3: Enduring Standards
Jan 19 2010John C. Bogle
Way back in 1980, at a celebration of Vanguard's $3 billion milestone, I called on our crew to offer "skill in what we do; imagination in what we create; integrity in what we produce; judgment in the goals we set for ourselves; courage in times of peril and good humor in adversity; and humility in accomplishment." [...]
Colossians 1:9-10
For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. [...]
2: Leadership Foresight
Jan 11 2010Gary Hamel with Bill Breen
... companies miss the future when top management's intellectual capital depreciates faster than its authority. Indeed, I believe that a misalignment between power and perspicuity is the most frequent and deadliest cause of strategic maladaptation. [...]
Proverbs 3:13-14
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. [...]
1: National Decline
Jan 4 2010F.A. Hayek
When authority presents itself in the guise of organization, it develops charms fascinating enough to convert communities of free people into totalitarian States. - The Times (London) February 24, 1937Probably it is true that the very magnitude of the outrages committed by the totalitarian governments, instead of increasing the fear that such a system might one day arise in more enlightened countries, has rather strengthened the assurance that it cannot happen here. [...]
Lamentations 1:1-4
1 How deserted lies the city, once so full of people! How like a widow is she, who once was great among the nations! She who was queen among the provinces has now become a slave. [...]
52: False Hope
Dec 28 2009Michael J. Panzer
Look around: All of a sudden, social moods, political rhetoric, and geopolitical relations are becoming heated and unsettled - a notable change. Financial and other stresses that seemed manageable or even inconsequential only a few years back have burst out into the open, spawning turbulence and rivers of red ink. [...]
Jeremiah 23:16-17
This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD. [...]
51: Peace + Affluence
Dec 21 2009Francis A. Schaeffer
As the more Christian-dominated consensus weakened, the majority of people adopted two impoverished values: personal peace and affluence.P. Personal peace means just to be let alone, not to be troubled by the troubles of other people, whether across the world or across the city - to live one's life with minimal possibilities of being personally disturbed. [...]
Isaiah 39:1-8
1 At that time Merodach-Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylon sent Hezekiah letters and a gift, because he had heard of his illness and recovery. 2 Hezekiah received the envoys gladly and showed them what was in his storehouses—the silver, the gold, the spices, the fine oil, his entire armory and everything found among his treasures. [...]
50: Trends
Dec 14 2009Francis A. Schaeffer
Edward Gibbon (1737-1794) in his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1776-1788) said that the following five attributes marked Rome at its end: first, a mounting love of show and luxury (that is, affluence); second, a widening gap between the very rich and the very poor (this could be among countries in the family of nations as well as in a single nation); third, an obsession with sex; fourth, freakishness in the arts, masquerading as originality, and enthusiasms pretending to be creativity; fifth, an increasing desire to live off the state. [...]
II Timothy 3:1-5
1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. [...]
49: Catalyst
Dec 7 2009Marcus Buckingham & Curt Coffman
Select a person, set expectations, motivate the person, and develop the person: these are the four core activities of the "catalyst" role. If a company's managers are unable to play this role well, then no matter how sophisticated its systems or how inspirational its leaders, the company will slowly start to disintegrate. [...]
II Timothy 3:10-14
10You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. [...]
48: Thinking Habits
Dec 1 2009Jon Gordon
Each day you think of your mind as a garden and you pay attention to your thoughts. You know that if you don't weed out the negative thoughts, then they will take over your mind. [...]
Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. [...]
47: Adversity
Nov 24 2009Jon Gordon
When you encounter adversity, remember, the best don't just face adversity; they embrace it, knowing it's not a dead end but a detour to something greater and better. [...]
James 1:2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. [...]
46: Digital Addiction
Nov 16 2009Dr. Henry Cloud
Sometimes, when activities are meeting some need other than those they are intended to meet, you can become attached or addicted to that behavior. You develop a need for it to perform some function that regulates how you feel . [...]
2 Peter 2:19
They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him. [...]
45: Goal Obsession
Nov 9 2009Marshall Goldsmith with Mark Reiter
One of the most ironic examples of goal obsession was the "Good Samaritan" research done by Darley and Batson at Princeton in 1973. In this widely-referenced study, one group of theology students was told that they were to go across campus to deliver a sermon on the topic of the Good Samaritan. [...]
Luke 10:29-37
29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"30 In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. [...]
44: Process of Self Deception
Nov 2 2009Marshall Goldsmith with Mark Reiter
...our delusions become a serious liability when we need to change. We sit there with the same godlike feelings, and when someone tries to change our ways we regard them with unadulterated bafflement. [...]
Proverbs 26:12
Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?There is more hope for a fool than for him. [...]
43: Overestimating Ourselves
Oct 26 2009Marshall Goldsmith with Mark Reiter
UNUM, the insurance company, ran an ad some years ago showing a powerful grizzly bear in the middle of a roaring stream, with his neck extended to the limit, jaws wide open, teeth flaring. [...]
Romans 12:3
For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. [...]
42: Ethical Leaders
Oct 19 2009John C. Bogle
Returning professional conduct to a more important role in business affairs will be no easy task. One avenue to pursue, curiously enough, was suggested by a mailing that arrived on my desk with a typographical error that I just couldn't ignore. [...]
Proverbs 25:4-5
4 Remove the dross from the silver, and out comes material for the silversmith;5 remove the wicked from the king's presence, and his throne will be established through righteousness. [...]
41: Employee Loyalty
Oct 13 2009Joanne B. Ciulla
How can companies expect employees to be loyal to them when they can't be loyal to employees? One way is to strip loyalty of its moral meaning. Employees will be "loyal" if you pay them more than they would make in other places . [...]
Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." [...]
40: Self-sufficiency
Oct 5 2009Michael J. Panzer
Businesses will find it hard to survive, let alone thrive, amid increasing violence and conflict, shortages and logistical disruptions, and a breakdown of markets and financial mechanisms. Individuals will be forced to rethink livelihoods, lifestyles, living arrangements, and locales. [...]
Habakkuk 3:16-19
I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. [...]
39: Developing Younger Leaders
Sep 28 2009J. Oswald Sanders
... leaders must seek to multiply their own lives by developing younger men, by giving them full play and adequate outlet for their powers. In order to achieve that, heavy burdens of responsibility should be laid on them, including increasing opportunities of initiative and power of final decision. [...]
I Timothy 4:12
Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. [...]
38: Leadership and Prayer
Sep 21 2009J. Oswald Sanders
To read Paul's letters is to discover the supremely important place of prayer in the life of a spiritual leader. Nowhere does a leader expose the quality of his own spiritual life more clearly than in his prayers. [...]
II Timothy 1:3
I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. [...]
37: Decisiveness
Sep 15 2009J. Oswald Sanders
Procrastination and vacillation are fatal to leadership. A sincere though mistaken decision is better than no decision. Indeed, no decision is a decision - a decision that the present situation is acceptable. [...]
Acts 22:6-11
"About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me. I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, 'Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me? [...]
36: Deliberate Practice
Sep 7 2009James M. Citrin
So greatness requires extraordinary hard work on a sustained basis. But some people, even those who also have high levels of natural talent, who do the hard work over a period of years, fail to break through and attain the level of greatness they hoped to achieve. [...]
I Samuel 17:32-37
David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him."Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth." [...]
35: Stress
Aug 31 2009Jim Krause
The ability to handle stress is part of the equation that defines the great artist or designer: an art professional who does not find ways of keeping stress under control rarely stays in the field long enough to become great. [...]
Psalm 131:1-3
God, I'm not trying to rule the roost, I don't want to be king of the mountain. I haven't meddled where I have no business or fantasized grandiose plans.I've kept my feet on the ground, I've cultivated a quiet heart. [...]
34: Criticism
Aug 25 2009Jim Krause
For the commercial artist, the ability to gracefully withstand the heat of criticism is no less important than the artistic skill they bring to a project.When an artist appears unwilling to consider suggestions from peers and clients, they run the risk of being perceived as defiant, lofty. [...]
Proverbs 15:31-33
He who listens to a life-giving rebuke will be at home among the wise.He who ignores discipline despises himself, but whoever heeds correction gains understanding.The fear of the LORD teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor. [...]
33: Hypersensitivity
Aug 17 2009Hugh Hewitt
Ancient Greece and imperial Rome were places and times of huge excess. So is our time. If you are the sensitive sort, this is not a book for you, and your calling to leadership needs explanation. [...]
Romans 14:1-9
Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don't see things the way you do. And don't jump all over them every time they do or say something you don't agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. [...]
32: Complacency
Aug 10 2009Robert J. Herbold
Success, and the resulting tendency to become complacent, often leads organizations and individuals to believe that they are very talented, have figured things out, have the answers to all the questions, and no longer need to get their hands dirty in the trenches. [...]
Obadiah 1:2-4
Listen to this, Edom: I'm turning you to a no-account, the runt of the godless nations, despised.You thought you were so great, perched high among the rocks, king of the mountain,Thinking to yourself, 'Nobody can get to me! Nobody can touch me!'Think again. [...]
31: Success Breeds Mediocrity
Aug 4 2009Robert J. Herbold
When organizations are successful, they have a tendency to stop doing the hard things, and dealing with poor performance is a really hard thing. It also becomes hard to move new people into existing jobs, because there is the burden of getting the new person up to speed and the perception that you are losing valuable expertise. [...]
I Thessalonians 4:10b
But we urge you, brethren, to excel still more. [...]
30: Slow Down!
Jul 28 2009Carl Honore
In the just-in-time, modern workplace, speed seems to be all-important. Email and cellphones demand an instant response, and a deadline lurks around every corner. A 2001 survey conducted by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions found that EU workers were under much greater time pressure than a decade ago. [...]
Matthew 11:28-30
Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. [...]
29: Unintended Consequences
Jul 20 2009Neil Postman
"The mechanical clock," as Lewis Mumford wrote, "made possible the idea of regular production, regular working hours and a standardized product." In short, without the clock, capitalism would have been quite impossible. [...]
Proverbs 16:25
There is a way that seems right to a man,but in the end it leads to death. [...]
28: Financialization
Jul 13 2009Ron J. Bigalke, Jr., General Editor
The world continues its impetuous run into financialization, a process that assigns a monetary value or transaction to an ever greater share of human activities. Human activity is being captured progressively in financial form. [...]
Lamentations 4:2
How the precious sons of Zion, once worth their weight in gold, are now considered as pots of clay, the work of a potter's hands!
27: Receptivity
Jul 6 2009Richard J. Mouw
Transforming leaders are receptive to others. We cannot hope to bring about effective change unless we are willing to be changed. This is a profoundly biblical idea. But it is also a risky one to pursue. [...]
Proverbs 12:15
The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice. [...]
26: True Self
Jun 29 2009Richard Koch
To thine own self be true - but which self should you be true to? The self that spends a huge amount of time and sweat getting nowhere? The self that engages in destructive patterns of behavior? [...]
I Peter 4:10
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. [...]
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