Vacation

On mental vacation – be back soon!

Disciplined Thinking

When you learn how to use new software and use it infrequently, it is like not having learned it at all. That is how it was when I learned Excel and Access. I use Excel almost everyday and I have used Access maybe once. I couldn’t even tell you what Access can do differently from any other software and I have been called the spreadsheet guru at work, due to the assistance I give other personnel with Excel.

This is what I thought of when reading Tommy Newberry’s book The 4:8 Principle.  I read it once without taking notes or contemplating too much on each chapter and now I am reading it again and trying to focus on the points Mr. Newberry has made. (www.tommynewberry.com)

The book is based Philippians 4:8 – (KJV) Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; and if there be any praise, think on these things.

The primary key is disciplined thinking, easy right? Other books state a similar idea when they state control your emotions, don’t let them control you. Much like my reference to the software above, you have to practice disciplined thinking (4:8 thinking) enough to ensure that it will become a habit. Your focus should move away from negative, self defeating thoughts and move to positive and uplifting thoughts. If you could master disciplined thinking, there probably wouldn’t be a need for Prozac and/or margaritas.

Until then — CHEERS!

Courage

Used books stores are amazing. You can find a variety of books from $ .25 to $5.00. I purchased three books for a total of $6.00, two John McCain books – Why Courage Matters: The Way to a Braver Life and Faith of My Fathers and a book titled The Merchant Bankers.  I’ll let you know how they are within a couple of weeks. I wanted to share a quote with you from the front inside cover of Why Courage Matters.

“We are taught to understand, correctly, that courage is not the absence of fear but the capacity for action despite our fears.” – John McCain

Live your dreams

I love to read, especially self-help and management books, great authors like Zig Ziglar, Dale Carnegie, Ken Blanchard, and Og Mandino. I became interested in Og Mandino upon reading an article about Matthew McCounghey shortly after the movie Contact was released. He (MM) mentioned a book he had read by Og and stated a line something like he should never become to big for his bed.  So I read The Greatest Salesman in the World. I enjoyed it, but I read many other books and did not purchase another Og book until recently.           

At a new Borders store in the religious section, I came across a book by Og titled Secrets for Success and Happiness. With this book the reader gets to be a part of his life from 1991 to 1994. You’re there for birth, death, divorce, illness, holidays, gardening, home and hotels.  

After Og struggles with health conditions, he states that he planned to retire when he was 80. Excitedly I decided if he was 70 in 1994, he would now be 82 and well into retirement. So upon searching the Internet to determine what was going on in Og’s life, I was saddened to learn he passed away in 1996. After spending 3 and half years with Og over the past week, I felt as though someone special was gone from this earth. I guess God had different retirement plans for Og. 

Og was 45 years old when Bantam purchased The Greatest Salesman in the World. He continued to write and deliver speeches until the day he moved to the next level of existence. He worked at an insurance company before he became an author. Like all of us, he had to be disgusted at times with his job, disappointed in people, and frustrated with the purpose of it all; however, he continued to pursue his childhood dreams.  

Og still teaches us today. 

You are never too old to accomplish your goals or live your dreams.

Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less.

Welcome to my new blog where I’ll be sharing ideas wisth you regarding Christian business leadership.  I hope to inform and to motivate you, to bring you better management skills and to, just maybe, help lead you a little closer to Christ.

Before we get into all of that, though, I would like to speak briefly about an issue of dire economic concern, and that is the growing economic crisis created by the spike in energy costs.  You will hearmany different reasons for the rise in fuel costs, but the simple truth is that it is a matter of supply and demand.  Yes, speculators are driving up the costs of oil, but they are not speculating in a vacuum.  They have no reason to bid up the price of oil except for the idea that demand will, at least for the near future, be at odds with supply.  Once they realize, if in fact they ever do, that supply will be able to comfortably meet demand, they will no longer have any reason for positive speculation.  In fact, the bubble will burst and oil will drop rapidly.

Yes, the future is alternative, renewable fuels.  Unfortunately, that future is still distant.  We cannot afford to continue to do little or nothing but speculate over how we might run our cars in the future.  We have to have plans that deal both with now and with later.  We need, in other words, a smooth transition to the next generation of energy, not this harsh and economically disastrous one.

By the best estimates of geologists, America has enough oil in Alaska, off our coasts and within oil shale (which we can now turn into oil for about $25 a barrel) to power America for the next 120 years.  No, we don’t need to get all that oil and burn it.  We just need to get some of it.  We need to correct the market conditions, the supply and demand, and lead America into a smooth transition toward green and renewable resources.

For that reason, I support the Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less. petition that is being run by American Solutions and strongly recommend that you sign the petition and let your voice be heard in support of a reasonable energy policy.