New Years resolutions! New Years failures. The aspiration to change meets the reality of pain. Welcome to the world of personal growth as an adult. Nature has much to teach us about growth. Take trees for example. Now I’m not a horticulturalist. Until recently, I couldn’t have told you the difference between a maple and […]
Please stop empowering Africas. And pretty much every else as well.
Lets have a conversation about power. Who has it and who doesn’t? Empowerment as a concept is so ingrained in the leadership literature that to dare question is to invite scorn and reprisal. But first a story. As the leader of a multinational church in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, I was privileged to work with […]
Unintended Consequences: There’s an app for that
Unintended consequences: There’s no app for that. In the smartphone, uber connected world in which we live, every problem can seemingly be solved by an app. Don’t do accounting? No worries, there’s an app for that. Don’t do scheduling? No problem. There’s an app for that. Apps for staying in touch with family and friends […]
Leadership and the rubber band effect.
On any desired leadership traits questionnaire, invariably those being lead want their leaders to be flexible. Adaptable. And while I agree 100% with this desire, there is a current reality faced by most leaders that is destroying flexibility. Demands on leaders across the board have increased. Do more with less. Stretch yourself. Live in the […]
Stop offering to help others..
Because you know you can’t, and if they call, you gotta answer. NBC has this new medical drama called New Amsterdam. Based loosely on a true story, the hero is a doctor who wants to get the hospital back to caring about patients. Multiple times per show, Dr. Max will ask someone “how can […]
Three Vintage Skills Millenials can develop to stand out!
3 Skills Millennials can learn to distinguish themselves in the marketplace “Call him.” “I sent him a message.” “That’s not good enough. Give him a call.” One of my clients, a young millennial man, just didn’t see the need to make the phone call. The text should be enough, shouldn’t it? Today, when someone says […]
Change this 1 thing to develop healthy adult children
The biggest obstacle to your child’s independence. “The person who hated it the most was my mom.” What was this dastardly “it” my student was talking about? Let me set this up properly. I currently give a large portion of my time to working with university students. Because everyone bombs an assignment or two, I […]
The Failed Promise of Relevance.
Another article floating around the internet, being shared ad-nausea by everyone tired for old ways of “doing” church. Change your music! Target young people! Be more relevant! Shorten your services! Out with the old, in with the new! Be more relevant! And “If you don’t like it, serve in the nursery!” You had your time, […]
43 Life Lessons from Bible characters.
Birthday’s are times for reflection for me. I want to continue to learn. Here’s 43 things I learned from Bible characters. 1. Joseph: Forgive by don’t forget. Reconciliation should only come when change has happened. 2. Jesus: Presence is the greatest gift you can give. 3. Jacob: Running from your problems only delays the inevitable […]
Why Colin Kaepernick’s stand won’t change anything
Colin Kaepernick sat during the national anthem. In our nation, that is your right. In Mozambique, during the civil war, students had to make decision of standing and saluting the flag, or running for their lives while bullets flew. Not standing at attention was against the law. Right or wrong, disrespectful or otherwise, this is not […]