would encourage you to download the audio and listen to the story of how God Restores. I believe that during the talk I was changed more than the people listening.

God shows up in unique ways and, at times, when we are not ready or willing to come to Him. This was such a moment for me.


Download God Restores Audio
Recorded Live at Tru Gathering Willow Creek


What Is Restoration?

Restoration simply means “to put back.”
Question: What do you want God to “put back” in your life today?


Why Does God Restore?

Because It’s His nature
So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely