Tuesday at 2:00pm with Russ

It's Tuesday at 2:00pm! (PST Time: I live and work from Southern California)

Greetings to you!

Each week I send out a short leadership blog that's called "Tuesday at 2:00pm". The purpose of this is simply to provide a brief thought on leadership that you can read and think about in just a few minutes. I send it out every week at 2:00pm (PST) and encourage you to make an appointment with yourself to pause and think about the thing I'm writing about.

Russ...

LEADERSHIP QUOTE:

"Let your joy be in your journey - not in some distant goal." Tim Cook

What does this stir up? Either write me HERE or comment at the end of the blog post HERE.

A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:

Continuing on in our conversation around JOY.

Apples CEO Tim Cook made this statement during a university commencement address years ago, and it was a simple reminder to the graduates to focus on the process, embrace the present and appreciate the personal growth along the way.

I'm reading this book by Matthew Kelly called "Slowing Down to the Speed of Joy". (Thanks again Brad for the recommendation). There's a short section in the book that is simply called:

JESUS WAS NEVER IN A HURRY

Kelly talks about the idea that Jesus didn't have these words in His life: urgent - busy - hurry

Jesus consistently took time for Himself, He allowed things to play out in front of Him, He paid attention to the things that were most important, He valued relationships, and He didn't mind making others uncomfortable with His time frame to address urgent needs.

The 3-year journey Jesus embarked on was the goal. Yes, there was an end goal, but He took advantage of every opportunity along the way to invest into peoples lives, to commune with His Father, to meet peoples needs and to model love and compassion.

I don't know about you, but I'm in a hurry... a lot! There is always something on my list that needs to be done or an urgent interruption that needs to be addressed.

The words: urgent - busy - hurry are not only attached to my life, but often they are words that people use to define me. I cringe when I hear people say, "Russ, you're so busy" or "Russ, I know you are in a hurry so I'll be quick." What am I communicating to people by my life? What am I living out?

I want JOY to be a part of my "every day" experience and not be the goal that I'm working hard to achieve.

This past weekend, I walked outside to our backyard and I found Gina sitting with her "BIRD APP" open, identifying the different birds that were making sounds in our yard and zooming in and out to get access to the water and food she has for these birds. I sat down, pulled out my BIRD APP (yes, we have a Bird App - see below) and at one point there were 11 different birds in and around our yard. We saw them, we identified the differences and we even got out the binoculars for a different view. What started as a short "good morning" turned into about 30 minutes of just JOY... acknowledging the sounds, the beauty, God's creation that is right here, in my yard.

What would it take for people to say: Russ Was Never In A Hurry?

How are you experiencing JOY in your journey on a regular basis?

DEEPER STILL:

OK, here are some practical ways I've learned to slow down a little bit which results in greater JOY:

1) Single-Tasking Instead of Multitasking: When I split my attention and my energy between multiple things at the same time, there's no space to pause, to reflect, to think. I'm just jumping back and forth.

2) Build In Margin Between Tasks/Appointments: I try to do this, but sometimes the LA Traffic doesn't cooperate, but I create some space between appointments. Example...I have 2 back-to-back coffee appointments scheduled at my favorite coffee shop, when I finish one, I get up and take a 10 minute walk just to move my legs, to clear my mind, and to create a "transition". Sometimes I'll just move to a different coffee shop down the street to create that transition. I'm able to pay better attention if I do this, and I'm able to be more present.

3) I Reduce the Noise: fewer notifications, less background noise, sometimes just driving or walking in silence. This gives me time to clear my head and notice the things around me instead of constantly paying attention to the messages coming at me.

4) Saying NO More Often: Just choosing to say NO creates the opportunity for slowing down and some space. Identifying good things that don't have to be "MY THINGS" is sometimes difficult but really important.

5) Savoring the Small Things: When I find that moment of JOY, to just linger there, stay another minute, not rush away, to just "BE". Last week, Gina and I went down to the beach to see the huge waves coming in along the coast of California. The waves were huge, and we just stood and watched and enjoyed the moment, capturing the beauty and the power in front of us.

What adjustments can you make in your life that helps you experience JOY in a new way?

 

Things I'm Reading, Listening To and Watching This Week:

Source: www.leadermundial.org