Monday, January 19, 2009

MOVED OVER TO WORDPRESS

Hey, I moved my blog to a new URL

http://jasondtaylor.wordpress.com

Thanks for visiting.
Come often, comment lots, get good karma...can I say that?

Sunday, January 18, 2009

WHAT A PRIVILEGE...

I'm working through reading the Bible in a year. I was challenged by my good friend Roye and so far have kept up with it. Today I read a story in Matthew 20 and wanted to comment on a lesson I saw.

The story is told by Jesus and is about a boss who, early in the day, hires workers to work for him at a set wage. He then goes out to the town and several times throughout the day hires more workers to work in his fields as well, all the way until the 11th hour, which I'm assuming is late in the day, he is still bringing on new labor. Then at the end of the day, he pays the workers who started later the same as he pays the workers who started in the morning. The workers that worked all day grumble and complain because they see that everyone made the same amount of money even though they all made what they had agreed upon. The boss hearing their grumbling simply responds to one of them,
"Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?

Here's a GUIDEPOST.

We have to guard our hearts against having an "entitlement mentality"; a sense that we somehow deserve unwarranted or unjustified gain simply because. These workers were not grateful, they were ungrateful; yet they had work, they received the wage they'd been told they'd receive, no wrong had been done to them. Their entitlement mentality caused them to take their focus off of what I think it should have been, and that...simple gratitude.

Here are some ways I'm working on this in my life.
  1. Daily try to cultivate a generous heart
  2. Look outside yourself as often as you can
  3. Approach everything as a privilege
What's your GUIDEPOST from this story?

Saturday, January 17, 2009

BEAUTIFUL DAY

I awoke early this morning to a thick frosty air and a fog that had spent the night weaving icicles onto every branch of every tree, every blade of grass. It was magical. Even the long grasses had this ethereal wispy frozen look to them. The sun was barely creeping up, so I would guess, and there was just a hint of light to illuminate the whole landscape. I ran and ran and ran, just soaking it in.

Image Credit: © Prisma / SuperStock

Friday, January 16, 2009

ITS ALL ABOUT THE JOURNEY

I've been online for hours tonight, looking at templates for my blog, thinking about porting over to Wordpress, (after reading this) following Twitter, thinking about stopping and reading an actual book...there is so much to learn. I've read more this week than I can believe on how to craft a blog, get people to read it, use it for work, marketing, pleasure...everybody has something to say about blogging. That's the point of all of this, everybody has something to say and the more people you can say valuable stuff too, ultimately the better.

A blog is a place to set up shop on something, whether it be your thoughts, your opinions, some specific set of topics. I've been most impressed with Rhett Smith's blogs and tweets this week. It was encouraging to read that he's blogged for quite a while and is now, after a long time of doing this, re-imagining his blog, his focus and ultimately his voice. No doubt it will help him to have a greater impact.

I've held off blogging this week several times. I get a thought, then I stop because I can't figure out how to get started, or I know it sucks and just don't want anybody to see my writing. But, I have to be willing to move forward. That's all part of it. All part of the journey. Geez, this theme shows up a lot. Most things worth doing take accurate action and an intentional process to see bear fruit.

Maybe in a year, I'll have a following, I'll have graduated into a great writer and thinker...and then again maybe it'll still just be me and my wonderful two followers. I'm fine either way.

I promise not to quit. Quitters are lame.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

SIMPLE

I'm okay with keeping things simple. There's been a shift in my life over the past few years from being and doing complexity to being and doing simply. Maybe Solomon was right, there is nothing new under the sun.

Life is not meant to be analyzed to death. I've spend my fair share of time pondering and contemplating things. I want to get on with it. Say what I have to say and move on. This blog is certainly a part of that. I don't propose to be a published author or great writer, although per Seth Godin, I guess I am published because I have this blog.

I simply want to find simple ways to influence, inspire and encourage others in their live and leadership. I want to find ways to point people the right way, using my thoughts, quips, experiences and story to act as guideposts.

Along that line, I've been doing some research on blogging and in the past day have found some great resources.

This is a great post by Chris Brogan on the power of storytelling and how to use it in your blogging.
ChurchCrunch.com has a weekly blog topic going right now on Wednesdays. Follow the comments for great ideas.
The Power of Narrative post is incredible. If you are blogging or starting a blog, this is a great way to break it down into bite size pieces, not only for you, but also your followers.

What's your GUIDEPOST today?

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

TOUGH CONVERSATIONS

I grabbed a short interview this morning on a pod cast by Harvard Business Ideacast. Author Holly Weeks was being interviewed about her book Failure to Communicate.

The title of the interview was "Speaking Well in Difficult Situations;" more specifically she was addressing how to handle the tough conversations we sometimes face in the workplace. Here were some of my takeaways.

  1. Have a blueprint (see below) for how to handle tough conversations
  2. Prepare yourself for your own vulnerabilities
A good blueprint is built of three main components.

First, make sure you have clear content; say what you mean, mean what you say and let the words you speak work for you not against you. Even if the message is hard, it's better than masking it. People can tell when we are dancing around issues and the by product of a fuzzy message is that people will start to guess what we are trying to say and most often will guess wrong.

Second, use a neutral tone; make sure all the "non-word" part of communication matches the words you are speaking. Put all the weight on the words so as to avoid confusing the person or people taking in the message. The point here is not just tone of voice but body language, body position, articulation, everything we use in communication minus the words. Think of it as the supporting cast. The words need to be main stage.

And thirdly, utilize temperate phrasing. What this means is to check word choice and sentence design. Stay away from words that can act as triggers or might provoke the other party.

The biggest learning for me, my GUIDE>POST, is to prepare for my own vulnerabilities. If I know that I have certain sensitivities, whether to a person or a topic or tend to take things personally if they have to do with a specific topic etc...prepare for that, think through it, get clarity on what I'm going to do in those circumstances.

Monday, January 12, 2009

TOGETHER


I was talking with my wife tonight over spaghetti and she said something I thought was profound. It might be the wine but my wife is actually quite profound so I'm sticking with my original take.

"Adventures are best experienced together."

Snowshoeing alone under a full moon is certainly an adventure. But sharing that same experience with someone or a group of someones is somehow deeper, richer, more fulfilling.This may not be everybody’s view but it’s mine.Part of the joy of an adventure is in the sharing of it.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

COMMUNITY BREAKDOWN

I received a call from someone I was in a bible study group with this year. He's wrestling through what to do when community breaks down. Details aren't important. We've all experienced either A relationship or several in a group divide into factions and ultimately implode. It just varies with amplitude.

What's the GUIDEPOST?

He asked me for advice. Knowing the situation, I told him that the goal is to end well; finish strong. He cannot control what every other person does or doesn't do, believes or doesn't believe. He can only control what he does and believes. it's possible to navigate this kind of change with grace and kindness but it's hard. I hope he takes the narrow path, does the hard thing and finishes well. It's so much easier to walk away and leave an empty wake.


Friday, January 2, 2009

GUIDEPOST


I read a blog recently that stated the following: "For several decades we have been systematically dismantling guideposts. This leads us to empty suits. When truth becomes whatever we want it to be, when all truth becomes opinion, when all opinions are equal, then the truth is nothing; it is a empty shell. Living on such a wide avenue is a road going nowhere. " It was based from a post in the WSJ by Peggy Noonan.

I looked up the definition of guidepost and here's what I found:
  1. A post with a sign giving directions for travelers, usually placed at a crossroad.
  2. Something that serves as a guide or an example; a guideline.
My Guiding Statement (Mission statement, Purpose Statement...) in life is that I exist to influence and inspire others to become the best versions of themselves possible. This is how I'm put together; how I've been designed.

The goal of this blog is to influence and inspire people to leave meaningful truth in their wake. I certainly hope to grow as a thought-leader, writer and person along the way.

We're all on a journey. Some know where they are going some don't but inevitably we all find ourselves at some point needing direction. Where will we turn? I personally hope that there will be a guidepost for me when I need it.