Well, the answer is quite simple. You cannot get it all done. You have a ton of different things on your list. You are starting something new regularly. Your work places demands on you. Your loved ones are pulling at you. Then you have your own list of projects, action items and personal development goals. You cannot do it all! So don’t. Decide you are going to do less. Decide you are going to drop the good for the great. Decide you are going to do what is really needed. Two questions for you: 1) What are you telling yourself you need to do that you really don’t need to…
-
-
4 Steps to Killing Creativity
If you want to kill creativity in a person, organization, ministry, etc, I recommend the following. 1) “We Have Never Done That” Go ahead, let you decision making be led by this phrase. Decide to never do anything you have not already done. This is a great formula for death. 2) “We Tried That Once” This phrase is sibling to #1. It makes you wonder, what are we so afraid of? Being risk averse does not lead to being a stronger person, business, church, etc. It leads to being weak and susceptible to death. 3) How? vs Wow! At Catalyst the last two years, Andy Stanley has encouraged spouses to…
-
The Momentum of Discipline
At any given time, I am working on increasing my discipline across a variety of areas of my life. Whether it be Inbox Zero for work, reading my Bible and praying, or spending more and better time with my family, I am always looking to improve. There are regularly habits I’m trying to break and habits I’m trying to start. Discipline is an interesting thing. The more you have it, the more you get. Discipline creates momentum for more discipline. In The Power of Habit, the author, Charles Duhigg, discusses Keystone Habits. Broadly speaking, these are habits that drive our lives and as a result, lead to other habits. There is…
-
Decide to Play Hurt
It is no fun to be hurt. Whether your pain is from a temporary sickness, a tragic life event or a chronic attack on you physically or emotionally, the feeling can be overwhelming. It paralyzes you. It makes you want to escape. You are hoping to wake up from this horrible nightmare. Have you ever felt crippled by your hurt? I remember once when I was about 10 years old, sitting on the steps in our house early one morning. I didn’t feel good. Nothing serious, but I was ready to go back to bed. Dad was dressed, making his coffee, preparing to fly out the door. He came across…
-
Creating a Spiritual Life Plan
For a long time, I have been collecting ideas and books to help me grow spiritually. My issue has been that I want to read everything, do every spiritual exercise, listen to every sermon. As a result, I have not done anything. No, really. I have all these great resources at my fingertips, and I am not using any of them. I keep thinking about it, but not actually taking any action. I’m probably the only one. Do you ever struggle with reading your Bible, prayer and the countless other spiritual growth opportunities open to you? More than any other generation in the history of the world, we have access…
-
I Believe in Coaching
Coaching is a powerful tool to help you get from where you are to where you want to be. I really believe in coaching. Currently I have a couple different coaches helping me in multiple areas of my life. I have found that having a coach does the following: 1) Leads me to take action. 2) Gets me to act NOW. 3) Pushes me to jump farther. 4) Increases my confidence. 5) Moves me in the direction of my goals and passions. Whether it be in my personal life or professionally, coaches make me a better me. I am blessed to have them and am excited about where we are…
-
How You Can Really Measure Work-Life Balance In Your Company
In his book Start with Why, Simon Sinek tells a story about a construction company owner who values work-life balance. This owner was trying to figure out how to infuse this value into his company. The way he decided to do that was to require people to clock in at a certain time each day (i.e.: between 8:00 and 8:30) and to clock out at a specific time (i.e.: between 5:00 and 5:30). The owner believed this would allow them to measure and stick to this value of work-life balance. It worked! This action forced his employees to be more productive with the time they had. Sinek points out that…
-
2016 Q2 Quarterly Offsite
Last week I did my Q2 Offsite. It was fabulous! I sent this text to my wife after the first day. Day 1: Create, Learn, Serve As mentioned before, I typically look at 3 areas and I categorize them in the following way: Create – What am I going to work on this next 90 days? This then directs my schedule and leads to an Ideal Week. Learn – What books, podcasts, etc am I going to be reading and listening to this quarter? I can’t read it all, but I can do some. Serve – Who are my priority relationships? Who has God brought into my life that needs…
-
Questions to Consider as You Head Toward Your Quarterly Offsite
I’m two weeks away from my next Quarterly Offsite! Excited! It is going to be a great time of rest, renewal and refocusing. Here some questions you should consider for a Quarterly Offsite: 1) How am I going to rest on the retreat? Make plans to be offline from email, social media, texts, phone calls, etc. That’s why I call it an “Offsite.” You are not available. Make plans for times of prayer, physical activity and a nap (or two). 2) What will I read, watch or listen to on this Quarterly Offsite? Typically I include content that is inspiring, spiritually refreshing and/or goal focused. There is so much great…
-
The Idea Categories for My Blog
Since first starting my blog back in 2013, I have enjoyed bringing content and ideas that I hope have been helpful to you. I have grown as a person and I continue to be passionate about the topics I discuss here. If you are new to my blog, you should know that I am an Idea Addict. I love ideas (mine and yours). They fuel me and are my greatest addiction. I believe ideas can change a life, impact a community and bring a smile to a sad face. If you are an Idea Addict, you believe in the power of ideas as well. While we get sidetracked from time…