day 1415: Learnings From The Camino (part 3): Never Refusing

"Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need." 

Yesterday I wrote of how the Camino de Santiago has a way of providing what you need whether that be food, drink, shelter, conversation, etc.. But, for that to happen one must be open to receive what is being offered. A Pilgrim on the Camino is to never refuse what is being offered to them.  If someone offers a drink, take it.  If someone offers food, you receive it openly. If someone offers conversation, then you go with it.  If someone just wants to walk next to you in silence, then you accept that also.  Many stories were heard of Pilgrims as they were walking having others offer them items from their backpacks only for the receiving Pilgrim to learn that later without this item they would have not been able to proceed.  The same happens with advice and guidance as those who were veterans will take the novices under their wing to be sure that they help them ensure that the Camino is the best it can be for all.  It seems simple, but it is so hard because most of us don't want to open ourselves up to others for advice or guidance.  We also don't want to take the risk of having others give us something because of our fear of having to return that gift, or time, back to them.  So, we put our head down and passively refuse.  I learned this about myself on the Camino.  By the time I finished, I looked back at the opportunities that I had to hear from someone else or to walk with them for a bit, and when I didn't, as missed opportunities.  The lesson: we working Pilgrims walking through our careers and lives need to stop refusing all that can be ours for help and support and be sure that no opportunity is missed.

The same can be said with our walk with our Lord.  All that we need and all that we could ever want is there for us if we will only not refuse what He has to offer to us.  When we seek Him in our hearts and then open our hearts to Him, our walk becomes closer and better and better.  We don't know what today or tomorrow will bring but to know that when we don't refuse what God so generously is always offering to us will have us always already for what life throws at us; that is an assurance that is so awesome!

Reference: Matthew 6:33 (New Living Translation)

NOTE: Purposed worKING will be moving from Google's Blogger to http://www.purposedworking.com/ in the next week or so.  Shortly, you will be asked to receive your daily email from Feedblitz.  I hope you decide to come along for a new look and improved features.

day 1408: We Are Not Alone

While on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I asked some of the most committed and courageous faith-driven business leaders I know to guest contribute to Purposed worKING.  Enjoy! - Rusty


                     ________________________________________________

“Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Relieve the troubles of my heart and free me from my anguish.”

“And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age."

Sometimes we can feel so alone in our work or at work. Perhaps it’s because we work remotely in our home office, or in a satellite office separate from the “core team”.  Maybe we’re at corporate headquarters but we get left off of an important team assignment or left off of an invitation list to a meeting or event. Or maybe we bombed a presentation or decision even though we gave it our best thinking and effort. We’ve all started new jobs, in new cities, sometimes in companies that didn’t do a good job of helping onboard and integrate us. We’ve all seen environments where cliques are strong and breaking through is hard.

There are just so many circumstances that can allow us to feel completely alone, isolated and even ostracized. Yet, we are NEVER alone. We just forget that we are not alone.

God sent his Son to earth to be with us, to die for us. Having come as man Jesus is with us always. He walks with us always. He is more reliable than even the best co-worker, friend or even spouse. Jesus always shows up. The simple fact is, it’s us who forget.

So next time you are feeling alone, remember, He is already there. He is always there. We definitely are NOT alone.

Reference:  Psalms 25:16-17 (New International Version) and Matthew 28:20 (New American Bible)

Tom Koch

day 1401: Shining Lights

 While on a pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago (St. James Way) in Spain, I asked some of the most committed and courageous faith-driven business leaders I know to guest contribute to Purposed worKING.  Enjoy! - Rusty

                        ________________________________________________

In Matthew 5:16, Christ says, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

How often throughout the day, particularly at work, do we use this commandment to guide our behavior? Whether it is the manner in which we give feedback, the words we use, or the after-hours activities we participate in, we only glorify God and help bring others closer to Him if those we interact with see and feel the light of Christ through our actions.  Throughout my career, I have found that not only do I experience more joy when I act towards others as Christ would, but that I am much more effective.  

God teaches us true principles and if we apply them at work, in our homes and wherever we go, we will bless the lives of those around us and be infinitely more successful than if we don't, especially in those things that truly matter.

Steve Clark

Former SVP & Chief People Officer, HJ Heinz

day 1387: Band On The Run

"He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few."

We've seen mice run on wheels in a cage or a laboratory, but it wasn't until a couple of guys doing research in the Netherlands figured out that if you put a wheel out in the wild and mice have a chance to either run around on their own or jump on a wheel and run, that they like to get on the wheel and then run.  Proving what?  Proving that they just like to run.  So, maybe there are things that we all, when given our own choices, we just do. Like work!  If when we have free time we choose to work and when we have enough money saved, we don't retire, we just keep on working, then it's not that far from putting the wheel in the forest and watching the mice run on it.  So, what would our company be like if we could identify and hire those who just love to work? Might we be able to create a band of workers who just love to run, I mean work?

In the Kingdom of God the workers are few. We are called to continuously be working to expand the Kingdom and spread God's message.  This is work that is our love!  God has put us in a workplace.  We are now to do what is the true work to be done!

Reference:  Matthew 9:37 (New Living Translation)

day 1383: A Cough

"Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness."

Want to be "superhorse", California Chrome, has a "cough".  As he prepares for the second leg of the Triple Crown tomorrow in The Preakness Stakes, everyone is talking about the coughs that he had as he came off the racetrack yesterday after training. It's clear, no one likes to hear a cough in a racehorse, in a person, or in a company.  A cough signifies nothing but bad to come. Sometimes, it's nothing and a little tickle in the throat passes, but when we hear a cough, we begin to worry and even step aside to not catch the cold ourselves.  Last year, while traveling in Costa Rica, one of the locals told me that when America coughs, Latin America gets pneumonia.  No one likes a cough and more often than not those coughs that we see in the market, or with a company, or in a team are the beginning of something and shouldn't be ignored.  How many times have we heard the cough, ignored it and and then later kicked ourselves for not seeing what later were so obvious signs?

Our own spiritual lives can have a cough and we need to be just as aware, or even more so, than if that cough is for our physical well being. When our mind wanders, or that habit that we thought was beat resurfaces, or those words that we had curbed start slipping back into our vocabulary, or when work and the business of life impedes our quiet time with God, then we need to be wary.  What feels like something that will just go away and is nothing to really be concerned about  lingers, then it is time to check in and be sure that out spiritual health remains strong.  No place is more contagious for all the wrong things than our work environment.  How well do we feel today?  Take inventory and  finish this week well and strong!

Reference: Matthew 9:35 (New Living Translation)

day 1382: Chef or Short-Order Cook?

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor?..."

For most things at work, or in life, we can approach things in one of two ways; as a Chef, or as a Short-Order Cook.  A Short-Order Cook takes orders and fulfills the assignment just as it is given to them.  They operate quickly, efficiently and can be counted on to deliver on time.  A Chef sees things differently, always considering options and other ways to achieve the order.  Creativity trumps efficiency sometimes and there is an anxious anticipation of the customer of what might arrive.  Because of this, a Chef gets a little more time and more leeway than the Short-Order Cook.  The similarity is that both know their customer.  For the Short-Order Cook; it's the waitress/waiter who is standing at the hot table waiting.  For the Chef, the wait staff are just a delivery vehicle to their ultimate customer; the diner.  Seldom does someone ask the Short-Order Cook to come out and meet the table to receive their lauds.  But, also seldom does someone applaud the Chef who makes the table wait too long for their food.  The balance is tricky and it all gets messed up when someone tries to take the opposite role when to everyone else it is pretty clear what is expected.  Which are you?  Which does your company reward and recognize?  Is your organization in balance with the right amount of Chefs and the right amount of Short-Order Cooks?

God always calls upon us to take the long-view and see the biggest picture imaginable and then bring it all together to apply to the smallest moments and actions in our lives.  I consider God as the ultimate Chef that asks us to stand alongside Him and carry his creation and message into the world with every word, action and move that we make.  His ingredients are well known and can be found in the world's greatest cookbook. We are His masterful dishes that are served up on the menu of life.  There is a reason He challenges us to be the salt of the earth!  Are we delivering on the Chef's creation today?

Reference: Matthew 5:13 (New Living Translation)

day 1376: When Innovation Flops

“The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’

No, I mean, when innovation "Fosbury Flops"!  It's a great thing.  I read that Dick Fosbury was recently presented a lifetime achievement award at the Tribeca Film Festival Disruptive Innovation Awards.  I think this is so cool as what one person did, changed the way everybody else did it, and no one ever went back.  If you don't know the story it goes like this. At 16 years old, Fosbury started experimenting with a different way to clear the bar during a high jump. At the time, everyone used the "Straddle" method where they rolled over face forward.  Fosbury kept perfecting his backward arching method that eventually took him all the way to the Olympic Gold Medal title in 1968. Today, everyone who competes uses his method.  His story of innovation is a great one.  He saw a way to do something different, had the courage to try, and put up with the ridicule and teasing along the way. He stuck with it until he perfected the technique and showed that his method could win him the highest title known. And, all of that going backwards and not being able to see where he might fall. It's a great story of starting and finishing what others said couldn't be done.

God challenges us to finish well and when we do, we will hear Him say to us, Well done!"  To finish we must start. To finish we must continue. To finish we must be ready for the new and the different.  To finish we must be willing to accept our flops and know that when we fall, there is someone to fall into His arms safely. God doesn't ask us to be the highest jumper, but He does ask us to try.  And, He can turn our flops into stories for Him.  What are we holding back today for fear of failure or flopping?

Reference:  Matthew 25:21 (New Living Translation)

day 1375: Understandable People

"He told many stories in the form of parables..."

I'm going to be honest and a little vulnerable here today.  I need to let you know that one of the reasons I try and write this blog in common sense and practical terms is that I can't myself understand or comprehend much more than that.  On a plane the other day someone had left a copy of The Economist.  That is one of the magazines that I know I should be able to read and enjoy, but I just can't.  Half the time I don't understand what they are trying to say and the depth and understanding of the economics behind the stories are usually over my pay grade.  This is why I was so sorry to hear that Gary Becker died this last Saturday.  Some may not know him, but I felt like I did.  Professor Becker was a Nobel Prize winning economist, but more important for me, he was an economist who I could understand.  When he wrote for Business Week, I would read his every word and walk away with something that I could not only relate, but also apply in my thinking and actions.  Our world is a complex one and we need more people, like Dr. Gary Becker, who can boil it down so that most of us can use our common sense to understand.

Jesus was God, but He was also man.  As a man, He was also our world's greatest communicator. Jesus spoke, He didn't write.  Jesus told stories that people were drawn to Him to hear.  Those stories, rooted in the common person's life experience, provoked thoughts and conversations.  I imagine sometimes the conversations, over dinner in the evening that those who got a chance to hear what Jesus said. His parables have become the stories that we recount and use in our every day lives, even today. Sometimes we think our faith is not knowledgeable or deep enough to share with others.  When we take the obvious, apply our own experiences that are real and honest, and find the courage to share, then God will do the rest through us.  We are after all made in His image and so we have the ability inside of us to be very understandable to others.

Reference: Matthew 13:3 (New Living Translation)

day 1367: Hunters and Farmers

"He told many stories in the form of parables, such as this one: “Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds."

Sales organizations are getting smarter in how they organize.  Well, actually, most have always organized in the manner that is most successful but today they are getting better at giving the organizations names that better describe what they do. Back in the day you had "New Account Teams" and you had "Existing Account Teams".  Now, we have "Hunters and Farmers".  Hunters bring in new business.  Farmers expand the growth.  Subtle, but big differences in the type of people to do these jobs and their responsibilities.  Some times just getting better at describing what someone does can make the difference in hiring and assigning the right person to the job. 

Jesus spends a lot of time giving us examples of what farmers do versus giving us parables about hunters. This makes sense to me in that Jesus already took care of all the new business for us and he left it to us, the farmers of the Kingdom, to expand it for Him.  In our humanity we tend to get our Kingdom roles confused. We like to become the hunter and recreate the Kingdom to our own liking.  But, we are not called to do that.  We are instead called to be God's farmers and to grow and expand the fields which we have been given. It's worth taking some quiet time today to evaluate which are we trying to be and where our work and actions are focused.

Reference: Matthew 13:3 (New Living Translation)

day 1364: Rising Up

"He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying."

The markets are in a bit of a tizzy because the tech stocks that rose so quickly last year are now falling. What goes up, must come down, correct?  It's hard from the inside to watch these stocks fall., but I know from experience what it means to watch the fall from within and have to manage against the pressures of, "Do something about it, now!"  Here is what we can all remember.  What does go up, does come down.  Maybe not all the way down, but everything adjusts and then can recover.  Business cycles are not elevator shafts that only have two directions. Business cycles are roller coasters that chug up the hill and then give us a thrill of speed as it goes up and down and twists and turns. And, if managed and powered correctly, they come back up the hill once again.  Few things can rise up and stay!

You know where this post is going don't you?  Nothing in our life rises and then stays, except for what we celebrated yesterday on Easter.  We are conditioned in life for everything to rise and then keep rising.  When it doesn't we get depressed, frustrated, angry, or lost.  That's the wrong take.  The right take is that we can give all those areas in our lives that fall, to God and He will pick them up and keep them with Him as He continues to rise. What are the areas at work that we just need to hand over to God because the more we hang on to them the more we are being dragged further down?

Reference:  Matthew 28:6 (New Living Translation)

day 1362: Service Wow!

"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."

I was so fortunate to have been able to attend four days of The Masters this past weekend in Augusta, Georgia.  I have been to lots of events, but nothing like this.  Beyond the beauty, the majesty and the tradition, the customer service at the event (for 200,000 people) was beyond anything I had ever experienced.  No matter where you went, what you did, or who you interacted with, every bit of how it could be the best for an attendee has been thought through and is executed upon daily. They have it right, and anyone who wants to send someone in their organization someplace to get their minds wrapped around how to deliver a service wow, should be working on how to get that person a ticket to next year's Master Tournament. 

What also happened to me while in the midst of all that great service was that I found myself wanting to emulate the same in how I treated other attendees.  And, with the way that each person was respectful to others property, space and goings about, proved to me that we can co-exist in a much more accommodating and serving way.  I was reminded more than once that our example in how we treat and serve others is a Christ-like example.  When everyone is acting in an attitude of service, it is obvious and the opposite stands out distinctly.  When we live out our actions with a heart and attitude of service, it stands out just as much and others will take notice.

Reference: Matthew 20:28 (New Living Translation)

day 1361: Tax Day Redux

"Now tell us what you think about this: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?' But Jesus knew their evil motives. 'You hypocrites!' he said. 'Why are you trying to trap me? Here, show me the coin used for the tax.' When they handed him a Roman coin, he asked, 'Whose picture and title are stamped on it?' 'Caesar’s', they replied. 'Well, then,' he said, 'give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

It's "Tax Day" in the United States  The traditional tax return filing deadline is April 15 of each year.. Tax Day always brings with it a lot of stress and emotion and in these recent times even more emotion and conversation about what we should or shouldn't be paying in taxes for our government. These discussions, at work, at home, at parties, or wherever can get us riled up and can cause us to lose control of our emotions and/or words. Our discourse about politics and government has an edge to it today that I cannot ever remember before. I find myself right there too and the conversations that I am most sorry for or ashamed of after are too often rooted in politics. As we work with with others it is important that we not let our politics taint or hurt what are otherwise great relationships. Also, politics in the workplace can be career damaging, so in this area it might be best to just keep it to ourselves unless asked and even then, to only share with the highest level of sensitivity and respect of the opinions, thoughts, and feeling of others.

Jesus gave us all we need to know about our priorities and actions as it relates to our government views. He said that we are to render to Caesar what is Caesar's and then give to God what belongs to Him. As we think about all that we have, it is a small part of our life that we owe back to our government. While no one likes taxes, what I hear Jesus saying is that to not let what has to be given back in taxes to be a focus or the overriding concern. What He wants us to do is instead focus on what is to be given back to Him and that is who and all we are. As we complete those tax forms let us do so with our hearts and minds in the right place and more ready than ever to render ourselves more to Christ and what He wants from us. Let's use April 15 as another marker and reminder of the gift that God gave to us in Jesus, the gift that comes without any owing, obligation, or tax and continues to multiply and multiply for each of us.

Reference: Matthew 22:17-21 (New Living Testament)

day 1349: Investing In Home

"Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal."

I was back at Purdue (my alma mater) this week. On Wednesday, General Electric announced a partnership with Purdue around advanced manufacturing practices and technology, and that GE would be building a new jet engine manufacturing plant in the Greater Lafayette, Indiana area.  It was a big deal for Purdue and the community.  In the same week I read that BMW is investing and expanding in South Carolina and Ford is doing the same in the Midwest.  It's a good sign to see multinationals investing in the U.S..  We still have a ways to go as Shenzen, China claims now to be the largest manufacturing location for smartphones.  I predict that might change over time as well.  It's not an easy decision to invest at home.  It can be more expensive and the regulations around the environment, safety and labor can add to that cost, but once the plunge is taken, the reduced complexity of time, travel and cultures, can win the day. At least an honest discussion about the tradeoffs looks to be being held with certain segments of our economy. Here's to more and more of those decisions landing back to home.

Let's not get confused about where home really is for those who are believers.  Jesus tells us where we are to invest and what is our temporary home is not the place.  Home is His Kingdom and it is there that we are to invest and store up.  What seems so important today to us, is truly here today and gone tomorrow. We can't run and hide from the world, but we can make sure that the best of our time, treasures and talents are going towards the Kingdom.  It's the best that we tend to hang onto, collect, store up and keep to ourselves.  Consider what it means to turn over our best to God.  I'm a morning person.  I am at my best early in the day. By the late afternoon, I've burned up what energy and thinking ability that I have.  So, what day part should I be giving to God?  You got it.  If we analyze each part of our lives against whether or not we are giving Him our best, we will find out where we are investing in our real home.

Reference: Matthew 6:19 (New Living Translation)

day 1341: Still Missing

"...And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Until something miraculous happens, when you are reading this, Malaysian airlines flight 370 will still be missing and the speculations over the reasons for the disappearance will still be raging.  We get enthralled with those things that can't be explained and something like a plane full of passengers going missing captures our attention.  The same could be said for anything that is in the ordinary that can't be found.  Money.  People. Items. All, when expected to be one place and not there, become a mystery for us to solve. What if we were this curious and obsessed with the mystery of why someone stopped buying our product, or using our service?  Would we, do we, become obsessive about their disappearance, or do we instead, rationalize that they are only one of so many that w couldn't possibly ever really track and know the reasons, therefore, we should let it go?  I hear this all the time and each time I wonder if that business or organization will ever fully reach their potential?

If God disappeared from our lives, how long would it take for us to know that He was gone?  An hour?  A day?  A week? Longer?  We can only answer that question with the honesty of how often we are reaching and calling on Him.  If its once a week on Sunday, then He could be gone for a long time before we would know.  If He disappeared then would we become more curious and do all that we we could to find Him?  Jesus created the greatest mystery of all when He died, rose, and then ascended into Heaven. Are we as passionate about this as we are the mysteries and the disappearances of the world? Adding a layer here for us today, what do we think the reaction is of others around us when they see us slide back into our old ways and not act Christlike in our workplaces? Do they wonder where that God of of ours has gone?  He is always with us.  He never goes missing! Let's be sure that we don't, for any reason, turn our back and leave Him out of our lives!

Reference: Matthew 28:20 (New Living Translation)

day 1319: Ridiculous Resistance

 “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him.

Where we live in the Bay Area we have been plagued for the past 14 months by what the weather service is calling an “RRR”.  RRR stands for “Ridiculously Resistant Ridge” of high pressure.  The RRR has kept all of the major rain storms way north of us and even though we finally got some rain this past week, the RRR continues to make the rain go away.  There many things in our work that we need but because someone else holds back the resources, time, or money we just can’t get things done.  When you peel back all of the reasons it always comes down to one person who has made the decision to be resistant.  Sometimes for good purposes, but other times, it will just look ridiculously resistant.  How do we break through this resistance?  Well, like the droughts and rain, sometimes we just have to wait it out.  Consistency and time have a way of eroding resistance.  In other instances, we have to take a stand against the resistance and do what we can to break through by using influence, creativity, data and persistence.  It may be that we feel like we are up against ridiculous resistance right now.  Use what is holding you back to try new ways to push against the resistance. Don’t fret. Each time we come up against one of these, we learn better ways to move forward.  We get better and strong by using resistance to our strengthening.

Jesus was being tempted with all that Satan could offer Him.  Satan offered Jesus power over everything without having to remain in God’s will and having to face what was to come to Him at the end of his earthly life.  We can thank God for Jesus’ resistance against the temptation and force that could have overcome Him.  He didn’t waver or falter.  He put Satan behind Him and he moved forward with His mission and calling. Sometimes in this world we have to be ridiculously resistant to what we are being offered.  Jesus’ overcoming Satan proves that we will never be put in a situation that we can’t, with His support, overcome.  Try being resistant today to that calling inside of us that tempts us toward sin.  We may be glad that we were ridiculous in pushing back.

Reference: Matthew 4:10 (New Living Translation)