It’s been
years since I have water ski’ed. I’ve
done it a few times and really enjoyed it.
I want to say I was good at it, but there are two things you really need
to be good at water skiing, 1)Access to water, and 2) Access to a boat, two
things that I have not had ready access to over the past few years.
As boats
rumble through the water, they leave a wake behind them. If you cross someone else’s wake, your ride
is going to be a little bumpy, well, a lot bumpy. Riding in a smooth wake allows for a great
ride, a great run and makes you want to get up and do it again. A bumpy wake or a rough ride makes harder to
really enjoy it.
I was
listening to the EntreLeadership podcast this past week. One of the special guests was Dr. Henry
Cloud. Dr. Cloud is the author of a
number of great leadership books. He
made the comment that, as leaders, we all leave a wake behind us. Much like a boat running through the water,
we leave a wake wherever we go. What
happens when we are not around or after we have left determines what kind of
wake we leave for others.
What kind of
wake are you leaving? One way you can
answer that question, according to Dr. Cloud, is to listen to what people are
saying after you leave. And it’s not
just when you leave a job for a new job, how about when you leave your shift
for the day, or as the Owner of a business, what are your employees saying
about you after you leave?
When people
look at the schedule, do they sigh and say, “I have to work with him today?” Are
they excited about getting work and seeing your name beside theirs? Are you creating a positive impact on those
around you? Now, that doesn’t mean that
you are a “yes” man, or that you just do things to make people like you.
Leave a
positive wake for those who come behind you.
Leave a wake in which others want to ride. I know you are asking yourself, “Joel, how do
I do that?” I’m glad you are asking
yourself that because that is the correct question. Here are a few ways that you can do that.
1. Grow
yourself.
Every day
you need to take time to grow yourself.
That’s easier said that done. It
takes intentionality. It takes
dedication. It takes setting goals and
reaching them. One reason we don’t grow
as people is because we don’t dedicate ourselves to do it. How do we grow
ourselves?
First,
read. Read books, articles, blogs,
etc. Read for fun, but also read for
growth. Read books that enhance where
you want to be in life. Read authors
that will allow you to add to your life experience. But not only that, read books that you don’t
necessarily agree with. When I was in
Seminary, I took an Old Testament Survey course. It took it in a seminar form, in other words,
we only met for a week but we had a few months to read the required books and
do the assigned work before we came to class.
I picked up the books on the reading list and dove into them. Partially through one of the books, I closed
it, put it down and almost never picked it up again. It challenged my point of view. I wondered why I would be reading something
in a seminary class that contradicted everything we believed about the bible
and biblical interpretation. Then it hit
me. Maybe the professor knew more than
me. Maybe there was method to his
madness. Maybe his purpose was to
introduce us to challenging views in order to grow us and to reinforce what we
already knew and believed. Turns out, my
hunch was correct. I knew the professor
pretty well and went to talk to him about that particular book and its
inclusion in our reading list. He said,
in essence, that if we never read books that challenged our views and only
those that agreed with our position, we might grow stagnant. How true that is. When we miss those with alternate viewpoints,
we miss opportunities for growth. If
reading an alternate view makes you question your views about a certain
position, did you really have a strong viewpoint to begin with? It’s a question worth pondering.
Second, do
something new. When we do the same
things every day, day in and day out, we grow stagnant. Learn something new. Attempt something you’ve always feared. Challenge yourself. Step out of your comfort zone.
Part 2 of this blog coming later....Stay tuned...Same bat time, Same bat channel.
No comments:
Post a Comment