Tuesday, 2 April 2019

5 Steps to Inclusive Leadership

5 Ways to Be an Inclusive Leader

5 Ways to Be an Inclusive Leader
I would never say that my elementary school bullies made me who I am today. Yet those early experiences shaped my career and my leadership style in ways that I’m still discovering.
I went to a very small elementary school—think 40 students total—and always tried to help the new girls who came from other countries and had to join this tight-knit group. As is so often the case, my early efforts to include outsiders turned me into one myself. The popular girls in my class bullied me, chasing me around the schoolyard each day at lunch chanting, “You have no life! You have no friends!”
To avoid my bullies, I started eating lunch in the girls’ bathroom, alone. I was lonely, but I also learned to be resilient. And I learned the value of sharing a meal as a way to connect with others. Although I didn’t realize it at the time, you could say that founding Chewse was my way of trying to create a more authentically connected world: a world where no one has to eat lunch alone.

Wholehearted Leadership

My lonely lunches inspired more than my company’s mission. Knowing what it feels like to be an outsider has directly impacted how I lead my team and the transparent, inclusive company culture we’ve built together.
For one thing, we have structured our company to ensure that no one is left out in the cold. We hire our delivery drivers and meal hosts as employees, not as contractors. That way, every single member of our team is included and invested in the company’s success. While hiring gig workers is fine in many situations, a gig-based business wouldn’t create the strong, inclusive culture that empowers our team members.
Once employees are on board, we strive to provide an atmosphere of support that takes the whole person into account. Work and life just aren’t separate these days, and trying to leave our personal lives at the office door is just not possible—or healthy. Because feeling alone is all too common, both inside and outside of work, my team makes a point to greet everyone we meet with warmth and affection. Hugs are commonplace at the Chewse offices! As a former outsider, I know how much it matters to reach out, make eye contact and create an immediate connection.

5 Steps to Inclusive Leadership

Having been bullied as a child doesn’t define me, but it has shaped the way I respond to the world. Here are five things I’ve learned about empowering myself and the people around me:

1. Be transparent.

One of the best—and earliest—decisions I made for our company culture was to keep salaries transparent. We decide salaries on the basis of performance, not negotiation ability, and then we share what everyone in the organization makes, including me. This kind of transparency empowers everyone to make fully informed decisions, and, as studies show, makes for a more productivemore creativemore collaborative and more motivated group of people.
We started doing this because I saw that women weren’t negotiating as hard for their salaries as men did, and, as a result, we were paying women less for the same level of work. I wanted our company to be part of the solution, not the problem, so we made transparency a central element of our culture.

2. Make time for personal development.

When you’re in a position of authority, you don’t always get the feedback you need to grow and develop as a human and as a leader. That’s why it’s important to build a network of people who will give you honest input, point out your blind spots and offer tools to help you continue to grow.
I’ve forged my network with a combination of therapy, executive coaching and CEO peer groups. This means carving out at least three hours each week for personal development. I’ve found this kind of self-care to be critical for understanding my impact on others, which enables me to make inclusive decisions.

3. Practice self-compassion.

We all have endured situations in our past where we felt unsafe, scared and alone. So many of us try to ignore them or minimize their impact, but that kind of repression is bad for both physical and mental health. Numerous studies have shown that practicing self-compassion—being supportive and understanding of yourself—increases emotional intelligence, happiness and overall well-being, while lessening anxiety, depression and fear of failure.
For me, self-compassion means building a relationship with my past. To do that, I use a visualization technique: I imagine my younger self in the school bathroom during lunch. I walk in as my adult self, gently take that lonely young girl’s hand and walk her out to a café. I buy her a treat, tell her how our life is unfolding and assure her that everything will be OK. Feeling this kind of compassion for myself creates a space for me to help and empower other people in turn.

4. Make space for every voice.

As a leader, it’s my responsibility to make sure everyone’s voice is heard. It’s good for business—the more ideas that are shared, the better it is for the organization—but it’s equally important for each individual’s growth. To develop in their own careers, they need to learn assertiveness skills, skills that boost self-esteem and correlate to confident problem-solving and open communication.
Encouraging my team to speak up is not enough; I also create opportunities for everyone to be heard. In our organization, for example, we have a culture committee with members nominated to share feedback and create culture initiatives. It empowers the team to help cultivate an inclusive culture that grows with the company.

5. Break the silence.

For leaders, managing employees who are living through a stressful time is a test of balancing compassion with the needs of the business. At Chewse, we use a color-coded check-in system that gives us a way to share how we’re feeling on any given day. It helps us signal when it might not be the best moment to receive tough feedback or take on a big project. I often wished, as a bullied child, that someone would check in on me, letting me know I wasn’t all alone.
We also go out of our way to recognize and appreciate hard work. Every Friday, we set aside 20 minutes for what we call Attitudes of Gratitude, in which we share our gratitude for what others did throughout the week. For example, the support team might acknowledge the engineering team for fixing a system’s bug and saving them hours of work. This beautiful practice bridges gaps between teams and between leaders and team members, and it helps us all be healthier and more productive.
What kind of leader would I be if I worked toward only my own personal development and didn’t facilitate my team’s growth? Not only would I be suppressing individual potential, but I would be putting the whole company at a disadvantage by shutting down the contributions each person could make.
My leadership style may indirectly stem from being bullied as a child, but it has become much more than that. It was a hunger to create welcoming spaces where no one has to eat alone that inspired my company, and it’s a passion for developing an inclusive, empowered team that has made it thrive.

SEED OF SUCCESS

Image


If you want to be a leader who attracts quality people, the key is to become a person of quality yourself. Leadership is the ability to attract someone to the gifts, skills and opportunities you offer as an owner, as a manager, as a parent.

What’s important in leadership is refining your skills. All great leaders keep working on themselves until they become effective. Here’s how:
1. Make time for personal development.
When you’re in a position of authority, you don’t always get the feedback you need to grow and develop as a human and as a leader. That’s why it’s important to build a network of people who will give you honest input, point out your blind spots and offer tools to help you continue to grow.
Read More: 5 Ways to Be an Inclusive Leader
2. They use phrases like, “It’s my fault,” “I was wrong” and “I’m sorry.”
When great leaders make a mistake, they admit it right away. They don’t wait for someone else to find and point out their blunder. They model accountability for their words and actions, even when they could have easily “gotten away” with the mistake. And they do it matter-of-factly, without drama or false humility.
Read More: 10 Communication Secrets of Great Leaders
3. Listen deeply.
Richard Branson says leaders should listen more than they talk because that’s how they learn what’s going on. Great leaders learn to listen for context as well as content. Deep listening is being fully present in the moment with the person who is speaking, and not trying to judge or control the conversation. We let go of our assumptions to hear not only what is being said, but also the emotions, motives, needs and goals of the person speaking. This kind of listening builds trust and respect, and it encourages the sharing of information you need to make good decisions.
Read More: 5 Habits That Will Make You a Better Leader
4. Cross-pollinate.
They encourage the co-creation of ideas and challenge their employees to look outside their teams, outside the company and outside the industry for ideas that have worked elsewhere. They urge team members to work through solutions together, outlining the what, the how and the when of their ideas. This allows their teams to develop ideas more completely, or to come up with ideas that they may not have discovered alone.
Read More: 10 Things Effective Leaders Do to Encourage Innovation
[WATCH NOW] This Is What Makes a Great Leader Stand Out
Image
A good leader is always in service to others. Whether they choose to guide the people around them with empathy, inspiration or solid business principles, you can count on a strong leader to put the team first.

Monday, 26 November 2018

What Is Preaching?

What Is Preaching?

by Gene Taylor

"Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1 Cor. 1:20-25)
Preaching is the activity of a redeemed man, standing in Christ's stead, by His (Christ's) authority and in obedience to His command, proclaiming, explaining, illustrating, and strongly urging the word of God, the gospel of Christ, in such a manner as to make it possible for responsible people to understand it and accept it unto life or reject it unto death.

Of What Does Preaching Consist?

Preaching has also been defined as, "the authoritative proclamation of the word of the living God by living men of God in God's ordained manner of moving people to Christ and salvation and on to eternal life" (Romans 10:14-17). It is at this point that preaching differs from all other public speech and rises above secular activity. Preaching does not consist in excellency of speech or the wisdom and power of the world but in the testimony, wisdom, and power of God in His word (1 Cor. 2:1-5). It is by God's power in His word faithfully preached by faithful men that dead souls are raised from the spiritual grave to spiritual life, joy, and victory (Romans 11:13-15).
Preaching is a divine function accomplished through men. The divine message of God's love and salvation is delivered to men by a human voice fused with love for God and the souls of men. It is a proclamation in clear, understandable terms which reveals to men the heart and will of God and urges them to obey Him.
If it is not the declaration of the authoritative word of the Son of God, then it is not preaching (Gal. 1:6-9). The gospel preacher does not create facts. He is given them by the King and he must not alter them (1 Pet. 4:11). The preacher speaks as a herald announcing the message of God, declaring the facts of God's word not his own. Preaching, if it is to please God and save men, must be identical in content and spirit with the preaching of apostolic days.

What Is Good Preaching?

Good preaching is not a parade of one's knowledge, a show of one's speaking ability, a fashion display, or an effort to build a personal following.
Good preaching is Bible-centered (2 Tim. 3:16; 4:1-2; I Cor. 2:2). It harmonizes with truth (Gal. 1:6-7). It is simple (Mark 12:37). It reveals both the awfulness of sin (Rom. 7:7, 13) and the love of God through Christ (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8).
Good preaching is well-rounded (Acts 20:20, 26-27, 31-32, 35). It accomplishes its intended purposes:
  1. Bringing people to Christ so that they might be saved (John 6:44-45).
  2. Causing Christians to grow spiritually (1 Pet. 2:1,2; Heb. 5:12-14).
  3. Keeping Christians saved (Jas. 1:21; 1 Cor. 15:1,2).

Examples of Good Preachers

The Apostle Paul. He considered himself a debtor to all men so he sought to preach the gospel to save them (Rom. 1:14-17). He had respect for the gospel (1 Cor. 1:17; Rom. 1:16). He was honest and sincere (2 Cor. 4:1-7; Gal. 4:16). He declared that which was profitable (Acts 20:18-35). His message was limited to the will of God (1 Cor. 2:1-5; Phil. 2:5). He did not back down from those who taught things which were contrary to the doctrine of Christ (Rom. 16:17,18).
Jesus, the Master Teacher. He was prepared to teach. He knew the Law (Matt. 12:3-8; Luke 4:16-21).
He possessed the proper characteristics a preacher should have. He was:
He had proper attitudes toward His listeners. He:

Some Keys to Good Preaching

Good study and preparation. Good study employs observation, interpretation, application, and communication.
  • Observation: What does the passage say?
  • Interpretation: What does the passage mean?
  • Application: How does the passage relate to me?
Communication: How do I relate the meaning of the passage to others?
Good presentation. One must have the right attitude (2 Tim. 2:14-26)and the right motives (1 Tim. 3:5). One must be persistent and patient (2 Tim. 4:1-5), present the Bible as the word of God (2 Pet. 1:16-21), and make his conclusion personal and decisive (Acts 26:29).
Good life. The messenger of God's word must be living in accordance with God's will. He must take heed to himself and his teaching (1 Tim. 4:16). He should be an example to believers in word, conduct, love, spirit, faith, and purity (1 Tim. 4:12).

Conclusion

For preaching to be effective, there must be sincerity of presentation, clarity of speech, suitability of material, simplicity of lesson, and brevity of sermon.

Tuesday, 16 October 2018

Lessons that one can learn from an eagle

Lessons that one can learn from an eagle

Image result for history of an Eagle

Eagles are among the most amazing creatures that God created. Solomon himself wrote in Proverbs, "There be three things which be too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not: The way of an eagle in the air..." (Prov. 30:18-19).
Eagles are among the largest and most powerful birds in the world. Eagles are wise they are careful to avoid danger, unless they come too close to its nest, and pose a threat to their young. Eagles have been noted as symbols of strength, bravery and courage. Eagles and hawks are said to have the keenest sight of all, and can sight their prey while soaring high in the sky.
Image result for history of an Eagle
So what does this teach us? Firstly, Eagle has the longest life span it can live up to 70 years, but to reach this age the Eagle must make a hard decision. In its 40’s it’s long and flexible talons can no longer grab prey, which serves as food. It’s long and sharp beak become bent. It’s old aged and heavy wings, due to their thick feathers become stuck to it’s chest and make it difficult to fly. Then the Eagle is left with only two decisions: to die or to go through a painful process of change for 150 days.
So, the Eagle fly to a mountain top. There the Eagle knocks its beak against a mountain top until it plucks it out. After plucking it out the Eagle will wait for a new beak to grow back and it will then pluck out its talons. When it’s new talons grow back, the Eagle starts plucking out its old-aged feathers.  After 5 months the Eagle takes its famous flight of rebirth and lives for 30 more years.
Image result for history of an Eagle
For us to live long we need to constantly change our way of life. Change is needed in order to survive; to get rid of old memories, habits and other past traditions; and o free from past burdens.
Secondly, an eagle never eats dead meat. In other words, an eagle does not scavenge. It only eats the meat from the prey it kills itself. Eagles eat raw and fresh meat what a great act of true leadership. A true leader spends time with people who are vibrant and liberal in thinking. You have to be with people who can think, make informed decisions and take actions. These are the people who bring changes to the society. They are lively and active people. Go out and look for them.
Thirdly, an eagle will never surrender to the size or strength of its prey. It will always give a fight to win its prey or regain its territory. No matter what the size of that person or what weapon they maybe holding, you would attack them without thought or regard for yourself. It wouldn't even dawn on you to be afraid because your instinct is to protect that which you love and cherish.
Image result for history of an Eagle
Lastly, watch an eagle when a storm comes. When other birds fly away from the storm with fear, an eagle spreads its mighty wings and uses the current to soar to greater heights. The eagle takes advantage of the very storm that lesser birds fear and head for cover. Challenges in the life of a leader are many. These are the storm we must face as leaders to rise to greater heights. Like an eagle, a leader can only rise to greater heights if he takes up the challenges head on without running away from it.
Eagles are full of life and are visionary but they find time to look back at their life and re-energize themselves, So begin today to learn from the eagle’s way of life.

The Story of an EAGLE

The Story of an EAGLE:
Image result for history of an Eagle
The Eagle has the longest life-span of its species. It can live up to 70 years. But to reach this age, the eagle must make a very difficult decision!

In its 40th year, the eagle's long and flexible Talons can no longer grab a prey which serves as food. Its long and sharp beak becomes bent.

Its old-aged and heavy wings, due to their thick feathers, stick to its chest and make it difficult to fly. Then, the eagle is left with only two options: DIE or go through a painful process of CHANGE!

This process lasts for 150 days (5 months)
Image result for history of an Eagle
The process requires the eagle to fly to a mountain top and sit on its nest. There the eagle knocks its beak against a rock until it plucks it out.

Then the eagle will wait for the new beak to grow back after which it will pluck out its talons. When its talons grow back, the eagle starts plucking its old aged feathers.

And after this the eagle takes its famous flight of rebirth and LIVES for 30 more years!!

Why is Change needed???

In order to survive and live. We too have to start the change process. We sometimes need to get rid of the unpleasant old memories, negative habits and our fixed mind set. Only Freed from the past burdens can we take advantage of the present.

If an eagle can make a life saving and life changing decision at the age of 40....why can't we? In order to take on a New Journey ahead, let go of your negative old limiting beliefs.

Open up your mind and let yourself fly high like an eagle!
Image result for history of an Eagle
When it rains, all birds occupy shelter. But the EAGLE avoids the rain by flying above the clouds....The problem is common to all but the attitude to solve it makes the difference!

Don't be afraid of change...accept it gracefully..!!!

My questions to you is this! Do you want to fly with the eagles or scratch with the turkeys!! Over to you!

Wednesday, 11 July 2018

6 Ways to Embrace an Abundance Mindset

6 Ways to Embrace an Abundance Mindset



 

April 5, 2017

Her name is Nikki Bollerman and she teaches third grade at an inner-city Boston charter school. Bollerman’s students don’t come from houses stocked with books, so in 2014 she applied for a contest called the #WishForOthers campaign. She wanted to be able to buy a book for each of them to practice reading over the holiday break.


She won. The sponsor, Capital One, funded three books for each child and also awarded her one of the grand prizes: $150,000.

If you’re in your 20s like Bollerman—or recall being in your 20s—you remember how tight the budget can be in those years. I don’t know Bollerman’s personal situation, but I’m guessing she wasn’t rolling in cash. Still, she donated the winnings to the school.

“To me,” she later told reporters, “there was no other real option. I mean, I wished for it for the kids. Where else would it go other than them?”

Bollerman is a prime example of one of my favorite topics: Abundance.

People with an abundance mindset believe there is plenty of money, power and recognition to share with others. They are the opposite of those operating from a scarcity mindset, who hoard everything from financial resources to credit for a job well done.

Related: True Success Begins the Second You Start Giving Back

As much as we love and respect wealthy and generous people such as Bill and Melinda Gates, it’s people on the lower end of the financial spectrum who are the biggest givers. There’s been a lot of research on this lately. In 2011 Americans in the top 20 percent of the income spectrum contributed 1.3 percent of their income to charity. The people in the bottom 20 percent donated 3.2 percent. University of California, Berkeley researcher Paul Piff suggests that the people most frequently exposed to others in distress are far more in tune with the needs of their fellow man.

If the less able among us freely offer help, then we of greater means have no excuse.

When I talk about abundance, I’m not just talking about financial generosity. I’m talking about sharing your whole self: your talents, ideas, creativity, compassion and, yes, if you can, your wealth. But I didn’t always think this way.

My first job took me to Hillham, Indiana, a tiny town of 11 houses and one grocery store. I was charged with pastoring a church and I directed all of my energy to that task, growing it so much we had to expand into a larger building. A few years later, when my denomination offered me a job at a larger church in Lancaster, Ohio, I was determined to make similar strides. By 1975 our church had the fastest-growing Sunday School in the state.

I was excited. I was proud. I was also obsessed with comparing my results to those of my fellow pastors. I scrutinized our denomination’s annual report. Where do I rank? How am I doing? How do I stand out now? Do you think I was about to share the secrets of my success with my colleagues? Hardly.

After realizing my errors and acknowledging my selfishness, I promised to dedicate my career to training other leaders, to sharing whatever knowledge I picked up along the way so others could add it to their own, magnify it and hand it to someone else.

Related: The Power of Sharing What You Know

Thinking abundantly is a first step toward adding value to others. And when you add value to others, your significance grows. It’s an upward cycle.

So how do we learn to ditch scarcity and embrace abundance?

1. Strive for personal success.

Discover your gifts. What do you have to offer the world? What’s uniquely yours to give? Amass your wealth (and remember, I’m not just talking about money) so you can dole it out to others.

2. Share your accomplishments.

If you achieve a victory at work, will you claim the glory or recognize others who have contributed toward the goal? If you discover a more efficient procedure, a better way of doing business or a new strategy, will you keep it under wraps or shout it out to others on your team?

3. Offer encouragement.

A kind word is a gift. Sometimes we feel like we have nothing to give, but we can always conjure up a statement of support. Who knows? Your words might inspire someone to take the next step in his or her journey.

4. Stay connected.

There’s nothing wrong with working your way to the corner office. In fact, I encourage your aspirations. But as you sit at the top, don’t lose sight of the pressures and challenges that people on different levels of the economic ladder face. What can you give to them?

5. Think like a servant.

We’re wired from the time we’re kids to protect our own self-interests—to be the best athlete, the top scholar, the class president, whatever. Rarely do we think about being the team player or the teacher—someone like Bollerman—who sacrifices his or her wants, needs, fame or fortune so that someone else might excel.

6. Consider the ocean.

 

When you stand on the beach and watch the waves hit the shore, do you think there’s any end to the water? That’s how the abundance mindset works.


 

When you stand on the beach and watch the waves hit the shore, do you think there’s any end to the water? There is, of course, but we can’t comprehend it, so we think seawater is endlessly abundant. You would never deny a bucketful to a child building a sand castle because you can refill that bucket again and again. That’s how the abundance mindset works. You give away praise, recognition, ideas, knowledge and money because you know there’s plenty to go around. What you give away will come back to you a thousand times over. I guarantee it.

Related: How to Make Others Feel Significant

 

History and Life... Wike: Stop Watering Your 2023 Ambition With the Blood of Igbo Youths 😭😭

Wike: Stop Watering Your 2023 Ambition With the Blood of Igbo Youths 😭😭 By Chidiebere Nwobodo  I am not a fan of Nnamdi Kanu n...