Week 11 (November 23, 2020)

This was an interesting week with a lot to study and ponder.  To me, measuring the cost equates to how much does your job/career mean to you?  Are you willing to put people you love on the back burner to make a buck?  Are you willing to devote every waking minute to building and maintaining your business?  In my mind, I see a yard stick.  On that yard stick is a mark signifying the time I will spend on work that week, or month, or year.  Over the years, I have worked for employers and according to their schedules.  Many times I have worked over.  As a medical transcriptionist, I could not just stop in the middle of a report when the clock said it was time to punch out.  As an executive director, I cannot just lock up and leave knowing I still have items to catalog, research to do, a letter of gratitude to write.

I believe that is why entrepreneurship is so appealing, especially to those of us who have worked as employees most of our lives.  To have the freedom to set your own hours, work as much or as little as you want in a day, choose your vacation length.

And then, I see that yardstick in my mind's eye, reminding me that "this much" work needs to be done so that I can pay my bills, take that vacation, or eat...depending on how business is going.

Where is the mark going to land on my yardstick as I transition into becoming an entrepreneur?  Will I push myself like I have in the past or will I finally achieve the freedom to inch the mark back a bit?  I suppose it comes down to the measure of my life...an equalizing of what mattered most to me.

Week 10 (November 16, 2020)

 BIG DREAMS!

We all have big dreams.  Do they ever come to fruition?  Are they so lofty that you think “there is no way this will ever happen!”

This week was about big dreams and steps to take to try to achieve them.

Taylor Richards in his presentation “Think Big” stated, “Don’t underestimate yourself!”  He also added to involve the Lord when pursuing your goals and dreams.  The Lord knows us.  He wants us to succeed in a righteous fashion.  He is our partner and best supporter.  He gives us strength to act on our big dreams.  Heavenly Father urges us to have faith in Him and in ourselves.

Kathy Huber, an Acton Hero, related that you need to have a sense of responsibility while going after your big dreams but be tenacious.  I loved her tip about working on problems that others cannot solve.  If you solve that problem, then you and your skills are needed.  She also shared that if you fail at whatever you are doing, learn from it.  Chances are, you are not the only who has failed at it.  Figure out your error and then put that knowledge to use by helping others.

This was great advice for entrepreneurs.  It encourages you to have big dreams.  Start with a big dream and scale it back if need be to something doable.  Dreams mean you are thinking, innovating, creating, figuring out ways to solve problems.

I hope to learn ways to rein in those big dreams and harness them in a way to make them appealing to investors, customers, and clients.  Where do I find like-minded people with whom I can share my big ideas?  With my faith in Heavenly Father as my partner, I will lean on his wisdom to guide me to them!

Week 9 (November 9, 2020)

This week we studied disciple leadership.  When I see the word 'disciple', I think of being a disciple of Jesus Christ, learning from Him and following Him, growing to be like Him.  In terms of disciple leadership, I think of a leader who is a disciple of Jesus Christ.  Carly Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, spoke to Stanford Technology Ventures Program on May 2, 2007, about three aspects of leadership: capability, collaboration, and character.

Capability: A capable leader's best attribute is the ability to ask questions and hear answers.  In other words, are the customers satisfied?  Experience and skill help make one capable, as well, but the capability to listen outweighs all the rest.[1]

Collaboration: Good decisions are a result of a group of diverse people coming together and bringing their ideas to the table.  This aspect, done effectively, drives change.  If you can't adapt to change, you lag behind.  I thought, "Did Jesus just meet with those who were like him?  No!  He helped and taught all."[2]

Character: Includes judgment, perspective, and ethics.  Judgment and perspective cause a good leader to pause and think before making a rash decision, to make sure they have the needed and correct information to see a situation in the right light.  Are they considering all differences and do they understand those differences?  In terms of ethics, “Values are what guide your behavior when no one is looking and you think no one will find out,” Fiorina stated.[3]  To me, if you are working every day to become a better disciple of Christ, you are living those values already.  Your leadership will be stronger because of those Christ-like values on which you base everything you do.

This week’s lesson was very enlightening with regard to discipleship and leadership and how the two work together.

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[1] Carly Fiorina, “Leadership and Capability,” Brigham Young University-Idaho, BUS 110.

[2] Carly Fiorina, “Leadership and Choice,” eCorner, Stanford University (https://ecorner.stanford.edu/podcasts/leadership-and-choice/ : accessed 13 November 2020).

[3] Ibid.