Weekly Thought – June 14, 2016
Fred and Mary Alice were married on June 25, 1937. Although they met in 7th grade English class, they didn’t date until they graduated from Hume Fogg High School in Nashville, TN. She worked at S.H. Kress at the candy counter. Fred saved up his money, bought a few pieces of sweets, stood and talked with her regularly. At age 21 they married. Until her death in 2004 they remained faithful and true.
BWFLI was an idea which developed from one event to over a dozen. Thanks for standing with us.
Mind-full-ness
I asked the Senior Vice President of a billion dollar oil company: “John, what do you know now that you wish you had known when you got out of school?”
Very quickly he responded, “Fred, I wish I had had the humility of an open mind.” Have you ever tried to talk with someone whose mind was tightly closed because they thought they had all the ideas of value?
A common denominator I have discovered among eager learners is that they are not far from a paper and pen (or the modern equivalent). Watch for this! Engage highly energetic, ambitious achievers in a stimulating conversation, and suddenly you will see them record an idea that has crossed their mind. Note-taking achievers can throw away their recorded ideas later if they don’t want them (and smart folks do evaluate and discard bad ideas). But, if they want to remember an idea and haven’t jotted it down, how can they recapture it? Howard Hendricks, distinguished professor at Dallas Theological Seminary has trained thousands of men and women to carry 3 x 5 cards with them to catch what Dr. Haddon Robinson calls “the big idea.”
An outstanding young man I recently met said this to me: “A leader is not the one who has the best ideas; a leader is the man or woman who uses the best ideas.” In order to do this, the leader must have an open, discerning mind. Of course, I am not talking about a sticky flycatcher that picks up everything passing by, but an astute ability to open up to ideas that are helpful.
I always keep in mind that what leaders know is not uppermost – I am primarily interested in what they are and how they think. That will determine how well they will use what they know and how they capture that which they don’t know. This is a critical element of good thinking.
A friend of mine who was an eminent scientist instructed me to “make friends with your ignorance. Wake up each morning realizing that there is so much more for you to know than you knew yesterday.”
This week think about: 1) When have I been too close minded to consider new ideas? 2) How can I think about opportunities for greatness? 3) What can I do this week to stretch my mind?
Words of Wisdom: “Engage highly energetic, ambitious achievers in a stimulating conversation, and suddenly you will see them record an idea that has crossed their mind.”
Wisdom from the Word: “I will think about all you have done; I will reflect upon your deeds!” (Psalm 77:12 NET Bible)