Rider's Log 11.22.08 Coal Creek, Signal Ditch, Community Ditch

I'm restarting my Rider's Logs!  It's been 6 months since i've done them and i really like looking back to see the rides I've done.  I wish I had done them April-October to document the 200o i rode this season.

Today i rode with Michael from the FCC parking lot in west Lafayette.  Rode the Coal Creek urban trail to Marshall Mesa, across highway 93, Signal Ditch and back.  28 miles  2.5 hours.

This is a fast and fun ride.  Very non-technical.  A lot of people out on the trail.  I'd rate this one high for a fast, fun ride when you just want to ride and push yourself and chew up some miles on the mountain bike.

Big Wisdom in a Few Words from a Big Man

"The church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state, but rather the conscience of the state. It must be the guide and the critic of the state, and never its tool. If the church does not recapture its prophetic zeal, it will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority."

Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength to Love, 1963.

 

"Cowardice asks the question: "Is it safe"? Expediency asks the question:"Is it politic"? Vanity asks the question: "Is it popular?" But conscience asks the question:"Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because one's conscience tells one what is right."

Martin Luther King Jr (1929 - 1968)

 

These are good words with strong wisdom on which to reflect.

Tips to Help You Become a De-Motivating Leader part 1

Here are some free, time-tested tips on how to be a de-motivating un-leader.  These are guaranteed to work when you want to de-motivate and un-lead your team.

1. Consider stories or struggles other people share as an invitation and opportunity to share your own stories and talk about your own struggles.  Never come back  to the other person's problem.  Monopolize the conversation and talk about yourself.  Your team will soon stop sharing anything deep or meaningful.    
2. Be a poor listener - lack empathy, don't ask questions - see above .   see #8
3. Always tell people about your family but never ask them about their family.
4. Do not encourage your team with notes, gifts or public praise.
5. Encourage your team to take risks and go out on a limb.  However, do not protect your team members from outside criticism for taking risks and trying new things.
6. Do not seek to understand the hearts of your team members.
7. Don't connect relationally and authentically.  Don't make a heart connection and try to understand the realities of where your your team members are.
   1. Understand = "joining someone else's truth and deep waters of the heart"
8. Don't let people understand who you are and your truth.  see above
9. Make sure everyone knows how busy you are.  Don't notice that your team is busy, too.  If you do notice it, repent for being sensitive.  Never mention it out loud.
10. Be a cock-eyed pessimist.  Be a "no, because" person instead of a "yes, if" person. 
11. Say "that won't work here," or, "that doesn't really work at that other place."  Say these phrases every time you are challenged by an idea.   Do not say, "I wonder if we could make that work here."
12. Ask for input and argue against all the input ideas.  Explain, using your years of experience, why they won't work.  If possible, tell a story about you.  see #1
13. Focus on the negatives of a current situation.  Don't let it ever occur to you to celebrate or leverage the positives.  When necessary, talk about sick and dying people to distract your team.
14. Lament failures deeply.  Do not learn from them.  Neither expect them nor allow them. 
15. Ignore success and progress.  Minimize any perceived successes - especially when someone is really pleased and has worked hard. 
16. Do #11-15 publicly - especially with key players in your organization.

I am personally guilty of a good number of these.  Some often.  Some infrequently.  Turn these around into positive statements and the list can be a good guide for becoming a motivating leader.   Sometimes, in order to really know what something IS, you have to learn what it is NOT.   When you experience de-motivating un-leadership, you learn what motivating leadership is in a stronger way.

Do you have any tips to add?

(Part 2 coming soon)

Arches National Park

 

 

Knowledge

I love the curriculum we use as a tool to plug children into life through Christ. It's called 252 Basics and is published by the reTHink group. I love how they use the character traits, or virtues, of Christ to guide us in our growth. Here's the "Leaders Only" section for the Sunday, September 14:

This month we’ve been talking about (1) knowledge, which is discovering something new so you can be better at whatever you do. (2) God is perfect and omnipotent—the ultimate Authority on right and wrong, the ultimate Author of Scripture, the Book on wise choices. Jesus used His knowledge of Scripture (that He’d been studying since childhood) to make the wise choice. Because Jesus knew what God said, He was able to withstand the temptation to do wrong things. (3) God wants us to have that kind of knowledge too. So today, focus on helping kids understand that knowing what God says by reading the Bible will help them make wise choices and can even help them avoid or withstand unforeseen trouble. (4) When they know what God says, and follow through on it, it will make a difference in their lives—and in the lives of those around them.

That is great stuff that helps us stay focused on living life God's way.
A big "pat on the back" to the reThink group for their efforts.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not depend on your own understanding; seek His will in all you do and he will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6.

Team Garmin Chipotle

Chipotle in France during le Tour!  Go team Garmin/Chipotle!  Your sponsorship makes me want to eat more big, huge, fresh burritos.

My Blog Has Been Sleeping

After the Orange Conference at the end of April, I returned to Colorado and dove into end of the season ministry work and preparations for Kid's Camp 2008, our VBS experience.  I've been working like crazy.

Next week, I'll be turning, 42, packing up all of the ministry supplies for a July and August church building remodel, celebrating the 4th of July and replacing the brakes on at least one of my cars.

On the 6th, I head up to Covenant Heights Camp to teach 4th-10th graders (not all at the same time) for a week in the mountains near Estes Park, Colorado.  During the week I will totally relax while studying for the talks I'll give each day.  I also plan to unpack my notes from the Orange Conference and look ahead to ministry plans for the next phases, 3 months, 9 months and beyond.  I will also wake up my sleepy blog and start posting again on a consistent basis.

I've been learning a lot about what it means to live in humility; as in putting others first by giving up what i think i deserve.  It's making a difference in my life and I'll share some thoughts later.

Follow me on Twitter at johnincolorado.  My micro blog tweeting has been going strong while this macro blog has been sleeping.

Thanks for checking in.  I'll see you in a couple of weeks.