E is for Experimentation

"I have not failed. I've just found 10000 ways that won't work." - Thomas Edison 

Entrepreneurs are masters of experimentation.  Every entrepreneur must go beyond dabbling in it.  The entrepreneur must become an expert at experimentation.

Have you got a new idea? Test it out. Have you exhausted every means of your product or service? Think of new ways to innovate products and services.  Create spin-offs and offshoots.  Expand, extend and exhaust all of your ideas, and then see where else you can go with them.

Do you blog? Write an article based on one of your blog posts, then write an ebook that expands beyond the article.  From there, experiment with tinkering with some of the same ideas to create a training session in MS PowerPoint or develop templates and tools for managers and leaders to effectively implement the training.  That may even lead to a mini-conference or half-day workshop on the topic with sessions by other business leaders on related topics where you can piggyback on their contacts and connections as you work together.

Even as I write this, I am allowing myself to experiment with ideas and see where I can go.  In the words of Norman Vincent Peale, "Do not build up obstacles in your imagination."



You Can if You Think You Can



E is for Enterprising

"An enterprise, when fairly once begun, should not be left till all that ought is won." - William Shakespeare

Entrepreneurs need to see themselves as enterprising.  That's an entirely differently slant than simply as a person in business.  You should seek to build an enterprise.

Anyone with an entrepreneurial spirit can envision multiple layers to their business.  They see various modules and components, divisions and departments, all part of the business itself.  As ideas are generated and developed, the entrepreneur begins to see how each piece if the puzzle fits together in harmony in order to form the big picture for the expanded business.

Let yourself become more enterprising.  Explore new ideas and new ways to generate ideas related to your business.  Enlarge the scope of your vision towards enterprising.

Agenda Action Items

Death by Meeting

"But the fact is, bad meetings are a reflection of bad leaders."-Patrick Lencioni

I don't care what type of organization hosts or holds what type of meetings.  If the organization does not have an agreed and adhered to structure to its meeting, things can go haywire in a hurry.  It can be the YMCA or PTA, people will drift when they are not directed to stick to the structure that is in place.  It can be a corporate annual meeting or a community-based organization's monthly meeting, but there should be an agenda with some action items.

The agenda identifies what will be discussed and reported.  In particular, there are also those action items that will be voted on identified within the agenda.  Many organizations structure their meetings with public comment at the beginning of the meeting.  These are usually appeals or addresses to the board or the entire body.  These are heard out, usually with a time limit like two minutes.  They are not action items and do not require a comment or questioning from the board or the floor.  That's where the discipline must come in with the determined structure.  Some people may know the rules, but something just prevents them from following them.

You may need a sergeant at arms or a parliamentarian. The title may vary, but the functions pretty much run along the same lines.  They keep things in order when the chairperson seems to allow some things to run afoul or astray.  You know some parent meetings for those Pop Warner and Pee Wee teams can get sort of heated.  There may need to be some beefed up measures for an organization to keep order, so review your structure, including roles and rules.

• Roles: Who is supposed to do what? Chairperson... Parliamentarian... Secretary...
• Rules: Robert's Rules of Order? Or, do you use another format? Be sure that all in attendance know what it is.
• Reporting: Written reports versus oral reports... time limits... published or unpublished...
• Responses: Cut down the confusion and cut off people on the board responding to comments from the floor.  Address the outbursts as disorder, ask for them to stop and demonstrate some restraint, and then move on with the agenda.

You maintain order by restricting board members from responding to outbursts from the floor.  If not, there will be a cacophony of chaos as people go back and forth with their various comments and responses to any and every single thing thrown out there.  In many environments like school board meetings and city council meetings, people can have an outburst if they want to, but they most probably will be escorted out into either the hallway or the parking lot by security or some other authority figure.  That's realistic. 


Set it up for success.  If you have been in an organization where the inmates seem to be running the asylum, stop the bleeding and set some order in place.  Share some insights about board training and running public meetings.  Do you accept public funds? You know that redevelopment money or those block grants.  Those are public funds.  That means your meeting- uh-oh- is open to the public.  Learn how to deal with the public in a decent and disciplined manner.

Seeking Change

I know I've been changed / Angels in heaven done sign my name

-Lyrics from Negro spiritual

People seek change.  In fact, many people speak of change as if change itself is an elixir to all of the issues and problems that they and others face.  Many organizations talk it up when they state that they are undergoing change.  New year's resolutions are filled with change running throughout the entire concept.  President Obama swept the nation with a campaign full of change.  Change is on the tip of the tongues of many.

The church is called to change.  So many prayers go up about change that it can become dizzying when one visits a local church's prayer meetings or prayer vigils.  Yet, much of what is prayed about to change deals with the external things.  God may or may not change them.  However, the earnest request of the Christian should be to seek internal change.  The Christian must seek to be changed from the inside out.

Christians in ministry leadership should seek to identify what change needs to occur within themselves before pleading with the Lord to change the hearts of the people under their leadership.  Start with seeking change for yourself, and then demonstrate the change that comes about for you.  Seek to live out your change right before the eyes of your people, making a difference by behaving and operating differently.  Become changed.

The Christian in business is no different.  Many Christians may not work in a Christian-friendly environment, but that doesn't mean that they must become a product of their environment.  These same Christians must stand out as shining examples of Christian strength in the workplace.  They cannot simply seek God and hope for everything around them to change, leaving them as they were before.  No, they must change as well.  Situations arise for a reason.  We must learn the life lesson out of all that we encounter.  Yet, we must be aware that the change that needs to occur might just need to start within us before we can see any change going on around us.

Seek change.  See the change that may need to come about within you and through you.

Economies of Scale

We should be cognizant of economies of scale.  In our lives and our businesses, we need to be mindful of each endeavor and how it impacts other plans and wishes.  It can happen in ministry, too.  The church is not immune to fiscal issues.  You have to weigh all of your options in light of your resources.  Times like these require managers and leaders to see how they can scale back services, employee hours, and hours of operation. Yes, the overall economy is not pretty at all.  However, taking charge of the situation works way better than becoming overwhelmed.

Scale up and scale down.

• Scale Up: savings, efficiency, and standards
• Scale Down: costs, expenses and wasted resources

When it comes to running a tight ship, you just have to tighten things up where you can and how you can.  You don't want to work on the wrong thing.

Leadership Skills and Style

"Leadership is an art, something to be learned over time, not simply by reading books."- Max DePree

If leadership, like DePree says, is truly a form of art, then there are definitely different levels and types of leadership.  I may become absorbed with the the leadership style demonstrated by a young adult or men's ministry pastor and sort of thrown off by the youth or children's pastor and his leadership style.  Each may be a leader by position but each also may have a different way of approaching their craft.

I find that Christian leadership has some basics that include what should matter in the "real world," too.  Those in ministry leadership positions may very well be empowered and entrusted to lead.  However, if they are not equipped to lead, then the ministry itself suffers.

Ministry leadership should always:

• Involve People: Gather those who are willing.  Do not call a meeting to run down a list of who is not here and wondering why Brother Smith didn't show up.  Don't do that.  Call people together with an agenda and some actions in mind and on paper.  Include a sign-up sheet for special task teams, too.  Go forward and get people involved.

• Influence People: I learned it in sociology while I was still in high school.  Leaders should have charisma, that something that makes a JFK, MLK or Mahatma Gandhi irresistible to listen to.  In fact, charisma goes beyond attracting people.  JFK's famous inaugural address lives on with one phrase: "And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." Yet, it was that very charisma appeal that influenced generations to join the Peace Corps with Robert Sargent Shriver and spark other volunteer-driven social programs.

• Impact People: Leaders leave an impact. There should be "fruit" spread about here and there from your labor.  In many cases, with all of the humility that you can muster, let your works speak for themselves.  When I started Life Path a few years back, I started with a mantra that I like to hold on to as a reminder of the impact of such work: Meeting people where they are does not mean leaving them there.  You need to impact people through your ministry.  Leave a legacy.  Make an impact on the very lives of people.