23 February 2011

Unicycles and Bowling Pins

As many of you know I am an avid Georgia Bulldogs football fan.

With that being said, I recently heard an amazing story about star (sadly former) wide receiver A.J.Green that simply blew me away.

A. J. is a multi-talented player on the football field, but what many people don't know is that he has also mastered the art of juggling. Now that doesn't impress many people these days, but consider this: he juggles while simultaneously riding a unicycle!

Yep...a unicycle. We're talking full blown Wringling Brothers stuff here.

I can't think of a better picture of what everyday leadership looks like. You and I have answered a high call to be out front blazing the trail of our organizations. We take many hits and make many decisions all looking into the future success of our teams. There are countless meetings, conversations, goals, and people that we constantly are forced to juggle in order to make the whole thing flow.

Our ability to keep everything in the air is nothing short of miraculous! My encouragement to you in this season is to keep juggling. It may seem like you are trying to balance a unicycle and keep a bazillion bowling pins from hitting the ground, but keep juggling.

That's kind of the definition of management. Now for years many people have thought that management was a bad word in the arena of leadership, but this is false. You show me a great leader and I'll show you a great manager. The two are inseparable. So brush off those people skills, get your daily planner out and make it happen. I have come to learn that often it is in the juggling that we are silently driving our organizations forward. So you may feel like a clown at the circus, but the "greatest show on earth" is your group gaining new ground and making things happen positively for your team.

Getting back to A. J. the big thing about his amazing talent of juggling while unicycling is that he started doing it to do something "cool" and to improve his hand-eye coordination. As a wide receiver in division 1 college football (and the NFL where he is headed) hand-eye coordination is crucial.

Realize that your juggling is actually making you a better leader. You're not juggling for juggling's sake, you are getting better everyday.

15 February 2011

A Lesson From a Tree

I recently had one of those days that we all hate. One of those days where everything that can go wrong does!

I was late to work. All day the boss was less than pleasant. Spent a bunch of money on a battery for my wife's car...only to have the car break down two blocks from our house. Had to skip dinner to go to church. Worked on the car after church...as the snow started falling (still with no food in my belly!).

We all have those days. It is somewhat comforting to me to know that even people like Bill Gates and Donald Trump have days where everything seems to fall apart.

The significant thing that I want to mention here is this: How do you deal with adversity?

As leaders we all face hard times. People quit, the new idea flops, we can't get any volunteer help on weekends, etc. Chalk it all up to adversity.

As I was standing there next to my wife's newly broken down car (as the fresh snow began to fall all around me) I just so happened to glance across the street where I gained inspiration. I saw one of the largest "Christmas" trees that I have ever seen in my life. This thing was enormous. It shot up toward the heavens with great girth and it's limbs were broad and strong. There were more layers to this tree than in any tree that I have ever seen in my life.

And here it was teaching me about leadership.

I want to be that tree. I want my life to stretch toward heaven. I want my impact to be broad like the limbs of that tree. I want to show strength to all who are sensitive to notice. And here is the catch: in order for that tree to be impressive it had to persevere through many storms.

I would never have thought about perseverance that night had the tree been blown over by the first wind that passed through town. And the same is true of our leadership. We will never make a significant impact until we have the currency of perseverance.

Let me say that again...

We will never make a significant impact until we have the currency of perseverance.

Our roots must go deep and we must grow stronger as we go higher. Realize that you have been planted on this earth and the goal of life is to leave something meaningful behind.

Let your roots grow deep EXACTLY where you have been planted. Stand tall through whatever adversity you are facing now or in the future. Set your gaze toward heaven and spread your influence EXACTLY where you are planted. Stick it out. It ain't as bad as you think it is right now and it ain't as good as you think it is on the other side of the fence.

Your life and your leadership is what you make of it.

Stick it out believing that you are growing into the strongest tree that you can be. Earn the currency of perseverance by setting your roots deep. You can make it!

08 February 2011

When You Do It, I'll Do It

Recently during a time of prayer I was crying out to God about my heart. If you are anything like me you know the feeling of "not good enoughness" that tends to creep in from time to time. I mean as much as I understand grace theologically I should be the first to embrace it practically.

But there lies my problem...grace is good enough to cover everyone else's sins except mine.

Now I don't go right out and say that to myself, but under the surface I believe it to be true. I understand that God is love and that Christ's outstretched arms on the Cross are proof that I am special to him, but I know what I do on a daily basis. I'm there sitting in the front row of my life witnessing every negative thought, every slip of the lip, every frustrated moment, every day-dream of killing my boss, every selfish argument with my wife, every time I pull the dogs' leash a little too tightly, every time etc.

I wish I had a restart button.

It was during this "God my heart is crap and so am I" prayer that I was reminded of something that I had advised our church recently (I hate it when my own words are used against me), James 4.8 says, "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you."

That's the answer!

It's so simple...

...a little too simple...

So you mean to tell me this whole time that instead of waiting on God to spiritually thump my heart and make me "on fire" again all I have to do is make the first move?!!?

It was then that I heard God's voice speaking to my heart. "When you do it, I'll do it."

Don't wait on "God" or whatever lame excuse anymore! Get up, get out, and make something happen. Stop rolling over in the mud of your daily sins and struggles. Throw them at the foot of the Cross and make the first move!!!!

Why?

"When you do it, I'll do it!"