"God wants us to understand that being always precedes doing, and that who we are with him is more important than what we do. Take care of the being, and the doing will take care of itself."
Today I finished reading "Love Works," by Herschend Family Entertainment CEO Joel Manby (think Dollywood and Silver Dollar City). I think I can e-loan you my kindle copy somehow if you want to read it too. The book supports the same principle about being, but applies it to the business world. Joel writes that:
"...enduring and successful companies are more ideologically driven and less purely profit focused than companies that don't perform as well financially."1
When you have a defined goal of who you are, then long term profitability of what you do will follow. On an individual level, Joel describes satisfaction in life as coming from his personal be goals that he lives out in both his work and private life. I took up his challenge and started a list of my own to be goals.
Even though I'm about to start working a front end coffee house job, I'm going in as if this were my ultimate dream job. I want to apply all the principles of leadership that I learned in "Love Works" - patient, kind, trustful, unselfish, truthful, forgiving, and dedicated. And most importantly, I want to refine and live out my be goals.
I call this my Fiat List. Fiat means "to be" in Latin. In debate, it refers to the concept that the proposition being debated is approached as if it was in existence. That way someone doesn't just shut down the debate by saying, "well, that isn't real, so you can't argue about it." Fiat makes an argument real in a debate, and defining my Fiat List, my be goals make them real in my life.
Fiat 500 - I wouldn't mind having one, but I'm not taking about the car here... 2
Goal 1: To be a listening learner. I forgo the pride of what I already know to humbly seek new insights and recognize truth.
Goal 2: To be a loving initiator. I actively promote others interests by engaging people and encouraging their best.
Goal 3: To be a wise judge. I consider the best course of action in all situations based on understanding truth and promoting justice.
Goal 4: To be a Kingdom-minded inheritor. I walk in the authority of my identity in Christ as an adopted son of God.
What will it look like for me to be these things in every part of my life? At work, volunteering at the campaign office, at home with my family, at the gym with my workout group, I want to be focused and committed to being who I am.
I encourage you to take some time to think about who you are and to read "Love Works" if you get the chance.
1 Manby, Joel (2012-04-24). Love Works: Seven Timeless Principles for Effective Leaders (Kindle Location 2084). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
2 Photo from www.fiatusa.com
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