2. Don’t worry about climbing the ladder. There’s no longer a ladder anyway. It’s more like one of those spiral staircases. And sometimes you are going across or down when you think you might be climbing. So don’t worry about it. Spend your 20′s learning and having life experiences. Travel, explore the world, take on projects that seem fun.

3. If your “career” path doesn’t make sense to anyone except for you, it’s okay. My 20′s: college at University of Oklahoma, wrangler on a guest ranch in Colorado, management consultant, business development officer, Magazine and media company, strategic business plan developer. WOW. That is all over the map. But God was orchestrating steps very clearly for what was next in my story. And continues to do so.

4. Be diligent and aggressive in developing your friendships and relationships. Create a core group of close friends who you want to do like with. This group may change a bit over the years, but it is imperative to find a circle of trust that you are committed to and they to you.

5. Figure out who you want to be, not what you want to do. Who you are is more important that what you do or where you live. Spiritually, financially, family, emotionally, relationally. Find two or three older, wise “sages” that you can learn from and count on as help.

September Edition:

1. Shaun King- pastor of Courageous Church in Atlanta, and part of Hope Atlanta, an initiative dedicated to helping Atlanta flood victims.

2. Kimberly Anyadike- at 15, she is the youngest African-American female to fly across the continental US.

3. Tyler Stanton- funny guy, writer, sketch comedian, co-host of Catalyst West, and all around good guy.

4. Kelli Murray- talented designer working with Jedidiah.

5. Zach Williams- singer/songwriter/recording artist in New York City.

But there is another segment within the golfing world- the Wuss golfers. Wimps. Not going for the green. Hitting irons off of the tee box. Hitting from the ladies tees….. etc.

Thought this video from Kenny Mayne was a great explanation of how important it is for all of us who are golfers to not “be wimps” on the course…… 

Funny stuff from Kenny Mayne to finish off this week. 

Same thing with Golfers- Tiger Woods always is more precise and takes much more time when the pressure is on, vs the natural tendency to want to speed everything up and get through it. 

So what do we do as leaders during times of great intensity, pressure, or the final hour? A couple of thoughts:

1. always over-communicate.

2. be methodical and calm, not intense and short.

3. list out the priorities so as to not be overwhelmed by the small things that seem to be incredibly urgent, but really aren’t.

4. Seek out quiet moments for prayer, reflection and thinking. During times of pressure, that is when we need those quiet moments the most.

5. resist the urge to let things slip or just settle for something average because of the pressure to get it done. Keep your standards and levels of excellence at their highest- don’t compromise.

For more information and to sign up go here. 

And as you blog or twitter prior to and at the event, make sure to use #CAT09. 

I’m a big fan of Hope International. An organization committed to helping provide microfinance loans to worthy entrepreneurs all over the world, helping lift them out of poverty. 

A great way for you to get involved is Give Hope Sunday. Give Hope Sunday is a FREE way for you and your church to explore the big impact small loans can make on a community- and ultimately on a life. But it’s more than static, bullet point info. It’s an opportunity to help communities help themselves. And a chance to forever change your view of charity. 

Give Hope Sunday will happen on October 18, a great day for the Church to connect with the poor. It’s one day out of the year in which your church can focus on tangible ways to help people living in poverty. By signing up for Give Hope Sunday, your church will receive all the tools needed to effectively platform and discuss the issue of microfinance and poverty. 

You’ll receive:

- Sermon notes to help you bring a Biblical perspective to the issue of poverty.

- Bulletin inserts that provide your congregation with a summary of what HOPE International does, information on poverty, and ways to get involved.

- A promotional video you can use to introduce the Give Hope Sunday initiative

all of this designed to both educate and move your congregation toward action….. giving HOPE. 

So get involved today. 

Right now, for me it is With Everything, by Hillsong. Amazing song.

When you grow up in Oklahoma, especially as a boy, you learn about farming at an early age, even if you don’t live on a farm. It’s just in the DNA of your childhood in small towns in Oklahoma. 

It’s hard-wired into my DNA. My grandparents were farmers/ranchers. I learned a lot from them- many things that now are life lessons and have shaped me as a leader, but at the time seemed unimportant. 

Now as I look back, especially when it comes to leadership, there are a number of lessons from Farming that apply to my world as a leader- and I believe are applicable to all of us as leaders. Here are a few: 

1. Farming, just like Leadership, is both an ART and a SCIENCE. If you focus on one over the other, you’ll mess it up. 

2. Farming and Leadership require intuitiveness- the right hunches at the right time. Making the right decision is many times not about being “right” but instead just making a decision. 

3. The idea of “seasons” is incredibly important to a farmer; leaders also have to understand the concept of a season, especially as it relates to the season of a project or your team and the rhythm of your year. If you don’t allow your team to rest from a season of intensity, you’ll burn em out- same with a field; it’s called crop rotation. 

4. Cultivating a great harvest takes a lot of work. You don’t just plant a seed and it automatically turns into fruit. You have to do the work “under the soil” to get the fruit “above the soil.” Patience. 

There are more, but we’ll save those for Part II next week.

You can watch part 2 of this video here.

So there’s been lots of discussion over the past year regarding my Best College Team of the Decade post. After last year’s win by Florida over Oklahoma, I would probably have to add Florida to my mix of USC, Oklahoma, and Ohio State. 

But what about the best coach of the Decade? Well, here is my current top five: 

5. Mack Brown- he leads the big rival school at Texas, but he’s a heck of a coach. And probably the best recruiter in the country.

4. Jim Tressel- classy, traditional, and a great fit at Ohio State. He’s been a winner everywhere he’s coached. 

3. Bob Stoops- even though he’s having a hard time winning the big games lately, he’s still built a great program at Oklahoma. Top Five team consistently since he started. 

2. Pete Carroll- great leader and probably the best program the last 10 years at USC. Players love to play for him, and he’s a guy you’d love to hang with. Love his style. 

1. Urban Meyer- this guy’s a winner. Built an amazing program at Utah, and has two championships in the last three years at Florida. And plays in the toughest conference in the country. 

Let the conversation begin. Who you got? Who would you put #1?

1. Actively Build a Support Network- Beware of CEO disease, the temptation to surround yourself with people who only tell you what you want to hear. Keep honest people in your life so that you can stay grounded in the reality of your experiences.

2. Don’t think You’ve Arrived- Banish the phrase, “I’m done” from your vocabulary. The best leaders never stop learning and see every opportunity, success or failure, as a learning opportunity.

3. Don’t take yourself so seriously. You’re not a big deal. Seriously. I don’t care who you are. Humility is way more attractive than arrogance. 

4. Celebrate Your Rivals- Jealously is natural, but how you respond to it is not. When you find yourself tempted to speak ill about a rival or secretly wrestle with jealousy, flip that emotion on its head. Find ways to celebrate your rivals and when you run into a new one, let the first question you ask yourself be, “How can I help this person win?”

5. Flow between the five stages of creative development, don’t get stuck in one. Taken in concert, these five stages can be healthy, important parts of growing any creative endeavor. Isolated and obsessed on, any one of these stages can cripple your best intentions. Focus on moving between them. The key is to not just hang out in the “caretaker” stage, where you protect and defend everything you’ve developed, instead of returning to the “craft” stage. 

- Craft – You create something out of passion for the art of it.

- Crowd – An audience discovers you’re good at your passion.

- Commission – You earn money for the thing you love to do.

- Career – You turn a passion into your profession.

- Caretaker – You protect and nurture the thing you’ve created, and do everything you can to “defend” your turf. A dangerous phase.

Recently had the chance to sit down with Andy Stanley, founder of North Point Ministries and Senior Pastor of North Point Community Church. As you probably know, Andy has been involved with Catalyst since the very beginning in 2000, and is one of the greatest communicators on the planet, period. And when it comes to leadership, I don’t know anyone else better.

In this interview, we discuss at length his own personal leadership process, talk a bit about North Point Online, and also get a glimpse into a typical day/week for Andy. 

You can listen via the Catalyst website or go to itunes and subscribe/download the interview.

What resources would help you as a leader? Let me know. Be part of the process in helping us determine what we create for our Catalyst community.

If you haven’t registered, you still can. Just go here and you’ll be able to join in. 

Over 70 presenters.

I love this quote, but I struggle constantly with implementing it. It makes total sense, but as a persuader, my leadership style is to include and to invite more and more into the conversation and the huddle. I have a hard time saying no, because for me that feels like I am excluding someone. I’ve learned how to do this, but it still goes against my natural leadership style.

But as leaders, we have to be willing to say no in order for our time and energy to be spent on the things that only we can do, as well as the few ideas or projects that will end up being the “best.”

Had the chance recently to interview Michael Hyatt, the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers. Mike is a longtime seasoned executive in the publishing business, and also a leading voice and thought leader on the power of social media. His blog and twitter are read by tens of thousands per day. We discussed his approach to leadership, the importance of social media, and the next generation. 

You can listen here, or download from itunes.

Head over to Ed Stetzer’s blog and help us determine what questions will be used for the research project that Lifeway Research is conducting for the Catalyst Conference coming up in October. The research is being shaped around the idea of “making your mark” as a Christian leader, which is our theme for this year’s event. 

Will just take a minute, and anyone who helps out will be paid $100,000 each……. Ed Stetzer is personally paying!!!! J/K.

Thanks!

Richard Florida is the best-selling author of The Rise of the Creative Class, an incredible book outlining the way creatives are currently shaping our culture. His latest book, Who’s Your City, is the one I am really intrigued by, focused on why certain people are living in certain places and how that is changing the landscape of business and economics. 

Richard is considered to be one of the world’s leading urban theorists. He mentioned in his talk a couple of points that I wanted to highlight:

1. the rise of “megaregions”- there are 40 megaregions in the world. These areas are dominating the global economy and the direction of our culture. For example- Charlanta- the area from Atlanta, GA to Charlotte, NC.- 22 million people, and 750 Billion in economic output. Wow. 8th largest megaregion in the world. These megaregions are a new phenomenon in urban and city development.

2. We are currently living in a great “re-set,” not necessarily a recession. Our current climate is one of the most dramatic shifts we’ve ever experienced in our history. Radical change and radical transformation- similar to what happened in the late 1800′s and early 1900′s in our country. 

3. This reset is forcing us to go back to our greatest source of capital- our human capital. The real capital we have especially here in the US is our people. We have to tap the creative energy of every human being in this country. We have to harness the ideas of every person. Everyone is creative, and that’s our greatest asset. 

4. 40 million Americans who are considered to be the “creative class.” 35% of the workforce, but around 60% of salaries. They congregate in the “megaregions.” No longer do the influentials and creative class move to where the jobs are. Now companies have to move to where the influentials are. This is a radical shift. Cited several examples of this that were pretty mind-blowing. 

I highly recommend picking up one of Richard’s books, and staying up to date with his work through his company, The Creative Class Group.

We (Catalyst) are partnering with Leadership Network on a brand new event they have created called The Nines. You’ll definitely want to participate. Here are the details:

Wednesday, September 9 (one week from today), begins at 9:00 am CST. 

The event is free, but you have to pre-register. 

Over 60 presenters, including Mark Driscoll, Perry Noble, Mark Batterson, Ed Stetzer, Reggie McNeal, John Ortberg, Steven Furtick, Greg Surratt, Reggie Joiner and many, many more. 

Each presenter has nine minutes or less to present based on this thought: “If you could sit down one-on-one with a handful of church leaders, what is the one thing you would want to tell them?” 

Over 6,000 leaders have already pre-registered for this one day online event, so make sure you register today.

Had the chance recently to interview Chris Anderson, the editor in chief of the wildly popular Wired Magazine, and author of two best-selling books: The Long Tail as well as the more recent release FREE: The Future of a Radical Price. 

Chris is an incredible thinker, innovator, and technology maven, and we talk a lot about his new book FREE and the impact on our culture, plus discussing several other interesting topics, including the reason why Google is the ultimate model of free. 

You can stream live here, or download from itunes here.

Spent Thursday evening and most of the day on Friday with Brian Houston and 35 senior pastors from churches around the country. Amazing time of connection and learning. 

Then Friday night with the Hillsong United team and all day Saturday (and late Saturday night!!). Love hanging with these great friends. Joel, Brooke, Luke, Jason, JD, Jad, Scott, Matt, Brad, Sanga, Phil, and several others. Each time I am around the entire team I am more thankful and grateful for their unbelievable global ministry. Impacting millions around the world. Great conversations, and amazing times of worship! 

More in the next several days regarding the November 4th release of the feature documentary film “We’re All in this Together” from Hillsong. Will be in 500 theaters around the US. You’ll definitely want to attend. 

1. Joel Houston- creative director and producer for Hillsong and worship leader for Hillsong United. Force behind the upcoming “We’re All in This Together” film which will release in US Theaters in November. 

2. Josh Shipp- speaker, author and emcee. Impacting teens in a major way. FOX has called him the Dr. Phil for teenagers. 

3. Naomi Zacharias- founder of Wellspring International, an organization helping women and children in need around the world. 

3. Zach Hunter- teenage abolitionist, activist, and author. Started the movement Loose Change to Loosen Chains. 

4. Blair Wingo- model, actress, and spoken word artist. Known best for this spoken word version.

So, make sure to register today for Catalyst. It’s going to be an amazing leadership experience. I know I am biased… but look at the speaker lineup. Seriously!

All your friends will be there. And I will be there. And Andy will be there. And Lanny will be there. 

Speaking of Lanny….. as we prepare for October, Lanny thought it would be wise to help all of us better understand the real meaning of our theme “On Your Mark.” In his own style and in his own words……

Think Orange by Reggie Joiner. If you are a church leader, you need to read this book. Period. 

The Principle of the Path by Andy Stanley. Required if you are currently breathing. 

How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins. Reading this book for a second time. 

Too Small to Ignore by Wess Stafford. President of Compassion International.

Find others who are more creative than me and figure out a way to make them a part of my team.

Evidenced by the last couple of days. This morning was Carlos and Jeff in the office thinking through experiential elements, opening session, transitions, Red Carpet, and theme for West Coast. 

This afternoon was Jonathan meeting about bumpers, title treatments, opening video, staging, and creative technical production ideas. 

Also this afternoon was Jason thinking through West Coast theme, design, website, brochure, and branding. 

Monday afternoon was Brian in the office going over program, minute by minute, and creative direction. 

Tomorrow is Lanny and Reggie and Ken going over program and transitions and fun stuff. 

Earlier this week was Tripp working on a great video series for the event. Tyler writing great copy and adding creative energy as well.

All of these talented folks are part of our team, but none of them are “full-time.” Would love to hire them full-time, but probably not going to happen. The great thing is, I can tap into their creative energy and talent as is. 

The key is simple- find others around you who are talented, and get them involved in what you are doing. Your creativity and talent ratio will increase exponentially.

I love watching the Little League World Series. What a great picture of what sports is all about. A few leadership lessons and observations I’ve noticed from the Little Leaguers:

1. It’s not just about the destination, but also the journey in getting there. These 12 and 13 year olds have fun in every game, regardless of where and when.

2. It’s about the team, and not individual players. No one player is bigger or more important than the team.

3. There is complete trust in the coach as the leader of the team. Seems like this should be a no-brainer, but not the case anymore, whether a CEO, head coach, or project manager. 

4. Every player still wants to learn- there is a hunger to constantly get better.

5. Sportsmanship is not just a requirement, it is an identity. These kids are competitive, but understand the legacy and responsibility of being good sportsmen. Now if we can just keep the parents in line in the stands!

What’s your home turf? The “thing” you are better at than anyone else in the world? Whatever it is, protect and defend it. 

Work on it. Think about it. Develop it. It’s your home turf. Your home field advantage. If you are not an expert at it, someone else is.