ESTEEMER

July 21 Be Prepared "And that servant who knew his master's will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes."  Luke 12:47 Spanish Novelist Miguel de Cervantes said, "The man who is prepared has his battle half-fought." If you want to prepare yourself so that you can help your team as it faces the challenges ahead, then think about the following: 1. Assessment: Where are you and your team heading? What will conditions be along the way? What price will you have to pay to get there? 2. Alignment: Golf has taught me a valuable lesson: Even if you know where you want to go, if you're not lined up right, you'll ...

July 20   A Position Doesn't Make a Leader "Then all Israel came together to David at Hebron, saying, 'Indeed we are your bone and your flesh.' Also, in time past, even when Saul was king, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them in; and the Lord your God said to you, 'You shall shepherd My people Israel, and be ruler over My people Israel'."        1 Chronicles 11:1-2 As the most influential man in the country, David was leading long before Saul lost his throne. Like it or not, position doesn't make a person a leader. Title may give someone authority, but not influence. Influence comes from the person; it must be earned. David had earned it and Saul had not. Why was this so? Unity: David rallied the people and created unity. Identification: David identified with his followers as family. Credibility: David effectively led military campaigns. Anointing: David enjoyed God's hand and power on his life. Partnershi...

July 19   Signs of Victory " . . .that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, 'What do these stones mean to you?' Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever."   Joshua 4:6-7 Effective leaders look for ways to use the successes of today to empower their people for the challenges of tomorrow. Joshua did exactly that. Although God worked a miracle to allow the people to cross the Jordan on dry ground, Joshua wanted to communicate God's greatness to the children of Is...

July 18 Encourage Others' Strengths "And Saul said to David, 'You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth'." 1 Samuel 17:33 When some leaders begin to work with others on their development, they gravitate to weaknesses rather than strengths. Maybe that's because it's so easy to see other people's problems and shortcomings. But if you start by putting your energies into correcting people's weaknesses, you will demoralize them and unintentionally sabotage the enlarging process. Instead of focusin...

July 17 Initiate Using Intuition "Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), 'How long will your journey be? And when will you return?' So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time." Nehemiah 2:6 Nehemiah couldn't imagine sitting still when he heard the walls of Jerusalem lay in shambles. He had to act. Of all the things a leader should fear, complacency ought to head the list. Leaders don't know everything, but they know enough to act. Nehemiah had insight into the following areas: 1. He knew how long the project would take. Nehemiah gave King Artaxerxes a definite time period...

July 16 Not Everyone Will Take the Journey "Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, 'This is a hard saying, who can understand it?'. . . From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more." John 6:60, 66 Having exceptional people on the journey with you doesn't happen by accident. It's true that the greater your dream is, the greater the people who will be attracted to you. But that alone isn't enough. You need to make sure they're compatible with you. The first question to ask i...

July 15   Read, Then Lead "But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the fathers' houses of Israel said to them, 'You may do nothing with us to build a house for our God; but we alone will build to the Lord God of Israel, and King Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded us'." Ezra 4:3 Leaders must practice discernment. Relationships can get messy; people often harbor personal agendas and attempt to mask their true motives or to make them sound more noble than they really are. Such was the case when a group of outsiders approached Zerubbabel and offered to help. "Let us build with you, for we seek your God as you do; an...

July 14   Help Your People Grow "Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick." Luke 9:1-2 In an organization, it is the team leader's responsibility to orchestrate the team's growth. He must make sure that his people grow both personally and professionally. And he must insure that their growth happens with them together - as a team. When I work on growing my team members, I take several different approaches. First, we all learn together on a regular basis, at least once a month. In...

July 13   Fire Up Your Leadership with Vision "Every promise of God proves true; he protects everyone who runs to him for help." Proverbs 30:5 (The Message) Where does a leader's vision come from? To find your vision, you must listen to: The Inner Voice : Vision starts within. Do you know what your life's mission is? If what you're pursuing in life doesn't come from the depths of who you are and what you believe, you will not be able to accomplish it. The Unhappy Voice : Where does inspiration for great ideas come from? From noticing what doesn't work. Discontent with the status quo is a great catalyst ...