• Clarity will determine whether a company responds to changing conditions or falls further back.
• Clarity will determine whether an individual takes the steps to move forward or flounders in mediocrity.
• Clarity will determine whether the population of a country will stand up for their rights or be suppressed by an iron fist.
• Clarity will determine whether a newly married couple will move forward in harmony or devolve into dysfunction.

Clarity, is at the heart of my coaching engagements. You need to gain increasing clarity about yourself and your situation so you can take the right actions to get where you want to go and not keep getting tripped up all the time.

The Definitions:

“Free from obscurity and easy to understand; the comprehensibility of clear expression”: Wordnet, Princeton University

“The quality of being clear and easy to understand”: Cambridge University Press c. 2004

“Clearness” Roget’s New Millenium Thesaurus c. 2005

Synonyms: accuracy, brightness, certainty, cognizability, comprehensibility, conspicuousness, decipherability, definition, directness, distinctness, evidence, exactitude, exactness, explicability, explicitness, intelligibility, legibility, limpidity, limpidness, lucidity, manifestness, obviousness, openness, overtness, palpability, penetrability, perceptibility, perspicuity, plainness, precision, prominence, purity, salience, simplicity, tangibility, transparency, unambiguity, unmistakability – Roget’s New Millenium Thesaurus c. 2005

Antonyms: distortion, fog, fuzziness, haze, obscurity, opacity, unclearness – Roget’s New Millenium Thesaurus c. 2005

Three Levels of Clarity

1. Absolute Truth – Those truths that don’t change, no matter what you decide to believe about them. Biblical truth would be the perfect example. That God created men and women in His own image is an absolute truth.
2. Objective Facts – You have refused to talk with your sister for 8 years. We could talk to your sister and verify that as a fact.
3. Assumptions – This is where most people spend most of their life. You assume something to be true. You assume your sister never wants to talk to you again. You assume she is impossible to talk to. You assume your relationship can never be repaired. That is not a fact. It is an assumption.

Being clear about what you think and what you do is a critical step in taking responsibility for your current actions. Clarity allows you the freedom to design better possibilities for future action that will get you to where you or your organization wants to go.

Every effort at moving forward must start with clarity. We must start with what is … the truth. The Bible says the truth will set you free. This has been repeated throughout history. When people have heard, seen or experienced the truth, they have surged forward with new ideas, renewed passion and vigor, improved laws and approaches. The truth set them free.

Lies and incomplete truth lead to bondage. They hold us back. They can hold companies and entire nations back.

Always seek to start with truth. See things as they are. Take responsibility as the truth points to you. Be honest about what you think and how you feel. Be honest about your attitudes and areas where you find yourself resisting. Then you will be able to move forward with clearer direction, focus and distinct outcomes in mind.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CONTACT:
Gary Wood, President and Director
Christian Coaches Network
705.687.2711
gary@christiancoaches.com
www.christiancoaches.com

The largest public search platform worldwide that is devoted entirely to finding professional Christian coaches has changed leadership.

On February 1, 2010, Executive Coach, Gary Wood assumed leadership of the Christian Coaches Network from founder Judy Santos, who has provided vision and direction to the organization for the last 12 years.

She says of her choice of Gary Wood as successor, “He has been on the CCN Advisory Board since it’s inception in 1998.  I have worked with him on various projects, taught with him and appreciated his wisdom and friendship over the last twelve years.  I pass the torch to him with confidence and a sense of peace that this is a change that was orchestrated by God.”

Currently Christian Coaches Network supports hundreds of professional coaches from 11 countries and a broad spectrum of life experience, professional background, expertise and denominational affiliation.

Individuals or organizations who are searching for a professional coach can now find CCN members who represent almost every area of personal, business or ministry specialty, ranging from life, relationship and marriage coaching to career, leadership and executive coaching.

CCN provides support,  connection and professional development opportunities to members. This is supported by three levels of recognized certification within the Christian coaching field.

CCN’s new Director, Gary Wood is a professionally credentialed coach who has more than 35 years business and ministry experience. Since 1998, through his executive coaching firm G.E.Wood and Associates, Gary has worked with an international clientele of corporate, government, business and nonprofit leaders.

In recently addressing member coaches, Gary said of his additional role, “I may assume the public face of CCN but I am far from the total substance. Together we make the whole. The very fact that CCN continues forward bears out the fact that God has plans … plans that include each one of us.”

ABOUT – To learn more about Christian Coaches Network and its membership services or to search for a professional Christian coach, visit their website at www.christiancoaches.com.

END

As my coaching clients have spent time with the questions and their answers, good decisions have been made.

Here are a ten of the fourteen questions. If you are being asked to assume responsibility, whether it be a promotion, new company or new leadership role, take the time to sit down with a piece of paper and a pen and write out your answers. That way you will be very intentional and capture your thoughts concisely. This will enable you to make a better decision about your future.

1. Am I really committed to this cause and the people it represents? If you are not, don’t put yourself or them through the pain. Those who take ownership will put their all into it and stand a far better chance of success.
2. Do I have confidence in the senior leadership and feel I can support them? If any doubt lingers about the senior leadership, deal with the questions now. You will have a lot to do with them and your current inkling may end up your lengthy headache … or worse.
3. Can I make the time for this leadership responsibility without creating excessive stress? In reality, how much time do you think this will take? Knowing your own style, will you allow it to consume your time to an unhealthy degree. Preemptive action may be necessary.
4. Do I and my spouse agree about this decision? If you don’t … don’t. If you enjoy a good relationship with your spouse, they are your first line of defense in making a good decision. They know you, care about what happens to you and how it will impact the family.
5. Leadership issues take discernment. Am I a discerning person and can I improve that competency? Some leadership positions require real wisdom. There are tricky issues to deal with. If that’s not you, then say no. If you are willing to grow in this area, then move forward humbly and open to learn.
6. Do I have any hidden agenda that could sabotage meetings or others on my team? If being in this role is all about you, your agenda may be the unspoken problem in every meeting. Deal with that stuff now, not later. Be up front about truth.
7. Are there any continuing things in my life that if people knew about them would disqualify me from serving? Get those things cleaned up now. Don’t live with guilt and the fear of being ‘found out’. Failures are not final. Learning from them is priceless.
8. Am I a good team player or do I generally want my own way? The organization is headed for trouble with a dictator at the helm. If you see yourself as the great ruler, get down off your pedestal. Learn how to work with the team. Provide great leadership and you will garner the respect that can dramatically move things forward.
9. How have I been prepared for this task? Experience, skills, interests? Simple question with big importance. What has brought you to this point? The sum total of who you are will determine where you go and how you lead the organization or project forward.
10. To what degree am I willing to change so that I can make a more effective contribution? There’s the rub. Are you willing to change? Those who are intentional about looking hard at themselves and making real personal and professional change, move forward. Others languish at the level of their refusal to do what’s needed to reach up to their potential.

Start here. Ten steps to address burnout.

1. Rule out anything medical. Make sure what you are feeling doesn’t have its roots in a physical problem.
2. Know that there is hope. This is not a hopeless situation without solutions. Just know that that is the case.
3. Take responsibility for change. Take ownership for turning this situation around.
4. Face the fear. Change will involve moving into new territory and leaving old. Be very clear about what it involves.
5. Develop a strategy. Clarity rules. Having a plan for letting things go or for adding new ways of working takes a lot of pressure off.
6. Name the one thing. One thing will make the biggest difference. One thing can probably unlock the road block to solutions. Name it clearly.
7. Have support. Don’t run solo through this time of life. Have good people with you and behind you. Hire a personal coach if need be.
8. Take significant action. That’s exactly what it will take. No playing around the fringes. Do what needs to be done to change what needs to be changed.
9. Know that burnout is not permanent. This will come to an end. Do it on your terms as far as possible.
10. Draw on your faith. God is available 24/7. There is no time you will catch Him off duty. Call out to Him for strength and solutions.

This is a turning moment in your life and work. And that should make Christmas look just a little bit brighter this year. Solutions are possible and with your intentional action are at hand.

From time to time I am asked to speak to professional groups from the scriptures. Sometimes an entire audience will be made up of leaders who may be spending their day on topics of best practice and professional improvement.

The primary purpose of God’s Word is not to serve as a textbook to teach us about leadership and management. There is a wealth to be learned from the scriptures on those topics, to be sure and I’m happy to teach about it.

The primary purpose of God’s Word is to teach us God’s heart about relationship. God wants an intimate and growing relationship with people, including owners, entrepreneurs, executives and leaders. In giving his Son on the cross, God paid an unimaginable price to have you and me be in a right, intimate and growing relationship with Him. He wants our heart, not our professional curiosity.

If God has our heart, He can influence the way we manage people, advance vision and carry out our own personal work.  His transformative work challenges and changes our attitudes.

Out of understanding how valuable we are to God and how much he loves us and desires to form us and fellowship with us flow all sorts of implications for leaders and leadership.

You don’t have to wait until our paths intersect to hear me speaking about it. Seriously … crack open your own Bible and get reading. But if you haven’t done it for awhile, don’t first go looking for leadership principles. Go looking for relationship. It’s there you will find the heart of God.

Face it. You’re out of shape. You’re probably feeling it and a look at the naked person in the mirror confirms it. Inside and out, you probably need some work. Of course the real change happens in your head. You are either ready to make a commitment to do whatever it takes or you’re not.

Let’s talk starting points. You are not Superman or Superwoman. You are an out of shape, concerned about your health, executive. So start simple. First, get your health professional on board. Make sure they give you the green light to begin implementing these eight steps.

Then head for your local bookstore. In the Health and Fitness section there are a ton of books on the topic. Arm yourself with some basic, get in shape, eat healthy type volumes and read them. Then:

1. Stretch – Those muscles have been so tight for so long they need some warming up. Over time, stretch every direction your body can manage. Stretch everyday. Get up from your desk and stretch often.

2. Build Stamina – Get out from behind the desk and start walking. Build up and even get yourself to run for a few feet. As you keep going over the weeks, you’ll find your heart getting used to the good routine. Get outside with the children or grandchildren. They should be able to show you a thing or two about movement. If your fitness to date is spelled s-l-u-g, get up and get that heart pumping.

3. Build Strength – If the most you’ve done for some time is lift a pen and a file folder, then you are not too high on the exercise scale. You need to move some weight around. No, you don’t need a lot of fancy equipment. Again, there are lots of books that show simple equipment techniques that will do you just fine for now. Start working with weights. Build muscle. Turn soft and saggy into firm and buff. (And be content with your age. If you are mid-forties or fifties you probably will not look 25 again. Look like a sharp, really in shape (insert your age) executive.

4. Cut Out Excessive Alcohol and Smoking – You’re killing yourself. Period. Your children want a Dad or Mom that outlives them. Stop drinking too much and make today the last day you ever light up. No crap about “I can’t stop” or “I need it for stress.” Stop and you will have a better tool to deal with stressful situations, your good health and clear mind.

5. Reduce Sugar – Cut down on the sweets. Sodas, deserts, snack foods etc. Sorry. There is no other way.

6. Reduce Salt – We are an over-salted society. Read the labels on your food products. Cut your intake of salt.

7. Improve the Quality of Your Food – What goes in will help determine your health. Make it the best food you can. Natural vegetables are at the top of the list. There are tons of books on good nutrition, so pay attention to them. You don’t need the fad diet (and leave those books on the shelf). You are aiming for a change in lifestyle.

8. Reduce the Quantity of Food – Like excessive alcohol and smoking, excessive eating can do you in too. Not you, you say? Look at your portion size. It may be enough to feed two people. Practice portion control.

There you have it, 8 places to start for executive health and fitness. Just start. No, you don’t have to look like “him” or “her”. Just be you … a healthier, more alert, more fit you.

Is personal development dead? … the term I mean … is it spent, passe, overworked, past its prime, tired and in need of younger blood showing up on the scene?

‘Personal development’ – it’s a great term, you know. Keeping it alive and well certainly fits into the movement that benefits to the tune of billions every year. But with all the personal development, you’d think we’d be further ahead in our companies and communities.

Again,  could it be that a lot of it just isn’t implemented at a very personal level? Or that too few people even explore what might be involved and are content to live in mediocrity as long as their pay cheque keeps showing up? Or that industry truthfully has no stomach to encourage and inspire it?

Maybe we need a new term, something to jettison the stereotype and start fresh … something meaningful, measurable and moving. Maybe personal development should be ‘Practical Monthly Improvement’. How about that? It isn’t glamorous but it’s a workhorse of a term.

Practical Monthly Improvement implies that something is measured from month to month. It assures us there is actual forward movement. And it certainly tells us that it shows up in everyday practical ways.

What would you do to achieve Practical Monthly Improvement? (Or PMI, as we’d have to say in business speak.)

Imagine what could happen in a company or an organization where every individual from bottom to top was seriously committed to month over month improvement both individually and collectively. Where compensation and rewards were based on real practical, observable, monthly improvement? What would that look like?

You might be thinking this is idealistic nut-talk … a whole organization … come on. But practical monthly improvement isn’t corny, and I don’t care what new term you come up with if the intention is right. Maybe, just maybe if we got rid of some of the stereotypical ideas people have about personal development and how difficult it is going to be, we could move forward faster.

When we published 52 Solutions for Those Who Need a 25 Hour Day, we were committed to really, really practical action steps. Pick any ten simple practices from that book and it will probably transform the way you work and lead. Just ten.That’s what I mean by practical monthly improvement.

And while I’m at it, maybe we should require PMI as a condition of employment and leadership or running for public office. Prove you’re engaged with doing better and making things better. Your company, cause … or country … will be better for it. You’ll be more satisfied. It could develop into a way of living and working from here on in.

When being aware and being willing get turned into daily, intentional and decisive action, there is no telling what can be accomplished in a life … or a country.

What do you say my friend? Does PMI have traction?

Probably more important than talking about your problem is taking the time to define your problem in the clearest of terms. Defining is the place to start. Once that is done you will have a clearer conversation. And it will be your gut, your emotions, your feelings that will let you know how good your definition is. When it is really cutting close to the core, you know you’re probably on target.

As Dr. Phil McGraw frequently states, “You can’t change what you don’t acknowledge.” And until you can articulate whatever that area of needed change is, so that you mind and your heart are acknowledging, you will be unable to find the proper options that will lead you to the best strategies and actions to apply.

My most important task as a personal and executive coach is helping leaders clarify what the real situation, problem or opportunity is and to say that in the fewest words possible. Once that is done we know what we are really talking about and then we can come up with options that apply to the real topic at hand.

Those who are committed to personal, professional or organizational growth, clarify frequently as needed. Those who are complacent about consistent clarification continue to live, perform and lead in mediocrity.

I am sure that you probably have one problem or opportunity today that will benefit from clarity. It is the truth that sets free. It is the lack of it that leads to frustration, neglect and deterioration to whatever degree it may manifest itself.

The greatest change will come when it can be articulated in the simplest possible terms.

Resisting needed change has destroyed relationships, marriages, families, organizations, companies, programs and nations. Change starts with the individual. On Monday, we provided an 8 step strategy to initiate change. That doesn’t mean it will be easy, but it does mean that it is possible. It’s going to first of all mean a change of attitude that embraces the new possibilities that change will produce.

August 25: Whose Problem is It?

Knowing who it is that has the problem is the vital first step in finding solutions. Someone else may have projected their problem on you for years. You have lived with the burden of it. No more. If it is their problem, let them live with it. Being released from the guilt or shame will let you establish boundaries,  take better care of yourself and let them know that if they desire solutions, they will have to be the ones to take action and make change.

August 27: What Makes a Good Leader Work with a Coach?

What do great leaders know and practice that the vast majority of other leaders don’t? They work with a Coach … not because they have big problems but because they want to be better prepared to deal with big problems. And not only that, they want to be more aware of opportunity when it shows itself. Coaching for the successful leader is not so much remedial as it is transformational. Thursday’s article outlines the top 12 areas that successful leaders and executives have proactively used our coaching .

August 28: An Example of Employee Engagement

On Friday we examined how one company changed their thinking … and their approach after 50 years. They engaged their employees in the larger context of what the company was doing. It raised a sense of place and contribution. The end result for the company was more engaged and satisfied employees and increased profit. You may have golden ideas hidden in your staff but there is no encouragement or environment to get them out. Achieving employee engagement isn’t a ‘hope so’ exercise. It will require a solid change of culture and attitude. It will require good leadership.

Most times it is completely a problem of attitude or thinking, of refusing to take ownership of a new way. Yes, we may need to learn something new or have someone help us to develop a strategy so we know how to move forward but those things can be done. To use those as excuses is really not the point. The fact of the matter is, a change of attitude and thinking is of paramount importance.

Most times “I can’t do it” is really not accurate. It is “I refuse to do it”. And until you deal with that attitude of refusal and develop a  “whatever it takes, I will do it” attitude, nothing will change … in your life, your company or your organization.We are creatures of the comfortable. Even that which is painful can become comfortable, even though it hurts.

If you are challenged in this area, consider these steps.

1. Get assistance. Use a coach. Someone who understands what it is you are trying to achieve and can assist as you begin to initiate this new path.
2. Develop a strategy. Be very clear about what is holding you back and what can move you forward and develop a strategy to address both.
3. Start. Don’t make any excuses that you ‘have to have this’ or ‘this has to be done first’ or whatever. If you can’t start absolutely, completely, start some portion of it.
4. Be held accountable. Give your coach permission to hold you accountable. Have others around you hold you accountable.
5. Provide consequences for going back and rewards for going forward so it becomes more painful to go back on your word and more pleasant to follow through.
6. Persevere until you break through. Go until the new path becomes the accepted and habitual path.
7. Always address resistance thinking. Be very aware of when you are resisting and think about the process that caused you to think that way. Capture the thoughts and discard those which hold you back. Replace them with new thinking that moves your forward.
8. Think of yourself as an implementer, completer, a winner versus a loser or a failure. Change your thinking about yourself and repeat it frequently to counteract all the old negative messages that are probably playing and running through your mind over and over again.

If you want to win the battle of how to deal with resistance to change within yourself, start with these few steps.