Jolt! (22 page)

Most executives and leaders get stuck in crisis mode. Problems and challenges are hitting them on a daily, perhaps hourly, basis, and planning is difficult when you can't see beyond the immediate disaster. In that environment, it doesn't take long to sink deeper and deeper into the abyss and finally throw your hands up in failure.

But long-range planning can be done. Here are some suggestions for pulling your thinking out of an immediate crisis and considering your challenges from a greater distance:

Learn as much as you can about the competition.

Not necessarily to beat them, as much as to learn from them. Most people spend their careers either hating or ignoring the competition. Either way, you lose. You must realize that your perceived enemy can be your greatest friend. Learn from your competitors—both the good and the bad. The key is keeping an open mind. Leave your prejudices about their business at the door and objectively study how they work. It will expand your thinking and enlarge your perspective.

Study the legends in your business.

Why waste your life hitting walls, making mistakes, and tripping over obstacles, when you could easily learn from others who have gone before? Isaac Newton, considered by many to be the father of modern science, said, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Study the lives and accomplishments of those in business, sports, politics, the arts, and other areas that could benefit you. Head to the biography section of your favorite bookstore and start reading. Learn from their mistakes, so you can move ahead faster and with much less frustration.

Become active in organizations related to your business or passion.

Becoming active in trade organizations, business seminars, and workshop events gives you the unique opportunity to network and discover new methods, new perspectives, and new techniques. Find out what others are doing and use that for your benefit. It will enlarge your vision and widen your perspective.

Nothing will jolt your thinking faster than seeing how others do your job. And nothing will help you appreciate your situation better than seeing other failures!

Reading furnishes the mind only with materials of knowledge; it is thinking that makes what we read ours.
—JOHN LOCKE, PHILOSOPHER

Jolt your thinking today. Make good thinking intentional and deliberate, and make it a priority.

Your thoughts impact your life in very physical, tangible ways, and nothing you can do will contribute to changing your life more than transforming your thinking.

» JOLT #20
DISCOVER THE POWER OF FAITH
The Awesome Power in Looking Beyond Yourself

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.
—ALBERT EINSTEIN

He has put eternity in their hearts.
—ECCLESIASTES 3:11 NKJV

T
he search for eternal answers is so embedded in our DNA that without addressing spirituality we would miss a significant part of understanding the power of change. There are many books that address emotional, physical, and intellectual needs, but our spiritual longings are just as critical to a fulfilled life. When it comes to the faith that's played such an integral part in the making of America, however, we're suddenly getting a case of amnesia.

As I write this chapter, it is Christmas, and a great controversy is brewing across America. It has been reported that our culture has become so uncomfortable with Christianity that shopkeepers, clerks, executives, and salespeople are being advised to say “Happy holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas.” Some school systems—mostly unaware of the law—are forbidding their students to sing Christmas carols in their concerts, and some are even referring to the season as “winter holidays” instead of “Christmas holidays.”

At least we're not quite as far down that road as France. Major newspapers reported recently that even chocolate candy featuring religious themes was now banned from schools.

I comment on these developments not because I want to push religion down anyone's throat. I'm always ready to share my own personal journey of faith, but only when people are ready to listen. I write this because I grow more and more amazed at America's awkwardness with religious faith.

Yes, we need to be sensitive to people of all faiths. There was a place in ancient Greece called Mars Hill. It was where philosophers, thinkers, religious leaders, and writers of the time went to discuss new ideas. In many ways, it was a “marketplace” of beliefs, attitudes, religious ideas, and thought. When the apostle Paul visited Mars Hill to share the news about Jesus Christ, he not only recognized their gods but also was able to knowledgeably discuss their traditions and beliefs. Then, when he began sharing his own spiritual experience, it was in a direct but sensitive way, and not only did the audience listen, but many asked him to come back again.

But today, while our culture preaches tolerance, there is almost a hostility toward spiritual concepts and ideas—particularly those expressed through what is generally considered “organized” religion. As a result, we now have a generation that has grown up without any knowledge of spiritual principles whatsoever.

I was shopping for a gift for my wife in a jewelry market in downtown Los Angeles, when I noticed a young couple looking at necklaces. As they viewed the glass case, I overheard them discussing the various designs—particularly of the cross necklaces. At one end were simple, modern cross designs, while at the other end of the cabinet, the designs became more complex and ended with a section of traditional crosses with the figure of Jesus hanging on the crosses.

As the couple looked down the row of necklaces, I noticed that the woman suddenly stopped and remarked to her boyfriend, “Wow, those are really beautiful cross necklaces!” Then she stopped in her tracks. “But wait a second. Who's that little guy on those crosses over there?”

The young couple apparently had absolutely no idea who the figure of Jesus was hanging on the cross necklace.

Until relatively recently, that scene would never have happened.

From the time William Tyndale translated the Bible into English in 1526, its impact on the West has been overwhelming—even to the point of the development of the English language as we know it today. Phrases like “the skin of my teeth,” “the handwriting on the wall,” “still small voice,” “a thorn in the flesh,” “the fat of the land,” “a law unto himself,” and “root of all evil” are all common phrases taken directly from Tyndale's translation of the Bible.

The Bible transformed literacy and learning even in the New World, as the first written form of many Native American languages was a result of the Bible being translated into their tongue. I recently saw an original Mohawk Bible on display in the Huntington Library in Los Angeles that was the first written record of that tribe's language.

The Bible's impact on literature has been even more significant. Without an understanding of the Bible, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to probe the depths of writers from Milton to Shakespeare.

But it doesn't stop there. The Bible has impacted novels from
Moby Dick
to
Uncle Tom's Cabin
, the development of Negro spirituals and gospel music, and the speeches of Abraham Lincoln. The fact is, you would have little understanding of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s “I have a dream” speech without an understanding of the Bible. Whatever faith tradition you come from—or if you come from no faith perspective at all—I would encourage you to explore the spiritual aspect of your life.

» WE ARE SPIRITUAL CREATURES, AND THROUGHOUT OUR LONG HISTORY, MANKIND HAS CONTINUALLY SEARCHED FOR ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS, WHY AM I HERE? WHAT IS MY PURPOSE? WHERE DID I COME FROM, AND WHERE AM I GOING?

Playwright Eugène Ionesco wrote in his memoir:

In the history of humanity there are no civilizations or cultures which fail to manifest, in one or a thousand ways, this need for an absolute that is called heaven, freedom, a miracle, a lost paradise to be regained, peace, the going beyond history . . . there is no religion in which everyday life is not considered a prison; there is no philosophy or ideology that does not think that we live in alienation . . . Humanity has always had a nostalgia for the freedom that is only beauty, that is only real life, plenitude, light.

Since the Enlightenment began in the eighteenth century, Western Civilization has pursued the religion of science and reason. We have elevated scientific pursuit to the highest ideal, and we value scientific inquiry above all other pursuits. It has resulted in marvelous scientific progress, and much of the luxury we experience today has been the result of this relentless pursuit.

But at the beginning of the twenty-first century, after three hundred years of unbridled scientific pursuit, we still haven't answered the ultimate questions of our lives. Teen suicide continues in remarkable numbers, drugs and alcohol imprison millions, wars and genocide persist around the globe, families continue to fragment in ever-increasing numbers, cheating in school has reached record levels, happiness eludes us, and the quality of our lives is not significantly better.

For all of its wonderful advances, science has still been unable to answer eternal questions, such as:

Where did we come from?
Why are we here?
Do we have a purpose?
Where are we going?

In a development few would have predicted, some scientific advances are making us rethink the notion of a spiritual dimension to our lives. As more and more women are able to see their unborn children inside the womb through ultrasound technology, they are reconsidering the notion that a fetus is just a mass of cells.

On a trip to the United Kingdom, I noticed that London's
Sunday Times
in 2004 reported that Antony Flew, emeritus professor of philosophy at Reading University, whose writings and teachings on atheism have influenced an entire generation of thinkers and scholars around the world, had recanted his position and believes that some sort of deity
did
create the universe.

Flew died recently, and although far from becoming associated specifically with Christianity, he believed that, according to the Times, scientific discoveries have revealed the existence of an organizing intelligence. He went on to say that investigation of DNA “has shown, by the almost unbelievable complexity of the arrangements which are needed to produce life, that intelligence must have been involved.”

An authentic spiritual journey is a journey of exploration, staying open to all detours, twists in the road, and new discoveries.

Do faith and reason conflict?

Absolutely not. The real man or woman of faith does not fear science, reason, or facts. And a scientist, confident in his or her abilities, has nothing to fear from spiritual inquiry.

The fact is, real faith can stand up to debate, inquiry, and investigation.

Writer C. S. Lewis came to his Christian faith only after years of investigation, study, and debate. He tried everything he could think of to discredit Christianity, and yet, in spite of his intellectual depth as a professor at Oxford, he could not find a single argument that disproved the reality of faith in God.

The key to living a vigorous life of faith is constant evaluation and investigation. Study, learn, discuss. Real faith is not a wishful hope in a vague concept. Real faith impacts the lives of everyone it touches.

Spiritual conviction was what drove the leaders of the civil rights movement to disregard police dogs, fire hoses, and jail for a cause they believed was true. Real faith is what fuels the persecuted church in countries where public expressions of religion result in imprisonment and death. Real faith is what takes suburbanites into the inner city to comfort those dying of AIDS, feed the hungry, or find homes for the homeless.

» SECULAR IDEALS INSPIRE MANY PEOPLE TO DO GREAT GOOD, BUT FAITH IN ETERNAL PRINCIPLES IS WHAT DRIVES REAL SACRIFICE.

Real faith is an adventure.

That's why lasting change isn't possible without some understanding of the spiritual aspect of our lives. If we are truly spiritual creatures—even in part—then overlooking that essential aspect of our lives leaves us fragmented and incomplete. Without some understanding of the spiritual dimension, we will never find real contentment and peace.

Perhaps that is the single most important consideration of all.

Today people spend their lives making money only to discover all the really important things money can't buy. They trade their lives for a career, while losing the people they love the most. They live in physical luxury but then take their lives through suicide because of inner pain and torment.

Money is a good thing, and I love a nice house and car. But ultimately it means nothing if we haven't answered the most important questions of our lives.

To start your spiritual journey, here are some important directions on the map:

1.
Spend time with others who are honestly searching
. Perhaps it's a local church, prayer group, or like-minded friends. Make the effort to find people who can help you get the answers you need and encourage your spiritual growth. I'm a Christian, so naturally I recommend a good local church. You'll discover new friends—friends who don't care about your money, your status, or your career. Friends who will love you for
who
you are, not
what
you are.

2.
Look outward, not inward
. Help other people. Serve others. Albert Schweitzer said, “I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve.” Those who help others are the happiest people on the earth. It's not about you; it's about your ability to help other people. Discover that principle and your life will immediately change.