You are currently browsing the monthly archive for August 2011.
We all know that men and women are different.
One of the significant differences is what they need to hear to help them feel secure and valued in their relationships.
In his book, “WEIRD: Because Normal isn’t Working,” Craig Groeschel identifies this difference and outlines how husbands and wives can effectively encourage and build up their spouses.
In the interests of being gentlemanly, let’s start with ladies first.
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English: Oscar Pistorius during 2011 World championships Athletics in Daegu (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In the 2011 Track and Field World Championships, there was a runner from South Africa who qualified for the semi-finals of the 400 metres by finishing third in his heat.
He then went on to qualify for the semi-finals of the 2012 London Olympics.
This doesn’t seem like such a great achievement until you learn that Oscar Pistorius had both of his legs amputated below the knee when he was a baby.
As a result, he runs with prosthetic “blades” that are attached to his legs, enabling him to run. His training and dedication has given him the capacity to compete with the best able-bodied athletes in the world.
When I first heard about this, I couldn’t help but be inspired.
Image by acaben via Flickr
Steve Jobs, the iconic CEO of Apple has sadly passed away after recently announcing that he was stepping down from his role.
During his time at the helm of Apple, he turned them into an incredibly successful brand with ubiquitous products like the iPod, iPhone, iPad and the range of Mac computers. Apple is now synonymous with cool and this is largely due to Steve’s leadership and vision.
How can Steve Jobs’ story inspire us today:
It’s one of the great proverbs of the Bible, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
It describes the need to have people in our lives who make us better, who encourage us, mentor us and challenge our perspectives. The need to have people who teach us, lead us and positively influence us.
As I pondered this principle this week a few thoughts came to mind:
I came across this great technique for testing your mental strength a few weeks ago. It comes from Dr. Rob Bell (the sports psychologist, not the well-known pastor).
The challenge is simply to stand under a cold shower for 30 seconds.
Sounds easy doesn’t it?
We’re reaching the end of winter here in Melbourne, but I thought that I would give it a try anyway.
There’s pressure in being successful.
There’s stress in leading people, coming up with new ideas, working hard, balancing priorities and making a difference.
Sometimes, we become aware of that pressure and try to avoid it.
Instead of aspiring to be our best, we choose to underachieve.
But there’s stress there as well.
For my recent 40th birthday, my beautiful wife bought me an Amazon Kindle.
For those who don’t know, a Kindle is an ebook reader. It’s part of a range of electronic devices that are rapidly replacing old-school books.
I was first introduced to this device by my boss, Brenda, who has been an advocate for them ever since she got hers a few months ago.
Intrigued, and not sure what else to get for my birthday, I researched the numerous ebook readers on the market and decided upon the Kindle.
A couple of weeks later and I’m rapt with my decision.
Here are 10 reasons why:
One of the biggest mistakes that I’ve seen in interviews is when candidates use “we” instead of “I” too often.
For example, “We did this,” rather than, “This was my contribution to the team’s results.”
It can be a challenge sometimes, but whilst it’s nice to spread the credit, you are being assessed on your abilities, not the abilities of the team or organisation that you’ve worked with in the past.
