Tag Archives: Jesus

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How To Win Friends and Influence People

Relationship is the stuff that life is truly made of. Not the artificial relationships in schools or social and business environments where forced inclusion is expected. Rather, chosen and nurtured relationships.

How do true friendships and spheres of influence form?

Moving often as a child I found myself accepting the notion that friends are due to proximity. Geography not genuine concern defined my friendships.

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We know friends are important because they impact and establish the quality and direction of our lives. Without friends we have no influence because no one’s listening. Leadership is influence.

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Have You Read The Most Famous Book?

We live in a culture where new is better. A rising tide of discontent for what is newer, shinier, thinner and faster drives most purchases. I would like to challenge your thinking….again!

In literature, newer does not necessarily mean better. Why shouldn’t we spend an equal amount of time, if not more, on “the classics”?  Globally, there are an extraordinary number of books published each year. (2.2 million in 2012 alone) However, there are so many older “classics” I almost don’t know where to begin.

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The question is which ones are worth reading?  Many good books entertain us. To reach our full potential, we need to find the truly great ones that provide guidance for our spiritual journey through life.

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How To Show Someone You Care by Giving Away Resources

Here’s my scenario…..I meet people often and the majority of the time they are experiencing problems. No surprise there! We all have problems. But meetings are short and some problems are long….so conveying meaningful caring concern and attempting to help is often difficult. Trying to explain how, changed thinking  changes your life over a meal or coffee….is impossible! Unless a tool to leverage the time is used.

That’s where all the resources in this blog come into the picture. But in the end of this post, I am not the hero. You are.

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Have you had problems, found solutions and then shared the experience with other people? On so many levels our culture is exploding with this method of teaching and learning.  Just think….Do it Yourself Network, Pintrest and so many, many others!

But when you have knowledge and are an expert at something you’re vulnerable. You can easily forget how the wisdom and knowledge was gained – you catch the “curse of knowledge”. So, here’s a suggestion.

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Seven Secrets To Becoming Rich

Read on! You know this headline is a catchy way to grab your attention on an important subject.

Remember, I have shared with you about what it truly means to BE RICH. But if you are thinking about becoming financially rich; reflect on your life. Has your income increased in proportion to the number of years you’ve been working? Has your lifestyle done the same?

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Culture baits us into having it all. Turn on the T.V. or surf the Internet and it is all “buy now, pay later”. It’s a problem we all face. How do we learn delayed gratification? How do we manage wanting to have it all now?

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Does Your Life Matter

Here is something that I have sought, received and yet cannot measure – it’s validation. We seek it in many areas of life. We long for our parents, business partners, friends, colleagues and even our kids to say – “You matter!”

Men and women of great minds and those of absolutely average minds have all wrestled with the same question, ‘do I matter’? Sadly the answer to this question and the wrestling to the answer have brought some people to a state of desperation and depression. I reflect on my own parents and grandparents wondering what difference did they make? What difference will I make? Where’s the hope for this part of our story?

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If you have been to an art gallery, museum or places of historical significance you will often discover the stories of the average person doing extraordinary things. It’s only from the perspective of time that we know if, the decisions we make and the action we take, make a difference to others.  Perhaps these “others” are yet unborn. We cannot realize ALL the implications our decisions and actions in the moment. Only in the future, do we gain perspective but sometimes we never know.

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Achieve Your Goals

How can I encourage and motivate others to achieve what they set out to do? These are questions I’ve been asking myself.

How can I be engaging, inspiring and helpful in motivating others to achieve their success?

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I’ve made a habit of writing out my life goals .. checking and updating them regularly. Looking back it is amazing to see, by God’s grace, how many have been achieved. Apparently, only 3% of people have written goals. If you don’t write your plan down … you are less likely to achieve it.

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Balance Work and Life

There is a lot written about gaining balance in your life. Everyone has their story and I’m happy to share mine.

In the early years of starting our home building business, 60 hour weeks were the norm! When we hired staff 10 years later, long workweeks were STILL the norm. There was never enough time to get everything done at work. Work was cheating my family time. It was nearly impossible to achieve the elusive work life balance.

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Picture the work life balance like a scale…one side wins and the other side loses. We need to learn to “cheat” at work and stop cheating at home. We often cheat our family by spending too much time at work, or on fitness, or a hobby. Cut back on being so “busy” and be balanced!

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How To Become An Entrepreneur?

As a child, I dreamed of being an entrepreneur, of starting a business. At age 25, I began Land Ark Homes. It was a modest home building business that grew in 20 years to build over 350 luxury estate homes. I became a legitimate entrepreneur.

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This is a shared dream, many of us want to be an entrepreneur and run our own businesses.

Throughout those 20 years I began focusing more on my strengths and passions and delegating responsibility to others with skills that complemented mine. Later, I was free to focus on what I did best and eventually find the work I love. With that came the responsibility of partners and employees. Ultimately, my job became serving people: the staff and our customers. This is one of the secrets to winning in business – being eager to serve.

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See How Easily You Can Learn To Have More Energy

There is a shortage of energy in our lives…..personal energy.

“I’m so busy! Stressed! Tired! ”  – does that sound like some of your friends?

Maybe even you?!

For many people, work is stressful, time is limited and there’s always an endless list of things we think we should be doing. Countless emails, interruptions, distractions and decisions; it’s hard to get our work done. Often the first thing to be dropped is you! The things you do to keep healthy can suffer. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

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In the Bible, Paul us teaches that all growth is – spiritual growth. Growing to become more like Jesus Christ!

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  

Galatians 5:22-23

As it relates to our health, self-control is the hardest part of personal growth.

The Power Of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz says that managing energy, not time, is the key to high performance and personal renewal. This resource, helps you learn how to mange your own energy to have better health. Avoid a personal energy crisis.

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Can You Really Be Younger Next Year?

Life is a battle on many fronts, but most of the time knowledge and preparation can help you conquer! So it goes with your health. There are times when I find it difficult to make the right decisions about proper nutrition, health and fitness. It’s always easier to eat the donut, rather than the apple; to use a slight cough or stuffy nose as an excuse not to start or maintain my health and fitness routine.

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There are so many resources on health and fitness and of course, we all know we should maintain and care for the body God gave us! We know, our body is the vehicle through which we live out our life. The state of our physical bodies and our emotional health impacts all areas of our life. Yet 1/3 of people are overweight and 1/3 are obese.