He writes:

Being a game player is a fiction some people use to excuse themselves from working as hard as they should.  People who think they are game players are what coaches call “floaters.”  They float along on a cushion of talent or sheer physical size and strength.  They don’t see what all the fuss over concentration and work ethic is about until players of lesser talent start scoring in their face, quarter ofter quarter, simply because they are more in tune with their game…Eventually every team has to learn that excellence isn’t a destination.  It’s a process that must be continually improved (pp. 150-151).

Of course, NBA players and coaches are committed to excellence because they want to win a championship.  These can be good motives, but as followers of Christ, the motive that drives us to excellence should be a desire to please God.  The one who will give us our final reward.  Everything we do should be done with a conscious awareness of His presence, a realization that he is watching.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, Colossians 3:23

The Apostle Paul reflected that such awareness should prompt us, regardless of our field of endeavor, to “work at it with all [our] heart.” Men and women who follow Christ aren’t “floaters.”  They give their best effort all of the time, knowing that there is never a circumstance during which the one they follow is not with them, urging them on to their finest.

Are there situations in which you “float?”  If so, Why?

As I age gracefully, I’m learning to appreciate and use the limited time I have.  Twenty years ago, I began to set aside an hour each weekend and ponder this question: What is the purpose of my life?  Here’s a book I recommend to get you started.  Afterwards, I would take notes & craft sentences that describe my life’s purpose.  I encourage you to try this – it really works!

Next, ask yourself how each part of your life (work, friends, family, hobbies) align with or relates to that purpose.  Again, write it down.  Are you spending your time on things that will help you achieve your purpose?  If not, you know you have to make changes.  When your actions are at odds with your goals, you need to make the slight, necessary adjustments.

This may seem like a simple exercise, but very few people do it.  The truth is you probably already know your purpose and goals.  But you may have pushed them off to the side.  Or you may not have aligned your daily actions with your long-term goals.  Doing this exercise will help you to do so.

A few minutes of quite reflection can give your life the clarity and sense of purpose you may lack. To keep your day-to-day choices in sync with your life’s purpose, take a moment to consider your purpose before you make any major decisions or take on any new responsibilities. It will help you remember the precious importance of every second.

Are you up for the challenge?  Do you know your purpose?  I’d love to hear about it!

We think we know: Each was a natural who came into the world with a gift for doing exactly what he ended up doing.  Guess what, I found the secret to their success and because I want you to succeed, I’m ready to share my discovery with the entire world.  I’m about the let you in on a secret that has the potential to revolutionize your life!

Shhhh…Lean Closer….

Here it is:

THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS TO SUCCESS.  PERIOD!

Nobody is great without hard work!

Researchers have identified what they call the ten-year rule when it comes to becoming a world-class performer.  In 2006, Fortune Magazine published, “What It Takes to be Great” which coined the phrase “Performance Principle.”  The Performance Principle says that it takes a long time to be an overnight success.  Furthermore, the author goes on to say, “Even the most accomplished people need around ten years of hard work before becoming world-class…”  This pattern is so well established researchers call it the ten-year rule.  In short, what they and others have discovered: There are not shortcuts!

The best people in any field are those who devote the most hours to what the researchers call “deliberate practice.”  It’s activity that’s explicitly intended to improve performance, that reaches for objectives just beyond one’s level of competence, provides feedback on results and involves high levels of repetition.

Fortune magazine gives this example:

Simply hitting a bucket of balls is not deliberate practice, which is why most golfers don’t get better.  Hitting an eight-iron 300 times with a goal of leaving the ball within 20 feet of the pin 80 percent of the time, continually observing results and making appropriate adjustments, and doing that for hours every day – that’s deliberate practice.

Have you ever been tempted to take shortcuts?  Did you?  What were the results?

The author describes the main subject of his book as “thin-slicing:” our ability to gauge what is really important from a very narrow period of experience.  In other words, spontaneous decisions are often as good as—or even better than—carefully planned and considered ones.   Gladwell explains how an expert’s ability to “thin slice” can be corrupted by their likes and dislikes, prejudices and stereotypes.

Whew, that was pretty heavy.
Take a deep breath…relax…are you still with me?

Here’s what Gladwell is saying:  People rarely make decisions as a product of long deliberation.  They make take weeks to announce a decision but often make the decision in minutes, perhaps seconds.

People do not gather data to make a decision;
they often gather it to JUSTIFY their decision!

They are not accumulating understanding; they are seeking comfort and support.  Most decisions are made, and then justified, rather than the other way around.

Therefore, that leads me to one obvious implication: “First impressions are really lasting impressions.”  The first impression, with startling frequency, is also the FINAL DECISION.

HERE’S THE POINT:
The first thing to plan for is your first impression.
Why, once a mind is made up, seldom does it change.

Has anyone judged you based on their first impression?

Have you ever judged someone based on your first impression?

In order to make my resolutions stick, I decided to employ Michael Hyatt’s four strategies found here.  Therefore, let it be resolved:

1. That I will read through the entire Bible by December 31, 2010 using YouVersion’s Chronological plan as my guide (started Day 1 yesterday).
2. That I will lose fifteen pounds (current weight: 217) by exercising a minimum of 3 days per week with a minimum of 20 minutes of cardio during each exercise session.  I will accomplish this by July 30, 2010
3. That I will continue to resist the lure, draw, and undeniable seductiveness of late night unhealthy snacks like candy, soda, cookies, & other fattening foods and replace them with fruit.
4. That I will finish the first draft of my new book by June 30, 2010.
5. That I will write at least three posts per week on my personal blog, where I share my thoughts/ideas on leadership from an urban perspective and some general life musings.

So let it be noted.  So let it be done.  And please give me a swift kick in the rear end if you see me getting off track.

What are your goals & have you gone public with them?

Additionally, since I have so many recommendations, I’ve decided to break them down into the following categories: Church Growth, Theology, Christian Living, Leadership, Self-Improvement, Business, Sociology, and African-American Studies.  I will devote blog space to cover each category in subsequent posts.

Here we go:

Problem Solving 101: A Simple Book for Smart People by Ken Wananabe

BEST BOOK I EVER READ ON PROBLEM SOLVING!!!

When will authors & book publishers discover effective leaders are busy leading and like to read short books?  Ken Watanabe originally wrote Problem Solving 101 for Japanese schoolchildren.  His goal was to help shift the focus in Japanese education from memorization to critical thinking, by adapting some of the techniques he had learned as an elite McKinsey consultant.

He was amazed to discover that adults were hungry for his fun and easy guide to problem solving and decision making. The book became a surprise Japanese bestseller, with more than 370,000 in print after six months.

Watanabe’s Secret:

He uses sample scenarios to illustrate his techniques, which include logic trees and matrixes. A rock band figures out how to drive up concert attendance. An aspiring animator budgets for a new computer purchase. Students decide which high school they will attend.

Illustrated with diagrams and quirky drawings, the book is simple enough for elementary students to understand but sophisticated enough for business leaders to apply to their most challenging problems.  GET IT ON YOUR KINDLE NOW!

Honorable Mention: 101 Creative Problem Solving Techniques: The Handbook of New Ideas for Business

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK: IT’S SIMPLY THE BEST BOOK I EVER READ ON PROBLEM SOLVING HANDS DOWN!

Black Economics: Solutions for Economic and Community Empowerment by Jawanza Kunjufu

THE AFRICAN AMERICAN’S RECESSION SURVIVAL GUIDE

Black Economics: Solutions For Economic And Community Empowerment answers the critical questions of why foreign businesses have been so successful in the African American community.  But Black Economics does much more than merely identify and describe the dimensions of this chronic financial drain on the black community, it recommends clear, concise, practical and urgently needed empowerment solutions to assist the black community to secure economic gains.  Jawanza Kunjufu is candid, knowledgeable and persuasive.

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THIS BOOK: The author discusses the history of African-American businesses, the obstacles, and solutions for personal and community empowerment.

WHAT I BELIEVE ABOUT THIS BOOK: Black Economics should be required reading in every economics class, every urban church, community activists, and on the lending shelves of ever black community’s public library.

Why Should White Guys Have All the Fun? How Reginald Lewis Created a Billion-Dollar Business Empire by Reginald Lewis

This biography of business magnate Lewis is based on his unfinished autobiography; he died in 1993 at age 50 from brain cancer. This book, part history, part eulogy is the story of an African-American from the wrong side of the tracks in Baltimore who made it through Harvard Law and then into corporate financing eventually purchasing and leading Beatrice International one of the larger food companies in the world.

His journey from middle-class Baltimore resident to international citizen makes for fascinating reading. He was in the process of writing his autobiography when he died, and Blair Walker consulted many sources in order to give a full and accurate account of this intense, goal-oriented man’s life.

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THIS BOOK:  Not only was Reginald Lewis an extremely successful businessman, but he was also a caring philanthropist.

How to Succeed in Business Without Being White: Straight Talk on Making It in America by Earl Graves

The author is the publisher of Black Enterprise magazine and owner of several companies. He provides a good overview of the procedures for starting a new business plan, getting a bank loan, and marketing.  An introduction is helpful, but a person would need to know a lot more than what’s here to really start a business.  Eighty percent of new small businesses fail within five years.  Much of Graves’s time is spent talking about his personal business history, racism, and political issues.

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THIS BOOK:  Value hard & expect no handouts.  While this book would help anyone regardless of race, it should be required reading for all young (college and high school age) African Americans.

Good to Great and the Social Sectors: A Monograph to Accompany Good to Great by Jim Collins

This monograph is a response to questions raised by readers in the social sector.  It is not a new book. I have direct experience in the social sector with over twenty-five years as an advisor or board member of several, varied non-profits. “Good to Great and the Social Sectors” resonated with me as it fills a very deep void in social sector leadership guidance.

Many seminary professors & academicians are not too fond of churches adopting business models and principles.  I openly embrace business principles because we can learn from them and make our organizations stronger.   In fact, due to the diffuse power structure that exists for most social sector organizations, non-profits need even greater discipline – disciplined planning, disciplined people, disciplined governance, and disciplined allocation of resources.

The book is organized around five issues that need to be addressed for greatness.

These are:

Issue One – How do you define great without business metrics?
Issue Two – What is “Level 5 Leadership” in the social sector?
Issue Three – How can you get the right people on the bus?
Issue Four – How do you apply the Hedgehog Concept (attaining piercing clarity about how to produce the best long-term results) without a profit motive?
Issue Five – How do you use brand to build momentum?

Great societies have both great business sectors and great social sectors. With this in mind, Collins was motivated to write this book. He realized that it was not simply good enough for him to focus on a great business sector but also on a great social sector. He has done us a service.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK: Greatness can be achieved in non-profit organizations too.

Managing the Nonprofit Organization by Peter Drucker

“Don’t be afraid of strengths in your organization,” writes Peter Drucker. “This is the besetting sin of people who run organizations. Of course, able people are ambitious. But you run far less risk of having able people around who want to push you out than you risk by being served by mediocrity.”

In my opinion, wisdom still oozes from Drucker’s 1990 book on nonprofit management.  Many leaders re-read at least one Drucker book a year.  If you lead a nonprofit, this is a good place to start.

It includes five major sections:

1)    The Mission Comes First: and your role as a leader;

2)    From Mission to Performance: effective strategies for marketing, innovation and fund development;

3)    Managing for Performance: how to define it; how to measure it;

4)    People and Relationships: your staff, your board, your volunteers, your community; and

5)    Developing Yourself: as a person, as an executive, as a leader.

WHO SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Managers/leaders in the non-profit sector should consider this a must read.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK: It taught me to affirm my team at during staff meetings with Drucker’s reminder that “strong people always have strong weaknesses too.  Where there are peaks, there are valleys.  And no one is strong in many areas.” It takes a village!

Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition by Jack Trout

According to author Jack Trout, either you’ve got a product or service that you can say is different, or you don’t have much at all.  In today’s global marketplace and at its lightning-fast rate of change, there’s no point in inventing and presenting a product only to sit back and hope that consumers everywhere will discover its greatness.  It’s not simply about what you or your product can do; it’s about what you do differently from everyone else.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK: This relatively short book focuses on the idea that companies who don’t capitalize on the unique features of their product or service, and who don’t evolve into a unique identity will end up in the fossil layers of business failure.

Jack Trout on Strategy by Jack Trout

“A great business strategy without proper marketing will often fail in a highly competitive world.”  This is in the first few pages of Trout’s book and lays the groundwork for the rest of the chapters.  If you’ve never read anything from Jack Trout before, this is the book to start with!  Trout on Strategy is the Bible of marketing strategy.  According to Trout, strategy is all about winning and Jack Trout is all about strategy.  He presents the latest thinking on the topic:

1)    Strategy is All About Survival

2)    Strategy is All About Perceptions

3)    Strategy is All About Being Different

4)    Strategy is All About Competition

5)    Strategy is All About Specialization

6)    Strategy is All About Simplicity

7)    Strategy is All About Leadership

8)    Strategy is All About Reality

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THIS BOOK: “A great business strategy without proper marketing will often fail in a highly competitive world.”

Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life by Spencer Johnson, M.D.

Change can be a blessing or a curse, depending on your perspective. The message of Who Moved My Cheese? is that all can come to see it as a blessing, if they understand the nature of cheese and the role it plays in their lives. Who Moved My Cheese? is a parable that takes place in a maze.

Four beings live in that maze: Sniff and Scurry are mice—non-analytical and nonjudgmental, they just want cheese and are willing to do whatever it takes to get it. Hem and Haw are “little people,” mouse-size humans who have an entirely different relationship with cheese. It’s not just sustenance to them; it’s their self-image.

Their lives and belief systems are built around the cheese they’ve found. Most of us reading the story will see the cheese as something related to our livelihoods–our jobs, our career paths, the industries we work in–although it can stand for anything, from health to relationships.

WHAT I LEARNED FROM THIS BOOK: The point of the story is that we have to be alert to changes in the cheese, and be prepared to go running off in search of new sources of cheese when the cheese we have runs out.

The 100 Best Business Books of All Time: What They Say, Why They Matter, and How They Can Help You by Jack Covert and Todd Sattersten

Authors Jack Covert and Todd Sattersten operate 800-CEO-READ, a specialty business-book retailer.  Out of the countless business books they have read every year for a quarter century, they have culled 100 of the best and presented them in review format.

You get the classics, like How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie, and The HP Way, by David Packard, but you also get the whimsical (Oh, the Places You’ll Go, by Dr. Seuss); historical (Never Give In, speeches by Winston Churchill); artistic (The Creative Habit, by Twyla Tharp); and philosophical (The Monk and the Riddle, by Komisar and Lineback).

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK: At the end of each review, the authors direct readers to other books both inside and outside The 100 Best.  Additionally, sprinkled throughout are sidebars taking the reader beyond business books, suggesting movies, novels, and even children’s books that offer equally relevant insights.

The opening of the school year, 1905-1906, found at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, a group of students distributed in the various colleges of the University, who were desirous of maintaining more intimate contacts with one another than their classroom study permitted.  They often met in groups during the Autumn of 1905 and talked of the possibilities of closer contacts among themselves.  Different ones among them took the lead in calling these meetings, which were informal in ever detail.

After several meetings, on December 4, 1906 those in attendance decided to become a fraternity and Alpha Phi Alpha was born.  It came as an evolution through trial and struggle.  It was not spontaneous, but gradual in its growth.  Alpha Phi Alpha has not always been the great fraternity that it is today.  Its founders, however, were always great men with keen vision, undaunted courage, indomitable fortitude, and unparalleled tenacity.

There were seven men who founded Alpha Phi Alpha in 1906.  Each of these men were destined to play a highly significant role in the formative years of our great fraternity.  The members of Alpha Phi Alpha have decreed that the Founders be designated as JEWELS of the Fraternity.  The Founders (Jewels) of Alpha Phi Alpha are as follows:

Jewel Henry Arthur Callis
Jewel Charles Henry Chapman
Jewel Eugene Kinckle Jones
Jewel George Biddle Kelley
Jewel Nathaniel Allison Murray
Jewel Robert Harold Ogle
Jewel Vertner Woodson Tandy

The original seven who remained steadfast to the idea of a Greek-letter Fraternity, during the months of uncertainty, did not waiver in their effforts to bring about the realization of their vision.  Therefore, I salute all the men who’ve crossed the burning sands and proudly call themselves “Alphas.”  Happy Birthday dear brothers & always remember:

Manly deeds, scholarship, & love for all mankind…

Onward & Upward – ‘06

Brother Clarence E. Stowers, Jr.
Jackson State University
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
Delta Phi Chapter – Spring 1987
“The Naughty 9″

I just started reading a book by Jim Collins (author of Good to Great) titled, How the Mighty Fall. Collins unveils several years’ worth of research on why great companies collapse. These are companies like Zenith, Circuit City, Bank of America, Merck, IBM, etc. They were at some point leaders in the industry and seemingly invincible, but they have all suffered horrendous falls. Collins says there are five stages of decline.

Here is an interesting quote:

“I’ve come to see institutional decline like a staged disease: harder to detect but easier to cure in the earlier stages, easier to detect but harder to cure in the later stages. An institution can look strong on the outside but already be sick on the inside, dangerously on the cusp of a precipitous fall.”

Here is what struck me in the first few chapters: stage 1 of decline is “”Hubris Born of Success”, i.e. pride. Collins is not writing from a Christian perspective, but his research states that great companies begin a skid to irrelevancy and death by pride. The insidious cocktail of entitlement and arrogance begins to course through the company’s veins and eventually seduces it into stage 2, and thus, the decline is well under way.

What is true for the organizations we work for and serve is also true about our own lives. Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” Or perhaps Proverbs 11:2, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.” Lastly, Mark 7:20-22 says, “And he said, ‘What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come…pride.”

Dictionary.com defines “pride” as, “a high or inordinate opinion of one’s own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc.” The antidote for pride is humility. Humility is the root of any virtue and all graces flow from it. The purest form of humility was displayed in the life and death of Jesus Christ. The One who deserves all accolades and praise came to serve. The One who is esteemed above all else emptied himself and died on a cross (Phil. 2:1-11). He laid down his life for the proud, but then, our pride is what keeps us from seeing and savoring this.

We all have done things like starting a business with no business plan.  Quitting a regular and somewhat satisfying job to get back to our millionaire dreams.  For me decision making was always simple and fast.  “Just follow the heart.” I never cared to think if it was right or wrong and I don’t allow myself to regret past decision or choices.  This rule of thumb allowed me to make decisions which at times others thought were crazy and outrageous (at least I was happy).  Following your heart is like a roller-coaster ride and we can safely admit we enjoy it.

While it may not be specifically true, the heart has been considered the seat of our emotions. Within the heart is located a still, small, voice that some refer to as our conscience.

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?  Jeremiah 17:9

According to Jeremiah 17:9, the heart serves as a metaphor for the human will and emotions.  The author describes it as deceitful; like a tortuous, uneven, and crooked bad road.  Furthermore, he describes it as desperately sick & medically incurable.  God makes it very clear why we sin – it’s a matter of the heart.

Our hearts have been inclined toward sin and from time we were born.  Therefore, it cannot be completely trusted.  The heart must be balanced with the head.   I no longer live by the mantra, “just follow your heart.”

Here’s why:

“Your heart can’t be trusted. The truth is, if you let it, your heart will direct you down a path that leads to the very spot you most want to avoid.”

Following our heart can take us on some good paths and some bad paths.  People say, “just follow your heart and it won’t lead you wrong.”  Well, sometime it will and sometime it won’t.  We all make decisions everyday.  Some we have to give a lot of thought and lots of prayer.  So, when someone says, “follow your heart,” that is not always the best thing to do.

So, what do I think of the statement: “follow your heart,” It’s a good statement if you have received a new heart and you are constantly filling it with the Word of God.  When we tell people to follow their heart, we must know what’s in their heart. Because out of a new heart will flow goodness and out of an old heart will flow evil.

If you follow your heart today, where will you be tomorrow?

All three of these skills can better be implemented in any reputable driving range/putt-putt/go-cart facility without having to walk around aimlessly all afternoon (Here’s a million-dollar idea – anyone want to partner with me on this).  If you want to master golf, there’s a steep price you must pay mentally, physically, and financially.  The same could be said for those who aspire to be great leaders.

Can you drink of the cup that I drink of… (Mark 10:38)

No one should aspire to lead God’s work if they are not prepared to pay a price greater than his contemporaries and colleagues are willing to pay.  True leadership always exacts a heavy toll on the leader and the more effective their leadership is, the higher the price to be paid.  The cost of every great achievement is not paid in a lump.  It is bought on a payment plan, with installments paid daily.

1^st Installment: Loneliness

From its very nature, the lot of the leader must be a lonely one.  They must always be ahead of their followers.  Human nature craves company, and it is only natural to wish to share with others the heavy burdens of responsibility and care.  It’s often heartbreaking to have to make important decisions, which affect the lives of others alone.  This is one of the heaviest prices to pay, but it must be paid.

Moses paid this price for his leadership – alone on the mountain…alone in the plain…alone when criticized.  The socially conscious Apostle Paul (He would’ve loved Facebook & Twitter) was a lonely man who experienced the bitterness of being misunderstood by his contemporaries, misrepresentation by his enemies, and desertion by his friends.

“Most of the world’s great souls have been lonely,” wrote A.W. Tozer.  Leaders must be people who, while welcoming the friendship and support of all who can offer it, has sufficient inner resources to stand alone, even in the face of fierce opposition.

As a leader, how do you deal with loneliness?

Coming Soon…2^nd Installment: Self-Sacrifice