To Serve well

Serving with Excellence for a Life of Excellence

Inspiration

Waiting Patiently For Your Calling

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This entire idea of “your calling” is something we American’s seem to love.  We love the thought that we all have a calling that we were each designed for- Personally, I fall for this “hook, line and sinker.”  I love the concept.  Heck, as a christian and a business woman, I especially adore this thinking.  In order to achieve the “optimum” life we need to be called.  I have one time in my life felt “called” in terms of a “career” move.  I believe it was destined.  I know there is an ultimate plan for my life that when it all comes to an end, I will find the extraordinary details that were patched together absolutely mind-blowing.

I read recently that this “calling” business is really only found in first world countries- In other words, those across the world that do not have the same opportunities and privileges don’t even know what this means.  To them, their “calling” is to live a life taking care of their neighbors and family.  To feed for, to pray for, to love others.  It’s that simple.  I kind of like that.

I don’t want to call “all bets” off on our American thinking, but I do want to challenge us to consider this:  What is being truly “called” mean to you?

Have an amazing day!

Beautiful Chaos! Part 3

blog_712171_2766195_1439864114For those of you following this closely, THANK YOU for sticking with me!  Sunday’s are designed to be focused on the spiritual side of living a LIFE OF EXCELLENCE. I don’t know about you, but my story of “beautiful chaos” always (and I do mean always) ends up with God being square in the center.  Even though I am 47 years old, I feel like I am being constantly reminded to “be still and listen”- I have never been good at quieting my soul. Can anyone identify with that?

I know in my soul that God is leading and I am simply a character He is using to help elevate and improve our world.  I know that by enduring some tough situations, He refines me and I am better able to be the person I am designed to be.  To be a better listener, more empathetic, a better friend, and more equipped.  They say He uses our tests to create our testimony. That’s proven true.  It is much easier to walk through a situation with someone who has been there before!

As we wrap up the week, I hope this small message will remind you that no matter how messy and chaotic our lives can be, He is still there, speaking to us and creating beauty in the most unexpected ways. He chooses us and you my friend are QUITE BEAUTIFUL!

Praying for you and yours to have an amazing week!

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Beautiful Chaos! Part 2 Epic Beauty

blog_712164_2766191_1439863370(On Thursday’s of each week, I am focused on general LIFE EXCELLENCE!  I like this photo because it is screaming “MAKE IT EPIC…”  The key word MAKE IT… We always have that choice!)

The theme this week, “BEAUTIFUL CHAOS” is all about finding the beauty in our hectic lives. Beauty literally surrounds us.

Even when I look back at the hardest times of my life, I can see that beauty was very much present.  When I was a child, I had a pretty rough up bringing, but I remember my sister and I launching each other from bed to bed and even her and her friends tossing me off of the apartment balcony wrapped in an army blanket. (She denies that still by the way- Funny how our minds can displace that of which we know we would have gotten in big trouble for!  HA HA).

I remember going to A&W Root Beer on Tuesday nights for what I think were 50 cent chili dogs and root beer in cold mugs. I remember laying in the back window of our old maverick, and sitting on the wheel wells of my grandpa’s pick up truck sailing down the highway. (As a side note, I think all of that is illegal now, by the way.)

Whatever life brings you, we always have the option to CHOOSE to look for the good.

The most impressive example I have shared below, and it is downright life changing…seriously. The video is a short 1 minute, 22 second featuring Holocaust Survivor, Alice Herz-Sommer, who when the video was done was a young 109 years old.   WORTH YOUR TIME! “I SEE THE BEAUTY EVERYWHERE.”  THANKS ALICE.

Have a great wrap to your week and remember that despite it’s chaos, you can indeed find EPIC BEAUTYall around you!

Beautiful Chaos! Part 1

blog_712158_2766184_1439861599I love the idea of “Beautiful Chaos”- Our lives are literally filled to the brim with both chaotic and beautiful moments.  I feel the key to living well is to find the ying and yang or balance in these possibly opposing forces. If you have ever been to Times Square, pictured above, it is the essence of BEAUTIFUL CHAOS.

Follow me on this one…

  • Beauty in the… People, Energy, Diversity, Arts (street performers mainly)
  • Chaos in the… Loud Sounds, Imagery, Movement, Smells

This experience hits pretty much all of your senses in a fairly abrasive way. It seems to be non stop.  “The City that Never Sleeps”, right?

Do you ever stop in your work day, fully aware of the barrage of emails, phone calls, texts, and demands of life closing in on you, and still find beauty in the unexpected?

How about this…

Find BEAUTY in… The rush of warm air when you step outside from an ice cold office environment, your co-workers too funny to miss weekend story, the “you got this” encouragement from a leader or friend, or simply knowing that after work you get to do something you love… (That could be family, a good workout,  a great meal, your latest favorite read, or your Netflix addiction.)

There is literally BEAUTY everywhere.  We should challenge ourselves this week to look around and FIND BEAUTY IN THE CHAOS.

The Capabilities of Wonder Woman

What blog_682074_2730034_1435426377are your greatest capabilities?  What DOES that even mean?  What do you bring to the table? Do you you know what your personal value proposition is?

I know my number one – Culture Building.  Yours may be financial genius or being an operational master, or even being the Wonder Woman of customer service.  Whatever it is, how can you use your God given capability to improve our world?
What one idea can you start today that would point in the direction of maximizing that skill?

For me, I need to reach out to others today and offer encouragement so that our project can gain some ground and those involved will continue to engage well.  

Mentor someone you may learn something.

blog_682060_2730030_1435427500I love learning from young professionals!

One of the advantages of mentoring is that you are often the one who learns a thing or two. I know I have. I have had the opportunity to connect with several professionals over the years, but these young professionals are special.

Jacob Wayman
Boldness- Step out of your comfort zone and create your path.  TAKE ACTION.

Diana Chaloux
WOW- Passion- You are NOT too young to publish, to create, to inspire-SHARE your STORY early and often. 

Take some time today to dial up one of those you mentor. If you don’t mentor someone, stop what you are doing and create that opportunity.  It will change your life. 

Interrupted – Having or Getting Perspective

blog_682064_2730031_1435426442Perspective. Everyone should go out and “get it” if they don’t have “it”.  I was not exposed to anything like this until recently.  If you are young and have the opportunity, expose yourself to the world early in life.  It will make the biggest difference in your perspective.

You don’t have to go on a glamorous safari or a Disney tour to get a perspective – Get involved in your neighborhood, see the way others live, work alongside them, understand their education system, their healthcare, and their hearts.  It’s never too late to get a perspective. Do it now.  It will change you.
blog_682064_2730032_1435426443I assure you that you will be blessed and that your life will be interrupted. My hope is that you will be as seriously interrupted as I have been and downright troubled at times.  I hope that you will be forced to truly consider how your life is meant to support others and that you are challenged with what God’s plan is for your life. My hope is that you will take action.  

Relational Leadership

I love building relationships with those I serve.  I count those I serve as anyone I engage with — Fellow Colleagues, Community Partners, the Janitor, and even the Taxi Driver.

Today I spent the day with one of our leaders who gets this in a BIG WAY even as he has risen quickly through the ranks into an important role. On the way to our meeting he placed numerous follow up calls.

With each, he spent time to ask about their family.  He stopped to have a short conversation with everyone we encountered, including the individual that happened to stop by the front desk.  He demonstrated that he genuinely cared… And guess what… He really does.

Leadership reminder — Genuinely engage and build relationships. 

The Brilliant Minds of an Artist, a Corporate Leader turned Entrepreneur, and a Millennial.

I love hearing the stories of everyday people.  Today I would like to highlight a few remarkable folks that remind me of why it is so valuable in life to savor the moments.  These moments are easy to gloss over, but if we listen, we will improve our lives and add true joy.

An Artist – Phil Epp www.philepp.com
This guy is seriously cool.  A homegrown Kansas boy from Newton Kansas who started to paint on his farm as a creative outlet.  He is down to earth as you might expect, and when you pull into his long winding driveway, you realize he’s truly “everybody’s favorite uncle.”

Although some of his contemporary work is hauntingly cool, Phil’s paintings primarily depict a version of the breathtaking Kansas sky and serene farmland shots. Two favorites of mine include an old fashioned train box car and a large gathering tent under a falling night sky. They both illicit thoughts that stray in many directions.

I love people like Phil. He is kind, gentle and his contribution to society is downright remarkable.  His kindred spirit demonstrates that he truly cares deeply about his work. If you are in Kansas City, I recommend you take in his work is at the Overland Park Convention Center and the Leopold Gallery in Brookside.

A Corporate Guy turned Entrepreneur – Mike Miller – www.beforte.com
Mike is a brilliant mind, a solid Christian, an amazing family man and husband, and a great contributor to the community.

Mike and I met this morning so that I could extract some of his BRILLIANT “mind” and learn.  Have you ever left a meeting feeling energized and refreshed?  You wonder why did that happen when so many times you just feel drained.

Mike left a corporate career and has transitioned into an entrepreneur who is using the gifts God gave him to “spread his brilliance.”  Honestly, Mike doesn’t care about his brilliance, he cares deeply about youspreading YOUR BRILLIANCE.  That my friend is his gift and why I left ENERGIZED.  We need more Mikes.

A Millennial – Jacob Wayman – www.jacobwayman.com
I love Millennials, especially Jacob.  I hired Jacob as an intern for FREE when I was the CEO of Kansas City Internal Medicine.  Jacob gets it now and he definitely got it then (when he accepted a job that paid zero in cash, but led to an endless supply of guidance and inspiration.)

Often in life you have to put in “sweat equity”- which means you have to put in the time, the energy, and sometimes the tears to learn and learn well. Those periods in our lives prepare us for WORK THAT IS MEANINGFUL and fulfilling.

The time spent investing our minds and hours into learning is time well spent.  The younger generation that “gets this” will be the ones who RISE TO THE TOP. I am confident Jacob will. You should follow him onLinkedIn!

Linchpin – a blog book review

blog_682050_2730026_1432573688ARE YOU INDISPENSABLE?
Seth Godin, starts with this as a subtitle. PERFECT PLAY SETH!  I will often do these book reviews because I like to read.    When I read I check mark, underline, and dog-ear the corners of really great concepts… I figured, why not share a bit of this with my readers.  After all, more of my friends would not look at me strangely when I ask them if they would read a book if I gave them one…

So here you go, ENJOY and if you like what you read, go out to Amazon or your local book store and grabthis read –  it is truly a gem.

Random thoughts/extracts/comments and in no particular order:

  1. “You are a Genius” – Seth started with this, I like to think God created us all to be a genius at something!
  2. “I couldn’t have written this book ten years ago, our economy wanted you to fit it, it paid you well to fit in, and it took care of you if you fit in.  Now, like it or not, the world wants something different from you.”  How true is this… we all have to be shaken out of a routine and into new ways of thinking and delivering results to stand out.
  3.  “Stop asking what’s in it for you and start giving gifts that change people.  Then and only then, will you have achieved your potential.”
  4.  “Becoming a LINCHPIN is a stepwise process, a path in which you develop the attributes that make you INDESPINSABLE.”  “Linchpins are the essential building blocks of tomorrow’s high value organizations.”   I like that thought! In my home life, community and workplace!
  5. “We need original thinkers, provocateurs, and people who care.”
  6. “Indispensable businesses race to the top instead.”   On Trader Joe’s…. But Trader Joe’s keeps growing, because the combination of engaged employees, cutting-edge products, and fun brings people back.”
  7. “The web has made kicking ass easier to achieve, and mediocrity harder to sustain. Mediocrity now howls in protest.”    Mediocrity to me is annoying.  Why do it!
  8. “Create something worth talking about.”
  9. “You can see the marketplace as being limited, a zero-sum game”…. Or you can see it as unlimited.  A place where talent creates growth and market increases in space.
  10. “The new American Dream…the one that markets around the world are embracing as fast as they can, is this: Be remarkable, Be Generous, Create Art, Make Judgement calls, CONNECT people and ideas.”
  11. “The competitive advantage the marketplace demands is someone more human, connected and mature.”
  12. “In the space of two generations, we created a consumer culture. There wasn’t one, and then there was…”
  13. “The distinction between cogs and LINCHPINS is largely one of ATTITUDE, not learning.”
  14. What they should teach in school:  “Only two things:
    1.)   Solve interesting problems.  2.)  Lead.”
  15. “An artist is someone who uses bravery, insight, creativity and boldness to challenge the status quo.”
  16. “The combination of passion and art is what makes someone a LINCHPIN.”
  17. “The ultimate gift you can give, the one that will repay you today and tomorrow and heal our world, is that gift.  The gift of CONNECTION, of ART OF LOVE OF DIGNITY.”
  18. “Real artists ship” is the entire focus of the chapter titled RESISTANCE- This chapter is awesome- It is all about getting something done and out the door…i.e. SHIPPING.    This chapter is worth the entire book-
  19. “The LINCHPIN is able to invent a future, fall in love with it, live in it, and then abandon it on a moment’s notice.”
  20. The SEVEN ABILITIES OF A LINCHPIN:
    1) Providing a unique interface between members of an org.
    2) Delivering UNIQUE creativity
    3) Managing a situation or organization of great complexity
    4) Leading customers
    5) Inspiring Staff
    6) Providing deep domain knowledge
    7) Possessing a unique talent