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Throughout my life, every time I take a personality test, the outcome is the same: Futuristic; Strategic; Aggressive; and High Attention to Detail. I always register the big 0 on mercy! Those gifts have served us well! Leading to the highest levels of success in our industries. They also create chaos and pain for others along the way. Our board hired a coach to allow our team to identify my constraints. Gut punch! They were the same as my gifts. The transition was on! Two Tru

We love “People Watching”! (Not in a creepy way) Over the years, we've found that we can learn a ton just by observing. We have also had the fortune of knowing thousands of successful, high-capacity people throughout our adventures. To not offend you, let me define what a successful, high-capacity person, or family, is in our mind. Successful, high-capacity people = Individuals and families that lead with healthy influence and intentional emotional consistency. People who hav

One of the most important lessons I learned that affected our growth as organizations and individuals is that “flip-flopping” occasionally was not only okay but necessary. For years, our success was tied to what I had learned, what I taught, & can still make an argument for today. That our cultures should focus on: Vision Worldview / Philosophy / Theology Shepherding / Taking care of people in the greatest way possible Then one day my “Random Thought Process” kicked in and I

I can’t say when it really began, but at some point I became addicted to drawing my thoughts. Which, by the way, I’m a terrible artist, but that didn’t stop me. This addiction has led to hundreds of markers, pens, pencils, sketchpads, sketchwalls, computerized whiteboards, etc. The question is why? I wanted to have my thoughts in a format that could be passed down through my family. We have a 175 yr. Old family Bible. It changed my whole perspective. Knowing some will disagr

One of the greatest moments of my life was my grandmother’s death. (Don’t freak out yet; stick with me) It was inspiring because she left nothing to chance. At Robin’s first meeting with her, she asked, “Now what do you want me to put your name on?” Yes, it was uncomfortable, but upon her passing, everything was in order. There was no arguing or stupid debates, because everything was settled. She and my grandfather lived a fortunate life. Through the decades, they stewarded t

I’m sure this has never happened to you, but last night I was in a funk! It’s been a great but challenging few weeks, and I finally needed a little break. I told my wife that I was going to walk around the path next to the pond because water always resets my mind. Instead of finishing the loop, I made a last-minute turn into the “nature park”. After seeing all the heavy-breathing joggers, I took another turn into a neighborhood. As I walked down the sidewalk, I noticed a gent

I was a punk 15-year-old kid when God changed my life in a huge way. I had experienced dedicating my life to him, but I was beginning to learn now the truth of surrender. What I began to grasp is that it is in surrender that the real fun begins. It was in that moment that Ephesians 3:20 would become my life verse. It simply reads in the Message translation: God can do anything, you know—far more (Beyond) than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!

Recently, I went to look at a car. It was a car I knew there was no way I could afford, or that I would pay that much for if I could, but I wanted to see how it felt to sit in it. Little did I know that the 3-minute look would lead to 15 calls and texts. My mistake was that I was looking at a Genesis, but they were acting like a 1990’s Hyundai dealership. I love the product, but if I’m looking at a 6-figure car (again, that I can't afford! And is way overpriced), I don’t want

Last week I had a conversation with one of my heroes. He just turned 80 years old, has built multiple business empires, and has the ability to communicate something profound in a regular conversation without knowing it. In our conversation, we discussed the difference between good and great communicators and the effects of technology. In the midst of the conversation, he said something that I have been chewing on since. The conversation: he said, “When you were still speaking

No matter our spiritual beliefs, most of us believe in “miracles” at some level. We might state it in different ways, but it all boils down to seeing something happen that we didn’t believe could happen. To me, it’s a God thing. Recently, in my study time, I have been reading Joshua 3-4 in the Bible. For whatever reason, I’m not getting past it. Instead, I’m continuing to learn new things every day. Today, I want to take a glimpse at the mathematics of a miracle, and how ofte

It’s always been a blast watching people play Twister. It is much easier to be the guy with the board than to be on the mat, but in doing so, you miss a lot of the fun. Many people never see success, because they're not on the mat, or they have fallen. Here are a few little quick hits: I’m afraid that I’ll fall and embarrass myself. So we disqualify ourselves before the game even starts. Everyone else looks so… - comparison kills our game and slows down our success. What if I

This weekend our two-year-old grandson was over. He saw me start to mow, so I let him help, thinking, “Oh, he’ll get bored.” Nope. He just wanted to mow with his PC. While he moved at a much slower pace and I was much more hunched over because he wanted to control the direction, I gave in and had a blast! So, besides me being a great PC, why does that matter? Because at 2 years old, he learned: The Power of seeing a Finished Product The Power of Rhythms (keeping straight line

My greatest privilege in life is building up my wife, which pours over to our family. From their birth all our kids, friends, employees, etc. know that Robin is my favorite person on planet earth! My responsibility is to continue to remind her of that reality. Here are some of the ways I’ve kept that cadence: The art shown in this post was a very strategic investment that I gave her to hang in the bathroom, so every day she would be reminded of “The Bride I See”. 1. Along

The process began about six to seven months ago when I met a new friend, Nathan Bailey. Nathan is one of the most unassuming high-capacity leaders one could ever meet. As we began to chat, God would use his influence in a process that I call “Rebuilding Me”. (I'll share more on that soon! As we continued to dream together, we decided that Robin & I would make the journey to Jamestown. Bad Timing & Blizzards We got things set up, our purpose planned, and were ready to hit the

On a Tuesday in mid - April, we rolled out of bed to be at the hospital by 5 a.m. without sleeping a wink. This was the big day! I would have one of the rarest brain surgeries possible.Would I wake up from it? It wasn't a simple surgery. Would it change our lives forever? Yes! Our family has always lived by the foundation of “Honoring God, Building Healthy Relationships, And having a Blast!” Would the most difficult hours in our lives change that truth? No! Ultimately it wou

It was a hot summer afternoon when I drove over to Tulsa for a meeting. While I was there something started feeling way “off” in my mind...

While the past few years have flooded our lives with never-seen, in modern times, challenges on top of challenges, one great truth has...

Leadership, at any level, is filled with messiness. One of the leading questions I have to continually ask myself is: How do I find the...