I read this quote in 7 Habits of Highly Effective People the other day,
“if we do not develop our own self awareness and become responsible for first creations (ie – goals and future plans), we empower other people and circumstances outside our Circle of Influence to shape much of our lives by default.”
This is smart stuff… boiled down, you’ve got to happen to life or it will happen to you. Other people will always have an agenda for you and your life – if its not your parents than its your boss and if its not your boss its probably Walmart or Target.
There are things you want to do, there are things God has put on your heart to do – don’t stand by and wait for them to happen, grab the bull by the horns and make him your pony, if you don’t he may make you his fool like this guy.
This guy challenged me to a week of “roasting my friends” today….
And for most of you this won’t be a surprise, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. The counselor within (thats really what I’m educated to be) said it was too dangerous. I never want to walk the line of sarcasm and near truths that hurt and potentially compromise the creative environment…. sorry Larry, I guess I’m a big sissy.
And so here’s what I’ve got to say about the genius who thought this up….
He is a genius…He is one of the most creative guys I know. He makes me and the Creative Department so much better because of his brave leadership and commitment to see us be the best we can be.
He works late and comes in early – he listens when he has other stuff that needs to get done and he doesn’t give up on you when you really screw up.
He is a great Father and husband and friend and we are proud to call him our Creative Pastor.
Most anyone who knows me knows I’m a strong willed women, and really lets be honest, pretty much anyone who meets me can see that I’ve got a strong personality as well – I’m comfortable with these characteristics now… but it hasn’t always been that way.
Strong willed, strong personality women don’t always fit in… people don’t always know what to do with them, often times they don’t know what to do with themselves (myself included). But I have had to learn that having both of these characteristics is not an accident… God doesn’t make accidents. It doesn’t give me permission to be the next Roseanne Barr or act like this lady
but it also doesn’t mean I need to run and hide these characteristics either. What it does mean is that I am called to be a good steward of my gifts… even my personality and especially my will.
So many more thoughts on this…. but I hate reading long blog posts so I won’t ask you to either.
For some reason people are fascinated with our Creative Department. I get the question alot, “Whats it like working in the Creative Department?”…. Well here it is…
The Creative Department is like a wet dog. You really love that dog, he’s a good friend and means a lot to you, he makes the world a better place … but man he really smells. – I mean that literally, they really smell and when they try to cover it up with incense it smells even worse – ask this guy or this guy.
Working in the Creative Department is also a lot like a twinkie…. kinda crusty and weird looking on the outside but there’s something real great on the inside that everybody wants a part of.
Working in the Creative Department is the best job I’ve ever had. I love these guys and wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
It feels good to get stuff done, to mark stuff off my never ending list of to-do’s. I think I might be addicted to it.
I think a lot of us are this way, we love to get stuff done.
You feel accomplished when you can check it off, you are on top of your game, knocking stuff out- but is leading just getting stuff done?
I don’t think so. A leader draws a picture of what could be, they point to the future and the potential of what is there. A leader inspires, they don’t just tell people what to do and how to get it done.
I know I fall so short of this… I struggle to inspire those around me, I struggle to paint the picture of potential I see in those nearest me, I struggle to really lead and not just cross stuff off my list.
Do you strive to inspire others, can you see the potential in a person or situation and paint that picture for them to see? How do you do it – I’d love to know…
I’ve had a sorted past. What exactly does “sorted” mean …. well “sorted” to me means; “ridiculous, unpredictable, or just plain stupid.”
You will come to find that I’ve had a lot of ridiculous, unpredictable and stupid things happen in my life. And for your reading pleasure I will attempt to document some of those moments here in the lovely ol’ blog. I hope it makes you laugh a little and enjoy your life more.
I lived in the fine snowy state of Alaska for 6 years. (God’s greatest creation)
One cold winter day in the town of Esther Alaska I was house sitting for my boyfriends parents. They had 3 dogs, all beagles.
I woke up that day and began to perform my regular routine.
Wake up – feed the dogs – get ready – put the dogs out – go to work – come home – let the dogs in – feed them – feed me - go to bed.
There was one slight change though.
When I came home from work that day driving down the snow covered roads and arriving at the snow covered house I called for the dogs to come. To my surprise only two came.
I yelled as loud as I could “Patches… Patches…” no response. So I went out to the kennels and there was Patches all curled up in the back of his kennel. This made me mad. “Stupid dog” I thought “Doesn’t even respond when I call him”.
I shook the kennel …. but to my surprise he still didn’t respond. I started getting suspicious, so of course like any reasonable person I went and found a stick to poke him with.
I poked little Patches with the stick and once again there was no response.
I looked closer…. was I seeing what I thought?
Patches was DEAD!!!! And not only was he dead but he was frozen stiff, literally.
Now if it wasn’t bad enough that I had to inform my boyfriends parents that their precious little dog had died while they were on vacation I also had to wrap the dead dog in an old blanket and put it in the shed so they could pay their respects when they got home.
So I did the right thing. I pulled Patches out of the kennel, wrapped the dead dog in the old blanket and placed him in the shed just as the owners asked.
I’m a dog killer , but only on accident … The End.
There are three things in life that matter the most to me. My relationship with God, my relationship with my husband and the calling God has placed on my life. All three work together and all three are entirely cohesive. When I make decisions these 3 priorities are what drive the process…
As a female I battle the ever screaming “emotions”… they try to control my every movement and my every decision. But a very wise old man once said to me, “Meredith… Don’t let your emotions own you… you must own your emotions.”
As a woman in leadership often times I am tempted to act on my emotions, to make decisions by judging what would “feel” best and acting on that, but watch out!!! If I do this my team will find me unpredictable and untrustworthy it will quickly prove to be the demise of my diplomacy, stability and ability to lead a team. Emotions change, they are not stable, they are not bad either but they can’t be the main source of information for decision making.
Every woman is a woman in leadership. Whether at home or school or work or the other thousands of places women lead. Every woman has to make significant decisions as she leads…What are the priorities that drive your decision making process? Are you letting your emotions own you or are you owning them?
