Harvey Dorfman’s book Coaching The Mental Game, is about his winning mental strategies for athletes. He earned several World Series rings with the Oakland A’s and Florida Marlins. He instructs that we just as athletes should seize the moment. He introduces a phrase “Carpe Momentum.” Seize the moment!

This phrase from Dorfman’s book suggests that when we seize any MOMENT we create MOMENTUM! Show up moment to moment to moment what do you get? Momentum, momentum, momentum! If you feel that your momentum has disappeared, no problem – seize the moment.

Harvey Dorfman taught his world class athletes to seize the moment by “Task Execution.” This is a mental process by which you remove all distractions about the past and future and execute only the task at hand. Carpe Momentum is accomplishing one task at a time.

What is your one task today? Get on it! Make this your mantra question of the day and focus on the one task.

Do this and you will end up in the Hall of Fame called “AWESOMENESS!”

Stephen Covey popularized the phrase “Put first things first!” It is generally accepted that Peter Drucker originated the phrase. And you know what he said we should do with “second things.” He said we should ignore them. Specifically, he said, “First things first — and second things not at all.” (He also said, “If there is one ‘secret’ of effectiveness, it is concentration. Effective executives do first things first and they do one thing at a time.”).

Fact is, in any given moment there is only ONE most important thing to do. And, that’s what the best among us do. Over and over and over and over and over again.

Swimming Coach Bob Bowman taught Micheal Phelps to W.I.N. – “WHAT’S IMPORTANT NOW.” The accomplishments of Michael Phelps is unquestioned as the most decorated athlete in Olympic history – 28 medals with 23 of them for Gold. There is something to be said about Coach Bowman’s method of “micro-wins”  over and over again, day after day – month after month.

Putting first things first will lead to amazing  accomplishments!

To be clear: This doesn’t mean working all the time or obsessively grinding in any aspect of our lives. It means seeing the big picture and knowing when the most important thing is NOT working but, rather, turning off your technology so you can connect with your family or your higher self.

That’s TRUE Winning.

Remember: First things first. Second things? Not at all.

Here are four character qualities that Billy Graham spoke about at a Civic Luncheon in Denver, Colorado in 1987. When you consider where Colorado is spiritually today versus when the late Billy Graham spoke these four truths into their life, you realize that God always positions his messengers in strategic places to speak life and goodness.

The first quality that I would like to mention is integrity. Integrity has to do with soundness, completeness, unity and consistency. Wayne Porter wrote in TIME magazine last month, “Integrity has increased steadily in importance as a public issue since 1985.” When we speak of integrity as a moral value, it means a man is the same on the inside as he claims to be on the outside. There’s no discrepancy between what he says and what he does; between his talk and his walk.

The second quality necessary for leadership, it seems to me, during these difficult days is personal security. I do not mean this in the sense of physical security, job security or financial security. Newsweek magazine ran an article some months ago entitled, “Uneasy Men at the Top.” They described the job insecurities of some in the top levels of corporate management in large companies. It set the stage for one newly installed CEO to say in jest; “I didn’t mind it when they wrote my name on the office door in chalk but I did think it was a little unethical to have a wet sponge hanging from the doorknob.”

Besides integrity and personal security, the third quality which is necessary in a leader is a sense of priority. This is the ability to separate the important from the unimportant, the critical from the trivial, the vital from the insignificant, the eternal from the temporary. It is essential for our daily tasks, but it also is true for the overall directions of our lives. Until a man gets his priorities in life straight, everything else is going to be out of order.

Then, there is one final quality that I would mention briefly, the quality of vision. When there’s no vision, the Bible says, the people perish. This is the quality of seeing what can be and ought to be done and how to get there.

So, I challenge you today to be a person of integrity, a person of security, a person with a sense of priority and a person of vision. But most of all, I challenge you to be individuals who are committed to Christ.

Stress gets a bad rap. But there is positive stress, called Eustress. This is that adrenaline rush you get that helps you finish that project on time. It is that feeling of excitement when you are in a demanding position and you meet or exceed expectations – that thrill of coming through.

Positive stress is what gives life that zing! That oomph! It gives you the energy to jump in the game and go for it – take the bull by the horns and run with it. Positive stress is that motivating factor that keeps you going.

Imagine not having stress. Imagine living a life of boredom. Even negative stress gets you out of the chair now and then and onto something else. Although stress gets a bad rap there are certainly benefits that keep you motivated, moving and achieving goals.

Significance Begins HERE

Most of us earn income by trading time for money. In other words we go to a job, work a set number of hours and are compensated for those hours. So we trade our time for money. Keep in mind everyone has the same number of hours in a day so if you work harder or longer, you can only work up to 24 hours a day as that is all there is. So there is a limit to how much time you can trade for money.

Some of us earn income by trading money for money. An example would be investments that generate income through dividends and interest. We are no longer trading our time for money because it is working for us while we do other things.

Few of us earn income through multiple sources. This is how most people who have wealth build it. Multiple sources of income is having income coming in from different avenues that do not require trading time for money or trading money for money but a combination of many different ways to generate income.

The advantages to having multiple sources is that if one slows down, there are others to pick up the slack so it isn’t as painful as losing a job or losing on the stock market. Another advantage to having multiple sources is that there is no longer a dependence on trading time for money, which is the slowest and most difficult way to build wealth.

A third advantage is that new options become available to serve and do good work which is what most of us want. No one lies on their deathbed and wishes they had spent more time in the office. We all want more time with loved ones and to do those things that bring our souls pleasure such as giving and serving others.

Creating multiple sources of income is not as hard as it sounds. Start small – take out a piece of paper and draw a circle with a dollar sign in the middle representing your income. Then draw a few circles around the page. In one, put your job if you are employed. In another put your investments like 401(k), then in a third think about how you can generate more income. Are you in any affiliate programs? Do you have a blog? Do you give seminars on the weekends? Do you sell products on the side? Do you have a hobby? This is a place to start.

You will find that as you begin to think about what you love to do, your creative mind will open doors to new thoughts and ideas. Write all of these down. Some will turn into viable income generators and others won’t. If you don’t try, then you give up on the opportunities that are waiting for you right now. Everything you need is right there. Exercise your creative mind and build the awareness to see that achieving wealth is just a reach away.

Have you ever made a plan or created a life roadmap and then something happened – like a big rock rolled down and blocked your progress and instead of finding a way through you gave up and retreated back to your comfort zone? Does that sound like you?

Why do we stop this inertia we are in – we get a little friction and BAM – we stop, retreat, we take our ball and go home. Give up. I’m done. Good night…

But then it’s tomorrow and guess what – that rock is still blocking our path and we say – yeah so what. We can opt to see the rock for what it is and keep going or we can pretend it doesn’t exist and say well, I liked it here anyway so I’m staying

NO!! Get out the pick and axe and let’s keep moving. Life is full of bumps and obstacles and lots of bruises. Who said life was easy? Who wants easy? Easy is boring! Easy is for people who don’t have a clue what is on the other side waiting – waving its flag saying I’m here – come and get me! Come and see what this side is like – it is awesome!

We have all hit obstacles, every one of us. So many times we hit a rut and think we are the only one. No one understands. This only would happen to me… oh here comes that pity party.

How do we get that movement back? How do we pick ourselves up and try again. How do we change our thinking so that we don’t feel like we are out of options? Can you ever be out of options? Albert Einstein says, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” Think about that. If you have a problem, how can you solve it using the same brain that created it?

There is a simple solution to so many of life’s problems and it is not an age-old secret only available to the wealthy and wise. The answer is to create a third mind. But how? By masterminding with others who can truly help you. So if you have a business quandary, join a business mastermind and bring your problem to the table. You will be amazed at the number of ideas that become available to you – ideas that you never even thought of yourself. If you have a relationship problem then join/create a mastermind of like minded people who you can trust to share this problem with. There are solutions out there that your mind alone cannot create – you need the power of a mastermind to get you back in movement gear.

Intentional Living Begins Here

So many people wish life was easier, with less challenges and obstacles but without challenges, life becomes stagnant and we stop growing. Challenges help us uncover who we are and it allows us to become better people. 

Let’s examine a very simple 4-step method to overcoming challenges.

First, state the problem clearly. When we are faced with challenges, we tend to avoid the issue and run the other way burying our heads in the sand hoping it goes away. Or we may say – ok, there is an obstacle, instead of heading right to it and plowing through, I am going to look for another path and even though that is not the way I want to go – it looks easier… less headache… but rarely does that work out. When we avoid or go out of our way, we cause more headache in the end. It takes more of our time, it takes more of our energy and we don’t get the end result we are looking for. So take this time to understand what the challenge is. Ask yourself what is the question, what is asked of me, what is the main goal? Write this down on paper.

Second, identify what you have at your disposal – what resources are available to you to work through this challenge? List all of these resources out. These should include things such as tangible assets – money, computer, books, etc. And then what skills you have, what are your strengths to work through this? Don’t forget others – what access do you have to others that can help?

Third, design the strategy to overcome this challenge. Utilize all your assets to create a plan of action. You may find this plan will need to be tweaked as you execute and that is ok. Keep at it.

Lastly, execute the strategy with effort and determination. Do your very best with all you have to overcome your challenge.

If you find that you still cannot overcome a challenge, then re-evaluate. If your strategy just won’t work because it isn’t viable or effective then change it. If your strategy doesn’t work because you didn’t execute it well enough, be persistent and tweak your efforts, giving it more.

Practice this method on small challenges and see how easy it is to overcome. Then try it on the big rocks!

Many people have convinced themselves that it is okay  to break their own rules “just this once!”

• This opening statement reveals what I call “marginal thinking!” “Just this once,” style of thinking lures you into a “marginal cost” mindset. You lose sight of the real cost!
• Once you start down that road of compromise you inadvertently begin to compromise other areas of life.
• You and I need a strong “VALUES STATEMENT” in our life. For example the Apostle’s Creed:
  • I BELIEVE in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.

He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. 

Amen.

1. The Three Parts of Purpose
   1. LIKENESS – This usually begins with a draft of what the final product will look like. In other words we have a target to aim for. The destination is not the goal but the journey and effort getting there is the goal.
   2. COMMITMENT – This is not just saying yes to something. This is more like a religious conversion. Because life will hand us numerous exceptions to the rule, if there is not a religious conversion in our commitment, we will be prone to altar the commitment. That in turn leads to pathways we did not know we would travel and face consequences we did not intend.
   3. METRICS – How will you measure your progress? How do you know that you are even on the correct pathway? How will you know that you have arrived? How will you know what resources are needed and which resources need to be discarded?

I have been working my way through a mountain of data that only  George Barna and David Kinnaman can provide. Their latest rendering of the trajectory of the American worshiper and non-worshiper is packaged in their book “Churchless.” The book is providing a snapshot of the beliefs and lifestyle patterns of the churched and churchless individuals in America. I must admit, this material is fascinating on many levels. My interest has peaked in this arena lately by another book that is coming out entitled “Church Refugees” by Dr. Josh Packard Sociologist at Denver University. A third book in this genre is entitled, “Why Nobody Wants To Go To Church Anymore” by Tom & Joani Shultz.

Back to the question, What is the incentive to become a Christian? Consider the facts and closeness of the Unchurched and Churched view the following topics:

[Barna, George; Kinnaman, David. Churchless, Tyndale House 2014 (p.131).

I am not one who is announcing the death of the church with the above listed stats. However, I would offer a couple of observations.

1. A rebuke comes to mind and seems obvious. You would think that the chasm between unchurched and churched behavior would have more of a serious difference statistically speaking. John 15:19 states “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own…” The Apostle Paul would write that we are not be conformed to this worlds thinking and standards, but rather we are to be transformed with a renewed mindset (Romans 12:2). It seems that now is the time for some hardcore self-reflection on conformity Vs. transformation and correlation Vs. causality.
2. On the positive side of these thoughts the unchurched clearly pronounce their need of God in order to improve and become a better version of themselves. The churched also seek the help of God to improve. Therefore, we have a commonality on how to talk to each other. It is at this intersection of life that churches can offer a new set of values, a new identity, new goals, and restored relationships. It is time for the church to seize upon this opportunity. Otherwise, what is the incentive to return to church?

People do not want to become the latest statistic on someone’s church grow chart. They are looking for authenticity and relationships. Think outside the box on engaging this new reality. Leave a comment. Share this article with your social connections – help start a new dialogue!