12.31.24 ~ Checking the Balance

Good Morning!

I had a full day of travel and now it's time to welcome in the fiscal New Year, 2025. Over the years I've emphasized to everyone within reach that there are five categories of life found in Scripture (spiritual, emotional, physical, relational and financial).

It's that time of year where the majority of people are thinking about goals. You have read the books, you’ve attended the seminars, you’re putting in the work, but something keeps holding you back. And for most, they don't make the new year resolutions stick for more than two weeks. That’s something. Huh? How can that be? It’s not what you think. It’s your internal operating system, sabotaging your success. Right now 95% of your decisions are being made by programming. As we've talked on many occasions, we didn’t choose the programming installed into you before you were seven years old. Hence, we procrastinate on big opportunities. That’s why we stay stuck in the same pattern. That’s why another year goes by with the same unfulfilled goals. Ugh!

Let's jump to a strange conclusion to goal setting: We only know how good someone is when things are really bad. You only know how really good anything is when things are really bad. As we all know, it’s easy to look good when everything is going according to plan. When circumstances are calm and momentum is on your side, anyone can succeed. For a while, even if it's the timing of a lucky break. Doing well is no great feat if you’re not being challenged or tested along the way. It’s how you act and how you respond that determines how good one is.

It's when you get punched in the face that matters. When things start breaking, when crisis strikes, that’s when character defects start to surface. That’s when we see what somebody is really made of. This is not only true of people, it’s true of everything.

A product or service is only as good as it is when it breaks. What is the customer experience then? Is it easy? Is it simple? Is it inconvenient to get fixed? Company‘s customer service is only as good as how they handle a complaint. Does the company defend, justify, or blame, or do they see it as a relationship opportunity to WOW the customer? A leader is only as good as they are when crisis strikes, when revenue is dropping, when legal suits are mounting, When investors and employees are abandoning ship.

In the relational realm, we only know how good a father is when things are bad. When you find out that his son or daughter is dealing with a mental health crisis or drug problem, or CRI criminal problem, or chooses a professional or partner or lifestyle against the beliefs or preferences of the family...that's when you get to see how good of a father he is. You only get to see how good a spouse is when they are stressed, tired, mad, angry, or upset. Do they yell and scream? Do they throw a temper tantrum? Are they passive aggressive and play the silent treatment game? It is when things are bad that you get to see how good of a husband or a wife they really are.

So what is the big lesson for us as we get ready to close out 2024? Here it is, if you wanna know how good you are as a person, as a coworker, as a leader, as a friend, as a vendor, as a partner, as an advisor, as a sibling...evaluate how you act, react, step up or step back when things go bad or how good your product really is. Your service really is your customer experience, when things go bad, and if you wanna be good (Matt. 25:21,23; 2 Chron. 31:20,21; Lk. 16:10; Rom. 2:29 (Yesterday's study); 2 Cor. 5:9; 1 Pet. 1:7; etc), I surely should fix those spots. The spots where things go bad.

Make a plan how to act, how to react, how to step up when things happen because the one certainty in life is not if things will go bad, only when! And then how you act and react. That is what defines who you really are, how good you really are or not.

Today's thoughts from the Holiday Inn room may not sound super spiritual, but actually, they could be the most spiritual of the year! Will I change to become who He's calling me to be (Rom. 8:29; 13:14; 2 Tim. 2:19; Jn. 17:17-19; Eph. 1:4, 4:24; etc.). Hopefully, today’s lesson causes some introspection and discovery. Let's ask ourselves the question: "Where is one area of your life (spiritual, emotional, physical, relational, or financial) where you need to be better when things go bad based on how you might have acted or reacted in times past? Start with one idea. Then you can look at the rest after that.

Shalom from Ft. Walton Beach, Florida. I'll do 3 conferences while I'm down here: All areas where I've fallen short, but have and will get up again (Prov. 24:16): Marriage, Leadership, and Finances (Lk. 22:32). Prayer is appreciated.

Shalom!

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