Saturday, October 23, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
Share Yourself by Mac Anderson
Share Yourself by Mac Anderson
One of my favorite habits in life is waking up early on Sunday morning, getting the Sunday paper, making a hot cup of coffee, and kicking back to read about what's going on in the world. It's my quiet time. My time alone to reflect and relax.
One Sunday morning about halfway through my little ritual, I spotted a headline that read "Graduating Student Credits His ‘Angel,' " and I began to read.
A young man who was graduating from college told the story about how Oral Lee Brown was his "real-life angel." In 1987, Brown, a real estate agent in Northern California, saw a young girl in her neighborhood begging for money.
When she went to the school the girl had claimed to attend, Brown couldn't find her, but that day she made a decision that would change the lives of many other children forever. She adopted an entire first-grade class in one of Oakland's lowest performing schools, and she pledged that she personally would pay for anyone who wanted to attend college.
This would be a great story even if Oral Lee Brown was independently wealthy; however, it is a much greater story considering she was a former cotton picker from Mississippi, making $45,000 a year and raising two children of her own.
Brown lived up to her pledge. Since 1987, she's personally saved $10,000 a year while raising donations for her "adopted first-grade kids." And because of her tremendous act of unselfish love, children who could have been "swallowed by the streets" are now graduating from college to pursue their dreams.
We all seek our purpose in life. Most of us wonder how we can make a positive difference during our brief time on this earth. But asking and doing are different things.
It's hard to imagine that Oral Lee Brown wouldn't have a wonderful positive attitude, because she has thought less about herself and more about others.
This, in my opinion, is a "little secret" that many people never quite understand about life.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret—curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable. ~ Walt Disney
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Building a Successful Team by Jim Rohn
Building a Successful Team by Jim Rohn
Once you've set a goal for yourself as a leader—whether it is to create your own enterprise, energize your organization, build a church, or excel in sports—the challenge is to find good people to help you accomplish that goal. Gathering a successful team of people is not only helpful, it's necessary.
So to guide you in this daunting task of picking the right people, I'm going to share with you a four-part checklist.
Number One: Check each candidate's history. Seek out available information regarding the individual's qualifications to do the job. That's the most obvious step.
Number Two: Check the person's interest level. If they are interested, they are probably a good prospect. Sometimes people can fake their interest, but if you've been a leader for a while, you will be a capable judge of whether somebody is merely pretending. Arrange face-to-face conversation, and try to gauge his or her sincerity to the best of your ability. You won't hit the bull's-eye every time, but you can get pretty good at spotting what I call true interest.
Number Three: Check the prospect's responses. A response tells you a lot about someone's integrity, character and skills. Listen for responses like these: "You want me to get there that early?" "You want me to stay that late?" "The break is only ten minutes?" "I'll have to work two evenings a week and Saturdays?" You can't ignore these clues. A person's responses are good indications of his or her character and of how hard he or she will work. Our attitudes reflect our inner selves, so even if we can fool others for a while, eventually, our true selves will emerge.
Number Four: Check results. The name of the game is results. How else can we effectively judge an individual's performance? The final judge must be results.
There are two types of results to look for. The first is activity results. Specific results are a reflection of an individual's productivity. Sometimes we don't ask for this type of result right away, but it's pretty easy to check activity. If you work for a sales organization and you've asked your new salesman, John, to make ten calls in the first week, it's simple to check his results on Friday. You say, "John, how many calls did you make?" John says, "Well..." and starts telling a story, making an excuse. You respond, "John, I just need a number from one to ten." If his results that first week are not good, it is a definite sign. You might try another week, but if that lack of precise activity continues, you'll soon realize that John isn't capable of becoming a member of your team.
The second area you need to monitor is productivity. The ultimate test of a quality team is measurable progress in a reasonable amount of time. And here's one of the skills of leadership: Be up front with your team as to what you expect them to produce. Don't let the surprises come later.
When you're following this four-part checklist, your instincts obviously play a major role. And your instincts will improve every time you go through the process. Remember, building a good team will be one of your most challenging tasks as a leader. It will reap you multiple rewards for a long time to come.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
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