Right Choices?

I once heard of an executive who said that he simply wanted his people to do the "right" thing. While that seems on the surface to be a positive thought, in reality, it can be paralyzing. The "right" thing according to whom? What might be clear to an executive might not be so clear to an employee attempting to apply that mandate to his given situation. What does making the "right" choice mean?

It begins with agreement about rightness. What values will govern any situation faced? Values need to be more than corporate statements placed on a wall. They need to be the guiding principles for fitness training in companies. They need to be written on the hearts of the people.

So, organizations need to create agreement and provide development in that agreement for their people. But, what about the people themselves? What about you and me? How do we make "right" choices every day? It really works the same way. We need to create agreement within ourselves about what is right. As important as it is for companies to have their value systems in place, it is even more important for you and me to have ours in place. We face choices every day that depend upon that clarity. If we don't have them in place, then we have a hard time ever choosing. If we are not learning about their application as we make choices, if we are not learning and becoming more fit through our failures in the process,, then we will find ourselves increasingly paralyzed in the face of life choices.

I personally love the simple filter of Jesus for "rightness". As people, who we are or what we do will never qualify as rightness. But, love will. Love the Lord your God, love your neighbor as yourself, and love one another as I have loved you. Choices made through that filter will always be right even if the results don't seem that way. Do well, my friends.

Maximizing My Investment

Welcome to Tappe Talk, a Purposed Connection podcast by The Tappe Group. Five years ago Allen and his business partner created an extension and a bit of a laboratory for Purposed Performance. This venture that was created became one of the premier real estate services in the DFW area. This past week we brought to a close the organization that has been invested whole hearted in for five years. This week Allen spends time sharing some of the things he learned in the process.

1. Never be afraid to invest yourself in something good.
2. Choose partners wisely.
3. Don't underestimate the cost
4. Expect the unexpected.
5. Stay humble.
6. Stay focused and committed.
7. Believe in people.
8. Know going in that you will learn significant things in the process.
9. Stay thankful.
10. Know when it is time to turn the page.

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Everyday Miracles

Everyday really is a miracle. Think about it. Every breath you take is a miracle in and of itself. Everything you see is a miracle. Having eyes that provide insight into the world itself is a miracle. What we call natural is really not natural at all. The expression “natural” childbirth is really pretty ridiculous. If you have ever witnessed the birth of a child, you could never think in terms of it being natural. It is an “out of this world” experience from beginning to end.

How about all of the “coincidental” things we experience in this life? What qualifies as coincidence? What if they aren’t coincidental at all? What if they are meetings that have been intended from the very beginning? If you think about it, relationally speaking, our story is not coincidental or chance based. We were born in a particular place, at a recorded time, to specific people. Our life entry suggests purpose and intent. Coincidence and chance simply do not qualify as an adequate explanation for who and where we are. Neither does it qualify for our intersections in life. Our chance meetings simply do not qualify as chance.

Bruce Wilkinson wrote a book a number of years ago called The Prayer of Jabez. The book captured the imagination of the world because of three short Biblical verses that celebrated the spirit of prayer. People all over the world were awakened to the reality of a supernatural heritage from which we can draw. Jabez looked to his God as One who could “expand his territory” and who would provide him blessings beyond his ability to imagine. All he needed to do was ask in faith.

Wilkinson has now written a sequel to his expose on Jabez entitled, You Were Born for This. In this book, he suggests that the prayer of Jabez actually ushers us into an every relationship to the world of “miracles”. His suggestion is that every single day we can look forward to living in the midst of the supernatural. He describes God as being One who is actively moving in His world and who is inviting those who believe to join with Him on a providential journey.

It is ultimately all about life perspective. We get to choose. Are we living a life of coincidences? Or, are we living a life that provides the potential for miracles everyday? While you can argue against the reality of a heritage and a calling that is a miracle from beginning to end, I am not really sure why you would want to. Think about it. Do well, my friends.

Beware of Dependency

Welcome to Tappe Talk, a Purposed Connection podcast by The Tappe Group. There are many forms of dependency. The ring of dependency is the ring of insecurity and bondage. But, it also the ring of human beings who are trying to make it through life. Allen shares a few thoughts this week for his fello strugglers.

1. Looking to the approval of others for self opinion
2. Looking for means of escape when things hurt or begin to get tough
3. Looking for life to change in order for you to find happiness or success
4. Looking for things to stay the same in order to protect your fear, ignorance, and/or prejudice
5. Looking for the world to make sense or be fair
6. Looking for "success" as a validation of you and of your work

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Destiny?

It seems that "destiny" is an ever elusive and mysterious discussion. People are searching for something they aren't. They tend to believe they are not some place they need to be. Destiny is a life long, never ending pursuit. For most, it is a discovery, or a treasure hunt of sorts, kind of like the "holy grail". But, what if it is not a pursuit at all? What if it is a process we are birthed into and not a pursuit or discovery at all?

I believe we have been created, purposed, and birthed into our destiny. Our story begins with a Creator. We begin with a relationship of "first cause" set in motion by a relationship between two other created beings. Sometimes prompted through love other times driven through lust, two people combine to give birth. We are birthed into a relationshp with a mother and a father. They may not hang around long. They may not be good at being who we need them to be. But, we begin in relationship. And, that is our destiny. Relationships.

We experience them in family. We experience them through friends. We engage them in the marketplace. We create community in living. We create fellowship in love. We live in a world of people. They are our destiny. The people in our world. Our destiny is all around us.

Destiny is where we live. It is not some place we aren't. It is not something we aren't. It is our today. It is the people we meet today. Our destiny is to learn to love and to be loved. We are created by a Creator who loves. We are destined to discover the meaning of love through this life. It is all about relationships. In the words of Darth Vadar, "It is your destiny." Do well, my friends.

Why Not?

Welcome to Tappe Talk, a Purposed Connection podcast by The Tappe Group. Too much of the time, people are asking "why?". What is posed as a question is actually a statement of disagreement or criticism. This week Allen adds one word to the question "Why Not?"

1. Why not begin again?
2. Why not forgive?
3. Why not learn something new?
4. Why not change something?
5. Why not create something?
6. Why not believe?

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What If?

What if you lost your job? What if your career went away? What if you lost your friends? What if you lost your family? What if you lost all that you have, but you? What would you have? Now, I know the idea of losing everything is not a pleasant one. In fact, it is more than not pleasant. It is clearly depressing. However, it does cause you to stop and think. How is your relationship with you?

While our relationship with others is clearly important, your relationship with you is even more important. In fact, you are the only person in the world you can know will not go away. I mean when you go away it is all over anyway. So, how positive and healthy is your relationship with you?

Begin with how you talk to yourself. You can know about the health of a relationship by listening to how people talk to one another. The same can be said for your relationship with you. Would you want to hang around with people who talk to you the way you talk to you? Most people I meet are their own worse enemy. I find myself talking pretty lousy to myself sometimes. The interesting thing is that you can control the way you treat you. You can't control or change others but you can manage your relationship with yourself.

How about the way you treat you? How much rest and sleep do you give you? What are you putting into your body? How much weight are you lugging around? How supportive of your heart are you? How flexible are you helping yourself to be? How strong are you? How about your environment?

Here is the point. It is time to get serious about your relationship with yourself. You are going to be hanging around you for a long time. So, here are some suggestions. Start talking positively to yourself. Build yourself up. Make sure your environment is healthy for you. Clean it up if you need to. Eat less, probably. Don't make yourself carry around more than you need. Exercise your body. Strengthen and create greater flexibility for yourself. Work at giving yourself a chance to sleep well. Turn off the computer or television earlier. Prepare to sleep. You need it. Breathe deeply more.

Loving yourself is a prerequisite to loving anyone else. My Coach tells me to "love God first and then love my neighbor as I love myself." I emphasized that last part for you. By loving yourself more, you will actually be investing in your relationship with all of those important people in your life. It really makes sense when you think about it. Do well, my friends!

Fierce Leadership

Welcome to Tappe Talk, a Purposed Connection podcast by The Tappe Group. Leadership is not easy. This week, Allen spends some time discussing why we should take a more passionate approach to leadership.

1. It is our destiny
2. It is our responsibility
3. Its is our opportunity
4. It is our role to play
5. It is our integrity
6. It is our fulfillment and our joy

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