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the root of all evil
2007-08-15 04:55:00
Imagine this... You just got dropped off in the middle of a city just like the castaways on Survivor. You have nothing, don't know anybody, and are left to fend for yourself. What's the first thing that you think of that you need in order to do anything? Food? Maybe, depending on when your last meal was. Shelter? Possibly, depending on what the weather is like, and time of day that it is. I would argue that one of the first things that most people would start thinking about is money. You would need money to eat, and to get shelter, right? So the most essential need that you may find yourself looking for is money. Let's face it, we live in a world where money drives everything, and I would agree that it is quite essential to survival these days.As we discuss the tenth qualification for the executive-leader, we finally come to one of the most discussed topics in the entire New Testament. Paul tells Timothy that these leaders should not be "lover(s) of money." But this requirement o...
More About: Evil , Root

anger management 101
2007-08-10 05:41:00
I love this scene... During Jesus' day the Jewish Law required people to make various atonements for their sins. For some sins, you were required to give your finest, first-born sheep, and for other things you maybe had to sacrifice a bird of some sort. Now remember that this was a largely agricultural society, so quite often people had and raised many of these animals. Therefore the sacrifice that they had to make for their sins was a personal sacrifice. And quite often they were required to give up the best quality sacrifice, such as a lamb without spot. I can only imagine that it must have been difficult to give up the best quality animals that I had, especially if that was my livelihood. And for what? Doing something that I shouldn't have done in the first place?Now Jesus is on His way into the temple courts, and what does he find. Rather than people bringing their sacrifices, He sees people buying and selling them in a makeshift market right there in the temple courts! Can yo...
More About: Management , Anger Management , Anger

cheers!
2007-08-08 03:55:00
You just got done with a big project, and it was a huge success! So the boss wants to take the team out to celebrate this great victory. After a couple of drinks with dinner, everyone decides to hang around for a little while and bask in the glory of a job well done. Then it happens. The boss, who now seems to have had one too many drinks, stumbles off of his chair while getting up to go to the restroom. When he returns, he starts cracking the kind of jokes about coworkers that only seem to come up when someone has lost control of their thoughts and words. He is drunk. Now forget the sweet taste of victory on the big project, and think about how you will look at this person in the office the next day. Do you respect him the way that you did before? How far are you willing to follow him now?Or how about the closet case? This one is the boss that doesn't make the appearances at social events like this because he knows that he has a problem but refuses to admit it. But every night whe...

ready, set, teach!
2007-08-06 05:08:00
Once when I was really young, I remember that I wanted to take an apple to one of my grade-school teachers. I don't remember much about the circumstances, but I do remember certain feelings about the event. I know that the whole apple thing is very cliche, but to me as a young boy, I wanted to do something for the teacher that made me happy. How did she make me happy? By helping me to learn something. To me learning always felt good. And I've always had a great deal of respect for the people that have helped me to learn something new.As we move on to the seventh qualification for the executive-leader, we come across the requirement of, "able to teach." This one is very near and dear to me, because my profession in the workplace today is in the Learning and Development field. I also feel that this is God's call on my life. I lead a young adults ministry at the church that I attend, and teach this group regularly about how to fit their faith into their lives. I also am starting thi...
More About: Ready

to my good friend gaius
2007-07-27 04:42:00
When was the last time that you were on the road, away from home? It might be a business or a personal trip, but most of us have been away from the comfort of our own home at some point in our lives. When you are away, in an unfamiliar place, you need someone to provide you certain comforts and help you to take care of your needs. So we look to hotels to help provide a roof over our heads, and a comfortable bed to sleep in. We then also eat out at the hotel or other area restaurants, because we lack the means of preparing our own meals like we do at home. Hotels and restaurants have become an entire industry focused on "hospitality". When we are out of our element, we rely quite a bit on the hospitality industry to help us take care of ourselves.As we continue our study of the executive-leader qualifications, our sixth stop is at the requirement to be "hospitable". It is easy to understand this when you think about family or old friends coming to visit you, but what does this mean i...
More About: Friend , Good

Inspirational Blogger Award
2007-07-27 02:08:00
I am pleased to announce that management by God has just been recognized with another great honor! We have just been selected to receive the Inspirational Blogger Award from Writer's Reviews Blogger Awards. Written by Christy Zutautas, Writers Reviews is a professional writers web site that gives reviews on movies, products, and web sites!The inspirational blogger award is, "For those bloggers who inspire others through their words and actions. With a positive attitude, and an uplifting spirit these bloggers make the blogosphere a better place, and encourage others to do the same. This award is for bloggers who rise up to set an example but continue to reach out and support others."I was selected for this honor by Theresa H. Hall of Sleeping Kitten - Dancing Dog. About management by God, Theresa says, "Every word you wrote in this post (r-e-s-p-e-c-t) is the absolute truth and presented herein so perfectly that everyone has a model to work with and a set of guidelines they can appl...

r-e-s-p-e-c-t
2007-07-25 05:21:00
In the infamous lyrics sung by Aretha Franklin, one verse goes something like this, "I'm about to give you all my money, And all I'm askin' in return honey, Is to give me my profits, When you get home." As The Queen Of Soul sings about wanting a little respect, one thing is certain. It requires an investment. As we look at the fifth qualification for the executive-leader, which is the requirement of being "respectable", we will look at some of the things that it takes in the workplace in order to achieve this.The first thing that I want to do is to take a look at this word "respectable". I want to point out that the focus here is not on whether respect is given or not. I think that often people believe that their position or title demands respect. I have also often seen people who have been given certain levels of responsibility wonder why the people around them do not respect them (or obey them). People often think that respect is given to them when authority is bestowed upon th...
More About: R-E-S-P-E-C-T

The Power of Schmooze Award
2007-07-21 20:02:00
I have just been bestowed what I consider to be a great honor! I have been selected to receive the Power of Schmooze Award ! This honor is only given by others who have received it, and passed on to other deserving recipients. The Power of Schmooze award was created by Mike at Ordinary Folk and Danielle at Pink Reviews to help “recognize those people that were [are] exceptionally adept at creating relationships with other bloggers by making an effort to be part of a conversation, as opposed to monologue.”The rules:If, and only if, you get The Power of Schmooze Award, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think, or have schmoozed you into submission. Link to this post and Mike so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.Optional:Proudly display the ‘The Power of Schmooze Award’ with a link to the post that you wrote.This honor was passed on to me by Shalene Kearney of Proverbs31WomanWannaBe. She is a great blogger herself, someone who's heart for Go...

get disciplined
2007-07-17 04:18:00
The four years of my life that I spent in the United States Marine Corps shaped much of who I am today. And if I have to pin it down to a more specific influence, then it would be that of my Drill Instructors while I was in Boot Camp for the first three months of that time. The Marines have a reputation for being the most disciplined and most fearsome of the Armed Forces, and there is a reason for that. The Marine Corps Drill Instructor is a master of discipline, and developing discipline in others. As we look at the fourth qualification for the executive-leader, which is "self-controlled", I thought that there would be no more appropriate experience than that which comes from the United States Marine Corps.PARADE Contributing Editor Larry Smith, in his article How We Make Marines, points out some of the secrets of the Marine Corps Drill Instructor. One of the most important things that he points out about how they develop discipline in others is by example. They realize first and f...

get serious
2007-07-14 22:33:00
One show that has caught my attention recently is Dragon's Den on the Fox Reality channel. I must admit that I am a bit of a reality TV junkie, and when I stumbled upon this show it excited the entrepreneurial side of me too! It is a British (and Australian) show that brings people with new business ideas in front of this panel of investors (the "Dragons"). The entrepreneur must make their pitch and defend their request for financial (and sometimes business management) support, while the Dragons decide whether or not to invest their money into the ventures that are presented to them. It is a very interesting show, and if you get the chance to watch it sometime, then I highly recommend that you do so.One of the things that I have regularly seen while watching this show is that sometimes the Dragons pass on some really great business ideas. However it is often their reason for passing on these opportunities that really catches my attention. Sometimes they simply are not interested in...

the marriage requirement
2007-07-10 01:28:00
This one will be one of the more controversial topics that I write about, bar none. Here in the list of requirements for the "executive leader" is this one that says that you must be, "the husband of one wife." Many of you may be thinking right now, what in the world does that have to do with being a business leader? What about divorced people, can't they be leaders, or does this rule count them out? What I will say is that while it is not my intent to change anything in the Scriptural text, it is my intent to discover the principles that they teach, and translate that into a business principle that puts you on an unshakable foundation.Quite honestly, much of the church is split over what this verse means as a qualification for elders (overseers) in their church bodies. Some take this as a very literal requirement, while others dismiss it as an outdated rule that should not apply because of the "grace" of God. I have my own beliefs about this, but I am not here to even try to make ...
More About: Marriage

being above reproach
2007-07-04 02:50:00
I was watching one of the news channels recently, and I heard a report about how someone had gotten fired from their job after their employer had discovered that they were lying to them about calling in sick. Apparently, after this person called in sick, they went out on a fishing trip with some buddies and a bunch of beer, and then posted the pictures from it on their MySpace account. Somehow these pictures on the Internet came to the attention of the employer, who was outraged and ended up letting the employee go. One of the "guest experts" on this news report also talking about how many employers do web searches these days while screening potential employees. If they find something online (like on a MySpace account, YouTube, or some blog) that brings that person's character into question, then they use that information in making their decision to hire that person or not.There is no doubt that we live in an age where information can travel far and fast, and some people may compla...

executive-leader qualifications
2007-07-02 04:10:00
What is it that makes a leader? Some say that leaders are born that way. Others say that leaders can be made. So the key question is really about whether someone can come to possess the qualities that a leader should have. However, before anyone can determine whether someone can learn them or not, we must first identify what the important qualities actually are. Now I am not going to make the judgement for you on whether these qualities can be learned or not, but I am going to present to you what I believe the most important qualities are.In fact, I also believe that there are different "levels" of leadership, and I also believe that each has their own qualifications. The higher level of leadership that I plan to discuss is what I will refer to as the "executive-leader". The Bible refers to this type of leader as an "overseer" or "elder". This level of leadership is typically responsible for the overall vision of the organization. These leaders are the vision-setters, and the trail-...
More About: Executive , Qualifications , Leader

give credit where credit is due
2007-06-26 12:28:00
Few things can crush a spirit more than the issue that I am about to discuss here. Imagine getting assigned to a project that you have been dreaming about getting, and you then continue to pour your heart and soul into it. When it is complete, you step back and look at what you've done with a great sense of pride and accomplishment. You are proud of what you were able to do. So the big-wigs hear about this cool new thing going on, and inquire about it. You can sense their pleasure with your new masterpiece! Then it happens... While standing at your desk with the executives gushing over your work, your boss speaks up and takes every bit of credit for the work that you've done. Then to add insult to injury, the executives congratulate your boss on a job well done, and then never even glance in your direction again.This has happened to me, twice. And both times I have felt absolutely miserable. I don't think that I can recall any time in my professional life that I have felt so smal...
More About: Credit , Give

fight the good fight
2007-06-22 05:23:00
Sometimes you just have to do things that you weren't called to do. As I continue my look at Deborah in the Book of Judges (chapters 4 and 5), the next thing that I notice about her is that she was never supposed to be in the battle against Sisera herself. In today's business world, you may also find yourself in situations where you were never really meant to be, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you shouldn't do them. Let's take a closer look at the example here with Deborah.While Deborah was acting as the Judge over Israel, she summoned Barak. She pointed out to him that he was called by God to go into this battle against Sisera. You see, it wasn't her battle to go and fight, but it was an assignment that was given to Barak to do. However, when Deborah "reminded" Barak that he was to go lead an army into battle, his response was one of hesitation. Even after a direct command from God, he still put conditions on it. He started negotiating with Deborah making the conditio...
More About: Fight , Good , The Good , The Go , The G

be an overcomer
2007-06-19 04:10:00
You've heard the saying that, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going," right? When it comes to being a good leader, there is more truth to that statement than one might initially think. I believe that it is in the face of adversity that true leadership is revealed. One cannot be afraid to take on challenges and get things done. People have no reason to follow someone that simply shys away when things get a little rough. People want to follow someone who is bold and strong and willing to knock down some walls every once in a while.As we begin to look at Deborah, our next leader in the Book of Judges (chapters 4 and 5), we first discover that her role as Judge over Israel started during the reign of Jabin king of Canaan. The commander of Jabin's army was a man named Sisera. Now Sisera was apparently a very bad man. It is recorded that he had "900 chariots of iron," and this made him a powerful force to be reckoned with. It is also recorded that he "oppressed the people of I...

a dash of humilty
2007-06-07 04:10:00
With the success of quiz shows like "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader", it is evident that the idea of being "smarter than ___" is becoming increasingly important in our society. These prime-time game shows are continually blasting us with the idea that success is somehow tied to how smart you are. "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" teaches us that knowing stuff can make you rich, while "The Weakest Link" further emphasises the fact that being not as smart as the next guy is a problem. I believe that this mindset is a problem, and as we continue through the Proverbs, I'd like to take this opportunity to discuss why I feel this way.Solomon teaches us to, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5). There are two things that I feel like this passage teaches us. First, we need to trust the authority over us. Then second, we not rely on our own knowledge and understanding. Let's break down these ideas in a little more detail. Why i...
More About: Dash

living well
2007-06-06 04:10:00
What do you want people to think of when they hear your name?I could argue that all of us want to be respected and thought of in a positive light when other people talk about us. Have you ever had a sinking feeling inside when you run into someone who says, "I was just talking to someone about you."? Why would that comment ever be disturbing? Well it might bother you if you don't have the type of reputation that you would like. However, someone of great character would never have to worry when they hear that people have been talking about them. The question that I am going to address today is about the type of character that it takes to live well with a great reputation.To answer this question, I'd like to jump back into the Proverbs, and look at a short statement that I believes addresses this topic. And I really like the way that it reads in The Message...Don't lose your grip on Love and Loyalty. Tie them around your neck; carve their initials on your heart. Earn a reputation f...
More About: Living