Think about what you have read and how you wanted to apply it to your life, but either forgot it or forgot where you put it.  Go back and reread the books that you believe will have a transforming affect on you and start taking notes and putting them in an organized form.  Here’s what you will find:

• The philosophy of one book may contradict another – each writer has a set of beliefs he or she is putting down, writing down your thoughts will help you create a cohesive life plan.
• One book may give you the answer to the questions you had when you read another book.
• Not every book is useful.  If a book seems useless I will skim it and take as much as I can find from it.
• This is a process that will take time.
• You will begin to understand why you believe some things and not others.

You need to know what you believe.  If you have not taken the time over your life to develop a solid belief system then now is the time to start.  This doesn’t have to be elaborate, or complicated.  It needs to be about you and not what others think of you. What are the areas of your life you need to have a set of values to live by.

• Spiritual
• Leadership
• Personal Growth
• Financial
• Family
• Children
• Spouse
• Goals
• What ever area you need

Start writing your life program today and find some one to teach it to over the next year.

What you put into your mind is exactly what you are going to get out of your habits, actions, and words.  If you practice talking bad about people behind their backs it will show in the way you treat people.  If you practice being kind even to people who don’t have what you have, it will show in the way you treat people.

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When your worried, how do you think?  Do you focus intently on the thing you’re worrying about or do you focus on something else?  You focus on the thing you’re worried about.  You put every ounce of hand wringing effort into thinking about that one thing.  Why not use the same effort to think about good things, positive things, things that will change your life or the life of someone else.  I know bad things happen and they worry us.  Cancer, disease, bills all worry us. What I am saying is use the same effort you would worrying, when you’re not worrying, to think like a leader.

So how do leaders think?

Leaders think about the future.  They think about what God has planned for them and their organization 1, 5, or 10 years down the road.  They envision the changes that will have to take place in them and their people before the changes happen.  They dream about what’s to come and they let God change them through the process.

Leaders think about their people.  They want to know who is in the right position and who isn’t, because they understand people need to be good at what they do.  They want to know who is growing, and how they can help everyone grow.

Leaders think about their families.  I have never known a great leader who didn’t love his or her family.  If you are going to be a leader in the church especially you must lead your family first (1Timoty 3).

Leaders think about their legacy.  Who are you building up to become a better leader than you are? We all want to be remembered, and the best way to do that is by investing in someone else.  Find people who want to grow and invest in them.

Ralph Waldo Emerson put it this way,

Sow a thought and you reap an action; sow an act and you reap a habit; sow a habit and you reap a character; sow a character and you reap a destiny.

 

If you’re looking for books to help your thinking here are some good ones

• Think on These Things By John C Maxwell
• The Power of Positive Thinking By Dr Norman Vincent Peale
• As a Man Thinketh by James Allen (Free)
• The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz

I know it is popular among leadership experts to remind us to work on what we are good at.  However, the truth is that many times we are asked to do things we are not good at, and maybe have never thought about doing.  Whether it is for one project or to replace another worker, learning to play out of position will benefit you in the long run. So how do we do it?

1. Learn What Is Expected Of You – This can go a long way in succeeding at your new position.  If you go to your superior and find out what is really expected of you, you won’t have to act like you know what you’re doing.  Know the job because that may be exactly why you are in it in the first place because the last person did not know what they were supposed to do.
2. Have A good Attitude – The way you approach the job will also show initiative.  If you mope into the office everyday and look like someone just kicked you in the face, chances are people will notice and you may be on the way to a demotion, or even fired.  Look interested and happy to have a job and chances are you will move on to a better job.  I know a guy that has had to move out of three different states because he had a bad attitude.  His position is scarce and hard to fill so he can always find work. He hates everyone and complains constantly always looking for the greener grass.  Now he has had to move his family again because of his attitude.
3. Ask for Help – You need people around you who  know how things operate in your new position.  Yes there may be conflict if you got promoted over someone with more experience, but you got the job for a reason, and that person didn’t.  You need people to succeed and acting like you know everything won’t win you any friends.

Can you learn to play out of position? Absolutely! One of my favorite people that learned to play out of position and succeed is Warren Sapp.  When Warren Sapp came out of High School he was a tightend.  He learned to play defensive tackle at The University of Miami and became one of the best ever in the NFL.  I know the NFL is different than life, and we are taught today that we should only focus on getting better than what we are good at.  But you can not only get better at what you are good at you can learn something new and be effective in a roll you are not exactly the right fit for.