5 Ways Photography Makes Us Better Leaders

I like the emotion a great photograph can communicate. The right photo can express joy or sorrow, happiness or pain, success or struggle. A great photograph communicates. It tells a story without speaking, makes you laugh without telling a joke or gives you compassion without telling it’s plight.

Capturing a picture that shows energy, expression and emotion isn’t easy. It takes time, patience and yes, it takes skill. Time and patience are the easiest of the three to understand. Skill, that's the tough one. It's the practice of our knowledge and understanding that give us the skill we need to take better pictures and become better leaders.

There are 5 things we must understand if we want to be a good photographer or a good leader...

A Sine You Are Stressed And What To Do About It

I was five years old and my mom and I were driving down the road near our home. Before I knew what happened my mom had stopped the car, jumped out and ran across the street to flag down a passing car. She appeared panicked but nothing appeared to be wrong.

Once the couple pulled over to help I noticed my mom breathing into a lunch sack the driver had given her. What just happened to my mom? Some would call it an anxiety or panic attack, either way the effect of stress took it’s toll on my mom that day. The doctors call it hyperventilation which is an abnormally fast or shallow breathing pattern that can be brought on by stress.

We all feel the pressure of stress. Meeting deadlines, trying to get more done, finishing a “to do” list, taking kids to practice, picking kids up from practice, paying bills...

Why The Number 3 Will Make You A Better Leader

There is a rule that I believe most of us are not familiar with, at least I wasn’t aware of it until about a year ago when I started writing the book “Faith and the Modern Family.” Let me explain.

It’s called The Rule of Three and it “Suggests things that come in threes are inherently funnier, more satisfying, or more effective than other numbers of things. The reader or audience of this form of text is also more likely to consume information if it is written in groups of threes.” When you stop and think about it we are taught from a young age about the number...

4 Words That Will Change Your Leadership Life

Did you know the way we think about a situation before we enter it will greatly effect its outcome?

Urban legend has it that a local school district did an experiment. The district superintendent called three teachers from within the district into her office and told them they were the three “best” teachers in the entire district and thanked them for their hard work, dedication and effort.

She went on to say they were working on a special project and they had selected the top 90 students, the “best” 90 students in the district and they wanted each of the three teachers to take 30 students for the entire year to see what the “best teachers” could achieve with the “best students.”

The superintendent wanted to see...

5 Attitudes You Must Embrace To Lead Change

I started out speaking at a conference by holding up an envelope for everyone to see. On the back where the words, ENVELOPE FOR SALE $40.00. I told the audience we could not continue with the session until someone bought the envelope.

A few people asked what was inside, I didn’t tell them. After a few minutes a gentleman in the back of the auditorium came walking up while fumbling through his wallet. He handed me a $20.00, a $10.00 and two crumpled $5.00 dollar bills and I handed him the envelope.

He started to walk back to sit down and I told him to come up on the stage and open the envelope in front of everyone. Slowly, reluctantly, he made his way to center stage. I asked him to open the envelope and show everyone what was inside. He ran his finger along the envelope, tore it open and pulled out a piece of paper with a picture of Benjamin Franklin on it.

The trepidation on his face left immediately. He just stood there smiling and looking at his new $100.00 bill realizing he just made one of the best purchases of his life. Pay $40.00 get $100.00! I’m sure all of us would have made the same purchase if...yes, if we knew what was inside the envelope. However, there is that one little component that stops all of us from making those investments and it’s called risk. This true story reminds us of an important truth.

You will never be able to lead change unless you shift your thinking
from what you will loose to what you will gain.

If you are truly willing to spend the time, effort and energy to lead

4 Reasons Why God Expects Excellence

The one word translation of “do your best” is Excellence. Excellence is giving our best! Excellence is reaching our God given potential! Excellence is doing the best we can with what we got.

Excellence is matching our practice with our potential.

1. God Created Us With Excellence
"For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." Ephesians 2:10 NLT

The word masterpiece is the Greek word, poiayma. Our english word “poem” actually comes from this word. God created and crafted us into an amazing poem for the world to read, an incredible masterpiece for the world to see. God’s work is not average, it’s excellent!

2. God Deserves Our Best
"In all the work you are doing, work the best you can. Work as if

5 Ways To Get More Volunteers

Would you like a few more volunteers?

According to research from 15 focus groups across the country there is good evidence that you can get more volunteers IF you begin to practice one or all five of the following things.

1. Match The Skill of the Volunteer To Their Potential Role
Don’t just put a warm body in a volunteer position and hope it works out, it won’t, it never does. Match the skill, passion and interest of the potential volunteer to the role and responsibility you are asking them to consider.  

2. Equip The Volunteer For Their Potential Role
When I volunteer for the first time at something new I