I've Written a New Book

… not really. But in the past two years, I have written about 180 blogs. At an average of 350 words per blog, that amounts to 63,000 words, which is longer than my book, Leading from the Second Chair. But even though I’ve written this much, I don’t have a book to show for it. Let me offer two simple observations about leadership as I press on toward 100,000 words. The first is that a lot can be accomplished by taking small, intentional steps every day. As I was preparing to move into full-time consulting, a good friend encouraged me to start blogging regularly. At the time, I couldn’t imagine how I would find the time or enough ideas to do this. But I made a commitment to try, and settled into a rhythm of writing two blogs each week (most of the time!) Now it’s hard to imagine not having this outlet through which I can express my ideas about faithful and effective leadership. What might you accomplish with a consistent and committed effort? Second, despite the effort that has gone into my writing, the 63,000 words are not anything close to being a book. They’re just a collection of 180 loosely related blogs. Effort, by itself, doesn’t produce great results. Great results are only produced when one’s efforts are focused toward a clear goal. In my case, the blogs were never intended to become a book. Unfortunately, far too many leaders fall into the trap of working hard but lacking the focus and clarity to obtain great results. Would that be said of you? The phrase, “a long obedience in the same direction,” seems to capture both of these ideas. Most of the truly meaningful things that a person might accomplish in life don’t happen overnight. They require “a long obedience” – that kind of steady, determined effort to keep moving, even when it’s not easy. But if the movement isn’t “in the same direction,” the results will usually seem disjointed and will rarely accomplish much. As we start a new year, what is God calling you to do? What steps do you need to take tomorrow, and next week, and next month, to move toward that goal? It’s easy to receive my blogs by email. Just sign-up on Feedburner by clicking here.]]>