LQ Leaders Focus on

Monday 15 October 2012

AWESOME GIFT OF LOVE

Mom, what do you want for your birthday? my daughter asked me a couple of weeks back. "An awesome gift of love" I answered absent minded and continued reading.

She went and did just exactly that! On my birthday a few weeks later there was a small envelope with a voucher to attend the Global Leadership Summit in our town.

The summit ran from 12 October 2012 to 13 October 2013, this past week end, and was hosted by

River Of Life Family Church.

I am still awestruck!

What an awesome gift of love!

To have had the privilege to be in the presence of great Leaders like:

Bill Hybels - Practical, challenging and inspiring, he opened and closed the summit with sowing seeds of wisdom and inspiration.

John Ortberg - What would life be like if Jesus never came? There would be radical implications!

Craig Groeschel - We all face the challenge of working across generations made me more aware of my

responsibilities with the role I play in the lives of people.

Jim Collins, Mark Kielburger, Geoffrey Canada to name a few, and then last but not least the amazing

lady Pranitha Timothy.

"In my work with International Justice Mission, I free slaves and work to restore them to a life of dignity and wholeness."

If you ever wondered what kind of person leads slave rescue operations, you have to listen to

Pranitha.

We are called to serve where God is already at work.

Pranitha challenged me with her question: "What is in your hand'?

God has placed three things in our hand:

1. Time - We all have twenty four hours in our day, every day

2. Talent - Each one has different talents, no one person is the same

3. Treasure - That which is very dear to you

What are you doing with what you have in your hand?

Are you using it to your own satisfaction, or are you making a positive difference in your environment?

Reflection on this for me has not yet ended, and will not for a while.

I am reflecting on my time, am I using every second every day? But more important, am I using it to

follow in the footsteps of Jesus, or am I trying to create my own path?

I am reflecting on my Talent. Am I developing my talent or am I living someone else's dream?

I am reflecting on my treasure. Am I prepared and willing to put my nearest and dearest to the

offering? Can I, like Moses, see the Promised Land, and be content not to enter?

I know what my wish for my birthday next year will be...... meanwhile I have 365 days to use what I

have in my hand to serve, and give back to God my talents and treasures which He so abundantly

invests in me every day.

About the Author: Sonia Visser is an Independent Certified Coach, Teacher and Speaker with the John Maxwell Team with 29+ years of Leadership Experience. Sonia can be found @ http://www.lqleaders.com; http://www.johncmaxwellgroup.com/soniavisser , or by email at LQLeaders / sonia@johnmaxwell

Sunday 30 September 2012

Analyse

ANALYSE

To examine the nature or structure of something, especially by separating it into its parts, in order to understand or explain it.

You examine something in order to understand it or to help other people understand it, for example by describing it in a book; you study something in order to understand it yourself.

In short this comes down to examine, learn, prepare and do.

Do you know of a great idea that will better you and your organization? Have you been meaning to implement it, but just haven't done it . . . yet? Why not?

"The greatest tragedy in life is that most people spend their entire lives indefinitely preparing to live."
These wise words were first said by Paul Tournier.

John Maxwell remarks "Planning has value where new ideas are concerned. But planning only has value to a point. When over-analysis becomes an excuse for lack of courage or initiative to implement an idea, it will eventually kill great ideas and worthwhile endeavors. If it becomes a regular practice, you will have difficulty succeeding."

Ideas are the lifeblood of success. How you act on the ones with great potential determine the level of your success.

Examine and study your ideas, to make sure you can execute them with success.
Plan how you will execute and incorporate your new idea in your current plan of action.
Then DO IT!

Do not keep on thinking and planning, you will fall into the trap of analysis paralysis. Planning and never getting to the execution point, will not make a difference to you, your life, your environment.

Start off by writing down your ideas. Do not start to think on them, merely write them down.

Talk about your ideas to your friends family, colleagues, and note their thinking on it as well. Remember Team work makes the Dream work. You may get further ideas you never anticipated.

When you have decided to implement the idea, a full plan and deadline will ensure that you do not get paralyzed. Stick to your dead line by prioritising all the relevant tasks. This is probably the most important part of your execution. Without proper prioritising, you will flounder and never finish.

Tackle the objections as you move along, do not set time aside to address all the objections first and then implement the perfect plan. There is no perfect plan. It is Work in Progress, with changes being made everyday. The moment you feel your plan is perfect, you will stop improving on it. A perfect plan is a dead plan. Any plan is a living organism that need stimulation to grow and grow to bigger and better.

Benjamin Franklin said, "To succeed, jump as quickly at opportunities as you do at conclusions."

Are you going to jump at great ideas this week? Or will you be analyzing the great ideas to death? Remember all ideas have an expiry date. Either you act on them today, or they are past tense tomorrow. Will you write down your ideas, plan them and execute them? or will you get stuck in the analysis Paralysis?

About the Author: Sonia Visser is an Independent Certified Coach, Teacher and Speaker with the John Maxwell Team with 29+ years of Leadership Experience. Sonia can be found on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/in/soniavisser or by email at LQLeaders / sonia@johnmaxwell

Friday 28 September 2012

Able

This is an old saying that has been in use for many centuries. But what does it mean to be able?

If you have been called competent, capable, equal, fit, good, qualified, suitable - you are an able person. On the other hand if you have been called incompetent, inept, poor, unfit, unfitted, unqualified - read on.

The dictionary defines able as having enough power, skill, or resources to do something.

How often do we use I am not able to ....e.g. I am not able to finish on time. The majority of the times we add ...due to... any other person, circumstance.

The meaning of able or unable is not focused on the third person or the circumstance outside ourselves. The word able reflects straight in the first person, me, you, us.

Robert Kiyosaki says in his book Rich Dad Poor Dad, that the Poor Dad always said, I can not afford.... whilst the Rich Dad said what can I do to (be able to) afford it.

So next time when you say I am not able...... remind yourself that you are indeed talking about you, yourself and your ability.

What did you do to be able to accomplish your goal this past week? Did you Improve your skills, strengthen your power by applying your knowledge or increase your resources through ongoing learning and research?, or did you play the blame (ability) game?