The ‘Help Me’ Thanksgiving Day Prayer

The ‘Help Me’ Thanksgiving Day Prayer ~ Samuel F. Pugh -edited

Oh God, when I have food, help me to remember the hungry;

[When I am dressed warm, help me to remember who need clothes to be warm]

When I have work [and a pay check], help me to remember the jobless [who don't];

When I have a home, help me to remember those who have no home at all;

When I am without pain, help me to remember those who suffer,

And in remembering, help me to destroy my complacency;

Stirred my compassion, and Help me be concerned enough to help;

By word and deed, those who cry out for what we take for granted.

[We ARE most thankful for your gift of Jesus, Your Son, The Christ and our Savior. And in his name I pray, Amen!]

 

Happy Thanksgiving to Everyone and to Everyone a great nap!

Serving Him by Serving His,

Ray Ivey

 

Leading at a Higher Level - Task versus Relations Oriented Leadership

Kenneth Blanchard writes, "The leaders in high performing organizations know that their bottom line depends on their customer, their people and their investors - a triple bottom line."

 

"To keep your customers today, you can’t be content just to satisfy them; you have to create raving fans. Raving fans are customers who are so excited about the way you treat them that they want to tell everyone about you..." 

 

In my "Customer Satisfaction" presentation, I talk about 'delighting' the customer. You have focused on what means to achieve it.

 

"When you are leading at a higher level, you have a “both/and” philosophy. The development of people is of equal importance to performance. As a result, the focus in leading at a higher level is on long-term results and human satisfaction."

 

"Leading at a higher level, therefore, is a process. It can be defined as the process of achieving  worthwhile results while acting with respect, care and fairness for the well-being of all involved. When that occurs, self-serving leadership is not possible. It’s only when you realize that it’s not about you that you begin to lead at a higher level." ~ Leading at a Higher Level - Kenneth Blanchard

"In general, the leader who is more highly rated by superiors and peers, who is most satisfying to subordinates, and whose approach results in the good performance of the group is likely to be both relations oriented and task oriented in an integrated fashion." Bass & Stogdill, Leadership & Management, Chapter 23 Task versus Relation Oriented Leadership, p.510.  http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/pi/ppf/Bass.pdf

Goals: Ways & Destinations

When Alice asked him which way she ought  to go  and said she didn't care where she went, the Cat simply replied, "then it doesn't matter which way you go." From Lewis Carroll's 1865 novel, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
   Aren't there many who are simply looking for another interesting path to follow and entertain themselves along that way with little concern for the results or long term consequences? They run almost aimlessly. Oh, they have a wish list. But they dream at night only wake to the same days they've already spent and thus they seek a new way of spending it without consideration of where it will all truly end.
   What are your purpose and goals in life? Do you have the commitment and discipline to realistically pursue them? The passion to set them as a priority in your life?
   If one has a goal, then there are objectives to achieving that goal and THEN MOST IMPORTANT, there are tasks to achieve each objective. All measurable so when the next new year occurs and measurements are taken, they can see if they are in fact closer to achieving what they've dreamed about and not simply keep dreaming and wishing.

 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize ? Run in such a way as to get the prize . Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."
  1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NIV
And What Ultimate Prize?
   If you are to have a life spent on a cause greater than oneself. Then what would that be? Nothing could be greater than our eternal purpose in Life to glorify God. Are You IN?
 "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians  3:14 NIV

This is Ray Ivey and I am - Joining Others on a Journey to a Destination in the Future

Do Not Become Weary in Doing Good!!

"Do more than belong: participate. Do more than care: help. Do more than believe: practice. Do more than be fair: be kind. Do more than forgive: forget. Do more than dream: work."
~ William Arthur Ward 

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.  Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.  Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies.  Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.  Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.  Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.  Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten.  Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.  Give your best anyway.

 In the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway.

-this version is credited to Mother Teresa

 

Galatians 6:9-10
"9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." NIV


HANDLING MISTAKES AND THEIR VALUE

When an employee makes a mistake, some bosses rip and roar, ostracize, give the silent treatment; and make people feel they were being disloyal – all bad strategies which corrupts team cohesiveness and effectiveness. To err is human. What makes the difference is how we adjust from there. Loyalty to the team is very important, but the boss I mentioned in the beginning is actually the one who is disloyal and corrupting team cohesiveness and effectiveness.

When I was in flight school and made a mistake, my flight instructor would say, “Okay, let’s not make that one again.” Most of us learn from our mistakes and that improvement is a most valuable product. As for my flight instructor, and I knew he had my interest at heart – was on my team. He taught me how to fly and a lot about leadership.

Mistakes are teambuilding learning experiences which present opportunities for individual growth and strengthening the team.

Assume the Good; Doubt the Bad http://ow.ly/f7IeK Immediately changes your feedback effectiveness! Blanchard LeaderChat‏@LeaderChat

  Litter pickup patrols called "police calls" in the military are a big deal and can quickly bring heat from the chain of command (upper management).
  While in command at Fort Eustis in Virginia, the post command sergeant major stopped by our office and began critizing my battalion command sergeant because one of the "police call" areas on post, for which we were responsible, was a mess. He went on to chastise us for not having our priorites straight charging that we were performing our "police calls" duties poorly or ignoring them. He said it was unacceptable as the area of concern was a fast food business that operated on post and was constantly viewed by visitors to our post.
  A quick call by my sergeant major, to our company that was responsilbe for the area, found that the company had been conducting unannounce "all hands on deck" readiness exercise. A super sensitive drill that also was blessed with alot of attention from higher headquarters. This required all personnel to be present for the first couple of hours of the day. As soon as it was over they planned to  "catch up" on other duties such as the "police calls". They had their priorites correct and were not performing their "police calls" duties poorly nor ignoring them. They just had not gotten to them yet due to another priority from our post headquarters. 
  Later I met with the post command sergeant major and being friends we reviewed the incident. I proposed that when we see something wrong, we should approach others with respectful consideration (1) that something beyond their control has prevented them from getting it done; (2) that whatever is wrong is not for a lack of trying to get it done correctly and (3) that only as the last thing to think should we suspect they have intentionally neglected their work or done it poorly.
  So yes, Leaders should "Assume the Good; Doubt the Bad"

Success in Life Defined Differently

Success
Success is speaking words of praise
   In cheering other people's ways,
   In doing just the best you can
   With every task and every plan.
It's silence when your speech would hurt,
    Politeness when your neighbor's curt.
It's deafness when the scandal flows,
    And sympathy with others' woes.
It's loyalty when duty calls,
It's courage when disaster falls,
It's patience when the hours are long;
Its found in laughter and in song;
It's in the silent time of prayer,
    In happiness and in despair
    In all of life and nothing less
We find the thing we call success.
~ Author Unknown

Consider what you are successful at and what you are not.