Blog
- Animated
I get a little fired up over things sometimes.
I have calmed down some over the years.
But in many cases I have not.
When it comes to something being unjust for example, this is a trigger point for me and I am very prone to say something to try and get it corrected… and I get a little more heated about it all than I should sometimes.
At work, if I feel like we are not getting the support we need or a pricing policy is unfair for example, it can get to me and cause me to have a little more “lively” discussion about it all instead of staying calm and trying to work it out at a more civil level.
I was a little more animated about some things than I should have been this week, and although my intent was correct, my delivery once again was bad. One instance in particular that sticks out was that I ended up lambasting a leader who did not do any homework prior to answering my questions for help and it ended up being a waste of time for us both.
How do you react when things don’t go your way?
Do you keep your cool or sometimes get ”animated”?
A Real Christian Businessman knows that keeping our cool when things get a little stressful is the proper way to act. Yes Jesus flipped the change tables in the temple when he was upset about folks turning the church into a house of gain, but how many other times did he act like this? I think maybe 5 times in total? All the other times we only read about Jesus being calm in so many different stressful situations (even when he was getting the beat down from the Pharisees before being crucified!).
Next time something doesn’t quite go your way or there is some injustice happening around you, remember to have the Jesus attitude and approach it in a calm manner.
There are enough people like me getting “animated” about things that we need others out there to counteract our behavior.
“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Prov 15:1 (NIV)
- The Thief
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy: I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10 (NIV)
Watch out for the thief this week!
He comes in many different forms… and we don’t always recognize them! - Change It Up
We’ve gone through a few changes on my job recently. I’ve gotten a new branch manager, we moved our offices a couple of weeks ago, and our compensation plan got adjusted (don’t mess with my money! Lol). I also have a different processor that supports me now and a couple of my favorite colleagues left to go work at another company.
That’s a lot of change in the course of 6 weeks! Some of these changes affected me more so than others. Changing how I am paid always ranks as something that I pay close attention to, but also losing a couple of my favorite people that I worked with ranks pretty high for me as a difficult change since I highly value relationships and friendships.
For me, I don’t always do that well with change… I’ve gotten much better about it over the years but I’m still one that doesn’t adjust well or quickly.
A Real Christian Businessman knows that change is inevitable and that “change is constant”. It’s how we grow and how life is in this world today. I’ve had to learn to temper my attitude and actions when changes come around. I now listen more attentively, write down my questions instead of blurting them out and I give myself time to process the change.
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens” Ecc 3:1 (NIV)
When change comes to the workplace, let’s make sure we stay grounded and curious. The change is going to happen anyway, it’s how we choose to respond that will make the biggest difference and impact.
- In The World
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Rom 12:2 (NIV)
No matter what is going on in the culture and the world, we have to fix our minds on God.
He will then guide us through.
Be in the world and not of it! - Level Up
Every year as a licensed loan officer, I have to take a certain amount of Continuing Education courses in order to renew my license. I also voluntarily take training classes offered by my company to gain better knowledge and expertise on specific loan programs.
One training is required. The other is not.
We have tons and tons of training at our company when it comes to loan programs. You could get lost in the sheer amount of training offered and it would take hours upon hours each day to go through everything that is available.
At one point in my mortgage career I did just this. I got lost in all of the training. I would sign up for everything that was offered and would even watch the recordings of a training later if I happened to miss it.
Now I am being much more focused.
I still take training offered by my company, but I look at what is offered and choose things specifically that will help me grow my business. It’s easy to get caught up in “being active” but harder to stay focused on things that will generate revenue and help me get the families I work with into the best financial situation regarding their mortgage.
Do you ever try to get better at your current occupation? Does your company offer specific training as it relates to your job? Do you regularly seek out education in your field to try and get better?
A Real Christian Businessman knows we have to level up our skills periodically. Staying stagnant in our occupation for too long of a period will only cause us to become complacent… and possibly start to resent the job that we are doing each day.
“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity…” Ecc 5:15-16a (NIV)
“Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper.” (Prov 13:4 (NLT)
When you stop and think about your current job, take a little time to engage in some training or learn a new wrinkle as it relates to your occupation.
It will make you better.
It will make you happier.
And it honors God. - Others Can Do It
“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 14:11 (NIV)
It’s so easy with social media to talk about how well we are doing no matter what the circumstances may be.
We have to be careful and remember to keep ourselves humble so that we don’t stick out too much! - Get It Right
I recently had a change in my processor that works with me (my right hand person helping me get all my loans closed). The person I had been working with for the past 3 years has decided to leave the company. My “new” assigned processor and I have worked together before though. She was the first processor I worked with when I started so there was already some familiarity.
I don’t do well with change, but since I was changing to someone I already knew and was familiar with, the change hasn’t been that big of a deal. What has been bothersome though is my new processor doesn’t have the attention to detail as much as my old processor did.
She misses things.
More than my other processor did.
At first it didn’t bother me, as I knew there was going to be an adjustment period getting back used to each other and how we each work. But I have noticed that many things end up getting missed because she may go too fast, has too many files on her plate or doesn’t pay attention to some of the little things that come up.
Many times in the past when errors like this would happen I would call someone out on each mistake and let them know they were dropping the ball in a knee jerk / not so kind way.
But I didn’t knee jerk this time.
I instead, in a kind way, sent her simple straightforward messages about each situation that came up and asked her if she could watch out so that next time things didn’t happen the way that they were happening.
And so far it has worked! There are still some bumpy roads here or there but being kind and polite and thoughtful about my approach has helped us get better as a team.
It worked for me this time, but I don’t always operate this way!
A Real Christian Businessman knows that going off the cuff instantly when something goes wrong rarely yields good results. Approaching work mistakes with a teammate and having a humble heart and open mind will almost always turn out for the best.
A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but the one who is patient calms a quarrel.” Prov 15:18 (NIV)
I got it right this time but I continue to work on getting better at reacting instead of thinking first.
How do you react in a situation like this when one of your teammates continues to mess up? - Judgin’
“…for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.” Rom 2:1b (NIV)
We have to be very careful in how we look at others because it is clear our judgment will fall squarely back on us!
I do this all the time, whether driving down the road or dealing with people in my business.
Our reminder this week – Judge not! - On Time Is Late
I’ve always been one that has struggled with showing up to things on time. Whether it is to church, office meetings, dental appointments, whatever… my track record is around 50/50 as to showing up before the actual time that the event starts. “Early is on time, on time is late”, is an old saying that I have tried to live by but obviously struggle to do.
50/50 is a bad track record in my mind. Better than most, but not good enough!
I’ve learned over the years that if someone says what time an event starts, I get that START TIME stuck in my head, and often end up LEAVING at that time, as opposed to showing up at that time. A bad habit that I am still trying to break today!
What I have learned to do lately is that when I hear or see what time the event is, I figure out how long it will take me to get to that event, and I make up a “leaving time” and say it to myself over and over again. This “leaving time” then gets engrained in my mind, instead of what the start time is. Since implementing this I have improved my track record over 50/50.
How are you when it comes to showing up on time?
Is your track record better or worse than mine?
A Real Christian Businessman knows that punctuality is a characteristic we all need to have as the Master had it all the time. Jesus showed up on time to everything and never rushed! Even in the story of his friend Lazarus that was dead when he arrived. Jesus was “supposed” to show up before Lazarus died in order to heal his sickness. Everyone claimed he was “too late” to help heal him so Lazarus died, but Jesus still got there in enough time to raise him from the dead (John Ch. 11).
Jesus was never late to any of his meetings, so we shouldn’t be either.
Figure out how your personality works and change your habits to show up on time like I am trying to do.
It just makes for a better life! - Word Wise
“Words kill, words give life; they’re either poison or fruit – you choose.” Prov 18:20 (MSG)
We Choose!
Let’s make sure the words we use this week are fruit and not poison.