Elephants, Gorilla's and other Animal's that poop

Taking a Team within a company that has plateaued or is in decline to a level of healthy growth will be painful.

Some people don't like change or different.

Some people like it the "old way" because it's their style.

So transitioning the team into a healthy oiled machine will require sacrifice, a season of pain, and focusing on what really matters: people NOT product.

The first and most important detail that must take place for a dysfunctional team to become functional, is to expose what everyone already knows or think they know.

In other word's if there is an Elephant, Gorilla or any other kind of animal that is leaving a mess in the room; someone needs to talk about it.

There are different things that we do within a group of people that we work with that we would not do with our own family. For the most part we do not like to talk about or discuss openly any issues that the team is facing.

I call it, "Natural Tension"

Tension is needed within a group.

If we can get past our Ego, then the tension of the problem can be discussed in a healthy way.

The tension factor is usually handled by that one person in the group who is "the one person in the group" who speaks up all of the time. That, is unhealthy. There should be a way created within each cell or team for the tensions to be brought to the table.

Without tension, we will just white wash the issue only for it to resurface later.

In the next several posts I will talk about tension vs. conflict and how they are both recipes for success or failure.

My question for you is at this time would be this.....

Are there ant "tension's" on your team at work, school, church, etc... that need to be brought to the table. How do you deal or process through them?

How have you gone from unhealthy to healthy, or the reverse?

I would love to read your story.

Mud Pies and Relationships

Mud Pies!

Remember them? Ha! Ha! I remember setting and making them with Keith, my child hood friend. We sat there and made those things, talked, laughed, dreamed and got very dirty in the process!

When I was a pastor I learned a lot about growth. Growth didn't come form technology. It didn't come from fresh methods and against religious popular belief, it didn't come from just prayer.

Growth came from "true relationships". Organic (authentic networking).

Before you read the rest of this post, ask yourself three questions:

1.) Can I name 3 people I work with by their first and last name?

2.) Do I know what their spouces names are (if single, why?)

3.) Do I know what their passion is?

Yes, technology was a great tool. Fresh methods were a must, but they were just that, methods. Prayer, yes it was/is a prerequisite, but it changed me not God.

If your brand, Church, Business, classroom, office, etc... is going to have that "stickability" actor. The relationships must start with you knowing who you are working with and for.

Know their families, there favorite foods, their passion, etc...

The more you get to know the true thing that makes your product stable (people) the more stable it becomes.

Want to rise to the top?

Plant from underground, with seed and cultivation of the seed. Yep, you will get dirty. But that is the fun of it all!

Have you and your team made any mud pies lately?

The Right People

Who do you allow to talk to you?

Better yet, who are you listening to?

When you approach am issue, a problem, etc., what advice is in your arsenal?

Here are three types of people we MUST have in our life.

1. Connectors

They know everyone, and cab connect you to the group you need to target

2. Mavens

They know a lot of information about your target group

3. Sales people

They can take your product to your target group and sale it.

You nay know someone who holds all of these attributes or one. You may hold a couple of them yourself. The point is have them in your life. They need you, you need them and together you can cause what author, Malcolm Gladwell calls, "The Tipping Point. Its when your product or vision grows rapidly.

Who do you have in your life?

Why do "Christian's" say stupid things?

So, yea... its been a crazy couple of days. Our friends in Haiti have met with some unreal disaster. Now we have the "Pat Robertson's" of the world saying it was "God's judgement because of a pact with the devil". Well, the "pact" may be true, but the rest is a lie.

Why do "Christian's say stupid things?!"

If I am correct, the life of Jesus was about him loving people who hated God. He had a passion for people. Period. Its called "Grace". That word CANNOT be defined in theological terms.

The next time you or i come across someone that is different than us..... guess what, you are different than them.

We should never, NEVER, allow STUPID, American Christian talk of judgement come out of our mouth.

God IS Love and there is nothing that will change His mind about that.

Sorting it Out

Tami (my wife) went through all of our pictures and separated them into own categories. i took one of the boxes and and began to look at Jacob (our youngest son). The moments that were captured were awesome. He has the best laugh, smile and since of humor! I was able to trek through a ton of memories as I looked at them.

That has me thinking. There are some things in our life that we need to "sort out". Get them in order. Browse through our thoughts and our though process.

3 simple ways to do that.....

1. Get some boxes

2. Label the boxes

3. Sort them out

Sounds easy?? NOPE , its not.

Sorting out life is a whole other process.

Hurts, mistakes, old friends, sickness, bad economy, failures, success, tears, laughter, life, death, work, etc.....

Its all a mixed up mess sometimes.

But, the process starts with getting out the boxes and sorting away.

Go ahead, start the process.

It may take a while - but it will help you see how blessed you really are.