Monthly Archives: July 2015

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Fear Cannot Rule Your Life

We are inundated with stories that are meant to create fear in our lives.

From the nightly news telling us stories of all the evil happenings to the water cooler gossip about who did what, we know this earth can be a scary place.

A few months ago, my wife and I went to Frosty Oasis, a local ice cream parlor in Muskegon. Normally we will walk to get ice cream but this night we decided to drive over.

While in line, we saw multiple police cars fly down the road and turn just past where we were standing.

Come to find out, there was a shooting across the street. A young man had been shot.

Fear Creeps In

Reading online, I saw many people were now scared to let their children go to the skate park where the shooting occurred. These parents feared their children may be the next victim of a shooting.  Read more...

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What Leaders Must Have Faith In

Leading others will take you to places you never knew you’d go.

Those places may be to the highest of highs or the lowest of lows. I’ve experienced both in my time in youth ministry.

You’ve probably experienced similar, whether it was in church leadership or business leadership.

And through these ups and down, leaders must have faith.

Leaders must have faith that there will be better days ahead

Leaders must have faith that they will see others grow

Leaders must have faith that others can take over

Leaders must have faith that they can make a difference

Leaders must have faith that when they fail they can be redeemed

Leaders must have faith that there is good in the world

Leaders must have faith that the new generation has better ideas than the past generations  Read more...

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14 Leadership Lessons And Quotes From Adam Sandler’s Pixels

A Reel Leadership Article

Pam and I like to take in a good comedy every once in awhile. We also like to be reminded of the great things of our childhood.

That’s why we were excited to see the newest Adam Sandler movie Pixels.

Pixels movie teaches us leadership lessons

Having watched the previews, Pixels looked hilarious.

Going into Pixels, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Would it be classic, humorous Adam Sandler a la Happy Gilmore, The Waterboy, or Anger Management? Or would it be stupid humor such as Little Nicky or Grown Ups?

What it turned out to be was something in-between.

It also proved to provide insights into leadership, if you looked deep enough.

Caution: Pixels Spoilers Ahead

Leadership Lessons From Pixels

1. Noticing patterns will help you succeed – Adam Sandler’s character in Pixels, Sam Brenner, was on his way to superstardom, at least in the competitive world of video games.  Read more...

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7 Effective Tips for Leading Millennials

I know a lot of millennials and I know exactly what type of leadership does not motivate them: dictatorship. They may appear a bit distracted at times and in love with their cool, new techy devices, but then again, I guess that’s just how millennials are.

Unlike the baby boomers who value hard work, education, and job security, millennials tend to value “following their heart” and “achieving their dreams”. They won’t have that dutiful “I’m at your service” attitude, but their desire to reach the stars is exactly what enables effective managers to motivate them in a unique way that suits their type.

Their dream jobs are not just the kinds that give a steady paycheck, but there has to be much more to a business than that. (Ask Googlers for advice)

Here’s how to lead millennials and have them genuinely engaged in the work they do.  Read more...

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Finding Joy In Life

Walking around town, you may notice many people lack something in their lives. The people you crossed paths with had scowls on their face. They were rushed. They were missing something.

That something? These people were missing joy.

Joy is an amazing thing.

Joy doesn’t require good things to happen to us. Joy doesn’t require you to be rich. Joy doesn’t require any specific situation in your life.

If we look to the Bible, we can see this is made plain to us. The Bible tells us we should always have joy.

1 Thessalonians 5:16 –

Rejoice always…

James 1:2 ESV –

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds…

2 Corinthians 6:10 –

As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.  Read more...