Leadership Style – You Are Everyone You Have Ever Met

March 28, 2011 by 6 Comments

Walt Disney once said, “I am a part of all I have met.”  When I first read that, I didn’t get it.  I thought that he was saying that he is a product of the people that have gone before him.  He was modeling what others had shown him.

Then John Maxwell (name dropper Alert!) asked the following question as it related to Walt’s quote, “Who’s rubbing off on you?”, and it made me look at the quote a bit differently.  Imagine that dog that turns his head to the side as if he’s trying to figure out what you just said.  If people are rubbing off on me, doesn’t that mean that I’m rubbing off on other people?  I know, obvious right?  Forgive me, I have a lot going on.

Leader or boss?

Are you their leader, or just their boss?

The perspective that it gave me was the self awareness that I make a difference in the lives of everyone I meet.  Intentional or not, fair or not, good, bad or indifferent.  I change people’s lives!  I’m not being narcissistic, I’m just stating a truth.  A truth for all of us.  Some of us just make a choice to be good stewards of our influence on others.

It could be our family, obvious.  It could our friends, still obvious.  It could be our clients, although too many of us take them for granted.  What about the waitress that served you at dinner last night?  Did you make a difference in her life?  Did you treat her in a manner that gave her the encouragement to get through another night of serving mostly ungrateful people?  What about your boss?  Are you serving him in a manner that could influence him in a way that he looks at the potential of his team differently?

Leaders.  What about your team?  Are you their boss, or are you their leader?  I know lots of business owners that want to develop their team to its full potential because that means the owner’s bottom line will benefit.  I haven’t met too many owners that are creating relationships with their team outside of work so that their team can develop personally as well as professionally.

So…who are you rubbing off on? Let’s talk!

Image via Flickr

Filed Under: Blogs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Guest Blog Post from Abi

March 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

We are thrilled to start introducing some of the students that attend the West BS.  Periodically, they will be a guest blogger for the West BS page.  The following is from Abi Thombley, a senior at West Forsyth High.

I am so very thankful that Van started this group for us at the Warehouse!  It has been an incredible learning experience for me.  I never would have read Ephesians on my own but now it’s my favorite book in the Bible because I understand every word of it!

West B.S. has brought me closer to the friends I already knew and brought new friends that are awesome.  When Van said he couldn’t continue with us for the second semester, I was very worried that the group would fall apart. I’m happy to say that it’s still going strong and growing!  The most incredible thing about it that now it’s entirely student led.  We appoint a leader each week that will lead the next week and we have actually continued to learn stuff even though Van is gone.  Although we do get off topic sometimes, it’s still a great time for Christian fellowship in the middle of the week!  So, thank you so much Van for giving us this group!  It has been a real joy in my life to have!

Filed Under: Outreach Tagged With: , ,

Family Life versus Work Life…Is "Balance" 50/50?

January 31, 2011 by 2 Comments

I’ve often said that my priorities in life are God/Family first then everything else second.  Try opening your own business and see what can happen with your desire to put family first.  Whoa!  Easier said than done.

Recently, my Bride and I went to dinner.  In a way that only she can, she articulated to me, in the most loving but emphatic manner that even though we are embarking on this insurance journey together, that I was not to forget about her emotional needs as a wife.  She wasn’t asking me, she was telling me.  As a man, I can’t tell you how thrilled I was to have the love of my life communicate so clearly to her one-track minded husband.  I needed that.  We needed that.  In only a few months I had let my focus on the new business consume me to the point that I wasn’t paying attention to the areas that I cherished more than any career.

So, where I am going with this?  It’s not as if I am going to tell you as the reader something you don’t already know.  I’m just wondering, out loud…and on line, how do we make the two balance?  Can it be balanced?  What does that look like?  50% family time, 50% career time?  Even a Clemson fan will tell you that doesn’t add up, realistically speaking.

I keep going back to sage wisdom that we received as a young(er) married couple.  If each of us are working to grow closer to the Lord, we can’t help but grow closer to each other.  I know for a fact I would be going nuts without my faith.  There is just entirely too much going on business wise and I need that relationship with Him to guide me and keep me on point.  Without it, that conversation at dinner could have easily turned into a prideful shouting match.

We are just starting this phase of our lives and we intend on it enabling us to continue to serve and help others in powerful ways.  I am so very thankful that the balance during this unique opportunity as a new Agent that I seek is so easily found for those of us willing to seek it out.

Filed Under: Blogs Tagged With: , , , ,

Money-n-N.U.T.S.

January 3, 2011 by Leave a Comment

A very wise man once said, “there is Nothing New Under the Sun.”  When I hear and see all the different ways to manage one’s money, that quote keeps coming to my mind.  How many different ways can you say the same thing?  If you want to do well with your money, spend less, save more.  It’s off this simple premise that this series will exist.  We’ll talk about money, but just remember that when it comes to ways to grow it, save it, spend it, invest it, tithe it, give it, burn it and work for it, there is nothing new under the sun.  Money-n-N.U.T.S.

We’ll look at tried and true yet simple concepts surrounding the almighty dollar.  Not what I think about it, but what you think about it.  To start off with, let’s use the freshness of a new year and get a 10,000 foot overview of what you think about your finances.

What are your three biggest financial concerns going into 2011?

What is it about those concerns that make them so important to you?

What’s in it for you and your family if you addressed those concerns and had a plan in place to overcome them?

How do we make that plan come alive in a practical way?

This month’s survey question is about your 3 biggest concerns.  I’d love to talk with you about the different areas of your financial world that are important to you.  Everyone who fills out the survey will be entered for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me and let’s make it a great 2011!

Filed Under: Blogs Tagged With: , ,

© 2013 Van Blogs. All Rights Reserved
website & digital marketing by
Trustworkz