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relentless pursuit 2007-05-31 21:53:00 One sentence is all that was recorded about his time as a leader. And one comment about his era of leadership was made later by another leader. The third recorded Judge in Israel's history barely gets a mention. This makes me wonder what this man Shamgar must have been like. Regardless of the impact of his leadership, he still possessed something that qualified him to be a leader. However, his story may raise more questions than answers. Let's first take a look at what it was that got him to the position of Judge of Israel.The record of his rule goes like this, "After him (Ehud) was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed 600 of the Philistines with an ox goad, and he also saved Israel" (Judges 3:31).Shamgar was obviously a man of great passion and conviction. Some translations point out that this killing of 600 Philistines was done single-handedly. Shamgar must have had an incredible drive in order to have such a relentless
pursuit. I have served a four-year term in the United States M
creating momentum 2007-05-28 20:51:00 Momentum is a funny thing... When you have it, it seems like it would take the whole world to stop it. But when you don't, it seems to take the whole world to get it. A train running away at 60 mph could smash through a brick wall, but a train at rest could not move an inch with a pebble stuck under the wheels. I'm sure that I don't have to spend much time talking about how important it is to have momentum
, but we all want to know how to create it when it is otherwise nowhere to be found.As I journey through the ancient leaders of Israel, the second judge that led the nation after arriving in the promised land was a man named Ehud. After Othniel passed, Israel was overtaken again, and was under foreign rule for a period of eighteen years. This would be difficult for most of us in the United States to understand, since a president these days can only serve a maximum of eight years. Imagine what it would be like to have a known enemy (like the current leaders of Iran or North Korea) l
walking upright 2007-05-24 21:40:00 Some time ago, I was working in a job that I somewhat enjoyed, and because I had some little successes, I thought that I was the best thing that ever happened to that company. I thought that I knew everything, and there sure wasn't anyone around that was about to prove me wrong. When I look back at myself (and not that I would have ever admitted it then) I became very self-reliant, and maybe even a bit self-righteous. Because in my mind I could do no wrong, I gave myself permission to create my own ethical standards. I decided that I could do certain things that were not necessarily the right things to do. The result... I fell flat on my face, and got a pretty rude wake-up call in my life.The reason that I share this it to give you an example of a great turn-around story. And as I continue searching for the management and leadership wisdom from the Proverbs, this is a good example of the next principle that I come across. The idea is that if you are smart, you will walk a righteous wa
rally point 2007-05-21 20:22:00 Remember the scene in Braveheart when Mel Gibson's character, William Wallace, was giving the freedom speech just before the big battle? Have you ever wondered what it takes to be such a leader? Have you ever wanted to rally people the way that William Wallace did in this movie? I could imagine that having the influence to motivate people to give their lives for a cause like that would require a pretty strong influence. However, even though today's business world is not faced with a need for that strong of a commitment, we often are fighting for our lives (careers) against competition flying in our face who would love nothing more than to see us fall.Well there was a time in the early days of the nation of Israel that an oppression took over, and if the nation were to survive, then it needed someone to step up and lead them. But before we talk about this seldom heard of leader, let's lay the groundwork first...There was a time in the history of Israel, that the nation was virtually Read more:point
under authority 2007-05-17 22:22:00 The idea of having authority over our lives often makes people cringe. "Self" does not like the idea of authority, because "self" typically wants to be it's own authority. This is evidenced by the idea that slogans like "be your own boss" and "be a self-made success" are so appealing to most people. There is a bigger drive these days to be self-employed than ever before since the start of the industrial revolution. I would think that this is driven mostly by a desire to get out from under the authority of other people, and be responsible for yourself. Now please don't take this the wrong way. I am not going to say that being self-employed is wrong, but I do have something to say about having authority in our lives.Let's take a look at a couple portions of Scripture to dig deeper into this idea of what authority means in our lives. First, let's continue with our journey through the Proverbs...6 For the Lord gives wisdom;from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;7 he stores up
achieving greatness 2007-05-14 21:45:00 I've recently had the pleasure of watching a feat in college sports that may be difficult to ever do again. I particularly enjoyed this because I am a big fan of the University of Florida Gators, but regardless of who you like, or if you are even a sports fan at all, you still can appreciate the recent accomplishments of the Florida sports programs. No other team in college sports history has held both the football and basketball national titles at the same time, especially while repeating as national champs in one of those sports (basketball). As a fan of the sports and the school, I took great pleasure in watching some of my favorite players hoist up those trophies, and hold up the single finger indicating that they truly are #1! You cannot help but to notice the great sense of pride and accomplishment in what they have just done.I believe that we can all identify with those players in some way, because deep down I believe that we all want to achieve greatness like that. No matter w Read more:achieving
you reap what you sow 2007-05-09 21:12:00 Have you ever wondered why people don't respond to your efforts to implement change (or anything for that matter)? I often hear from other leaders that one of their biggest frustrations is that they just cannot get people to respond or produce the way that they hoped they would. Typically, one of the first things that we tend to do in these situations is to point our fingers at our 'defective' followers. Well, we need to be careful when we point our fingers at someone else, because there are always three pointing right back at ourselves!I would propose that before we start looking at how 'defective' other people on our teams are, we should first take a close, honest look at ourselves to make sure that we are doing everything that we can to produce the desired response. Too often I see so-called 'leaders' sitting in their offices, working on 'important' things, yet all the while wondering why there are so many people that just don't get it.In a previous post on The Key to Moti
the source of wisdom 2007-05-08 21:49:00 Do you ever wish that you could always make the right decisions in every circumstance? Have you been in a situation where you wish that you could get a "do-over"? Making the right decisions is not a luck or chance thing. It requires wisdom. I don't just mean head-knowledge. Head-knowledge is important, but it is still limited. Where head-knowledge means that you may know certain facts, true wisdom means that you know how to apply those facts. So I would even argue that the statement that it is not information (or knowledge) that is power, but rather that true power comes from understanding and correct application of that knowledge.But why is this distinction important enough for me to spend time talking about it here? Well, as managers and leaders in our organizations, we are confronted with several decisions that need to be made every day. And it is important for us to make the RIGHT decisions, especially where it impacts other people in our organization.So the next questions is this
empowerment and creativity 2007-05-03 22:37:00 Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, "Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort." There is a lot of wisdom in this statement, and I believe that every one of us can testify that this is a very true statement. Nothing feels as good as creating and accomplishing something new.I've already used Jesus' Parable of the Talents to discuss reinforcement and consequences, but this time I'd like to use the same parable to discuss empowerment and creativity. In the previous post, I described how the "boss" responded when he returned, and how handled each of the situations based on the results that were produced. However, before anyone could have produced any results, they first had to be given the opportunity to produce those results. Let's take a closer look at how this whole thing got started:For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five tal
on reinforcement and consequences 2007-04-29 22:06:00 Many behavioral teachings would tell you that positive reinforcement should be given regularly. A "nice job" accompanied by a pat on the back is supposed to do wonders for an employee's performance. However even the best behavioral scientists recognize that this will work for some people but not others. The problem here is that there is never an alternate suggestion on exactly HOW to alter the method of reinforcement outside of telling you that it must be different at times.Much has been written about reinforcement and consequences
, but it still does not seem to be an exact science by most accounts, regardless of how much someone thinks they have perfected the method. The recognition that different methods of reinforcement are needed touches on how different we are as individual human beings (I believe this also separates us from the animals), but only further confuses the behavioral approach to management as a scientific formula. The combination of possible reinforcers is virtually i
The Key to Motivation 2007-04-24 22:04:00 Here it is... The biggest key to motivating employees... As managers and leaders in our organizations, we want (and often need) our people to be as productive as possible. It is not through exerting your influence over them that you get people to give you their all. If that works at all, it will only be for the short-term, and there will be no lasting impact on productivity. It also is not about empowering people to the point of allowing them to define how productive that they can be. If there are gains from this approach, then they too will be short lived, because what people decide is most productive for them will not always line up with your business objectives. The key to successfully motivating your employees is in developing a relationship with them. Let me explain...The key to motivating an employee into maximum production is in the connection. And when I use the word "connection," I mean it on two different levels:Connection of goals - There are two sets of goals that will exis
the Bible as a management guide? 2007-04-22 21:04:00 Moral relativism says that you can choose which moral standard works best for you, and that I can choose what is best for me. If that is the case then the drug dealer who is selling dope to your kids is completely justified if he is selling drugs because it is the only means that he can find to support his own family. It may not be okay to you, but often people like this have come to terms with their actions based on their own situation.You may not agree that this is okay, but this is exactly why "moral relativism" does not work, and why there needs to be an absolute moral standard for us to base things on. But you may be asking yourself, "why all of this stuff about moral standards?". Because management (and leadership) starts with character, and your character is based on your morals.If you have noticed one thing through the previous posts in this blog, it is that I typically point everything back to some point of personal responsibility. One of the most important things that manager
Product Evangelism 2007-04-19 21:58:00 We've all been there before... You go to a party (or some other event) with some friends, you meet some people and discuss where you work, and then suddenly you are confronted with this person sharing all of their problems and headaches with your company's product or service. The big question here is how do you respond? Do you suddenly get defensive and avoid the situation? Or do you rise to the occasion, be the ambassador for your company, and deal with the issue head-on? Now ask yourself, how would the owner of your company hope that you would respond?Product Evangelism
is about just this type of situation. Companies typically expect that their own employees would be raving fans of their products. If the people closest to the product cannot be fans of it, then how can they expect consumers to be fans of it. One of my favorite pictures that illustrates this point is the one with the guy paying his cable bill at a drive-up payment center, while he is driving work van for one of the D
Support Internal Customers 2007-04-19 17:56:00 Everybody is accountable to somebody. In the workplace, this means that every one of us, regardless of what we do, are responsible for delivering something to somebody. Earlier we discussed the idea of developing community and fostering teamwork, and that was more about the relationships that we have with each other. This point is more about our actions, and the deliverables that we have to each other.Even if your job is in Customer Service, and your primary focus is on helping customers, you still have internal customers that you are accountable to. Maybe it is getting your timesheets into the payroll department, or sharing your productivity information with management, or passing on feedback to other departments as needed. I work in Training and Development, and my internal customers not only include various workgroups that need to have something trained, but also various other training professionals and most importantly the learners that are participants in my training programs.The Read more:Internal
, Support
Personal Development 2007-04-11 22:32:00 The Psalmist (probably David) said that, "Good people will prosper like palm trees, Grow tall like Lebanon cedars;" (Psalms 92:12, The Message). I particularly want to bring attention to the idea of growth here, but let's break this statement down piece by piece...Good people - Some versions refer to this as "righteous", but I'd like to put emphasis here on the idea that these people are "worthwhile". However you think of them, good people, upright, upstanding, and righteous people, are the ones that you want to have working for you.will - This is a definitive statement. There are no maybes here.prosper - Even by itself, the outlook here is good. "Good people will prosper." They will do well. They will do well in your organization. If they prosper, then it benefits the business. But, that's not enough... How much do they prosper?like palm trees - In the Scriptures, palm trees are often used as a sign of victory. More on the trees here in a moment.Grow - This is the key word that I w Read more:Development
, Personal
, Personal Development
Build Community (a.k.a. Foster Teamwork) 2007-04-08 21:45:00 "It's better to have a partner than go it alone. Share the work, share the wealth. And if one falls down, the other helps, But if there's no one to help, tough! Two in a bed warm each other. Alone, you shiver all night. By yourself you're unprotected. With a friend you can face the worst. Can you round up a third? A three-stranded rope isn't easily snapped."These are the words of the wisest man to ever walk the face of the earth. King Solomon was blessed with immeasurable wisdom, and he penned these words for us in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (The Message). These words apply to business today just as much as they did when they were written nearly 3,000 years ago.The idea here is that there is strength in numbers, and nowhere is this more apparent than it is in the workplace. Often the greatest successes in business come when companies take advantage of certain synergies, and more importantly when there is a real sense of community. Evolutionists would call this a "tribal instinct", but the Read more:Build
, Foster
Honor the Company 2007-04-05 21:25:00 Imagine... You have created a new, innovative product that will impact millions of lives for the better. So you start a company in order to produce and sell this new product so that you can have that impact on people's lives. Now it is time for you to hire some employees to help you accomplish your mission. You are willing to offer a fair, competitive pay scale, and a solid benefits package. You need their help if you are going to accomplish what you are setting out to do, so you want to make sure that all of your employees are treated and compensated fairly.Now imagine that you have a whole group of employees that do not believe in your product, and have no respect for the company that you have created. What do you think will happen? Are you going to gain the productivity that you need from these people in order to meet sales goals and projections? How do you manage the employee that thinks that the company's main purpose is to simply provide them with a paycheck? Not only will pr
On Workplace Purpose 2007-04-03 17:04:00 You've heard the saying that "the inmates run the asylum", right? Have you ever thought about what makes that such a profound statement? It refers to the loss of control that happens when people (inmates in this example) act on their own behalf, regardless of their authority. The result is chaos.The same thing happens in a business environment when employees start to act on their own behalf. The "best interest" of the individual is not necessarily the best interest of the company. The result... chaos. Unless the purpose and goals of the business are tied directly to personal benefits, goals and purpose for the individual. We'll discuss more on that connection later. However, let us first discuss the overall purpose or mission of employees within the company.Just like an individual's purpose it not defined by themselves (it is defined by their Creator), the employee's purpose if defined by the employer (the creator of the job). During an informal poll, I asked people to define the p Read more:Purpose
, Workplace
On Individual Purpose 2007-03-28 22:33:00 "What on earth am I here for?"This question (from Rick Warren's Purpose
Driven Life) is a question that we all ask ourselves at some point in our lives. Without purpose, our lives are literally meaningless, so it is only natural that each of us would want to answer this important question.Much of what I will discuss in this blog is going to rely on one important understanding, and that is around the idea of individual purpose. I believe that every human being has a sense of purpose. Every individual has an inherent need for their lives to have some sort of significance. And if there is someone who says that they do not have a sense of purpose, they are really stating that they just have not figured out there purpose yet.I also believe that this sense of purpose is by design. According to my Biblical worldview, I have a Creator. And anything that the Creator creates has some sort of purpose. Think about this from an everyday perspective...Let's say that you create something, maybe a n Read more:Individual
Psychological Approaches to Management 2007-03-25 22:01:00 While Behaviorism and Self-Actualization represent the most often used psychological approaches that are applied to management technique, I don't want to lead you to believe that they are the only approaches that are available. There are other approaches to psychology like the new age "collective consciousness" and the more holistic Biblical approach.Just to review, we have already discussed some of the issues with Behaviorism view, that states that behavior is a result of the reinforcers that happen to people. This is a naturalistic (denies the spiritual) view, and some of its biggest problems lay in its inability to deal with things like free will, intuition, and other abstract aspects of the human mind. Because people's actions are only a result of the stimuli that happen to them, then there is also no room for personal responsibility. Brain activity is merely a chemical reaction. On the positive side, it does observe how positive and negative reinforcements affect human behavior. Read more:Management
just for the record... 2007-03-21 09:30:00 Self-Actualization sucks too! In my previous post I briefly presented a case against Behaviorism, especially as a source for management technique. However, the author addresses his concerns with the self-actualization approach to management as well, so I wanted to present the Biblical view of this psychology. The author speaks of the idea that some companies have tried (and failed) using "create your own job title" (and other) techniques that have their foundation in the psychology of self-actualization.I agree with the author in his statement that there are too many problems with this. However, from my Biblical worldview, here are the reasons that I disagree with this approach. The biggest problem is with the first word... "self". This approach is self-centered approach, and self-centered never works for the greater good of the whole community. Self-actualization virtually places "self" at the center of the universe. One of the problems with that is that if I am the center of the univ
The Foundation of it All 2007-03-20 13:12:00 I am reading a book right now called Bringing Out the Best in People (Daniels), and it has really challenged my belief system. The book presents Behaviorism at it's best. The author starts by laying the foundation of his Behaviorist views and how they apply to managing people in a businees environment.The issue that I have with this Behaviorism view is that it is a naturalistic perspective that believes that people's actions are solely reliant on the things that happen to them. In the book, the author makes the case that it is the environment that you create and the reinforcements that you give that will determine how productive your people are. The problem with this is that people are more than (naturalistic) chemical reactions. True Behaviorism takes away ideas like free-will, free-thought, and concepts like dignity, and replaces them with purely mechanical reactions. In the behaviorist's view, natural reactions, cause and effect, have no room for these things, so then they simply Read more:Foundation
a dash of humilty 2007-06-06 21:10:00 With the success of quiz shows like "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader", it is evident that the idea of being "smarter than ___" is becoming increasingly important in our society. These prime-time game shows are continually blasting us with the idea that success is somehow tied to how smart you are. "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" teaches us that knowing stuff can make you rich, while "The Weakest Link" further emphasises the fact that being not as smart as the next guy is a problem. I believe that this mindset is a problem, and as we continue through the Proverbs, I'd like to take this opportunity to discuss why I feel this way.Solomon teaches us to, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5). There are two things that I feel like this passage teaches us. First, we need to trust the authority over us. Then second, we not rely on our own knowledge and understanding. Let's break down these ideas in a little more detail. Why is t
living well 2007-06-05 21:10:00 What do you want people to think of when they hear your name?I could argue that all of us want to be respected and thought of in a positive light when other people talk about us. Have you ever had a sinking feeling inside when you run into someone who says, "I was just talking to someone about you."? Why would that comment ever be disturbing? Well it might bother you if you don't have the type of reputation that you would like. However, someone of great character would never have to worry when they hear that people have been talking about them. The question that I am going to address today is about the type of character that it takes to live well with a great reputation.To answer this question, I'd like to jump back into the Proverbs, and look at a short statement that I believes addresses this topic. And I really like the way that it reads in The Message...Don't lose your grip on Love and Loyalty. Tie them around your neck; carve their initials on your heart. Earn a reputation for
be an overcomer 2007-06-18 21:10:00 You've heard the saying that, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going," right? When it comes to being a good leader, there is more truth to that statement than one might initially think. I believe that it is in the face of adversity that true leadership is revealed. One cannot be afraid to take on challenges and get things done. People have no reason to follow someone that simply shys away when things get a little rough. People want to follow someone who is bold and strong and willing to knock down some walls every once in a while.As we begin to look at Deborah, our next leader in the Book of Judges (chapters 4 and 5), we first discover that her role as Judge over Israel started during the reign of Jabin king of Canaan. The commander of Jabin's army was a man named Sisera. Now Sisera was apparently a very bad man. It is recorded that he had "900 chariots of iron," and this made him a powerful force to be reckoned with. It is also recorded that he "oppressed the people of Isra
fight the good fight 2007-06-21 22:23:00 Sometimes you just have to do things that you weren't called to do. As I continue my look at Deborah in the Book of Judges (chapters 4 and 5), the next thing that I notice about her is that she was never supposed to be in the battle against Sisera herself. In today's business world, you may also find yourself in situations where you were never really meant to be, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you shouldn't do them. Let's take a closer look at the example here with Deborah.While Deborah was acting as the Judge over Israel, she summoned Barak. She pointed out to him that he was called by God to go into this battle against Sisera. You see, it wasn't her battle to go and fight
, but it was an assignment that was given to Barak to do. However, when Deborah "reminded" Barak that he was to go lead an army into battle, his response was one of hesitation. Even after a direct command from God, he still put conditions on it. He started negotiating with Deborah making the condition o
give credit where credit is due 2007-06-26 05:28:00 Few things can crush a spirit more than the issue that I am about to discuss here. Imagine getting assigned to a project that you have been dreaming about getting, and you then continue to pour your heart and soul into it. When it is complete, you step back and look at what you've done with a great sense of pride and accomplishment. You are proud of what you were able to do. So the big-wigs hear about this cool new thing going on, and inquire about it. You can sense their pleasure with your new masterpiece! Then it happens... While standing at your desk with the executives gushing over your work, your boss speaks up and takes every bit of credit
for the work that you've done. Then to add insult to injury, the executives congratulate your boss on a job well done, and then never even glance in your direction again.This has happened to me, twice. And both times I have felt absolutely miserable. I don't think that I can recall any time in my professional life that I have felt so small a
being above reproach 2007-07-03 19:50:00 I was watching one of the news channels recently, and I heard a report about how someone had gotten fired from their job after their employer had discovered that they were lying to them about calling in sick. Apparently, after this person called in sick, they went out on a fishing trip with some buddies and a bunch of beer, and then posted the pictures from it on their MySpace account. Somehow these pictures on the Internet came to the attention of the employer, who was outraged and ended up letting the employee go. One of the "guest experts" on this news report also talking about how many employers do web searches these days while screening potential employees. If they find something online (like on a MySpace account, YouTube, or some blog) that brings that person's character into question, then they use that information in making their decision to hire that person or not.There is no doubt that we live in an age where information can travel far and fast, and some people may complain Read more:above
executive-leader qualifications 2007-07-01 21:10:00 What is it that makes a leader? Some say that leaders are born that way. Others say that leaders can be made. So the key question is really about whether someone can come to possess the qualities that a leader should have. However, before anyone can determine whether someone can learn them or not, we must first identify what the important qualities actually are. Now I am not going to make the judgement for you on whether these qualities can be learned or not, but I am going to present to you what I believe the most important qualities are.In fact, I also believe that there are different "levels" of leadership, and I also believe that each has their own qualifications. The higher level of leadership that I plan to discuss is what I will refer to as the "executive-leader". The Bible refers to this type of leader as an "overseer" or "elder". This level of leadership is typically responsible for the overall vision of the organization. These leaders are the vision-setters, and the trail-bla
the marriage requirement 2007-07-09 18:28:00 This one will be one of the more controversial topics that I write about, bar none. Here in the list of requirements for the "executive leader" is this one that says that you must be, "the husband of one wife." Many of you may be thinking right now, what in the world does that have to do with being a business leader? What about divorced people, can't they be leaders, or does this rule count them out? What I will say is that while it is not my intent to change anything in the Scriptural text, it is my intent to discover the principles that they teach, and translate that into a business principle that puts you on an unshakable foundation.Quite honestly, much of the church is split over what this verse means as a qualification for elders (overseers) in their church bodies. Some take this as a very literal requirement, while others dismiss it as an outdated rule that should not apply because of the "grace" of God. I have my own beliefs about this, but I am not here to even try to make tha Read more:marriage
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