5.13.2014

Confucius Was Wrong


I've heard this quote hundreds of times in my life: 

Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life. 

The quote is credited to the uber-wise Confucius. And while I typically don't make it a habit to blatantly disagree with people considered to be some of the smartest humans to ever live, let me just say this: Confucius was wrong.

That's right. Confucius was wrong. Because here's the truth: If you choose a job that you love, that you're passionate about, that is your life's dream, you should work harder at that thing than anything else.

If you are really doing something you love, you will work your tail off because it means that what you are doing MATTERS and MEANS SOMETHING to you.

When you are doing something you love, it's not just a job. It's not just a career. You're working out your dream. You're doing something your passionate about and that you know makes a difference.

So don't buy into the lie that one day you'll stumble upon some dream job that won't take any work and you'll live the rest of your days in a state of bliss.

If a dream is really a dream, it will take work. 

If a dream is really a dream, it will be WORTH the work.

So don't just work. And don't just dream.

Work the dream.

5.07.2014

4 Things Leaders Must Be Willing To Do


I've been thinking lately a lot about leadership. To be honest, I'm striving to grow in my own leadership, as well as work through what my leadership development of others looks like.

I think leadership development is crucial in any growing, life-giving organization. As I've thought about it recently, it seems there are certain things that any given leader must be willing to do.

Here's the 4 things:
  1. Leaders must be willing to be first in the water. - I was watching Shark Week a while back and in one of the shows, a rookie crew member mistakenly left the anchor rope in the water when the motor was started. That led to the rope getting tangled in the motor in the midst of shark infested waters. There was no safe way to deal with the situation. The only solution? Dive into the water and get to work. What I noticed was in this life-or-death, crucial situation for this team, it wasn't the rookie that got thrown into the water. It was the ship's captain who jumped in. The task was crucial and deadly. So the leader went first. Leaders have to be willing to be the first in the water...especially when there are sharks!
  2. Leaders must be willing to be misunderstood. - If you lead in any way, you WILL be misunderstood. People will misunderstand your motives, your decisions, your vision, and your direction. Leading others means making hard choices, which are often misunderstood by the crowd.
  3. Leaders must be willing to make tough decisions. - Leadership requires a commitment to the good and the vision of an organization above anything else. That means, from time to time, there will be hard decisions and tough choices that must be made. A real leader is willing to DECIDE, not delegate in the toughest of situations.
  4. Leaders must be willing to act before they are comfortable. - Leadership means navigating waters that are often unexplored. Leaders often are called to act before they, or others, are comfortable in order to continue to chart a course for the vision and future of the organization.
Leading is tough. It requires a certain amount of courage to lead well. But if your willing to put it all on the line for the vision and mission of your organization, leading can help you leave a legacy far beyond your life.