“A CHECKLIST FOR CHANGE Below are the questions you should review before attempting changes within an organization. When the questions can be answered with a yes, change tends to be easier. Questions that can only be answered with no (or maybe) usually indicate that change will be difficult. YES NO   ____ ____ Will this change benefit the followers? ____ ____ Is this change compatible with the purpose of the organization? ____ ____ Is this change specific and clear? ____ ____ Are the top 20 percent (the influencers) in favor of this change? ____ ____ Is it possible to test this change before making a total commitment to it? ____ ____ Are physical, financial, and human resources available to make this change? ____ ____ Is this change reversible? ____ ____ Is this change the next obvious step? ____ ____ Does this change have both short- and long-range benefits? ____ ____ Is the leadership capable of bringing about this change? ____ ____ Is the timing right?”

“Life is now in session. Are you present?”

“The ability to connect with others begins with understanding the value of people.”

“What’s worse than training your people and losing them? Not training them and keeping them.”

“My friend Nancy Dornan says, “The longest distance between two points is a shortcut.” That’s really true. For everything of value in life, you pay a price. As you desire to grow in a particular area, figure out what it will really take, including the price, and then determine to pay it.”

“Eleanor Roosevelt said, “One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes. In the long run, we shape our lives and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility.”

“We are all failures—at least, all the best of us are.

“Pain prompts us to face who we are and where we are. What we do with that experience defines who we become.”

“If you want to reach your potential and become the person you were created to be, you must do much more than just experience life and hope that you learn what you need along the way. You must go out of your way to seize growth opportunities as if your future depended on it.”

“Life’s greatest rewards come from your inner self, from the choices you make, from how you decide to live under whatever circumstances you find yourself in.”

“The Cost and Expectation of Leadership Leviticus 7:33–35 Aaron, like many leaders throughout history, received a divine calling. God chose Aaron and his sons to serve as Israel’s priests and charged them with carrying out rituals and sacrifices on behalf of all Israelites. Scripture gives meticulous detail to their ordination and calling. Their conduct was to be beyond reproach—and God made it crystal clear that failure to uphold His established guidelines would result in death. Numerous accounts in the Book of Leviticus demonstrate the high cost and expectation that goes with a holy calling to leadership positions. As the high priest, Aaron was the only one authorized to enter the Most Holy Place and appear before the very presence of God. The Lord set Aaron apart for his holy work. Despite his high calling, Aaron struggled with his authority and later caved in to the depraved wishes of the people. He failed at a crucial juncture and led Israel in a pagan worship service, an abomination that led to the deaths of many Israelites. Aaron had been set apart for God’s service, but he chose to live and lead otherwise. The failure of a leader usually results in consequences far more grave than the fall of a non-leader. On the day Aaron failed, “about three thousand men of the people fell [died]” (Ex. 32:28). When leaders fail, followers pay the price.”

“listener’s lean.”

“Talent is a gift, but character is a choice.”

“If you lead a team, start asking questions and really listening. Start valuing the contributions of your teammates ahead of your own. And remember that when the best idea wins, so does the entire team.”

“only secure leaders exhibit servanthood.”