How Do You L.E.A.D?

How Do You L.E.A.D?

We hear about leadership everyday. whether you are on the job, in the home or out in your community, the topic of leadership is around us and relevant. But what does it mean? I remember my elementary school days of being hard pressed to be the line leader. I loved knowing I was at the front of the line. I was the chosen one to be first. I also know the exhilaration of sitting in the front seat on the best roller coasters. I want to be the first to see what's up ahead and feel that rush!  

No matter your position in life, you are created to lead. It's innate. The degree of leadership and position will vary, but the ability and skills of leadership are relevant in each of us everyday. So how do you lead? How do you choose to think? Act? Live? As I thought about what leadership means to me, I decided that to lead means to Live Everyday As Destiny. I am here. I have a purpose. I was given this life, so it's up to me to determine how I use it. And the same goes for you. You are a born leader. You have the right to be you unapologetically, but are you? If not, what are you willing to do to make the necessary shift into greatness? As you continue to develop your own definition of who you are as a leader, I want to share with you some tips for your journey. 

 1. Do what's necessary- Yes, I know. Writing a business plan, vacuuming, making that cold call, walking by faith.. they are all things that probably don't tickle your pickle, but you know they are necessary for your growth and power. Take the time to create a plan and a schedule to get through the difficult stuff. Take a class, find strong accountability partners and maybe even put a reward system in place for yourself to get the tough stuff done. As you build the muscle, in may not increase your desire to do, but it will increase your ability.

2.  Live within your means- We know we're created for more and we see our future selves in all of our glory. We know we need to dress, talk, speak and act as if we are already where we want to be, but let's keep 10% of ourselves in the present! More often I hear of women who are stressed and overwhelmed because they are "tapped out" or "don't have the means" to do whatever it is that they desire.  I'm here to tell you that you have the power to change that! Refer back to tip #1 and do what's necessary. That normally means making a sacrifice. We often get stuck and complacent because we are not willing to make that radical sacrifice to get to the next level. Maximize your means! You have friends, family, contacts, relationships and resources around you everyday that can donate, loan, support, suggest and guide you to where you need to be. Utilize those resources and manage your funds wisely. Make a sacrificial cut now to create a long term abundance later. You are destined to have money in your bank account, so leave it there!

3. Designate and Delegate . In order to do step #2, I encourage you to find your people and use them. Get comfortable with asking for what you need. People really do want to help, but they do not have your vision. You have to share it with them and let them know how to support you.

4. Don't try. Do. "I tried and it didn't work." "I give up." "That's not for me." Well, do it again. You know it's for you, you're just disappointed. That's ok. disappointment is part of the process too, but you must keep going. If you've "tried" it, that means you've done it. You just want to adjust and do it again to get better and better. Stay committed to the vision. If you're destined for it, it will work.

5. Live! Life is happening everyday. You have the opportunity to choose. Let go of your fears, inhibitions and childhood teachings that no longer suit you. This is your life and your opportunity to shine like only you can.  You are here to show up in the greatness that only has your name on it. Own it!! Let the world know why you are hearing. We are waiting for you.

The only way you can be the person you were created to be is to L.E.A.D.!

 

Kristin M. Young, “The Marriage Enthusiast” is a proud supporter and staff member of Heal a Woman to Heal a Nation, Inc. She is committed to supporting women in their journey to wholeness as individuals and in their marriages. 

Three Feet from Gold

Excerpt from THINK AND GROW RICH by NAPOLEON HILL

THREE FEET FROM GOLD

One of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat. Every person is guilty of this mistake at one time or another. An uncle of R. U. Darby was caught by the "gold fever" in the gold rush days, and went west to DIG AND GROW RICH. He had never heard that more gold has been mined from the brains of men than has ever been taken from the earth. He staked a claim and went to work with pick and shovel. The going was hard, but his lust for gold was definite.

After weeks of labor, he was rewarded by the discovery of the shining ore. He needed machinery to bring the ore to the surface. Quietly, he covered up the mine, retraced his footsteps to his home in Williamsburg, Maryland, told his relatives and a few neighbors of the "strike." They got together money for the needed machinery, had it shipped. The uncle and Darby went back to work the mine.

The first car of ore was mined, and shipped to a smelter. The returns proved they had one of the richest mines in Colorado! A few more cars of that ore would clear the debts. Then would come the big killing in profits.

Down went the drills! Up went the hopes of Darby and Uncle! Then something happened! The vein of gold ore disappeared! They had come to the end of the rainbow, and the pot of gold was no longer there! They drilled on, desperately trying to pick up the vein again-all to no avail.

Finally, they decided to QUIT. They sold the machinery to a junk man for a few hundred dollars, and took the train back home. Some "junk" men are dumb, but not this one! He called in a mining engineer to look at the mine and do a little calculating. The engineer advised that the project had failed, because the owners were not familiar with "fault lines." His calculations showed that the vein would be found JUST THREE FEET FROM WHERE THE DARBYS HAD STOPPED DRILLING! That is exactly where it was found!

The "Junk" man took millions of dollars in ore from the mine, because he knew enough to seek expert counsel before giving up. Most of the money which went into the machinery was procured through the efforts of R. U. Darby, who was then a very young man. The money came from his relatives and neighbors, because of their faith in him. He paid back every dollar of it, although he was years in doing so.

Long afterward, Mr. Darby recouped his loss many times over, when he made the discovery that DESIRE can be transmuted into gold. The discovery came after he went into the business of selling life insurance.

Remembering that he lost a huge fortune, because he STOPPED three feet from gold, Darby profited by the experience in his chosen work, by the simple method of saying to himself, "I stopped three feet from gold, but I will never stop because men say v no' when I ask them to buy insurance."

Darby is one of a small group of fewer than fifty men who sell more than a million dollars in life insurance annually. He owes his "stickability" to the lesson he learned from his "quitability" in the gold mining business.

Before success comes in any man's life, he is sure to meet with much temporary defeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to QUIT. That is exactly what the majority of men do.

More than five hundred of the most successful men this country has ever known, told the author their greatest success came just one step beyond the point at which defeat had overtaken them. Failure is a trickster with a keen sense of irony and cunning.

It takes great delight in tripping one when success is almost within reach.