A Different Approach

Our temperatures have recently changed in Milledgeville as summer starts to slowly slip onto our horizon. While we still have pleasantly cool mornings, the afternoons are starting to quickly warm up. It takes a bit more daily preparation as temperature and humidity adjust upward by the end of the day. As a runner, that creates two vastly different running experiences between morning and evening.

I ran one evening this past week and was quickly reminded of the differences in running in warmer weather. The coolness of winter and spring had spoiled me and I had to make some mid-run adjustments to keep going. I found myself thinking about all of the changes I would need to make for summer running to keep healthy and maintain a good pace. If I want to keep doing well in hot weather, I can't keep doing the exact same things I did when it was cool

How often do we approach changing circumstances with the same solution we've already been using? Even if we've been successful in the past, there's no guarantee we will be able to keep pushing ahead by doing the same thing. We've got to learn to evaluate the issues we're presently dealing with and figure out what is going to work best moving ahead.

If we aren't willing (or able) to adapt, we'll end up frustrated with our lack of progress.

Winning Formula

March Madness is one of my favorite times of year. I am a big fan of college basketball and enjoy watching this tournament take place with all of its drama and unexpected results. The upsets are part of the beauty of the tournament. They aren't always predictable and it leads to teams taking on the mantle of "Cinderella" as they make surprising runs deep into the tournament. This unstable environment is part of what makes filling out a bracket such a fun challenge. No matter what I read to prepare or how I trust my instincts I still won't be 100% correct. Regardless of what popular opinion reveals, the game must still be played out for a win to take place. A team won't move on just because they should progress.

The same is true for us. There are many things we should be capable of conquering and working our way through, but it won't happen just because it seems like it should. We've got to have a plan to put into action and then execute that plan to get the results we desire. While this won't bring a 100% certainty of success, it does set us up for the best potential outcome.

Getting Credit

This year in the NBA has been enjoyable to watch for many reasons, but especially for the potentially record-setting season of the Golden State Warriors. As a team, they have improved tremendously even after winning the title last year. It’s been fun to watch and I would love to see them go all the way again and make history.

Their head coach (in his second season leading the team) is Steve Kerr. Due to a complication from back surgery, Steve had to miss the first half of the season and his associate coach, Luke Walton led the team. While Luke was coaching, the team set a record for the best start to a season and were 39-4 before Steve returned to coach. In an interesting twist to NBA rules however, these wins and losses don’t go to Luke’s coaching record, but to Steve Kerr’s. Even though he did an excellent job of leading the team he doesn’t receive official credit for the victories.

Genuinely great leaders aren’t focused on getting credit, but on team success. They recognize the need to build for the long term without focusing on padding their own resume. Maintaining a humble attitude will eventually lead to rewards even if that isn’t the overall goal. This is the kind of leader people want to follow and work hard for.

The Measure of My Success

Henry Singleton was the founder of Teledyne and a strong leader with a charismatic personality. His persistent will and passion elevated his company to one of the fastest growing in America and created many admirers of his business acumen. In 1978, Forbes magazine featured his leadership and summed it up with a powerfully revealing phrase: "Singleton will win no awards for his humility, but who can avoid standing in awe of his impressive record?"

While this may have brought him financial gain and admiration from his colleagues, it isn't something I want said about me. I certainly want to see success and to be able to influence people positively, but I don't want to sacrifice humility to make it happen. I may be making this more black and white than it needs to be, but it seems I need to decide if I want my success to be measured by my solely by my accomplishments or by my character.

When you think about it in those terms it doesn't seem like a difficult decision.

Getting Ready

When I started running in mid-January it was with the intention of running my first official 5K race in April. I knew I was training for that and had steps laid out along the way. When I finished the race I knew I wasn't going to stop running, but also wanted to have something else to train for. My wife & I decided to sign up for a much longer run in the fall and I will spend the next several months getting ready for it. Knowing what my objective is will help me shape my preparation to be as successful as possible.

I think it helps all of us to know what we are preparing for. We may not have every specific detail of what our future looks like, but we can move forward with a general idea that helps shape us. I have a vision of where God is leading my family and that helps to focus my preparation in the the right areas. I still need to be flexible as that intended vision shifts time lines and details, but the overall concept helps to steer me in the right direction. It's easier to hit your target if you know what you're aiming at.

Start Strong

I am enjoying the fact that my beloved New York Mets have now won 11 games in a row and have the best record in the league. I am not a brand new fan however and am not fooled into thinking this will necessarily guarantee our success for the rest of the year. Our record in April does not automatically mean that we will be in the playoffs (as much as I wish that were true.) I just keep telling people that I am going to enjoy a run of good baseball for as long as it lasts.

There are a lot of leadership principles to take from that example: starting off strong leads to long term success, a good beginning sets you up for a good ending, staying focused at the start of a long journey helps you stay focused on your destination, and probably several others. Perhaps the lesson I need to see most out of this is much more simple: enjoy the ride while it lasts.

Play Ball!

The start of the baseball season is almost here and I am pretty pumped about it. I love all sports, but I am a huge baseball fan and have been loyal to my New York Mets for years. As a Mets fan the years of winning baseball have been fewer in number than I would like, but I still maintain my commitment to faithfully following them. Each spring I find myself with the same sense of anticipation and hope for success. Even if we don't look that great in spring training I always believe that we can do well once the real season begins.

There is something about the start of a new season that hints at the potential for success. It's what keeps me following a mediocre baseball team, but is also what keeps pushing me forward in seasons in my personal life. I always believe that the next season is going to be better than the current one and bring new successes. It's a positive outlook forged in hopeful expectation for new beginnings. 

Real Success

"It doesn't matter how much money you have when you die, how many people know your name, or what position you held. If you never got around to doing and being what your destiny is, then all you were was a successful failure." Tony Evans

We can accomplish many things, but if we aren't following our calling we're missing out. We can have a great resume, but if we fail to lead our families towards Christ we've missed the real objective. It's not that we aren't successful, but that we aren't successful where we're supposed to be.

Boring Works

I was listening to ESPN radio last week and Colin Cowherd was talking about the teams that were still competing in the NFL playoffs. His big statement that morning was the remaining teams were boring. He wasn't denigrating their style or wishing for something more flashy, but was simply remarking on the consistency of their teams. Colin was actually giving credit to their leaders for their consistency in winning and the way they used their system to achieve that success. They weren't out to make ridiculous personnel moves, but were willing to stick to their solid structure producing proven results.

It's possible to find success through bold, broad strokes of creativity and not have it be part of your systemic structure. This is not how top organizations choose to operate however. Instead it's essential to develop the proper framework that allows for that creativity to take place. Random acts of out-of-bounds activity won't produce a steady stream of prosperity. Instead this describes teams that are desperate for a taste of the victory the "boring" winners are steadily feasting on.

Climbing Views

My wife and I are still pretty pumped about our climbing experience yesterday on Camelback Mountain. I would like to put the entire event into words (and probably will) but I'll let the pictures below speak for me today.

Ready to Climb

My wife and I climbed Camelback Mountain today. It was 1.2 miles of intense climbing including maneuvering over difficult rocks, traversing steep rail assisted slopes, and dodging other climbers. It was physically tiring, but completely worth the view at the top.

My wife and I actually attempted to climb this mountain several years ago and were unsuccessful. On that day we ended up quitting before we got very far as we didn't have what it took to make it any further. We were unprepared in our equipment choices, poorly conditioned, and unclear about the demands of what we were attempting. Since that time I have had this climb written down as a bucket list item. We approached our ambition very differently this time and worked to correct the deficiencies we had on our first attempt.

Even when we have great goals there are a lot of other factors that help us be successful. We've got to make sure we are selecting the right time to pursue our goal and that we are prepared for the hard work it will take to make it a reality. Even if success takes longer than we hoped it will be that much more satisfying when we finally see the top.

Chasing

I remember watching a basketball game in high school where we were losing in the last few minutes.The other team was trying to run down the clock and we were doing what we could to get possession of the ball. I vividly remember one of our players trying to steal the ball while two other players kept throwing it back and forth to keep it away from him. They never moved their position, but he was quickly exhausting himself dashing back and forth. He was committed to what he was doing, but his high level of energy wasn't helping him get the ball or our team to win.


We can have a high level of energy expenditure without seeing results even if our objective is clear. Being successful isn't just about excessive energy and focus, but also about using the right methods. If one of those three elements is missing we won't achieve our desired results and will simply end up exhausted and unfulfilled.

Winning Ticket

My wife and I will sometimes talk about the things we could do if we won the lottery. We share extravagant dreams, missions we could support, places we could visit, and people we could help. The biggest problem with this conversation isn't our improbably odds on winning the lottery or even the potential ethical dilemma associated with "gambling." The biggest obstacle to us winning is that we don't play. We laugh about our conversations, but the truth is that we will never come close to winning a multi-million dollar Powerball lottery simply because we've never purchased a ticket.

You don't have a chance to win if you aren't in the game. If there is some area that you want to find success you will have to take a step of action or nothing will ever happen.

Replicate It

Winning takes talent, to repeat takes character. Coach John Wooden

For those that don't know who John Wooden was, he was the coach at UCLA and won 10 national
championships in a 12 year period. This is an unparalleled run of success that reveals the power of positive coaching, effective recruiting, and teamwork.

Coach Wooden's quote isn't just about winning championships though. I think it is also about our ability to replicate positive actions and successful endeavors. Many people have talent that can create a win one time, but it takes a different level of character to create sustained positive momentum. It reflects our ability to work hard, be strong in the face of adversity, and work positively with the team around us.

Predict the Future

Babe Ruth is arguably the best baseball player of all time. In 1930, he was awarded a contract that paid him $130,000 a year to play for the Yankees. His general manager at the time, Ed Barrow, was quoted as saying, "No one will ever be paid more." Contrary to Ed's forecasting ability, the average salary for a major league baseball player today is over $2 million. Obviously, good old Ed wasn't an expert at predicting the future. The truth is that most of us aren't experts in the practice of accurately predicting the future either. If we were more skilled at it, we would make better decisions in our present circumstances instead of being constantly disappointed by the results of our choices.

I suppose that leaves us with two directions: continue to do the best we can on our own with limited success or start trusting God to direct our future since He already knows what's going to happen. Doesn't sound like much of a choice to me even as I continue to struggle with that level of trust. I think part of it is a lack of faith in God's promises while some can be attributed to my stubborn pride that prevents me from accepting things that I may not want to hear. Beginning to trust God's promises instead of my own shaky predictions is the key to personal stability and maturity.

Off Target

We might think that we have a good idea of what we're aiming at and still not make a direct hit. Unfortunately, we can end up being close to what we think is right and even have some measure of success without being right on target. This is a false positive that can blind us from making the right course correction. Sadly, it eventually leads to us saying, "But I thought things were going so well!" when it collapses due to improper aim.

Are we missing the mark with the way we are doing church? Are we focused on the things that God wants us to be focused on or are we following our desires for church? Whose metric are we using to measure our success-our own devised system or God's Holy Spirit? We can put our focus in a lot of very good things and yet end up missing the true target.

What about our families? Are we letting the culture around us dictate what a healthy, successful family looks like or will we determine that vision by where God leads us to utilize our energies & resources? It's imperative that we strive to get this right or we will raise children who are unclear about what matters most.

These are two essential areas for me to focus on in my life. These are where I spend the most time and where the greatest danger of poor aim exist. It's also where the potential for damage from being off target will be most evident if I can't gain the proper perspective.

Measuring our effectiveness by anything other than God is only setting us up for false success and lack of fulfillment.

The Tale of Success

There are many successful leaders that I look up to. I admire the organizations that they lead and the scope of their influence. I will even admit to a bit of covetous curiosity as I see what they accomplish and the impact they are able to have through their efforts. I admire their innovation and how it appears that so much of what they do brings tangible, positive results. 

There is nothing wrong with appreciating what these leaders are doing, but if I only pay homage to their current level of visible success I am neglecting the hard work that got them to this point. No one who is prosperous (financially or relationally) reached that level without enduring hardships, learning from failure, and persevering through tough times. A happy marriage, a thriving church, a profitable business, an influential mentor, and a winning coach all have definable successes. They each also have stories of striving through difficulties to be where they are today. 

Admire and respect what you see in front of you in the present, but understand that the hard lessons of the past were essential in the process. When you are seeking this same level of prosperity make sure you are ready to endure the tough trials that make it a reality.

Payoff Time

How are you preparing for the next level?

Michael Thomas is a safety for the Miami Dolphins who just joined the team in the last 10 days. He has always been a practice squad player (for non-sports fans this means that he never got to play on Sundays, but helped prepare by being part of a scout team) in the NFL and had never made an active roster. Michael got a call last week on Monday that the Dolphins wanted to sign him, flew cross country to join the team, and spent the rest of the week studying the playbook in anticipation of Sunday. As these stories tend to go, he saved the game for his new team twice in the last minute & sealed it with his 1st career interception. Whether you are an avid sports fan or not, it's a great story of someone stepping up when they were finally given the opportunity.

What will you do when you get your chance? How are you preparing now to be ready when that opportunity comes? It doesn't matter if it's in a relationship, a career advancement, a financial opportunity, or the chance to do something with significant impact. The moment won't reveal itself if you're not faithfully laying the groundwork long before it arrives. Those who are prepared are more aware of that special moment and ready to take action when it counts. 

Preparation combined with opportunity breeds success. 

Top Rated

It's national signing day for college football programs and the debate over which school has the best recruiting class is in full swing. Experts (both paid & amateur) have been analyzing the talents of young men and their potential impact and future success. I admit to reading the reviews of the programs and their new players (especially in regards to my beloved Gators who have either the 1st or 2nd rated class depending on who you believe.) It is a time of year that brings increased hope to some programs and lowers expectations for others.

The truth is that no games are won in the recruiting wars. Just because a young man had great stats in high school football doesn't mean that he will succeed at the next level. Opposing teams are not going to automatically forfeit just because their opposition had a higher recruiting rating either. The game must be played within the same set of rules for each team and the team with better preparation and execution will win most contests. The success these recruits have had in their past only serve as part of the preparation for the future, but don't guarantee a win alone. 

The same principle applies to leadership. Our past success does not guarantee future gain, but provides a foundation to build on. We have to continue to be diligent in our preparation, execution, and protection of our integrity to experience the victories we are working towards.