Recently, a new comedy club opened in our neighborhood. An advertisement led me to believe that the show may be family-friendly, so Kathy and I decided to give it a try. We were sorely disappointed. A small crowd had to experience vulgar and very offensive dialogue that left us disgusted. In contrast, my daughter gave me tickets to a Nate ...
In the book, “Founding Fathers,” Alexander Hamilton and George Washington reportedly had a volatile relationship. Hamilton was known for his brash ambition and his hot-headed ways. On one occasion, Alexander Hamilton and George Washington had a petty argument that resulted in Hamilton resigning angrily. But, within an hour, Washington “sent an aide to tell Hamilton how highly Washington thought of ...
Rick Altizer, CEO of Earnnest, wrote about Servant Leadership on thegospelcoaltion.org. One of his points was this: To go up, the way may be down. Rick wrote of a time when he was in a McDonald’s executive training program. Even though he was a CPA and MBA, Rick spent two years working inside a McDonald’s store cleaning toilets and working ...
The project team had spent nearly a year on the project to refine the company processes. To celebrate, the executive overseeing the project rented out a local restaurant and invited everyone who had played a role to be part of the celebration. But some were offended that individuals with only minor roles were being invited to the same celebration as ...
In a moment of frustration, Jennie made a derogatory comment to a coworker about another colleague. As soon as Jennie said it, she regretted it, but hoped that it would be quickly forgotten. But when meeting later with the supervisor of the employee Jennie had criticized, the supervisor asked for the back story. The conversation was professional, which just added ...
Sometimes the best nuggets of wisdom are found immediately after interviewing someone. Recently, I was video interviewing Scooters Coffee franchisee, Tracy Bouwens. After we finished, we discussed some common challenges of managing employees. Tracy told me that a common refrain in her workplace is, “Being unclear is unkind.” Tracy mentioned those times when we avoid hard conversations because we’re ...
Poor communication is a big challenge for small businesses. Recently, Kathy and I met with a team of our son’s caregivers. We were shocked to learn that Jeremy had experienced multiple incidents of anger, resulting in destroyed property and harm to others. Jeremy’s team assumed we knew of these incidents. We discovered that we’d not been included in the ...
Early in my ministry, I sat next to Frank at a generosity event. We were asked to pretend that we had just been given $100,000, and to make a list of charities and the amounts we would support. After looking at my list, Frank noted, “Rick, you didn’t list the ministry you lead.” Frank continued, “Could it be that you ...
A study reported in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion found four important ways in which those interviewed feel “called to work:” As an opportunity to use gifts and opportunities provided by God; As a chance to share or model one’s faith; Through producing goods or services that benefit society, and As a means to a higher calling ...
My friend, Kent Humphries, who is now with the Lord, wrote a book called Shepherding Horses. Kent wrote this book for pastors to help them equip their highly driven entrepreneurs and business leaders, who are more like wild horses than sheep. These kinds of leaders may be much harder to manage. But when equipped properly for ministering to others, their ...
Equipping Others to Do Work Differently
