To Serve well

Serving with Excellence for a Life of Excellence

Service

Simple Thoughts Sunday: Errors increase with distance

I am inspired by this idea, and perhaps you will be as well.

Where are you when you are at your best? I heard this concept of “errors (as in a lack of peace, quick to express my viewpoint versus listening, etc) increasing with distance” in the context of spiritual connection. I have to say that I am fully at my best when I am closest to God in some way. When I am actively surrounding myself with not only the word of God, but also the energy that is found by spending time in community with other purpose-focused believers, praying regularly, serving those around me, helping those in need, or reading the stories shared by teachers and authors. Heck, even listening to praise music brings me to a sense of awe and gratitude for both the amazing and the challenging in my world. In short, I find myself most fulfilled when my daily life is spiritually connected.

So, logic would say that when I am further away that “errors” may happen. How true is that? When I am not doing much of what I listed above, I find myself feeling disconnected and far from an optimal state. It’s pretty straight forward, yet I have to be honest: I don’t know how or why, but I sometimes find myself distracted and a lot further from the target. Anyone else?

So, for today’s post, it truly is a “simple thought,” which is to say that we are indeed our best when our actions bring us closer to our creator. When we are intentionally near, we can know deep inside that we can hit the targets we were designed to hit, and do so with a sense of deep joy. That’s powerful.

Praying for you all today to have the BEST week!

Am I focused on what matters the most? (And hello August!)

Happy August everyone! We are launching the eighth month of the year today! That seems crazy to me – and even more so, the fact that all of those beautiful children and their teachers kick off another year way too soon. I hope July was a banner month for you all and that you had time to enjoy all that summer can be – pools, lakes, oceans, lingering nights on the patio and a large dose of creating love and memories with those you love.

After taking a month off from writing, top of mind for me right now is the concept of the blog itself – SERVICE. The word has been showing up the last two weeks in my reading and various podcasts, messages and conversations. The question I wrote down was the title of this blog: Am I focused on what matters most? After all, we were indeed placed on this earth, in this generation, at this particular moment… to do just that.

When my boys were younger, serving seemed easier for some reason. We were always working toward “community service” hours, and the schools were great ambassadors to help drive that awareness. At this point, engaging in community boards is certainly service, and even serving as an act of daily living counts. Our work place is fantastic about serving and I’m proud of that. However, when is the last time I physically rolled up my sleeves to serve someone who really needed that help immediately? I’m afraid to admit that it’s been too long, short of one brief stint serving at Thelma’s Kitchen (which, by the way, is a fantastic place to join other great folks in meeting our community’s needs).

I am hopeful this post provides a call to action for you as it did for me. I would argue that serving others is the very best part of life. It takes a bit of intention, but it is worth it. It is so important that psychologists agree on one thing: If someone has depression, anxiety, a lack of focus, etc., the often recommended treatment is to walk out the door and find someone, anyone, to help – to serve. In other words, shift the focus from yourself to serving others. I absolutely love that.

Have a wonderful wrap to your week!

Reveal your true self: Accelerating your relationships

I’m in a relatively new role at work, and one of my priorities has been to both get to know my entire team and to give them an idea of who I am — including my personal and professional goals.

There’s no surprise, that I loved hearing the story of Doug Conant — former CEO of Campbell Soup Company — who shared the philosophy that conveying a full picture of who he is right away to his team, including what he stands for and wants to accomplish was critical to his personal mission. When he took over, he was faced with reversing a severe decline in market value and “re-energizing” the culture. Conant led the company to deliver excellence, including world-class employee engagement in the 10 years he served as the company’s leader.

So, how does this point us to serving better all around? Here’s a quote from Conant that I loved from the Harvard Business Review, “Leadership is a Conversation” series, (Groysberg/Slind, June 2012):

“I explained that my goal is to take the mystery out of our relationship in a personal way, as quickly as possible, so that we can get on with the business of working together and doing something special.” 

Is that not brilliant? So, YES, it is my feeling we can all learn something here. Both in my personal relationships (and certainly work relationships) I have found that the more we are able to share our true selves — be transparent, honest and authentic (with a positive approach…) — the quicker we are to move forward.

More often than not, when we are able to take out the “mystery” factor, we are able to forge ahead. I love this. Just today, in fact, I experienced two of my team members at work came together to reveal themselves and, as a result, are on a better path.

Do the people you “do life” with know who you truly are? Is there an opportunity to advance your relationship so that you can truly being “doing something special?”

Have a great Labor Day weekend!

Immense, deep, fierce, profound… Beyond measure

Beyond compare

Beyond dispute

Beyond doubt

BEYOND MEASURE

Beyond number

Beyond one’s depth

Beyond Price

Immense, deeply, fiercely, profoundly.

(Thanks to Coopers dictionary for these incredible terms…perfect for today’s message)

What areas of your life have you been blessed beyond measure? This is the perfect day and week to dive into this idea.

Sunrises, sunsets, pets, a healthy and able body, the ability to help others, intelligence, teachers, counselors, friends, family… All of those are surely on the list.

What about the not so obvious? Hard times, loss, trouble, stress… To me, those belong in this category, too. Without the mire, I wouldn’t be where I am – I wouldn’t be so blessed. I wouldn’t be able to serve well, and to use my story to encourage others. The best place we can be today is in the pure gratitude of the adventure we are on.

The road that are straight, the roads that fork with no obvious direction, the unpaved roads, even the road that flatten your tires… They all come together to form a life that is blessed beyond our understanding – beyond measure.

Have a crazy great week. Many prayers and positive energy to you, your family and friends.

Simple Thoughts Sunday: GROWTH

I love things that inspire me; especially those that catch me off guard.

Chris Hodges is an author and pastor I follow from Birmingham (shout out to my BAMA friends Nan and Jan).

I have shared before that I do an annual spiritual fast, called the “Daniel Fast.” I do it the first 21 days of each year. Coupled with a better diet, I also give up the unhealthy surfing of social media channels and most TV. (I still use Twitter and Linked in for work, and admittedly still watch ‘This is Us,’ because I just can’t not watch.)

It’s amazing how much time is freed up. Also, how your focus returns to where it really should be all year long. Chris’s church, Highlands, is also doing the “Daniel Fast.” They add 21 days of prayer, and actually have a 6 a.m. weekday service that focused on great worship music and a 5-minute message before a prayer service. They posted about it online, and I was blown away by the message earlier this week on growth, and the reference to Luke 2:52.

I pray this scripture over my boys frequently and have since they were young men. I had not really given it much thought in terms of my own personal growth. Hello light bulb moment. We are all growing, whether we are 2-years-old or 92-years-old. Always learning, always looking to go deeper, share more, serve better…

Chris’s word for the year is GROWTH. (More on the word-of-the-year concept here, in case you missed it.) I think he may be a few years older than me, but I love that idea and thought you might as well.

I am praying this scripture over all of us today. May we achieve all that we were destined to in order to serve our FULL PURPOSE in this life. We will talk this week about growth in general, and some leadership insights I hope will help you continue to build momentum!

Real love is lived out

(Image from post via 11/2015)

I guess I’ve been doing this over two years now since this popped up on my Facebook timeline and I loved the image. (My website has changed since then, but I’m reusing and recycling anyway.) Maybe we could even call this upcycling, which is the trendy term for the “creative reuse” of something.

I don’t know about you but my heart is always warmed when I see someone open a door for someone, walk somebody across the street, bring a neighbor’s trash can up the driveway (or any other means by which we see a person go out of their way to help another person). I love the people that say yes when the grocery store clerk asks if they’d like to donate $5 to Harvesters or some other good cause.

As you go through your week, look around and I promise you’ll find someone that could use a helpful hand. There is a lot of need in every circle of the world. It may be as simple as a smile or compliment.

By the way, you DO LOOK GOOD TODAY! Just sayin’!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: God says GO

(quote from @SamuelRodriguez via Instagram)

How many times have you had something difficult to overcome and you kept going to God in prayer? Frustrated that it seemed like nothing was happening, and doubting your own faith.

In my life I have definitely seen that there are plenty of times that I was supposed to CLIMB over it, through it, and sometimes with blood, sweat and tears involved. (Lots of tears and not a lot of blood, thank God.) Lots of conversations and heartache, and yet we must CLIMB.

It is in those experiences that I believe we grow and learn the most about ourselves and how to endure so that we can truly become who we are supposed to be to serve the VERY BEST. As you are planning your week, give some thought to anything that you have been hoping that God would take away. Perhaps your direction is to move through it.

Have the very best week! Less than a handful left in this crazy year!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: A week of serving well

I am so THANKFUL it’s THANKSGIVING WEEK!

I have to admit, it feels too early this year. But nevertheless, I’m ready to hug some folks!

I don’t know about you but Thanksgiving has to be one of the best creations ever. If you give it some thought, it’s not only about being thankful and spending time with those we love, but it is rooted in SERVICE. Service and honor to those we love. Generations have been built on those gatherings where true service and love were the main ingredients, strengthening our families and communities. What could be better?

As I read Rick Warren’s quote above, I think about how we can use a season like this to truly serve well. To not only serve our families and friends but to look out and consider those who may not have been served in anyway this year. I think of patients that I have met who looked forward to their doctor appointments because it was the only time during the year they felt cared for.

We must remember that for some, we are their only smile, their only human interaction with kindness. What a great opportunity we have. Service is as simple as a smile and the great news is that whatever our situation, we have all been given the gift of service.

Have such an amazing week.

 

 

 

BETTER

I am always fascinated by what makes a place “all of the rage.”

You know, those cult-like places where folks like us stand in line for hours waiting for our share of their awesomeness. In KC, there are several of these, but my favorite stand out right now is an ice cream place called BettyRaes.

(Photo creds: Canva)

It is SO HOT that Trip Advisor named it a top 50 “ice cream shops worth traveling for.” And it’s only a few years old, if that. Believe me, folks do travel for it and most days the line is out the door. But why? (Other than the s’mores sundae with coffee ice cream — pretty much is the best thing I’ve ever had…)

My perspective: It’s better. As in truly better.

It has created a unique offering via it’s menu. The service is better. The shop is community focused.

As Seth Godin, the famous marketer, would say: it’s achieved the notion of BETTER.

As we think through how we serve better, let’s think about what else we can do better. Be kinder, more focused on those around us, more open minded, more giving, more courteous drivers, more patient (that one resonates with me!), etc…

If you are in business — profit or non-profit — how can we be deemed “worthy” of a line out our door? We start by looking in the mirror and identifying areas where we can be better, and then we dive deep to get to worthy… and ideally, sustainable.

Your ideas are welcome!

(Here’s a song to get you in the mood and the mindset!)

What a beautiful day!

(Photo Creds: We Heart It)

REWIND: This post is from 2016. Enjoy your day!

Easter is an incredible holiday.

The Bible verse in this photo is my favorite and a perfect “simple thought” for Sunday. I love to remember that Jesus came to serve and save. The action has the opportunity to center us around a common purpose. I believe he wants us to serve others in the same spirit, every chance we get. We are in fact called to do so!

Let us pray today that our country will come together and unify around the idea of service and love for one another – ALL OTHERS.

Happy Easter my friends!