In his book, The Speed of Trust, Stephen Covey says, “we judge ourselves by our intentions and others by their behavior.” Intentions are often unclear through behavior alone. The greatest level of trust among coworkers comes from a desire to understand intentions instead of the result of behavior. Judging others by their behavior proves a shallow level of trust. Matthew ...
When I was in banking, one of my roles was business development. Some of my peers were very transactionally oriented, but I typically tried to focus on a longer-term, relational approach. I joined associations and groups to meet and see key people at significant companies frequently. I diligently and consistently tended to the relationships developed through those associations, knowing opportunities ...
In a book called “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, Hamilton and George Washington had an argument over something petty that resulted in Hamilton resigning angrily. But, within an hour, Washington “sent an aide to tell Hamilton how highly he ...
As we head into Valentine’s Day, our thoughts are often of love and romance. Love is a word however that doesn’t often make its way into the workplace. We may love our spouse, our father or our neighbors. All different kinds of love, yet, we use the same English word. In the Greek, however, there are seven words for love. ...
When I was a banker, I inherited a loan to a lumber yard with multiple locations. This company was losing significant amounts of money and asked me to increase their line of credit. After examining their situation, I realized that more money wasn’t going to solve their problem. They needed to address many underlying management and leadership issues. So, I ...
Jackie Robinson became the first black professional baseball player, but according to Jackie’s widow, Rachel, that wouldn’t have happened had it not been for Reverend Karl Downs. In a Statesman.com article, Rachel shares how as a young pastor, Karl Downs encouraged young Jackie to leave a Pasadena gang and introduced him to Christ-like ways to handle racism. Over the years, ...
The movie “Hidden Figures” tells the true story of three black women trying to pursue their calling during a time of segregation. Mary Jackson started at NASA in a segregated position with her new friends Dorothy Vaughan and Katherine Johnson. Eventually, Mary’s supervisor encouraged her to get an engineering degree. Unfortunately, due to segregation she had to get permission from ...
When Roger introduced me to his friend, Bob, he forewarned me that “Bob is a firecracker.” When Bob called, our conversation took off like a rocket! For over one-hour Bob talked at a pace and a passion that could easily be exhausting, but instead, his stories of God’s amazing power energized me. He blessed and encouraged my faith journey. The ...
For weeks, a friend was not responding to my text messages or voicemails. I began making assumptions about his motives for not calling me. When we finally met, we discovered that his phone was broken, and my number was blocked. In Joshua 22, the Israelites that lived east of the Jordan built an altar. The rest of the Israelites assumed ...
Jack had a problem. One of his top salesmen was stirring up trouble, again. This salesman was a know-it-all that was constantly being argumentative with the rest of the team. Jack and I discussed possible solutions. But, when we discussed terminating his salesman if it didn’t get any better, Jack became anxious. “He’s my top salesperson. I don’t think I ...
Equipping Others to Do Work Differently
