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Pastor Nathan introduced me to Napoleon Hill! This guys is amazing. Think and Grow Rich is a project that Andrew Carnegie had Napoleon take on. Andrew Carnegie asked Napoleon to study the top 50 wealthiest men in the world at that time. I believe Napoleon said it took him twenty years to write this book. He spent 20 years writing this book! Studying the lifestyles of the wealthiest men in the world. He found a lot of common factors on how these men became successful and rich. This book the outcome of his research.

Biggest Takeaway: The major factor in all of these men’s lives was faith. An unwavering confidence that no matter what, they would be successful. I thought it was interesting how much faith is a factor.

To be honest, I have to go back and reread this book at least another 3-4 times before the principles will even start to stick and be applied in my life. This is a must read book. In fact I’d make it a must read 3-4 times book.

Some Highlights:

• One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat.

• It taught me to keep on keeping on, no matter how hard the going may be, a lesson I needed to learn before I could succeed in anything.

• Christianity is the greatest potential power in the world today, because its founder was an intense dreamer who had the vision and the imagination to see realities in their mental and spiritual form before they had been transmuted into physical form.

• If you are influenced by the opinions of others, you will have no DESIRE of your own.

• The world has the habit of making room for the man whose words and actions show that he knows where he is going.

• Love is, without question, life’s greatest experience.

• Man’s greatest motivating force is his desire to please woman!

• NO MAN IS HAPPY OR COMPLETE WITHOUT THE MODIFYING INFLUENCE OF THE RIGHT WOMAN.

• If you neglect to make the start, or stop before you arrive, no one will be to blame, but YOU. This responsibility is yours.

• The fear of criticism robs man of his initiative, destroys his power of imagination, limits his individuality, takes away his self-reliance, and does him damage in a hundred other ways.

• A busy person seldom has time to think about dying. He finds life too thrilling to worry about death.

• “The first and best victory is to conquer self. To be conquered by self is, of all things, the most shameful and vile.”

Serve Your Way to the Top – 7 Lessons I Learned While Serving My Way onto a Church Staff

Lesson 5 – Grow Something

⁸This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” -John 15:8

This is probably one of the hardest lessons I learned and that I’m continually learning. To recognize that part of serving isn’t just showing up and doing what you’re told. It’s taking what you’re given and growing it. Making it better. Your ability to grow something will always result in your promotion. You’re inability to grow something will result in frustration and possibly demotion.

You won’t serve your way to the top just by showing up. You’ll serve your way to the top when you grow something.

So how can you grow the area you oversee?

1.) Get Coached - I’m a young leader – there is so much I don’t know it’s not even funny. To be honest, I don’t know a lot about how to grow an organization. So what do I do to make up for my incompetency? Surround myself with people who have grown something and ask them lots of questions. Experienced people will take your farther, faster.

2.) Steal Everything! – Don’t know what to do? Find out who is doing it well and steal their model! Steal their creative ideas! In time, you’ll be able to take others ideas and mold them with your own. Never stop coming up with creative ideas yourself, but never be afraid to copy someone or some organization that does it really well.

3.) Develop Potential Leaders - Find the potential leaders in your organization and develop them. When they’re ready – put them in charge of an area and help them grow it. To be honest, if you have the right leader, growth will take care of itself. Believe in people and let them go to grow!

What are some things you do to grow something in the areas you lead?

¹⁸But now God has set the members, every one of them in the body, as it has pleased him. – I Cor. 12:18

“Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming.”  -John Wooden

I’ve just finished my first month of P90x and I was also going through this book by Coach Wooden over the weekend. I’ve also been listening to Keith Moore’s “Graces and Places” series. The theme throughout all of them is the same- Success is doing the best you can with who you are, your gifts, and your circumstances.

God  gave us our gifts, talents, and abilities. He surrounded us with the people were surrounded with, He’s opened doors for us, He’s given us favor, He’s done for us more than we could ever imagine (Eph. 3:20).

Instead of taking what He’s given you and comparing with what He gave others or instead of wishing you had what somebody else has, be thankful for what you do have. See every gift as one to develop, every opportunity as one to sieze, every relationship you have as a God given one to cultivate.

Recognize that all you can do on any given day is simply give your best effort – do that, and God will take care of the rest.

“Make each day your masterpiece.” -John Wooden