It's About....You!

We've been hammering politics pretty hard this last week, maybe it's time we were a little selfish! It's always good to take a step back and reflect on ourselves. So; how's it going? Are you happy with your relationships? Has you financial plan come to fruition? Are we as tight with our Creator as we'd like to be? If you don't like the answers your getting, or simply don't have an answer to any of those questions, don't despair! It's nothing a little reading won't shed some light on.

Chris Brady and Orrin Woodward in their book Launching a Leadership Revolution, suggest we can actually grade ourselves on these issues. It's a great way to self analyze ourselves so that we can be aware of our strong points and look to improve where we are lacking.

Let's look at relationships for example. List all that are applicable to you. Spouse, children, siblings, parents, and co-workers. Then on a scale of 1 to 10 grade yourself. Be honest now, remember the 11th commandment;Thou shalt not fake thy self out! Let's say for argument sake you scored a 4 with your spouse, a 5 with the kids,a 8 with your siblings, a 9 with your parents, and a 8 with co-workers. Averaged out you scored a strong 6, almost a 7! Very telling, your attitude at home isn't what it is at work or with others you don't live with. In this instance I'd be rereading Love and Respect (Eggerichs), and the Five Love Languages (Chapman). If they were all low I'd think I'd start with The Difference Maker (Maxwell), and Leadership and Self Deception (The Arbinger Institute).

Don't limit yourself to reading to self correct. The quickest way is a 360 degree review. Take the relationships you want to improve and simply ask those people. What could I do in your eyes to be a better person? It takes a lot of self confidence to ask for this feedback, but it is spot on straight information. It'll eliminate our blind spots in a hurry!

The same self correcting steps apply to financial and faith. Break each down into categories and grade them, and don't be afraid to ask for input from those who have the results you seek. Raise just one of those numbers just 2 points and you'll pull your average way up and life will take on a whole new outlook!

God Bless
Capt. Bill