How many meetings have you been to and wondered, "Who is going to do all of this?!" I have been to my fair share. I know how it feels to 'organize' volunteers and suddenly realize no one has committed to anything. Or, as the much quoted legendary statistic says, you have the 'top 10%' do … Continue reading Do you have a community of active participants?
On Purpose: So, what is your purpose?
Do you have a purpose statement? Have you ever written one? Or do you have one memorized? Maybe you have put together a personal statement before or have been part of a process with your team or workgroup. Do you remember it? It does cause some awkwardness in meetings when you bring up the subject … Continue reading On Purpose: So, what is your purpose?
On Purpose: What’s Your Vision?
What do you imagine for yourself? The proverb says it well, "Where there is no vision, the people perish." When everything else was clouded, I lacked vision. We all do. A difficult aspect of losing sight of purpose is seeing actions through a dirty lens. Actions become less strategic and joyful, and the focus rests … Continue reading On Purpose: What’s Your Vision?
Preparing for the year ahead!
Well, if you are like me you schedule a lot of your life according to the academic calendar. Every church or ministry I have worked with has done so, and it just seems to be the way to do it. School starts, people get serious after summer holidays, harvest is happening or almost complete, time … Continue reading Preparing for the year ahead!
Not just a pivot. It is a re-vision.
Pivot. New normal. Languishing. WFH. #workfromhome. You need to unmute. Zoom. Virtual meeting. Circuit breaker. Doomscrolling. Social distancing. Opportunity. In this together… What words are you learning to hate during the pandemic? Some are hard to resist. They start off well-meaning, but then become over-used, and finally, they are just plain annoying to hear. ‘Pivot’ … Continue reading Not just a pivot. It is a re-vision.
Working Better Together!
Did you notice the new banner and motto? I took a poll this past week, feeling inspired to re-evaluate what best sums up the work I do, and put 3 options out to the world. It came back pretty resoundingly as you see here: Working Better Together! It fits with helping others, but more importantly, … Continue reading Working Better Together!
A New Beginning
What do you envision for your life a year from now? Not always the easiest question to tackle, but it forces us to look up from the daily grind, and put our eyes to the horizon. I started 2022 with an ending. I have submitted my resignation to the church I have been working with … Continue reading A New Beginning
A New Year, A New Vision
Happy New Year! 2021 has ended with a bang! We thought we were in the clear for a moment, that maybe we would be almost back to 'normal' before hitting 2022, but here we are. We continue to pivot, we continue to adapt, and we continue to understand how 'normal' is not really normal compared … Continue reading A New Year, A New Vision
How to plan with hope in 2021
How do you determine if a new year will be a good one? As we have discovered through the example of 2020, there is much that is out of our control. For many, that made the parts we can control feel unstable. For the most part, 2020 did more than test our resolve, and many … Continue reading How to plan with hope in 2021
Working through tough answers
Did you ask yourself the 3 tough questions I asked earlier? Or do you prefer your current trajectory? We often choose the current trajectory because it is the one we are on. Not because we have actively chosen it. We may have struggled to achieve at one time, maybe overcame a crisis, and now we … Continue reading Working through tough answers
What’s your southern comfort zone?
I love Southern Comfort Zone by Brad Paisley. So much so, I made my kids listen to it repeatedly on a trip through the American south a few years back. They will never be the same, and they tell me so every time I bring it up. The song brings up a good reminder for … Continue reading What’s your southern comfort zone?
Do I practice what I preach?
Well, I try to. This new year I wanted to find ways to incorporate some of the tools I share about in even more practical ways. The one I talk about the most is the 7-4-3-1 method. I talk about setting a vision more than just setting goals. In the process, you discern what you … Continue reading Do I practice what I preach?
Lead Freely 