Tag Archive for: character

Pride, Humility, and Failure

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by Dave Kahle

Remember John Delorean?  He was the superstar General Motors executive who started the Delorean Motor Company.  When the company began to falter, he was arrested and charged with complicity in a drug deal that some speculated was an attempt to raise money to prop up the company.

All of this was big news in Detroit, where I was living at the time.  One particularly insightful article in the Detroit News theorized that he had been supremely successful his whole life, and thus never learned to deal with failure.  His development was stunted by a lack of failure in his life.  Faced with the pending failure of his auto company, he had nothing to lean upon and lost his moral compass.  A long string of successes had not developed his character.

Perhaps.  There is one thing for certain, regardless of the individual circumstances for Mr. DeLorean.  If we choose to, we learn more from our failures than we do from our successes.  Within every failure there is the seed of a lesson well learned, of a solid character trait emerging.  It is our failures that contribute most intensely to our development.

To this day, I can recall with vivid detail the events of my most humiliating failure as a sales person.  It was early in my career, about three decades ago, and I had made the mistake of speaking badly about the competition to a customer.  The customer was a personal friend of the competitive sales person and was personally affronted by my comment.  The dressing down that I received at the hands of that customer remains painfully with me today.  I don’t believe that I have ever made that mistake since. Read more

Want to Change the World? Make Disciples

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by Joyce Ahn

In response to millennials being labelled noncommittal, cynical, entitled, slacktivists, Grant Skeldon started Initiative Network in order to shift the culture of Dallas by training millennials to be Christ-loving, city-changing, church-investing, disciple-making local missionaries. Initiative has impacted thousands of young leaders from over 540 different churches across the greater Dallas region.

Grant spoke at the 2017 BAM Conference in Dallas. Here are some key insights he shared about the importance of discipleship. This is a summary of Grant’s talk. 

The Missing Key: DISCIPLESHIP!

Jesus himself focused a majority of his three years in ministry closely investing in the lives of the twelve disciples. If my friend was on his deathbed, I would listen closely for what he asked me to do. The same is true for when I look at Jesus’ life. Some of his parting words to us before ascending to heaven were to GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES! Yet as I travel and speak, when I ask, “How many of you are getting discipled?” or “How many of you are discipling?” many Christians I meet are not making disciples. However, this can change. As more and more of the older generation is discipling the young generations, amazing things are happening!

Bridging the Generational Gap

I encourage all seasoned leaders to invest in the lives of young people. There are many millennials making choices you might not understand or agree with. Yet what millennials are missing is relationships with godly, wise leaders who can help them build their character and live out all that they are meant to be. You might be making a difference as you serve in your ministry, but whose life are you deeply investing in? Without committed discipling relationships, it’s very hard for you to influence the next generation. Read more

Consequences of the ‘Business as Money-Giver’ Mentality

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by Dave Kahle

“Our business should just make money so that we can give it away” – that’s the message our contemporary evangelical culture teaches us. Those who look for a higher purpose in their business may find this message easy to accept but is this message actually short-sighted and missing the mark on all God has for Christian owned businesses?

There are books written advocating that the sole purpose of a business is to make money to fund religion. What if God has a much larger and full purpose for business? It is easy to conclude from the Biblical theme of giving that the sole purpose of our businesses is to give. And besides, it feels good and gives great CSR standing in the community! With so much support for the idea, it’s no wonder that most Christian business people believe it.

But is our perspective skewed?

Could it be that this giving paradigm, that feels good and seems reasonable, is actually hindering our growth and thwarting the growth of the Kingdom?

If we could unleash the potential of Christian owned and influenced businesses to see themselves as powerful entities in the Kingdom with multiple bottom lines (Social, Spiritual, Economic, and Environmental) as opposed to merely a Kingdom check-book, we could turn the world upside down. Here are some consequences of the short-sighted view of the Business as money-giver paradigm.

Consequences of the ‘business as money-giver’ paradigm:

 

Consequence #1:  It elevates money to the highest priority in business.

By stating that the purpose of a business is to make money so that you can give it away, money is elevated to the highest priority in business. Now, all of the other purposes of a business — to provide community, to develop future leaders, to bless communities, to demonstrate the fullness of Christ, etc. (find the full list in The Good Book on Business) — slide down the scale and become subservient to the quest to make money. While a business should make money, that is not its highest calling. A business only achieves its potential when it steps out of the money-is-everything mentality.

Read more

We’re Only Human After All: Growing Through Failure

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We take our humanity to work everyday. One day, we might fail to meet a deadline or misunderstand a client. Another day, failure might bring unrecoverable loss, the closing of a department, losing your largest account, or even filing for bankruptcy.

As failure looks us straight in the eye, we have a choice to make about how we respond. In these moments of hardship we can choose denial, blame, resentment, unforgiveness… Or we can chose to bravely take responsibility for our decisions and the impact on those around us. We can allow God to deepen our character through the roughest of circumstances.

Character Growth Spurts

No one wakes up in the morning and says, “I hope I fail today” – rather we hope not to! Yet failure, whether big or small, is part of our human existence. Indeed, it is through times of failure that our characters get a growth spurt. Hopefully, we get enough of these growth spurts early in life before the stakes get too high!

If our identity is in our work, rather than Christ, success will go to our heads, and failure will go to our hearts. – Tim Keller

God is passionate about our sanctification. He uses work spaces to cultivate people to be more like Himself. The workplace can be a place of character development if we allow our hearts to receive the instruction. Failure, more than just about anything else, can grow hardy, rock-solid character and deeper trust in God – if we allow it to.  Read more

Leadership Character Trait #7: Personal Courage

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this following series of posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #7: Personal Courage

In this series, I have argued that the following character traits are important for a business leader:

An unquenchable work ethic

An ability and propensity to learn

A continuous quest for MORE

Unwavering self-control,

Rock-solid integrity, and

A Pervasive sense of humility.

To that list, I am adding the seventh and final: personal courage.

I don’t mean to imply that this is the full portrait of a successful business leader. There are dozens of other attributes that will enhance his or her’s ability to work with others and be successful. But, these seven traits mark the essence of a business leader’s character: Without a significant dose of each, his/her career will be somewhat stunted and fall short of the heights to which it could reach.

Understanding Courage

The Oxford Dictionary defines courage as the ability to do something that frightens one. Wikipedia adds this:

Courage (also called bravery or valour) is the choice and willingness to confront agony pain, danger, uncertainty or intimidation. Physical courage is courage in the face of physical pain, hardship, death or threat of death, while moral courage is the ability to act rightly in the face of popular opposition, shame, scandal, discouragement, or personal loss.

While few business leaders face threats that call for physical courage, they need moral courage to accomplish anything of substance.

Starting a business enterprise almost always requires the entrepreneur or leader to face personal loss. Typically, it is the income associated with the job they are leaving to start a business, and often they must use their homes as collateral to acquire that first business loan. The prospect of personal loss is very real, lingering just over the horizon.  Read more

Leadership Character Trait #6: A Pervasive Sense of Humility

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this following series of posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #6: A Pervasive Sense of Humility

I have already argued for the following essential character traits for a business leader: an unquenchable work ethic, an ability and propensity to learn and a continuous quest for MORE, unwavering self-control, and rock-solid integrity. To that list I’m adding a pervasive sense of humility.

On the surface, it seems like an unlikely candidate for a leader. However, once understood, it becomes a bedrock trait and a powerful asset in the psyche of an effective business leader.

First, let’s understand it

Humility is often defined as the quality of being humble. The dictionary defines ‘humble’ as “showing a modest estimate of one’s own importance.” Synonyms include ‘meek,’ ‘deferential,’ and ‘respectful’.

It is often confused with a sense of weakness and obsequiousness, which is overly self-deprecating. There is nothing weak about humility. In fact, it takes far more strength to exhibit humility than it does to default to its opposite: Pride.  Read more

Leadership Character Trait #5: Rock-solid Integrity

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this following series of posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #5: Rock-solid Integrity

In my last few posts, I have argued for these character traits: an unquenchable work ethic, an ability and propensity to learn and a continuous quest for MORE, and unwavering self-control. To that list, I’m adding rock-solid integrity.

Understanding integrity

Integrity is often misunderstood. Many people consider it synonymous with honesty. While honesty is a component of integrity, it’s much narrower and finds its definition almost exclusively in communications with other people. One is honest with others and to other people. Integrity is larger and encompasses more of life.

Here’s the definition for the Oxford Dictionary: integrity: adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.

While we all understand honesty, it is the ‘adherence to moral and ethical principles’ that draws our attention. You cannot claim to have integrity unless you have a set of moral and ethical principles to which you adhere. Notice that there are two parts to this. First, you must have a set of moral or ethical principles. Then, it’s not enough to have them, you must consistently act on them.  Read more

Leadership Character Trait #4: An Unwavering Self-control

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this following series of posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #4: An Unwavering Self-control

Previously, I argued for these qualities: an unquenchable work ethic, an ability and propensity to learn and a continuous quest for MORE. To that list, I’m adding Unwavering self-control.

Specifically, that means that one exhibits the ability to control emotions, and to moderate words and actions. It has both a positive and a negative element to it. Let’s unpack this.

When it comes to controlling emotions, it means that you don’t let a flash of negative emotions erupt and produce negative results. For example, one of your customers may make a disparaging remark about your company, or one of your employees is late for the third time this week. Your natural tendency is to get irritated and defensive and let that emotion out in a way that may damage the relationship permanently. That’s a lack of self-control. On the other hand, if you catch yourself, take a deep breath, and choose your words and your reaction mind-fully, you are acting with self-control.

Not only do we need to control our negative emotions, but we need to proactively and intentionally spread positive emotions. The classic book, The One Minute Manager, builds the case for walking around, finding something that your employees are doing well, and praising them for it. In other words, intentionally and willfully developing the habit of praising specific actions and thereby spreading positive emotions.  Read more

Leadership Character Trait #3: A Continuous Quest for More

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this following series of posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #3: A Continuous Quest for More

Here’s my nomination for a character trait that fuels business success: A continuous quest for MORE.

Let’s define MORE. I’m not talking about greed here, although money is a part of it.

MORE refers to the concept that, in every aspect of one’s life and business, there are greater heights to be experienced, greater accomplishments to achieve, greater impact to be had, greater knowledge to be obtained, greater wisdom to be acquired, greater good to be done, and, yes, more money to be made, more customers to acquire, more revenue to realize, more markets to penetrate, more employees to hire, more influence to extend.

Regardless of where you are at, there is always MORE.

For a person with this character trait, the status quo is never acceptable. The status quo is only today’s version, and this moment’s situation. It’s a temporary circumstance which can be made better. After all, there is always MORE.  Read more

Leadership Character Trait #2: The Ability and Propensity to Learn

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this following series of posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #2: The Ability and Propensity to Learn

Here’s my nomination for a character trait that fuels business success: The ability and propensity to learn.

I’m not talking strictly about acquiring knowledge in the sense that one learns in school. For the successful business person, this character trait is demonstrated by the habit of gathering ideas from a variety of sources, accurately evaluating a situation, and then combining the details of the situation with the ideas garnered to modify or make adjustments in his/her behavior, or the behavior of the organization.

I know that’s pretty complex. Let’s unpack it.

Gather ideas from a variety of sources.

Folks who have this character trait continually and proactively seek out good ideas. These are the people who get the audio books and listen to them as they drive. They have rules for themselves like: “Read one new business book every month.” Read more

Leadership Character Trait #1: An Unshakable Work Ethic

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by Dave Kahle

In a previous post, I wrote that qualities of character in the CEO were a more important indicator of business success than the business model. In this, and the next few posts, I’m going to share those qualities that I believe mark a great business leader.

Leadership Character Trait #1: An Unshakable Work Ethic

Unfortunately, not everyone has this trait. And, the distribution of it seems to be diminishing among us – it seems to be getting rarer and rarer. Folks who have this trait understand, deeply down in their psyche, that work is necessary for human beings to exist, and that it is necessary for their personal dignity and self-worth. But it’s not just an idea. It doesn’t proceed from an intellectual position. Rather, it’s a deep, inner drive. These people are compelled to find work and do work.

These are the people who show up 15 minutes early and stay a few minutes late. A day off, while appreciated, isn’t something to strive for. All in all, they would rather work than take excess days off.

On those occasions when they find themselves unemployed, they make work of finding the next position, and fill in with projects and part-time and temporary tasks, because It’s hard for them to be idle.

The concept of winning the lottery and retiring early is scary, not attractive. They can’t imagine themselves retiring to a life of leisure. They would go crazy getting up every day with no job to do. They can’t understand the 20-somethings that prefer a day of video games on the couch to a day of productive labor.  Read more