LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"You are like a jar of river water all shaken up. What you need is to sit still long enough that the sediment can settle and the water can become clear." Ruth Haley Barton

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

I want to spend a few weeks this month just talking about REST. Some of these things I'm exploring, thinking about and working to implement in my life.

I picked up a book this weekend by Ruth Haley Barton entitled "Embracing Rhythms of Work and Rest". Thank you Estha for the recommendation. In the first few pages I found some powerful reminders of why I'm even talking about REST.

The quote from Barton above just resonated with me.

We have a pool, and the other day I was cleaning it. I follow 3 simple steps in cleaning the pool: First, I scoop all the leaves off the top of the water. Second, I sweep the pool with a long pool broom. Third, I vacuum up the leaves and then we're good to go.

However, there's a step in this process that I don't really pay attention too... it's the step between sweeping and vacuuming. When I sweep, it stirs everything up, makes the water messy and dirty. After sweeping, I have to literally STOP for about 10 minutes. This allows everything to fall to the bottom, making it easier to vacuum up.

When I saw this quote, I realized that this was the process I've been following with my pool, but I hadn't made the connection to my life.

Barton goes on to say this: "A jar of shaken river water looks murky, cloudy, chaotic - and you can't see through it no matter how hard you try. You can't force it clear. You can't stir it into clarity. The ONLY thing that works is stillness. Time. Waiting. That's the soul under pressure."

Real clarity can be elusive, and often we're trying to find it will moving way too fast.

Barton's book is primarily about the power of SABBATH and we'll explore this more next week.

But for today, do you feel that you're living like a jar of river water? All shaken up?

What would it take for you to "clear out" the murkiness and cloudiness in your life today?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes - including you." Anne Lamott

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

I want to spend a few weeks this month just talking about REST. Some of these things I'm exploring, thinking about and working to implement in my life.

I love this thought from Anne Lamott because it's so true.

There are times that I will spend hours trying to get my internet working again, or updating my computer, or even an alarm on my car, and it total desperation, I simply 'UNPLUG' it from the power source, count to ten, then bring it back online and everything works normally.

I usually let out some kind of gutteral sound at that point, but then move on, getting back to what I was working on before things all stopped!

It's the simple idea of a RESET.

Here's what I'm learning (even at my age), when I run at an unsustainable pace, there are things that I'm not able to keep up with, things that get thrown aside in the midst of the chaos I find myself in.

This is natural for everybody as we focus on the most important things at the time.

The problem is that sometimes I shed some things that ARE important just to save time, energy and to help me focus on the task at hand. I know when I'm doing it, I know why I'm doing it, but at the time, in order to get things done, I have to make some changes.

I just finished a pretty FULL run of events, travel, speaking, projects, meetings and family and personal things all mixed together. It was the perfect storm and I'm happy to say that I not only survived, but I saw God do some great things in the midst of everything.

But now, I need to pick up some things that I set aside and integrate them back into my life.

Here's the deal though, I don't know if this is true for you, but when I'm pushed with my calendar and my schedule, the things that always fall first are the things that are the most important: REST - EXERCISE - SOLO TIME - SPACE - NUTRITION - RELATIONSHIPS - REPLENISHMENT

These are the things that I time and time again, set aside, and they are the things that are the most life-giving.

Covey calls these things Quadrant II: Important - Not Urgent

I call them the high cost of a full schedule!!

When you get pressed, what do you immediately let go of? What do you set aside in order to keep up with your required pace?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"I've laid down a pattern for you. What I've done, you do." Jesus

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

I've been talking about INFLUENCE for a number of weeks. You can read the posts off of my website HERE if you're interested. This will be the last post on this topic, then we're going to move into a different theme talking about REST for a few weeks.

I hosted a Leader Mundial Global Summit event a few weeks ago in Georgia, and spent 4 full days with a group of 66 leaders, representing about 15 different countries and about 30 different organizations. We spent the week focusing on the topic of INFLUENCE and were encouraged to examine the scope of our personal and organizational influence and pay attention to those that are impacted through us and by us.

As I moved through the week, I spent some personal time simply looking at Jesus and his instruction to each of us to follow his example.

The quote above comes out of John 13:15 in the Message translation, and I love the simple image he gives... "I've laid down a pattern for you" or in the ESV or NIV, "I've given you an example".

I remember as a small child dreading going with my mom to the fabric store. That was a place I never wanted to go because it felt that we were there forever and it was really boring (at least for a 7 year-old boy).

What my mom was doing was buying fabric so that she could match it to a pattern and make a shirt or a dress or whatever out of it. She had a template of what she wanted to make, and she was following that plan.

I thought she was just going to the fabric store to talk and to torture me, but there was a purpose behind it.

Jesus says this to us: I've given you a template, a model, a plan, now follow it. He wants us to follow his example and do what he did.

If you read a few verses earlier in John 13, you see exactly what he was modeling when he washes the feet of his disciples. He's illustrating a powerful message here of influence. He's showing his disciples what to do, then he's telling them to go and do it and then he's telling US to do it.

We learn by watching, but we learn best by doing. Jesus did both and in that moment he turned the message of leadership upside down teaching leaders to serve others first.

This is the greatest example of influence.

How has Jesus influenced your leadership? What do you do differently because of what He said, what He did and what He challenged each of us to do?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"The most influential people in my life are probably not even aware of the things they've taught me." Scott Adams

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE for 2 more weeks. I just finished a week outside of Atlanta with 66 Global Leaders & Coaches, and the theme of our week was "The Influence of a Leader".

Coming out of these days together, I really resonate with Scott Adams quote above. I'm sure this is true for many of you as well.

There are people who have had and continue to have a profound influence on my life, and they are completely unaware of that influence. They are simply living their lives, leading, impacting their sphere of influence, and I get to somehow learn from these people, I'm inspired by watching these people and they shape me as a leader and as a person.

In my life, I'm thinking of a couple of people that stand out:

Don Schuler was my middle school carpentry teacher. A very quiet, gentle man. He taught me some basics in carpentry, and I really enjoyed the class. What I learned from him was PATIENCE. He was the most patient person I've ever met, either with a group of middle school boys, or years later as he continued to serve that school in many different capacities, he was just willing to serve others and to do it with patience. I remember being inspired by him many times in how he related to people, but I've never had the chance to tell him how he influenced me.

Guy Adams was an advisor in college, and he had a unique way of AFFIRMING me and CHALLENGING me at the same time. I was serving in a student government role my senior year and Guy just pushed me gently to believe in myself and those around me. I always felt more confident after spending time with Guy and I want people to feel that way about me when they are with me. I'm sure Guy doesn't know the impact he had on me, but it was profound.

Patrick Lencioni, one of my favorite business authors, has written a number of books that have profoundly influenced my life and leadership. The 5 Dysfunctions of Team transformed the way I led my team, and his work through The Advantage impacted the health of the organization I was helping to lead at the time. Lencioni has influenced millions of people through is writing and speaking. I've heard him speak in person, I follow his social media and I devour every book or article he writes. Deep influence, and he has no idea!

I could go on and on as I think through a flood of faces and names who have influenced me in unique ways, and they probably don't know the impact they've had on me.

Don't underestimate influence that happens from a distance.

Make your list? Who has influenced you over the years that most likely doesn't know about it? Maybe you should let them know!

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Maya Angelou

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

This quote from Maya Angelou is so powerful. As we talk about influence for a couple more weeks, we're reminded that the way we treat people shapes our influence.

One of my favorite books from last year is the book Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara.(Thanks Eric for introducing it to me). Really impactful because the entire book is really about this quote.

How people are taken care of, how customers feel, how memories are made, how people are valued, how generosity impacts people.

While the book is written from the perspective of a restaurant, it's applicable to us all in any industry.

I've shared this before, but it's worth sharing again.

Years ago, as a young youth ministry couple with small kids and no money, we were invited to a couples retreat in Santa Barbara. We had to pay a little bit of money, but were told it would be a great "break". When we arrived, we were treated like royalty. There was a gift bag for us, the hotel we were in was right on the beach and was nice. We were welcomed warmly, and then they shared that the purpose of our time was to simply catch our breath and build some meaningful relationships. The 3 days were filled with great food and worship, time as a couple enjoying the beach and the area, and zero expectations. We were celebrated for the work we were doing with young people, and we were filled up.

The last evening, we were taken to a special dinner with the President of Westmont College where he thanked us personally for our impact into youth ministry and he shared about how Westmont College cares about youth pastors, and that this retreat was a gift of appreciation from them.

That was it. No sales pitch, no bait and switch, no expectations.

Just appreciation.

Can I tell you how many people I've encouraged to check out Westmont College over the past 35 years as a result of their "hospitality" in our lives?

Their genuine care for us at a time that mattered still sticks with us today.

Hospitality & Influence.

Think of a time when someone invested into your life and made you"feel" something?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing." Albert Schweitzer

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

When I read this quote, I'm reminded of another quote from a hero of mine, Jim Burns. He said this often when he was training me as a young youth pastor: "People won't remember what you say, but they will remember what you do."

He then went on to ask this question:

Name 10 of the greatest sermons you've ever heard: who preached it, what was it on... we always struggled with that question, and even though my dad was a pastor, I had to dig deep to identify 10 messages that I could remember. (Sorry Dad!)

He then asked this question:

Name 10 people who impacted your life: name them, how did they make you feel? 10 people were easy, and once I got thinking, I could keep going and going.

That's this quote. EXAMPLE is the only thing

We LISTEN to people all the time. We capture their message, we hear their words, we ponder their presentation.

We also WATCH people all the time. We watch close up and from a distance, we watch what is done and what's not done, we watch peoples reactions.

Bill Jones was a family friend who influenced my life in many ways. But in writing this, I remember how he taught me how to pull a water skier behind a boat. I was living with his family in Northern California, and they had a Boat House on Lake Shasta. We would head to the lake just about everyday after work, and it was some of the best skiing I've ever done.

Bill was the one who taught others to ski, who drove the boat, and who made everything happen, but often, he didn't get to ski because he didn't trust anyone to pull him the right way. Then I came along. He had me watch him drive the boat for weeks pulling skiers, then he had me take the boat out on my own just to get comfortable. He talked me through speeds, wind and the boats capabilities, and he then let me "practice" on his kids (what a great dad!) I did fine.

Then one day, he stopped the boat in the middle of the lake and jumped in. He said to me, "you're ready... Hit it!". I then became his personal driver, and spent the rest of that summer pulling people around Lake Shasta, and giving Bill some great time on the water.

That's example, and years later when we had our own ski boat, those lessons kept with me, and I passed them on to many other people.

"Things are CAUGHT not TAUGHT".

Bill led by example and modeled for me not only how to drive a ski boat, but how to live life fully.

Who has lived an EXAMPLE in front of your life, teaching you and molding you into who you are today?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the water to create many ripples." Mother Teresa

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

This quote from Mother Teresa is a powerful reminder of the importance of INFLUENCE. We've been exploring this topic over the past couple of weeks and you can see the previous posts HERE.

When I reflect on the work and life of Mother Teresa, a word that just comes up over and over again is that she CONSISTENTLY served others over her 87 years of life, and her impact and influence is impossible to measure.

The idea of a "Ripple Effect" simply reminds us that sometimes our influence continues to spread and expand, even after we're gone.

This past weekend, Gina and I attended the funeral of our good friend, Ellis. Ellis and his wife Frankie were friends of ours for over 25 years. We were introduced to them when we stopped in to visit the church Ellis was pastoring, and one simple conversation led to a long-term relationship, and we have been deeply impacted by their lives and their love.

As we sat in the Celebration of Life service the other day, I was overwhelmed by the number of people in the room who's only connection was Ellis. There was evidence of his "ripple" in all of our lives, but in many different ways. He consistently influenced people from all walks of life, in different ways, from all over the world, and he did this for years and years.

What a celebration of life!

What is your "Ripple Effect"? How does your influence continue to spread and impact people, even when they are far away from you?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"In order to have influence, you have to be influenced." Stephen R. Covey

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

I've always appreciated the leadership principles from Stephen Covey, so when I saw this quote from him last week, I pondered it for a little bit. I think Covey's basic idea is that "to influence, you have to be influenceable."

We have all been influenced by somebody, whether we admit it or not. I believe there's a point in our lives where we open ourselves up to others, instead of insisting to do it all on our own.

Throughout my life, there are times when I sought out others advice and wisdom, and there have been times when I've relied on my own knowledge and abilities.

Here's what I've learned over the years:

There are times that I am completely capable to do things on my own, simply relying on my experience, my strengths and my own abilities.

However, when I bring others into the conversation, into the mix, I do better, the thing I'm working on is better and that leads to greater success or impact.

I think it's easy to believe the lie that says when you rely on other people, you're not capable! This isn't true.

When we rely on others, we're stronger, we're better and we accomplish more.

I go back to this story of my 21 year-old self in my first job as a Youth Pastor. I "believed" that I had to do everything, even though I had volunteer staff that wanted to serve with me and help me. I carried the load, I tried to do it all on my own, and I was an utter failure. My Youth Group shrunk because I couldn't keep up, yet I had all these people standing on the sidelines wanting to help.

Once I began to learn that lesson, things changed. These leaders impacted me, they taught me, they helped me, they supported me, they made me better.

I don't think it was an ego thing, but it was an ignorance thing.

I needed other people speaking into my life then, and I still need them now. This is where my influence comes from.... The wisdom of others!

Think of a time you chose to NOT listen to someone else or to NOT rely on someone else? What was the result? Did you learn anything from that experience?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"The key to successful leadership is influence, not authority." Ken Blanchard

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

Look at these 2 words that are both connected to leadership:

AUTHORITY - INFLUENCE

AUTHORITY: Power is given by position

Authority is the formal right to make decisions, give orders and expect compliance. It comes from a role, title, or a structure.

INFLUENCE: Power is earned through relationship

Influence is the ability to shape someone's thinking, behavior, or decisions without forcing them. It is relational, not positional.

Think about different people in your life who have been in leadership above you. Did they use AUTHORITY for their power, or INFLUENCE?

• I remember a baseball coach, early in my little league career, say, "I am the coach! You have to listen to me!" That's AUTHORITY.

• I remember a boss in college say to me, "Russ, what do you think would be the best decision to make? That's INFLUENCE.

• I remember when I had to fire someone that reported to me early in my career... I tried the influence route, and that didn't work, so I pulled the authority card and fired him because of insubordination.

In leadership, there are times where we need to use both kinds of leadership, and both are important, however I think it's much more important to emphasize INFLUENCE over AUTHORITY, in fact if you lead from a position of influence, you won't need to rely on authority because of the trust that has been built through relationship.

Look at this:

• Authority can make people obey. Influence makes people believe.

• Authority works when you're present. Influence works even when you're absent.

• Authority makes you the leader on paper. Influence makes you the leader in reality.

• Authority changes behavior temporarily. Influence changes hearts and minds long-term.

What kind of leader do you want to be? Where does your power come from: AUTHORITY or INFLUENCE?

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"The true measure of leadership is INFLUENCE - nothing more, nothing less." John C. Maxwell

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

We're going to explore this word INFLUENCE over the next number of weeks. I'm hosting a Global Leadership Summit in Georgia in March with Leader Mundial, and the theme this year is The Influence of a Leader. While we have a number of topics, books and presentations to address this, I wanted to simply look at some quotes that explore this more.

A definition of Influence is simply this: "The capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something."

Basically to "shape" something.

Here's a story of influence. I've shared this in the past, but it's such a good story, I want to tell it again.

When I was in High School, my dad was a pastor. He hired me as the church janitor, and my job was to clean the church during the week, and get it ready for Sunday Services. I usually spent a few hours on Saturday cleaning, then I showed up early on Sunday to dust and to make sure things were set for the day.

My dad showed me what he wanted done, and being a teenager, I looked for ways to do the minimum required and keep my job. Sometimes I didn't vacuum all the floor, or I wouldn't empty out all the trash cans. I remember trying to just get through it as quickly as I could, and sometimes I didn't really care about the quality.

My dad would point things out to me, and he'd remind me what I had committed to do.

But then, on Sunday Morning, if something wasn't done right, he would just do it. He'd dust the piano that I hadn't cleaned. He'd empty out the trash, or line the chairs up the way he wanted them to be.

He just did it. And I watched him.

Soon I realized that this job that I had was important. My dad really cared about what the sanctuary was like on Sunday Morning, and while he was the Pastor, he cared about the little things like picking up leaves and trash that blew into the entrance way overnight.

I watched him do it, and then I began to do it. I didn't want him doing my job, so I tried to do it better.

His simple attention to detail taught me something, and challenged me.

Here's the funny thing: Today, when I'm hosting an event, I pay attention to the little things, in fact I obsess about them. If something isn't right, I fix it. If there's paper on the floor, I pick it up. I care what things look and feel like.

Guess where I learned that. From my dad.

There was some teaching, but there was a lot of just "showing me" what was important.

This is influence. He shaped the way I worked and the way I think about preparing a room for something important.

WHO has influenced you in some way, large or small? WHO taught you or modeled for you something that has become important to you?