Church Soup

So, I get up this morning and I am looking at different churches on line. Trying to find a church to visit with some contemporary flair. We decide to go to our home church...Covenant Presbyterian in Roanoke. Today is Youth Sunday and they did a fabulous job. They playeda clip audibly in church today that they had heard it at their youth trip in the last week. I am so glad we decided to go to church today at Covenant. The youth did a great job and this 'Church Soup' spoke to me!!!

Click on the link to listen in. It is humorous and very poignant as well. Don't worry about where you go to church...just love each other!!


Church Soup

Have a great week y'all. Don't let opportunities pass you by this week to add value to someone's life!

Lessons of the Square Watermelon

A friend recently shared an article with me about the paradigms we have and the infamous quote "If you think you can, or you think you can't,...you're probably right!"

Toyota Production System at work! If you haven’t read this before, it is a great read. Great lesson that challenges paradigms we all probably have. My guess is that we all have one of these things that someone has told us "We've always done it this way" and I believe them without challenging the assumption!! My most recent one is in building homes. I was told "It is more expensive to build a story-and-a-half then it is a two story...Then, I go around quoting it!!! I am in the process of challenging that assumption right now. I will let you know how it comes out.

Lessons of the Square Watermelon

Japanese grocery stores had a problem. They are much smaller than shops in the USA and therefore don't have room to waste. Watermelons, big and round, wasted a lot of space. Most people would simply tell the grocery stores that watermelons grow round and there is nothing that can be done about it.

That is how majority of people would respond. But some Japanese farmers took a different approach. If the supermarkets wanted a square watermelon, they asked themselves, "How can we provide one?" It wasn't long before they invented the square watermelon.
The solution to the problem of round watermelons was not too hard to solve as the farmers did not assume it was impossible - and simply asked how it could be done.
They found out that if you put the watermelon in a square box when they are growing, the watermelon will take on the shape of the box - and grow into a square fruit.
This made the grocery stores happy and had the added benefit that it was much easier and cost effective to ship the watermelons. Consumers also loved them because they took less space in their refrigerators which are much smaller than those in the US meaning that the growers could charge a premium price for them.

There are a few lessons that can you can take away from this story which may help you:
Don't Assume: The major problem was that most people had always seen round watermelons so they automatically assumed that square watermelons were impossible before even thinking about the question. Things that you have been doing a certain way your entire life have taken on the aura of the round watermelon and you likely don't even take the time to consider if there is another way to do it. Breaking yourself from assuming this way can greatly improve your overall life as you are constantly looking for new and better ways to do things. This was one of the most difficult things for me to do because most of the assumptions I make, I don't even realize that I'm making them. They seem perfectly logical on the surface, so I have to constantly make an effort to question them.


Question habits: The best way to tackle these assumptions is to question your habits. If you can make an effort to question the way you do things on a consistent basis, you will find that you can continually improve the way that you work. Forming habits when they have been well thought out is usually a positive thing, but most of us have adopted our habits from various people and places without even thinking about them. It's a never ending process, but by doing this, you can consistently strive toward making all aspects of your life more enjoyable instead of defaulting to what you have now.
Be creative: When faced with a problem, be creative in looking for a solution. This often requires thinking outside the box. Most people who viewed this question likely thought they were being asked how they could genetically alter water melons to grow square which would be a much more difficult process to accomplish. By looking at the question from an alternative perspective, however, the solution was quite simple. Being creative and looking at things in different ways in all portions of your live will help you find solutions to many problems where others can't see them. I am not a creative person, but I've found that the more that you look at things from different perspectives, the more creative I have become. It's a learned art and builds upon itself.
Look for a better way: The square watermelon question was simply seeking a better and more convenient way to do something. The stores had flagged a problem they were having and asked if a solution was possible. It's impossible to find a better way if you are never asking the question in the first place. Try to ask if there is a better way of doing the things that you do and constantly write down the things you wish you could do (but currently can't) since these are usually hints about steps you need to change. Get into the habit of asking yourself, "Is there a better way I could be doing this?" and you will find there often is.
Impossibilities often aren't: If you begin with the notion that something is impossible, then it obviously will be for you. If, on the other hand, you decide to see if something is possible or not, you will find out through trial and error. Take away the lessons from the square watermelons and apply them to all areas in your life (work, finances, relationships, etc) and you will find that by consistently applying them, you will constantly be improving all aspects of your life.

Refrigerator Rights!!

A true test of a relationship:





Who comes to your house, invited or not, and has "refrigerator rights"? The best relationships are those where you are comfortable enough when you go to a friend's house and open the refrigerator door to help yourself! I want relationships with refrigerator rights. Welcome to my house. Help yourself to my refrigerator, friend!!












When you see Chris, my wife, ask her to forgive me for taking a photo of our fridge before she was allowed to clean it out!!

Simple ____________

In my very first post, I talked about how I got the name of the blog - "Simple Leadership". I mentioned that it was a word from each of two books that I had been reading. I also mentioned that I would share these with you.

So, fill in the blank for me on the following. Each blank has the same answer. Send me your responses and I will let you know the various responses I get. Some of you may have already read this book, so play fair!!

Excerpts:

"It is not enough to unite the ______ around the same what (purpose), but they also must be aligned on the same how (process."
"Leaders of the ______should outline the simple process but then allow leaders to implement with freedom and creativity."
"Recruit and offer accountability based on your simple process. Implement in each ______ department. Unite people around the simple process."
" A simple ______ is a group designed around a straightforward and strategic process that moves people through the stages of growth. When people not only commit to the beliefs of a ______ but also to the simple and strategic process, the energy of everyone is unleashed."
" Simple ______ who desire to eliminate programs will inevitably offend the past or some individual."

I could add so many more, but you should get the flavor. So, FILL IN THE BLANK.

Hope you all are doing well.

John

Character Counts!

What an amazing match!! If you are a tennis fan or not, the Wimbledon championship between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal should go down as one of, if not the most exciting tennis match ever played. These two players battled in the longest match, both in time and games, in Wimbledon finals history. Federer had won 5 straight titles at Wimbledon. Nadal had one 4 of the last 5 against Federer. These two clearly are athletes that may go down as the two best players ever!!!

I found myself glued watching each stroke for a couple reasons:
First, the shear focus of each of these players is phenomenal. I can only imagine the things going through their mind as they played this match. But, to me, what was more apparent was the CHARACTER of these two professionals both during and after the match. There was no taunting, trash talking, or prideful outburst from either player. As they continued to each hold serve for nearly the entire match, they simply kept playing. After the match, Federer called Nadal a deserving champion and was humble in defeat. Nadal referred to Federer as a great champion and was happy to be on the same court. I pointed this out to my children as well as we watched. Neither of these players threw their racket when they lost a point. They didn't scream at the official if they felt there was a bad call. THEY JUST PLAYED THE MATCH.

These displays of Character were resounding to me. These two are champions on and off the court and are leaders in their sport that I will continue to watch into the future.

Watch others celebrate. Does their true character come out? Do they make you want to continue to 'play' with them, or do they make you wish you weren't even in the same building? Are you happy they are on your team? AND...What is YOUR character in Victory? I can learn from these two players... Character Counts...in Defeat AND Victory.