The Passion of a Professional

In the book, Everything They Had: Sports Writing from David Halberstam, there is a great quote from Julius Erving:

"Being a professional is doing the things you love to do, on the days you don't feel like doing them."

Halberstam used the quote to explain his own passion for writing, whether it was about history or sports.

I get it. You see, I am a professional teacher.

I am so blessed that I get to do what I love to do - what God has gifted me to do - and earn a great living doing it.

But there are days when I just don't feel like doing it. On those days, I often reflect on the notes and comments I have received from students over the years. Many of those notes were sent when the student had no way of knowing that I was in a funk. I think the Lord knew and He prompted them to send the note.

And when I read those notes I am reminded - again - that its not about me. I am reminded of why I do this. And I apologize to God for forgetting what a blessing it is to get to earn a living doing what I love to do - even when I don't feel like it.

Your Personal Report Card

I don't know about you, but for me the holiday season is usually a time for reflection, evaluation, and planning. Its a great time to give ourselves a "report card." Here's one I adopted from
Leading on Empty, Wayne Cordeiro's book, Leading on Empty.

This report card is essentially a personal “dashboard” that includes several gauges that monitor and measure the vital arenas of your life. The arenas represent the subsystems of life that are vital to our health and success.

The following arenas are suggested. The tool should be customized to fit your life situation. This evaluation should be done periodically. I would also suggest that you invite your spouse and other members of your inner circle to evaluate you in these areas.

Assign a letter grade for each arena. Be brutally honest with yourself. In addition to the letter grade you assign, write a few sentences that provide the basis for the grade assigned. Also, make notes on steps that need be taken to make improvements.


Faith Life

Marriage Life

Family Life

Work Life

Computer Life

Ministry Life

Financial Life

Social Life

Attitudinal Life

Physical Life

Other

Are there any arenas that require immediate maintenance and repair?

A New Job Description

A frequent prayer: "Lord show me the good works you have prepared beforehand for me to walk in during this season of my life."

I am not sure I fully know all of the good works He has prepared for me, but I am beginning to sense some clarity.

He has blessed me with a tremendous "margin of time" that allows me to be available to create and cultivate relationships. My "new normal" is actually God's strategic alignment of my schedule with my heart's desire to invest myself in others.


Several months ago I had a discussion with a couple of people who wanted to explore the possibility of me working with them. I left the discussion with a weird feeling. It wasn't a good fit. They wanted to build a business. I wasn't interested in that. I was interested in building people.


I had forgotten that feeling until a few weeks ago when I was re-reading yet another Gordon MacDonald book, A Resilient Life. I was particularly drawn to his discussion of one of his mentors, Vernon Grounds.

Listen to his description:


"... he was the quintessential resilient man because he always thought about his life and those around him with a big picture in mind. He has always known the center of his strength and his call. And he wasted little time out on the edges of activity where he is less competent.


... Somewhere in his earliest years it became plain to him the he was a builder of people more then anything else. People simply grew under his influence, even when he was unaware that he was exerting it.


... But even though he bore the burden of a seminary presidency for twenty-five-plus years, as I see it, he was first and foremost a builder of people.


... He understood that life was lived out of call and conviction, and his call was to build people according to God's design for them."


As I read that passage I underlined, asterisked, and marked it. The description resonated with me because I too have known people like that.

And the best way for me to thank those who helped build me, is to pay it forward and build others!


That's it!


That's my job description: A builder of people: Building people according to God's design for them.

This is the "good work that God has prepared beforehand for me to walk in" during this season of my life.

Only Cheaters Win, Part 3

I thought I would only have two parts to this Only Cheaters Win idea, but Kara asked a great question in her comment, so I decided to add part 3.

Here's how I see this playing out: We make a commitment, and often part of our commitment is making a plan. Remember, we need to make sure we don't leave God out of this planning process. In Daniel's case, his plan included "seeking permission" for his commitment (really a challenge) and God's hand was on the situation.

I think Kara shows some great self-awareness in recognizing her tendency to plan and then commit. But sometimes, we need to make the commitment even without a plan, and ask God to help us develop the plan.

We also need to be careful that we don't substitute "planning" for making a commitment we know we should make. This amounts to "work avoidance" and is a subtle way of keeping us from making some hard decisions we need to make.

As I write that, I am reminded of Craig Groeschel's admonition: "The gap between where you are and where God wants you to be is the hard decision you refuse to make."

(Sometimes I wish I had never heard that!)

In the workplace, we need to always do our work in a way that honors God. And a big part of that is to submit to the authority that is over us. That's where the "seeking permission" part comes in.

So commit-with or without a plan- pray, seek permission, and watch the "Now God" moments unfold.

Only Cheaters Win, Part 2

Are you ready to cheat?

Given the importance of cheating, let me provide some clarification of what I am talking about. When we cheat we are making a trade-off decision. We are choosing to give up one thing in hopes of gaining something else of greater value. So in terms of this broad definition, we are all cheaters. Everyday we make decisions to give something up in order to gain something else or to do something else.

If we are really honest, many of us are choosing to spend our physical and emotional energy in our work, and we are cheating our spouses and our families. The sad thing is they are often codependents who enable us to cheat them. We get wrapped up in a project, in an important client engagement, a season of intense work commitments and they “understand.”
They love us and they want to be supportive. They are mentally willing to support us.

While I was investing myself in in getting my MBA and growing my career during the early years of our marriage, Laura was at home juggling two, then three, then four children who were under 7 years old. She understood. She was emotionally willing. But, if left to that course, eventually her emotional willingness would be overcome by physical exhaustion.

The truth is, she was being cheated and she was only getting the leftovers.

So let me ask you some questions:

• Where are you cheating?




• Who are you cheating?




• Who feels cheated?

Are you squirming yet? Getting a little uncomfortable –maybe, even a lot?

Good.

Now, that I have created some tension in your system, let me take some pressure off: Your problem is not discipline. Your problem is not your organization skills. Your problem is not that you have yet to stumble into the best time management techniques. And the problem is not that your spouse demands too much from you.

THE PROBLEM IS: There is not enough time to get everything done that you are convinced – or others have convinced you – needs to get done. There is just not enough time in your day to be all things to all people.

THE SOLUTION is we need to learn how cheat with purpose, to cheat by design. We need to become strategic cheaters. We need to learn to cheat according to our greatest purpose. Strategic cheating is all about setting priorities based on God’s principles.

A “Now God” Moment

In order to get some insight into strategic cheating, I would like us to look briefly at the life of an Old Testament hero named Daniel.

The story unfolds in Daniel 1. Daniel was faced with a similar dilemma that we are. He was faced with a decision that would require him to either cheat his earthly king or cheat his heavenly Father. Without knowing how it would play out, Daniel made a commitment. He decided to cheat the king so he could honor God. Notice, he made the commitment before he knew how he would implement it.

But I want you to also notice what happened immediately after Daniel made his commitment. God showed up! It was a “Now God…” moment!

“But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king's choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. Now God granted Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials.” (Daniel 1:8-9)

When Daniel made the commitment to live by God’s principles, God showed up to clear the path. When we are willing to set our priorities and make commitments that honor God, He is willing to touch down in the midst of our personal chaos and bring the order and balance we so desperately need.

If we are to be strategic cheaters, we need to follow Daniel’s pattern:

• Make a Commitment




• Develop a Plan




• Set up a Trial

I have no doubt hit a sensitive issue for many of you. I would like to encourage you to make a commitment before you leave this blog. Commit to re-prioritizing your schedule according to God’s principles.

As you make this commitment, I want to encourage you not to substitute a condition for a commitment. Don’t say “when we finish this project I will change my schedule”, or “if I can just win this account, I will back off” or "When this semester is over." When we make our commitments conditional, we are saying that our spouse is not really the priority after all. Make your commitment an unconditional commitment.

In Matthew 6:33, Jesus said “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Like Daniel, we need to develop a plan. And like Daniel we need to set up a test. Don’t make a lifelong commitment, make a 30 day commitment.

And like Daniel, we need to make the commitment before we know how it will be implemented. And when we do, we set ourselves up for a “Now God” moment.

You see, when we surrender our will to the Heavenly Father, he takes responsibility for the outcome of the journey.

Are you ready to trade merely surviving for thriving?

Start cheating!

Only Cheaters Win, Part 1

I was the fair-haired boy, the chosen protégé of our founder and CEO. I had been hired one semester short of completing my MBA by a small manufacturing and distribution company. They had never had an MBA working for them and didn’t know exactly what to do with me. So, I got to do a lot of everything. I was on the fast track. Promotions and increased responsibility came fast. And the CEO took me under his wing and began to mentor me. It was a great post-graduate education and the responsibility and attention I was receiving were huge ego boosters.

Then I got caught cheating.

The CEO came to my office and shut the door as he entered the room. He had a look on his face that I had not seen before. He was very serious and said, “I need to talk to you. You are working late every night, you’re taking work home with you, and you’re here on the weekends…You’re working too hard and I want you to cut it out.”

I said, “Well we have a lot going on. We have this new information system we’re implementing and the inventory project really needs a lot of attention.”

His response was very firm: “This business is a fleeting thing and that woman at home is not.”

I said, “She understands. She knows we have a lot going on…”

I barely had the sentence out, before he pounded his fist on my desk and said, “Damnit, I said cut it out! You think she understands and then one day you go home and she meets you at the door with her bags packed as she is leaving because she doesn’t understand anymore. It happened to me and I don’t want it to happen to you.”

I got caught cheating. Jim saw what I didn’t see. I was pouring all of my physical and emotional energy into my work. Even when I was home I wasn’t really there. I was giving the best of me to my job and I was cheating Laura. My employer was getting the best of me and Laura was getting nothing but the leftovers.

Let’s face it. We all cheat. If our marriage has lost its passion, it’s because we are cheating. But here’s the paradox. If we want our marriages to move from merely surviving to thriving - we have to cheat.

You see, the only way to take our marriage to a “hole nuther level” is to cheat. When it comes to having a thriving marriage, ONLY CHEATERS WIN!

Whatever, Part 2

In my last posting I suggested that we need to redefine success. Too often we confine our view of success to our work or career. I suggested we needed a more comprehensive view of success. As, I discussed in "Whatever, Part 1", one thing that has helped me put this to work is that I see my whole life as an act of worship. WHATEVER I do is to be done in a way that honors God.

Today, I want to provide some practical suggestions for implementing a new view of success:

Imagine yourself as a competitor in the Olympic event known as the Pentathlon. It’s a 5-event competition and if you are going to win it you must excel in all 5 areas.

Let’s use that as an analogy for a new view of success. All too often, we define success around one arena: work. But, if we are to be truly successful we need to excel in all 5 arenas of this Pentathlon:

• Work



• Family



• Church



• Community



• Personal

One of my favorite contemporary authors is Chuck Swindoll. He is the Chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary and the Pastor of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco. I heard an interview with him several years ago. The interviewer said “Chuck, when you started out did you ever think you would have had the impact that you have had?” Chuck’s response was “No. When I started out I had 3 goals: I wanted to be a good husband, I wanted to be a good daddy, and I wanted to teach God’s Word.”

Notice his sequencing and priorities: His job came third.

We need a more comprehensive view of success, and we need to re-orient our priorities.

Next, I think we should set being goals, not just doing goals or acquiring goals. Set goals about your character.

I also think we need to distinguish between success and the rewards of our success. Andy Stanley tells the story of the African-American who rose from bellboy to become the CEO of the Ritz-Carlton. Sometime after he became the CEO he was asked about his new-found success. He responded by saying “I was successful when I was a bellboy. I am now enjoying the rewards of my success.”

Success is more about who we are- our character, our integrity- than what we do for a living, the salary we earn, or the titles we have.

So, let me challenge you to reframe your view of success:

• Include God in your plans


• Develop a comprehensive perspective on what it means to be successful,


• Re-orient your priorities, and


• Don’t confuse success with the rewards of success.

Whatever, Part 1

In my first post I challenged us to make Halftime rather than New Year's resolutions. To really put those Halftime resolutions to work will probably require you to develop a new definition of success. So today, I am sharing some thoughts on rethinking what it means to be successful.

How do you spell success?

I talk to a lot of young(er) adults and I am always curious about their answer to this question. They usually respond with answers that have to do with money, possessions, and positions.

When I was in high school, I took an elective course called “The Psychology of Motivation.” The class was based on a then-popular organization that was selling positive thinking and goal-setting programs.

I still remember the their definition of success:

“Success is the progressive realization of any worthwhile predetermined goal.”

That definition was supported with this encouragement:

“Anything you ardently desire, vividly imagine, sincerely believe, and enthusiastically act upon must inevitably come to pass.”

Looks like something you would see on one of those motivational pictures in your company’s conference room doesn’t it? You know those pictures of skiers jumping off snowy cliffs or marathon runners breaking the tape.

What’s wrong with those definitions? Read each of those statements again, ... slowly. What’s missing?

The problem is that God is left out. This amounts to practical atheism. We profess to know God, but we leave Him out of our most important decisions.

James, Jesus’ half-brother, identified this problem 2000 years ago, and it still plagues us today:

“Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit." Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that." But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.” (James 4:13-16).

In addition to leaving God out, there’s another problem with our view of success. Too often our view of success is one-dimensional. And it usually centers around our work. If we are successful at work then we are successful. Other arenas of our life are ignored and important relationships - like our marriages and our children - are sacrificed on the altars of our careers.

But God’s view of success is comprehensive. It involves the whole person and informs everything that we do. Maybe we can sum this up in one word “WHATEVER.”

This seems to have been one of the Apostle Paul’s favorite words. Listen to what he says about our thinking:

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen)in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Phillipians 4:8-9)

Now listen to what he says about our work:

“Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.” (Colossians 3:17, 24)

So, here's a your new definition of success for the Second Half: WHATEVER!

And you thought valley talk originated in California in the late 80’s!