Who will you grow with in the study of The 5 Levels?
By · CommentsHappy New Year! I hope you’ve had a wonderful holiday season and are ready to launch into 2012 with enthusiasm!
To set the tone for the new year and help you start growing right away, we’ll be launching our group study of The 5 Levels of Leadership here on the blog. Every week through February, we’ll learn together and discuss in the comments. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is to grow along with other like-minded people. This interaction will take your learning to a new level.
I want to invite you to take the initiative and bring together a group to study The 5 Levels. If you’re not sure who to gather, start by taking a look at yourself to determine where you are in the leadership development process.
Established Leader. Maybe you’re the point leader for your organization, or perhaps you lead a large department. For your group, I suggest gathering aspiring leaders. This gives you the opportunity to invest in them and impact your organization together.
Emerging Leader. Are you in a position of leadership, but still very much trying to find your way? Gather other leaders similar to yourself. Together you can challenge and encourage each other to move up the levels of leadership.
Aspiring Leader. You’re not in a position of leadership, but you’d like to be. Gather other aspiring leaders. By participating in the group study, you’ll be preparing yourselves for the opportunity to lead when it presents itself.
Person of Influence. Maybe you’re not in a position of leadership and don’t foresee ever being in one (eg: a retiree or stay-at-home mom). But you know the value of influence in your home or community. Gather others like yourself; together you can learn to apply The 5 Levels to your personal influence with those around you.
Once you’ve gathered your group, set the date for your first meeting. We’ll officially start the study next week, with our first group discussion occurring on January 16.
Please leave me a comment if you’re planning to participate. And if you are leading a group, include the number of participants in your comment. It will be wonderful to know who is partnering with me in moving themselves or others up the levels of leadership.
From our family to yours
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A Wonderful Christmas Gift
By · CommentsLast week I got a big surprise at the Christmas lunch given for the John Maxwell Company.
John Hull, the CEO of EQUIP, and Mark Cole, the CEO of the John Maxwell Company, asked me to tell the story of what got me started on a lifetime of personal growth. It’s a story I’ve told many times before, so I gladly complied.
It began in February of 1974 when I met a man named Curt Kampmeier for lunch and he asked me an important question. I had just told him about all of my dreams and goals—all of which would be a real stretch for me—and he asked, “Do you have a plan for personal growth?”
After hemming and hawing for a few minutes, I had to admit that I didn’t have a plan. Curt’s response? “John, personal growth doesn’t just happen.” He went on to explain the value of a personal growth plan, and he offered to sell me a kit that would cost the equivalent of a month’s salary.
Though it took Margaret and me six months of scrimping and saving, we came up with the money. We skipped lunches and did without some things, but I bought that kit. My lunch with Curt is what connected the dots for me between personal growth and success. It changed my life.
At the lunch, I told the story as they requested, and then I started to go on about how I was disappointed that I had never seen Curt again, even though I’d told the story so many times over the past 37 years.
I cannot tell you how shocked I was by happened next. They invited Curt Kampmeier to step into the room!
Somehow members of my team had found Curt and invited him to join us for lunch. He had traveled down from Ohio to be with us!
Few things take me by surprise and I’m rarely speechless, but this was one of those times when words didn’t suffice to express what I was feeling. This man’s question long ago changed my life! And now I would finally get the chance to thank him for it.
Seeing Curt was one of the best Christmas gifts I’ve ever received. Why? Because personal growth changed my life. Since my meeting with Curt back in 1974, I’ve planned it into my daily life, reading books, listening to great teachers, and developing measurable goals and plans to make it happen. I believe the consistent discipline of growth has made it possible for me to add value to people and achieve many of my goals.
I believe it can do the same for you.
And I’d like to help you in the same way that Curt helped me. So in January and February, I’m going to offer a growth opportunity with a group study of my latest book, The 5 Levels of Leadership.
Each week, participants will be invited to read a section of the book, read my current thoughts on those concepts, enter into the discussion by answering questions I provide, and take action to grow.
You can join and participate at any time. If you want to experience the whole study, pay attention to upcoming posts for details on when and how we’ll launch. Also, you’ll get the most out of this if you learn with others – ideally, your friends or colleagues, your team, or a group of like-minded leaders – so now is a good time to start thinking about gathering a group. The comment section here will also be a good place for discussion. I’m hopeful that it will generate lots of interaction. So even if you have to study alone, the blog can serve as your group.
I’m looking forward to growing in 2012. I hope you are too.
What I’m Reading, Winter 2011
By · CommentsAs winter arrives here in the US, I find that it’s the perfect time of year to stay indoors and read a good book. And since I’m always reading books to continue to grow personally, this seemed like the perfect time of year to share with you WHAT I’m reading. The following are books I’ve read recently and recommend:
The Leadership Secrets of Billy Graham, by Harold Myra
The Mackay MBA of Selling in the Real World, by Harvey Mackay
How to Run Your Business by The Book:
A Biblical Blueprint to Bless Your Business,
By Dave Anderson
The Leadership Ellipse: Shaping How We Lead by Who We Are
By Robert Fryling & Eugene H. Peterson
A word about VISION
By · CommentsHow important is Vision in leadership? I believe that there’s no such thing as a leader who doesn’t have a vision. What do you think?
Today’s post features a Minute with Maxwell on VISION. Click to view the video:
I love doing A Minute with Maxwell. It’s my opportunity to coach and empower you a little every day. The program is totally free, and anyone can view it. To be notified by email every day, when a new Minute is posted, simply fill out the following form:
