Week 9: Disciple Leadership

This week you will make your ninth journal entry/blog post. Reflect upon the things that you are learning and experiencing so far in this course. What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing? What did you learn from the readings and videos this week?

I am always in awe every time I read "Brigham Young University-Idaho: A Disciple Preparation Center (DPC)" by David A. Bednar and "Leadership with a Small "L" by Kim B. Clark. I imagine reading these two talks will be required of me a few more times in various classes before I complete my degree at BYUI, and I am quite happy to do so. These talks teach me that I am here for a great purpose, one far greater than running any department or company--even those may be wonderful endeavors, to do them without leading others to Christ in one way or another would be a waste of my God-given talent and neglecting my call. I am here to be a disciple of Jesus Christ and to help bring others to the Lord. My time with BYUI is more rewarding and beneficial than I can imagine with any other college or university because of this unique training I'm receiving. Following the Savior's example to lead with love, lead with vision, and lead by example will not only bring joy to those around me, but will bring me to my greatest joy too.

This week I interviewed an entrepreneur. I ended up choosing to interview someone other than who I had originally wanted to interview. I am so happy I listened to the still small voice inside that was nudging me in a different direction! I interviewed one of my husband's bosses: Jo Day. She and her husband own Trumpet, Inc. One thing that I was reminded of during my time with Jo is that I have a knack for interviewing. It's been years since I interviewed people thought. As I've grown a little older and wiser, I believe my listening and understanding have improved. Interviewing Jo gave me an opportunity to probe and dig further, to learn intentionally. I'm excited to keep moving on my writing assignment about what I learned from her. I'm sure during the writing process I will have more insight... I'm so thankful I recorded our interview!

In a short video called "Aspects of Building Trust," Guy Kawasaki taught that it is imperative as a business leader to TRUST FIRST. He gave three retail examples: Amazon, Zappos, and Nordstrom. Each company has a stellar reputation for their customer service and ease in both buying and returning products. I'm a bona fide Amazon & Nordstrom girl! These were examples that sang straight to my heart. Each of these companies first trusted that their customers would love the products and services provided well enough that they were happy to create return policies that were simple, hassle-free, and made the customer feel appreciated no matter what. Wow! Because the customer was first trusted this way, customers now trust these companies to always wow them. These companies bought loyalty with trust.

Guy Kawasaki also taught to "default to yes." Rather than looking at the people or world and asking "What can I gain from this?" I ought to look at people or the world and ask myself "How can I help or improve this?" I feel that this is excellent advice not just in business, but most certainly in every aspect of life. To me, this falls into the same place as Love One Another. Defaulting to yes is choosing to see beauty instead of instantly picking out the flaws. Defaulting to yes makes me an innovator & creator instead of a destroyer. Defaulting to yes opens the world to me instead of closing me in to limited possibilities. Defaulting to yes is positive. I liked this advice very much.

Frank Levinson reminded me that the Golden Rule is still a terrific practice. He said that the goal of any company is to "weld" customers to the business, so it's advisable to treat those customers like I'd want to be treated... or even better. He also taught that unethical members of any team will cause stress, tension, and division. Yikes! He likes to hire nice people. That sounds good to me. After all, mean people suck.☹️ This somewhat flies in the face of the stereotypical business woman in the movies, who's so tough, cut-throat and cold. That just seems so exhausting. Being nice is just better for everyone.

Week 8: Overcoming Challenges

This week you will make your eighth journal entry/blog post. Reflect upon the things that you are learning and experiencing so far in this course. What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing? What did you learn from the readings and videos this week?

I have to admit, I'm super excited about the entrepreneur interview coming up! I'm looking forward to picking this person's brain a bit and learning why he went the direction he did. He was pre-med at ASU and now has nothing to do with the medical profession. It will be interesting indeed.

This week's readings were less about business this-or-that and more about positive thinking and true reliance on Christ. I love how I'm being taught that business this-or-that absolutely needs to involve reliance on the Lord if I'm to truly have success in life. I understand that doesn't necessarily equate to the largest net profits, but it can equate to large blessings of all kinds.

Taylor Richards taught in a little video segment called "You Can Do Anything" that if I involve the Lord in all I do, then He'll open doors and ways for me. He advised to not doubt myself, my abilities, or the Lord. It brought to mind the talk I gave in sacrament in my ward last month on Sabbath observance, "Worry Less, Worship More."

Eric Ries said in "The Five Whys" video that typically when a breakdown or problem occurs, the root cause is generally a human problem. To get to the root of the problem or technical failure of some sort, keep asking why and you'll get back to the person problem. I wholeheartedly believe this to be true. I am a root cause finder. Getting right down to the real source of any problem brings clarity for the failure, but more importantly, it brings clarity for the solution. Taking the time to ask five (six, seven, ten, twenty) whys will bring you to the solution faster and more completely than treating symptoms instead of the cause.

Elder Holland gave this sweet advice, which is always a treat to hear:

"Don't you quit.
You keep walking.
You keep trying.
There is help and happiness ahead.
Some blessings come soon.
Some come late.
Some don't come 'til heaven.
But for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come."

How I love him and how thankful I am this week's work/readings/videos fed my soul!

Week 7: Moving Forward with a Driving Passion

Reflect upon the things that you are learning and experiencing so far in this course. What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing? What did you learn from the readings and videos this week? 

This week be sure to also share which of the 7 habits has the most meaning for you and why the 7 habits will help you fill your life with passion and purpose as you seek to achieve both a private and public victory.

When considering the seven habits of highly effective people that Bro. Covey identified, number six, or Create Synergy, means the most to me. To create synergy is the creation of some entity that is bigger than the sum total of the parts. At first blush, it doesn't make sense, but in purpose and practice, it is very real. This habit resonated with me because I know the feeling. I know the feeling of the energy that flows when synergy is created. I've been part of this before. I've helped create it within a group working with a single purpose inside each of us, but I wasn't necessarily the one driving it. Habit number six is intriguing, exciting, and big. Habit number six reminds me that I am (we are) heir to the Creator.

I know the Church creates synergy with the welfare program. It's one reason to feel so good and confident in being obedient in paying a fast offering or contributing to the humanitarian fund. I put X amount of dollars into the pot each month. If I were to take that same amount of money and go out and try to do some good with it, the results would be meager at best. However, when the Church pools all the fast offerings & donations together, it can feed, clothe, educate, rescue, immunize, and provide clean drinking water to the poorest and neediest communities or people on earth. The Church can mobilize beautifully, and it is because each contribution is made larger by being part of the whole. I can only hope and pray that my endeavors can be magnified and made part of something bigger and lovelier than I could ever produce on my own. 

Covey's Seven Habits will help fill my life with passion and purpose as I seek to achieve both a private and public victory because I am naturally a scatter brain these days. By identifying what it takes to be highly effective, I can "fall in line." Once I really nail, or make a true habit of being proactive and beginning all my endeavors with the end in mind, and putting things in proper priority, I can consider that a lovely private victory. If I choose to view life and each opportunity in a way that all parties can benefit (win/win), then I put myself in a humble position. In a place of humility and empathetic listening, I am ready and able to understand. When I understand, I am able to teach and be understood. These two habits, "win/win" and "first seek to understand, then seek to be understood" are all about other people. When I can view others as the Lord would have me do, then I am capable of habit number six, "create synergy." I am highly effective with others when working with respect, empathy, and purpose. The seventh habit "sharpen the saw" reminds me that as life rolls on, so do my needs and the needs of others. It's important to regroup, re-energize, and do whatever is necessary to take care of myself so that I can have the power to be effective always.

Ralph Waldo Emerson was quoted this week...

That which we persist in doing becomes easier to do, not that the nature of the thing has changed but that our power to do has increased.

Habits are funny like that. At first they're hard, but after a while, they become second nature.

In the Passion vs. Money short, Guy Kawasaki advised learners to broaden their horizons, to seek learning beyond their borders, and to spend as much time learning in life as possible. I agree! However, that doesn't necessarily mean spend an excessive amount of time enrolled in college. Learning happens outside the classroom too, dare I say even more for some. It's also important that my goals should make the world better in some way, and that whatever I do, may it be about my passion and not all about the money. 

Week 6: So You Want to Be an Entrepreneur?

Make your sixth journal entry/blog post this week. Reflect upon the things that you are learning and experiencing so far in this course. What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing? What did you learn from the readings and videos this week?

I loved the talk by N. Eldon Tanner, "Success Is Gauged by Self-Mastery." He quoted Plato, Solomon, and DaVinci. I love when apostles, etc. quote "the masters" and not just other figures in the gospel. Truth is truth. Lately, self-mastery has been a particular focus of mine. President Nelson gave a talk in 1985 entitled "Self-Mastery" and I've been studying it and working on the principles he spoke of during that talk over the past few weeks. DaVinci's words, in particular, really spoke to me, so I'll include it as I would read it to myself:

You will never have a greater or lesser dominion than that over yourself... the height of a [wo]man's success is gauged by [her] self-mastery; the depth of [her] failure by [her] self-abandonment... And this law is the expression of eternal justice. [S]he who cannot establish dominion over [her]self will have no dominion over others.

I have made sacred covenants in holy places with my Father in Heaven. DaVinci's words really made me reflect upon those covenants. Self discipline, self-mastery, dominion over self... all of these terms or phrases mean more than just picking up some good habits that will allow me to have more energy, have a cleaner home, make more money, etc. I need to rise above the natural woman if I'm to have any hope to receive the blessings that have been promised to me. Becoming the right kind of self-controlled woman at home, in private, in all of my affairs will serve me well now and in the eternities. Being a self-mastered woman will allow me to reach my full potential, to find and fulfill my calling, and to be even more happy.

In "So You Want to Be an Entrepreneur?" I learned more about the types of knowledge that I should acquire to have a better shot at success. I was super impressed that I was given tips on how to acquire Industry Knowledge. I really didn't expect to read anything that was very specific, and I feel like I did get that. Finding work with a venture capitalist, though rare and hard to land, is the best and quickest way to gain industry knowledge. This is followed by working in banks, insurance companies, and acquisitive companies. Though consulting companies can offer great industry knowledge, there is less varied exposure and lots of time required in one consult. Lastly, jobs in sales and operations in an industry can yield great knowledge if I'm willing to do good work, ask lots of intelligent questions, and keep my eyes and ears peeled. I'd need to make great connections with people too, which is true in any case. I'm really looking forward to learning more specific types of advice as this course, and subsequent courses in this journey. 

Week 5: A Hero's Journey & My Reflections

Reflect upon the things that you are learning and experiencing so far in this course. What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing? What did you learn from the readings and videos this week? 

Be sure to comment on the key takeaways from the 22-minute video "A Hero's Journey" in this journal entry.

As I've been reading and studying this week, I've been impressed by how very important it is for me to use the spiritual gifts I've been given, to develop them so they aren't lost or weak. It's also been impressed upon my mind and heart to seek for certain necessary gifts of the spirit that are yet to be mine. 

In reading "Are Successful Entrepreneurs Born or Made: Is the Secret to Success: Skill, Character, or Luck?" it was confirmed to me that everyone is born with the power to succeed at whatever they are drawn to or wherever they find themselves. It's what we do with that power that makes all the difference. Drawing on spiritual gifts enhances the power to succeed. If I don't have a necessary spiritual gift or talent to do well, I have every right to seek that gift of the spirit. It can grow and develop within me so long as I work at it prayerfully and faithfully. I read that Calvin Coolidge once said, "Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race." I really think he was on to something. By replacing "persistence and determination" with "faith and endurance" I feel more confident with the sentiment.

My key takeaways from the video "A Hero's Journey":

1. I have a mission in life, and it will succeed beyond my wildest dreams IF I have faith and courage, and I choose to ACT. This process of acting with faith and courage will change me into a creature that right now only the good Lord can fully understand. I am excited and invigorated by this truth.
2. I need to become world-class at something! I need to seek the observations of others in determining what my specific excellence in this life really is. By seeking these observations from those who know me, I will be able to see myself--my abilities, strengths, talents, and gifts in new light. This light will be immensely valuable in figuring out what I can, ought, and need to do with my life.
3. There is great power in finding someone in my life for whom I'm truly grateful, but have yet to thank. I am to write a one-page letter to this person, find them, and read it to them in person. Talk about vulnerability! But this charge to express gratitude in this manner is humbling and lovely too. I am considering my life, the people who have come and go within it, and pondering on the gratitude I've yet to express. 

Week 4: Deconstructing FEARS!

I finished reading Launching Leaders by Steven A. Hitz this week. I learned the importance and value of great mentors in our life's journeys, especially in entrepreneurship. 

I found the exercise of creating/identifying my Core Values to be more enlightening than expected. Though my assignments aren't exactly easy, I'm looking forward to more enlightening exercises. I think this is really good for me. 
My top Core Value was POISE. This is from my work on that...

My highest-ranking Core Value is to be a Poised Woman. To be poised is to always behave in a composed and self-assured manner, always tempering or bridling any unkind word or thought, choosing to act gracefully and tactfully, and never to be acted upon or give away control of my will or actions. I will maintain poise and confidence by choosing virtuous and lovely words, thoughts, actions, and endeavors, and ever choosing to act and not to be acted upon. Being a poised woman is in harmony with the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 2 Nephi 2:26 has helped teach me that I have been redeemed from The Fall by a loving Savior, Jesus Christ. The redemption has given me the freedom to choose good over evil, to act and not be acted upon. The thirteenth Article of Faith teaches me that as a faithful Latter-day Saint woman, I do need to seek after that which is virtuous, lovely, of good report, or praiseworthy.

The Q's & A's from my worksheet...

1. If you pursue your calling with discipline, intentionality, and the help of fellow travelers, what are the chances that your worst case scenario will really happen?

The chances are truly 50/50. They either will or they won't. It sounds like a cop out answer, and it sort of is, but hear me out. IF discipline, intentionality (is this even a real word?), and the help of fellow travelers were 100% sure things, then my worst fears would be completely unfounded. But the reality is that I am my own worst enemy. Discipline and I don't always go hand in hand. I have a road behind me absolutely knee-deep in grand intentions, but I'm not where I'd like to be just yet. My fears aren't exactly irrational. (Isn't there a saying about good intentions and a road to Hades being paved with them?)

2. As you look at your list of fears, what themes emerge? What is at the core of what you really fear? Financial ruin? The judgment or disapproval of others? Physical harm? Endangering the ones you love? Embarrassment?

It seems to me that should my fears come true, they'll confirm that nasty little voice inside that tells me I am a failure, that I never could do it, and that I was foolish to try. I want Danny to be proud of me for what I can do.

3. What is the risk of taking no action – not following your calling? How do you plan to deal with fear when it pops up on your entrepreneurial journey?

The risk of taking no action is minute, except that I will feel like the confirmation is here: I failed because I didn't even really try. I plan to go to my knees in prayer when I feel fear. Every day I pray for guidance, strength, and miracles regarding these very real fears. I will go to my husband and mentors for assurance, guidance, and TLC if and when it's needed.

(Mose Schrute personifies all fear.)

Week 3-Ethics, Life Plan, Code of Conduct

Reflect upon the things that you are learning and experiencing so far in this course. What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing? What did you learn from the readings and videos this week?

I'm looking forward to learning how to figure out or nail down exactly what it is that I want to do with my professional life. I have a really great idea of where I want to go, how far I want to go, etc., but I'm still in the 90's for my percentage points of certainty. 

I didn't give a whole lot of thought to the ins and outs of what this class would teach me or require of me... I think I was too busy to stop and ponder on it, really. It is a required class for my major, so I enrolled. I'm enjoying the exercises required in my B183 class though. This week, we created our Life Plans/Personal Codes of Conduct. I really appreciated being able to create this statement/plan/code. It's not as if I wasn't capable or permitted to create it up until this point, but it never really occurred to me to put it into writing. These are things that have always been in my heart, mind, and being, but there was something extra special about typing them out. They're concrete. They are visible. There is accountability in creating my Life Plan: Personal Codes of Conduct.

I will NEVER…

·         Bully someone or deceive someone into making a choice or risk for my gain.

·         Put my professional endeavors above respecting, loving, and caring for my husband.

·         Disregard my covenants made in the waters of baptism or in the holy temple.

·         Try so hard to bury my emotions that I seem callous, cold, or unkind.

I will ALWAYS…

·         Do my best to live by The Golden Rule.

·         Do my best to keep proper priorities in place: God first; family second; career third.

·         Do my best to remember that I have been a leader and mentor for young women… They still watch me.

          Do my best to view business, education, life, and the world through the lens of the gospel rather than examining or living the gospel though the lens of business, education, life, or the world.

This week I learned more from Jim Richie about "The Formula and Happiness." He combined teachings from his mission president, David B. Haight and J. Paul Getty:

1. Get your education/training.
2. Make your mark. Be good/great/best at something.
3. Prepare to serve/give back.

1. Get up early.
2. Work HARD.
3. Find oil (product, idea, skill set...)

Together, the formula looks like this...

1. Get up early.
2. Work HARD.
3. Get your education/training.
4. Find oil (product, idea, skill set...)
5. Make your mark. Be good/great/best at something.
6. Prepare to serve/give back.

I know that if I put these six directives into practice, I can succeed in life. This is powerful information.