The Leadership Quality of Commitment (part 3 of 3)

Continued from yesterday... Here are 3 exercises you can do to start evaluating and improving your level of commitment. Consider the following... 1. Measure it: Sometimes we think we are committed to something, yet our actions indicate otherwise. Take out your calendar and your checkbook register. Sped a few hours tallying up how you spend your time and where you spend your money. Look at how much time you spend at work, in service, with family, in health and recreation activities, in your faith, and so forth. Figure out how much money you spent on living expenses, entertainment, personal development, giving, etc. All these things are true measures of your commitment. 2. Know what’s worth dying for: One of the questions every leader must ask himself is, “What am I willing to die for?” If it came down to it, what in life would you not be able to stop doing, no matter what the consequences were? Spend some time alone meditating on that thought. Write down what you discover. Then see if your actions match your ideals. 3. Use the Edison method: If taking the first step toward commitment is a problem, try doing what Thomas Edison did. When he had a good idea for an invention, he would call a press conference to announce it. Then he’d go into his lab and invent it. Make your goals, your plans, your commitments public. You will be more committed to following and achieving them. Want to get started on increasing your leadership commitment? Truth@Life can help you, regardless of your location. Call 248-396-6255 or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com for a free consultation. If you receive value from these blogs, please consider donating to keep this blog site up and running. This ministry cannot continue without the generous donations of its readers. Just click on the "Donate" button in the upper right. For more info on help I can provide check out http://truthatlife.com/ or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com

The Leadership Quality of Commitment (part 2 of 3)

Continued from yesterday... The following three observations tell us a lot about the nature of commitment: 1. Commitment starts in the heart. Some people want everything to be perfect before they are willing to commit themselves to anything. But commitment always precedes achievement. It is said that in the Kentucky Derby, the winning horse effectively runs out of oxygen about half-way through the race and goes the remainder of the way on heart. All good athletes recognize the importance of commitment. NBA legend Michael Jordan says, “Heart is what separates the good from the great.” So if you want to make a difference in other people’s lives as a leader, look into your own heart to see if you’re really committed. 2. Commitment is tested by action. It’s one thing to talk about commitment. It’s another to do something about it. The only real measure of commitment is action. It has been said, “Nothing is easier than saying words. Nothing is harder than living them day after day.” 3. Commitment opens the door to achievement. As a leader, you will face plenty of obstacles and opposition – if you haven’t already. And there will be times when commitment is the only thing that carries you forward. It has been said, “Commitment is the enemy of resistance, for it is the serious promise to press on, to get up, no matter how many times you have been knocked down.” If you want to get anywhere worthwhile, you must be committed. When it comes to commitment, there are really only four types of people: 1. Cop-outs: People who have no goals and who do not commit. 2. Holdouts: People who don’t know if they can reach their goals, so they’re afraid to commit. 3. Dropouts: People who start toward a goal but quit when the going gets tough. 4. All-outs: People who set goals, commit to them, and pay the price to reach them. What kind of person are you? Have you been reaching your goals? Are you achieving all that you believe you can? Do people believe in you and follow you readily? If your answer to any of these questions is no, the problem may be your level of commitment. To be continued... Want to get started on increasing your leadership commitment? Truth@Life can help you, regardless of your location. Call 248-396-6255 or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com for a free consultation. If you receive value from these blogs, please consider donating to keep this blog site up and running. This ministry cannot continue without the generous donations of its readers. Just click on the "Donate" button in the upper right. For more info on help I can provide check out http://truthatlife.com/ or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com

The Leadership Quality of Commitment (part 1 of 3)

Former pro basketball player Bill Bradley attended a summer basketball camp at age 15 conducted by Ed Macauley. During that camp, Macauley made a statement that changed Bradley’s life: “Just remember that if you’re not working at your game to the utmost of your ability, there will be someone out there with equal ability. One day you’ll play each other, and he’ll have the advantage.” People do not follow uncommitted leaders. Commitment can be displayed in a full range of matters to include the work hours you choose to maintain, how you work to improve your abilities, or what you do for your fellow workers at personal sacrifice. The world has never seen a great leader who lacked commitment. Ed McElroy of USAir spoke of its importance: “Commitment gives us new power. No matter what comes to us – sickness, poverty, or disaster – we never turn our eye from the goal.” What is commitment? To each person, it means something different. To the boxer, it’s getting off the mat one more time than you’ve been knocked down. To the marathoner, it’s running another ten miles when your strength is gone. To the soldier, it’s going over the hill, not knowing what’s waiting on the other side. To the missionary, it’s saying good-bye to your own comfort to make life better for others. To the leader, it’s all about that and more because everyone you lead is depending on you. If you want to be an effective leader, you have to be committed. True commitment inspires and attracts people. It shows them that you have conviction. They will believe in you only if you believe in your cause. As the Leadership Principle of Buy-In states, people first buy into the leader, then they buy into the vision. To be continued... Want to get started on increasing your leadership commitment? Truth@Life can help you, regardless of your location. Call 248-396-6255 or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com for a free consultation. If you receive value from these blogs, please consider donating to keep this blog site up and running. This ministry cannot continue without the generous donations of its readers. Just click on the "Donate" button in the upper right. For more info on help I can provide check out http://truthatlife.com/ or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com

The Leadership Principle of Process (part 3 of 3)

Continued from part 2... Leadership is developed daily, not in a day. That is a reality dictated by the Principle of Process. The secret for success in life is for a person to be ready for his time when it comes. What a person does on a disciplined, consistent basis gets him ready. The good news is that your leadership ability is not static. No matter where you are starting from, you can get better. There is an old saying: Champions don’t become champions in the ring (or on the field), they are merely recognized there. So true. If you want to see where someone develops into a champion, look at his daily routine. Former heavyweight champ Joe Frazier stated, You can map out a fight plan. Better yet is to map out a life plan. When the action starts, it boils down to reflexes. That’s where your road work shows. If you’ve cheated on that in the dark of the morning, you’re getting found out now under the bright lights.” Boxing is a great analogy for leadership development because it is all about preparation. Even if a person has natural talent, he has to prepare and train to be truly successful. President Theodore Roosevelt, a great leader and boxing enthusiast, once stated: “It’s not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and, who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.” Roosevelt, a boxer himself, was the ultimate man of action. He began everyday by spending time building his body as well as his mind. He did that for his entire life. He did not become a great leader overnight. His road to the presidency was one of slow, continual growth. When they removed his dead body from his bed, they found a book under his pillow. Up to the very last, he was still striving to learn and improve himself. He was still practicing the Principle of Process. So if you want to be a great leader, the good news is that you can do it. But is will cost you. Everyone has the potential, but not everyone is willing to make the sacrifice. It isn’t accomplished overnight. It requires perseverance. You can’t ignore the Principle of Process. Leadership does not develop in a day – great leadership takes the better part of a lifetime. Want to get started on the process of improving your leadership? Truth@Life can help you, regardless of your location. Call 248-396-6255 or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com for a free consultation. If you receive value from these blogs, please consider donating to keep this blog site up and running. This ministry cannot continue without the generous donations of its readers. Just click on the "Donate" button in the upper right. For more info on help I can provide check out http://truthatlife.com/ or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com

The Leadership Principle of Process (part 2 of 3)

Leadership develops daily, not in a day. Continued from yesterday - the four phases of The Leadership Principle of Process... Phase 1 - I don’t know what I don’t know: Most people fail to recognize the value of leadership. They believe that leadership is only for a few – for the people at the top of the corporate ladder. They have no idea of the opportunities they are passing up when they don’t learn to lead. In the course of each day most individuals try to influence at least four people. This substantiates the claim by sociologists that most people will influence – positively or negatively – over 10,000 people in their lifetime. Unfortunately, as long as a person doesn’t know what he doesn’t know, he doesn’t grow. Phase 2 - I know what I don’t know: Usually at some point in life, we are placed in a leadership position only to look around and discover that no one is following us. That’s when we realize that we need to learn how to lead. Benjamin Disraeli once said, “To be conscious that you are ignorant of the facts is a great step to knowledge.” Phase 3 - I grow and know and it starts to show: When you recognize your lack of skill and begin the daily discipline of personal growth in leadership, exciting things start to happen. Every one can become a great leader. Almost immediately, progress begins as your influence become greater, as you put newly learned leadership principles into practice. Read books, listen to tapes/CDs/DVDs, and attend regular seminars. Whenever you come across a golden nugget of truth or a significant quote, file it away for the future. Phase 4 - I know what I don’t know: When you’re in Phase 3, you can be pretty effective as a leader. However, when you get to Phase 4, your ability to lead becomes almost automatic. And that’s when the payoff becomes larger than life. But the only way to get there is to practice the Principle of Process and to pay the price. Think for a moment, which phase are you in? To be continued... Want to get started on the process of improving your leadership? Truth@Life can help you, regardless of your location. Call 248-396-6255 or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com for a free consultation. If you receive value from these blogs, please consider donating to keep this blog site up and running. This ministry cannot continue without the generous donations of its readers. Just click on the "Donate" button in the upper right. For more info on help I can provide check out http://truthatlife.com/ or email me at curtis.songer@gmail.com