Wisdom

 

Wisdom

The MMM has often addressed wisdom and our (my) ongoing pursuit of it.  I have also written about how impatient we are as humans.  Impatience and wisdom don’t play well together.  Consider the following which addresses both points…

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate.  Wisdom is proven over time.  Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best.  Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom.  The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. ¹

Be wary of those who seek to have their own wisdom acknowledged before it can be proven over time.  Volume does not equate to wisdom.  Also, be patience with your own understanding of wisdom. 

Have a blessed week.

1 – Taken from: Experiencing God Day-By-Day, Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

Have a Negroni!

 

What a great way to do life! Great wisdom here. Cheers Anthony and Rest in Peace!

“Eat at a local restaurant tonight. Get the cream sauce. Have a cold pint at 4 o’clock in a mostly empty bar. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Listen to someone you think may have nothing in common with you. Order the steak rare. Eat an oyster. Have a negroni. Have two. Be open to a world where you may not understand or agree with the person next to you, but have a drink with them anyways. Eat slowly. Tip your server. Check in on your friends. Check in on yourself. Enjoy the ride.”

– Anthony Bourdain

Wisdom

 

I don’t know about you, but I pray for wisdom every day. I believe that God grants wisdom. But we also earn it, or gain it, through life experiences. Some of us are better than others at turning life experiences into wisdom.

What if we had wisdom much earlier in life? Imagine navigating friendships, choices, and mistakes with the perspective we gain over time. Less worried about fitting in, more focused on what truly matters. We might have stressed less over things that didn’t last and appreciated simple moments more. But maybe growing up is part of God’s plan, it is meant to be messy and uncertain, so we must earn that wisdom the hard way.

“Wisdom in your teens would be a lot less fun”

-       Taken from the Luke Bryan song – “Most People Are Good”

If we knew then, what we know now…

Laugh, Think, Cry

 

“To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. Number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special.”

-       Jim Valvano, ESPNs speech 1993

 

I am always reminded of this speech this time of year on ESPN. Jim Valvano was dying of cancer when he gave it. Sadly, he passed away less than two months later. If you have never heard this speech, you need to. (Easy to find on YouTube) His words of wisdom make up one of the most moving speeches of all time. It is powerful, motivating, passionate and emotional.  What if we all really experienced all three things daily?  He was right, we would have something special. 

 

Laugh, Think and Cry today…

Some days are diamonds. Some days are stones.

 

Some days are in fact diamonds. Those are the days when all seems to be right with the world. Others are more like rough uncut stones when nothing seems to go smoothly. Most days actually fall somewhere in between. There are rough spots during the day offset by bright spots at other times.  Some days we even have opportunities to turn stones into diamonds. For the most part we learn to take the good with the bad and roll with the flow, knowing that there are always more diamonds to come. Maybe not tomorrow or next week, but there are more days of diamonds. By faith, strength, discipline and wisdom we endure the stones and rejoice in the diamonds. 

Remember too, the stones will never totally go away…

Wisdom

 

The MMM has often addressed wisdom and our ongoing pursuit of it. Wisdom is a permanent fixture on my prayer list.  I have also written about how impatient we are as humans.  Impatience and wisdom don’t go well together.  Consider the following which addresses both points…

 

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate.  Wisdom is proven over time.  Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best.  Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom.  The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. ¹

 

Be wary of those who seek to have their own wisdom acknowledged before it can be proven over time.  Remember to be patient with your own understanding of wisdom. 

 

Have a blessed week.

 

1 – Taken from: Experiencing God Day-By-Day, Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

Be a Waterer

 

ESPN.com headline last week…“Dusty Baker, manager of the Houston Astros, buys custom suits for American League All-Star coaching staff”.

He paid for a tailor to make a custom suit for each of the American League All-Star coaches. How awesome is that? Here is Dusty Baker’s wisdom behind his actions. “I was always raised in kind of the church of he who waters gets watered himself. If you’re generous to others, then you know, the Lord and people tend to be generous to you.”

We could probably all do a little more watering. I love the analogy. Be a waterer. I am not talking about your lawn.

“He who waters, gets watered himself.”

Wisdom

Wisdom is a favorite topic of the MMM.  I find myself constantly seeking wisdom as well as searching out those whom I think possess wisdom.  My search for wisdom is a constant on my prayer list.  Whatever wisdom really is, I think we all need it.  The world would be a better place if people exercised a bit of wisdom before taking action.  Yet it is not always that simple.  Wisdom often takes more time and patience than we naturally possess.  It can also require an open mindedness that may make us uncomfortable.  I have written before about wisdom and our ongoing pursuit of it.  I have also written about how impatient we are as humans.  Consider the following which addresses both points…

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate.  Wisdom is proven over time.  Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best.  Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom.  The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. ¹

This is so true in our country right now.

Have a blessed week.

 ¹ Taken from: Experiencing God Day-By-Day, Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

How Are Your Investments Doing?

No, I am not talking about your stock portfolio.  I am talking about your investment in other people!  One of the most important investments we make is in other humans.  We invest time, love and attention into people around us every day.  (If you are not positively investing in others you should be.)  The most valuable thing that we can give others is our time and our undivided attention.  As leaders it is our responsibility to invest in people.  We invest time with people who want to understand our careers.  Time should be dedicated to helping others avoid our mistakes.  We spend time mentoring.  Sharing the wisdom of our experiences is an investment in someone else.  Helping people through difficult personal or professional times is an investment in them.  Building meaningful and lasting relationships is a significant investment. 

We are meant to live in community.  We are designed to support others and be supported by others.  Be intentional about investing in people.  Make relationship investing a part of who you are. Trust me, you will see a return on your investment.

How are your investments doing?

Wisdom

It is difficult for a person to claim that they have wisdom.  Being wise, or having wisdom, is a trait recognized by others.  Wisdom is hard to find but you know it when you see it.  I have written in the MMM before about the elusiveness of wisdom.  We search constantly for it, and while we may feel wise at times there are others where we are totally lost.  But there are places to start and steps to take towards wisdom.  Consider this…

“Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.”
- Thomas Jefferson

Start your book of wisdom by being honest this week! 

Wisdom

I have written in the MMM before about wisdom and our ongoing pursuit of it.  I have also written about how impatient we are as humans.  Impatience and wisdom do not go well together.  Consider the following which addresses both points…

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate.  Wisdom is proven over time.  Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best.  Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom.  The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. ¹

Be wary of those who seek to have their own wisdom acknowledged before it can be proven over time.  Also, be patience with your own understanding of wisdom. 

Have a blessed week.

1 – Taken from: Experiencing God Day-By-Day, Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

Leadership

Positions and titles can cloud the judgment of leaders.  Often when leaders reach a certain level, or status, they seem to think they are required to independently have all the answers.  It is like they believe that with the title comes the obligation and ability to answer every question immediately and correctly themselves.  They put undue pressure upon themselves to respond with authority even when they may not be confident of the answer.

Great leaders do not fall trap to this thinking.  They know that quality leadership requires a decision making process.  That process may require time and it may involve other resources.  Good decision making does not come as the result of a title or a position, but is the result of experience, wisdom, and thoughtful processing of the circumstances.  Making the ultimate decision is different from feeling like you must have an immediate answer to every circumstance.  Great leaders are always prepared to step up and make a decision.  But in doing so they know they don’t have to respond immediately and have all of the answers themselves.  They know to consult experts, conduct research and fully consider all options.  Our responsibility as leaders is to make sound, well thought out and rational decisions, not to simply have an answer.

Wisdom

I have written often about wisdom and our ongoing pursuit of it.  The MMM has also addressed how impatient we are as humans.  Consider the following writing which addresses both points…

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate.  Wisdom is proven over time.  Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best.  Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom.  The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. ¹

Be wary of those who seek to have their own wisdom acknowledged before it can be proven over time.  Also, be patient with your own understanding of what is wise.  Wisdom is elusive.  It is easier to spot in others than in ones’ self.  Be careful when claiming wisdom publically, but constantly strive to be wise.

Have a blessed week.

1 – Taken from: Experiencing God Day-By-Day, Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

Thoughts...

 Life is hard, I said that a few weeks ago.  We are not promised happiness but we have some influence over it.  Life happens to us daily, and we chose how to handle and react to it.  Even our thoughts are not totally under our control.  Doesn’t your mind race with things that you would rather not think of or worry about?  You cannot control the thoughts that come into your mind.  But you can control the ones you dwell on.  We should intentionally chose to dwell on positive thoughts and minimize the negative ones.  I understand that is not easy.  And mental illness for some of us makes it impossible.  But many of us can control the thoughts we focus on.  We can choose to be positive.  It may take practice.  Don’t let your negative thought life overwhelm you.

Thankful

 As Thanksgiving approaches it is important to consider the true meaning of being grateful.  Being thankful means to have gratitude or be appreciative.  But if you look up the definition of thankful you get into a circular reference between grateful, thankful and appreciative.  All of those definitions refer to one another.  Being truly thankful is a state of mind.  It is the basic understanding that not all of what we have, and enjoy, is the result of our own doing.  God blesses us daily with the people, places and circumstances in our lives.  Consider your life and be thankful this week.  Make sure that those who positively impact you know that you appreciate them.  Teach your family how to truly understand their blessings and to be grateful for them.

Have a blessed Thanksgiving Holiday!

What Is Success?

Success is defined by each of us in different ways.  It should be a personal definition, not shaped by the media or others' opinions.  That definition likely includes components of faith, family and helping those around us.  Success should be viewed as a journey and not a specific destination.  It may, or may not, include financial or materialistic goals.  Success is your own recipe for contentment.  What is your definition of success?  Below are a few good keys in my mind...

• Always tell the truth
• Be willing to do your part
• Get mad but don't be stupid
• Tell the devil to go to Hell (but nobody else)
• Be a giver not a taker
• Seek God
• Encourage people
• Pass along your strengths, not your weaknesses, to your kids and others
• Be kind and tenderhearted
• Forgive
• Grant and accept grace
• Be humble

Wisdom

The MMM has often addressed wisdom and our ongoing pursuit of it.  I have also written about how impatient we are as humans.  Impatience and wisdom don’t go well together.  Consider the following which addresses both points…

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate.  Wisdom is proven over time.  Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best.  Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom.  The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. ¹

 Be wary of those who seek to have their own wisdom acknowledged before it can be proven over time.  Also, be patience with your own understanding of wisdom. 

 Have a blessed week.

1 – Taken from: Experiencing God Day-By-Day, Henry T. Blackaby and Richard Blackaby

 

Attitude

I have written before, as many have, about the importance of attitude.  Most such writings focus on the power of a positive mental attitude.  Rightfully so, much credit is given to the strength of a proper attitude.  The power of positive thinking is a popular concept and a valid one.  What about the power of a bad attitude?  Think about the impact of a negative attitude?  What is the cost of having the wrong mental attitude?  Consider the thoughts of the third President of the United States.

 Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude
from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the
man with the wrong mental attitude.

                                                        -Thomas Jefferson

Do Not Wait...

"Do not wait; the time will never be 'just right.' Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along."     ~Napoleon Hill

I write this MMM as a reminder to myself about the importance of just getting started.  This is an area of weakness for me.  I want things to be just right before I start.  Having some control and feeling totally prepared are important for me. I want to be comfortable with a big step before I take it.  The problem is that I will never get far if I continue to think like that.  Sometimes you just have to go for it.  You have to at least get started.  We cannot always wait until the stars are aligned in order to make change happen in our lives.  So I am reminding myself, and all of you, don’t wait.  The time may never seem perfectly right.  Just get started.  The right tools will come along.

Laugh, Think, Cry

“To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. Number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special.”

-       Jim Valvano, ESPYs speech 1993

 

Jim Valvano was dying of cancer when he gave this speech.  If you have never heard this speech you need to.  (Easy to find on You Tube)  His words of wisdom make up one of the most moving speeches of all time.  It is powerful, motivating, passionate and emotional.  What if we all really experience all there of things daily?  He is right we would have something special. 

 

Laugh, think and cry today…