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Mark Eastman

A Successful Business Starts with a Decision

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The Question Is: Will You Make It?

Last week we discussed my “aha” moment when I was recovering from a concussion. This revelation involved reading The Traveler’s Gift, a book written by Andy Andrews.

In the book, David Ponder felt like a failure at forty-six years old. He had lost his job as an executive at a Fortune 500 company. Then he lost his part-time job working at a hardware store.

He felt like a failure!

Until he had an extraordinary experience that revealed the power of decisions to succeed in business and life.

Before my accident I was at a place in my life that was nothing like what I had expected it to be. I had some big dreams when I was younger. I was going to be farming thousands of acres. Own a successful construction company. Have a nice, big, new home. Be driving new cars and trucks.

Then, thirty-five years later, none of these things had happened. I did own a construction company, but it wasn’t anything more than a minimum wage job. I had conceded that this was the life I had and there wasn’t anything I could do about it.

I had accepted the fact that I was a failure.

Then came the accident. I believe it was God’s way of getting my attention and telling me that things could be different. I really connected with David Ponder’s situation in The Traveler’s Gift.

I was where he had been. He took the lessons learned in his journey through time and the people he met and implemented them in his life. He had the power of choice, and he used it.

Here is an overview of the seven things he was shown and implemented that changed his life:

THE SEVEN DECISIONS

1. The Responsible Decision

I accept responsibility for my past. I control my thoughts. I control my emotions. I am responsible for my success.

“THE BUCK STOPS HERE.”

“If decisions are choices…and our thinking dictates our decisions – then we are where we are because of our thinking.”

President Harry S. Truman

2. The Guided Decision

I will be a servant to others. I will listen to the council of wise men. I will choose my friends with care.

“I WILL SEEK WISDOM.”

“God moves mountains to create the opportunity of His choosing. It is up to you to be ready to move yourself.”

King Solomon

3. The Active Decision

I am courageous. I am a leader. I seize this moment. I choose now.

“I AM A PERSON OF ACTION.”

“My future is immediate. I will grasp it with both hands and carry it with running feet. When I am faced with the choice of doing nothing or doing something, I will always choose to act!”

Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain

4. The Certain Decision

I will not wait. I am passionate about my vision for the future. My course has been charted. My destiny is assured.

“I HAVE A DECIDED HEART.”

“Truth is truth. If a thousand people believe something foolish, it is still foolish! Truth is never dependent upon consensus of opinion. I have found that is better to be alone and acting upon the truth in my heart than to follow a gaggle of silly geese doomed to mediocrity.”

Christopher Columbus

5. The Joyful Decision

I will greet each day with laughter. I will smile at every person I meet. I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.

“TODAY I WILL CHOOSE TO BE HAPPY.”

“Our very lives are fashioned by our choices. First we make choices. Then our choices make us.”

Anne Frank

6. The Compassionate Decision

I will forgive even those who do not ask for forgiveness. I will forgive those who criticize me unjustly. I will forgive myself.

“I WILL GREET THIS DAY WITH A FORGIVING SPIRIT.”

“Forgiveness is a secret that is hidden in plain sight. It costs nothing and is worth millions. It is available to everyone and used by few. If you harness the power of forgiveness, you will be sought after and regarded highly. And not coincidentally, you will also be forgiven by others!”

Abraham Lincoln

7. The Persistent Decision

I will continue despite exhaustion. I focus on results. I am a person of great faith.

“I WILL PERSIST WITHOUT EXCEPTION.”

“Great leaders – great achievers – are rarely realistic by other people’s standards. Somehow, these successful people, often considered strange, pick their way through life ignoring or not hearing negative expectations and emotions. Consequently, they accomplish one great thing after another, never having heard that something cannot be done. God may have been waiting centuries for someone ignorant enough of the impossible to do that very thing!”

Archangel Gabriel

The experience David has on his travels helped him to connect with and understand these decisions. The same thing happened to me as I read the book.

I realized that I had the power of choice. I could make decisions.

Decisions are something that we too often reject or ignore. We let other people or situations make decisions for us. Then we find ourselves stuck in a rut, thinking there’s no way out.

It doesn’t have to be this way. We have the power of choice. We can make the decisions if we choose to make them. But we have to make them. This is where success starts. The question is…are you going to make them?

Wise Ones Still Seek Him

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Are You Going to be Wise?

Epiphany is an “aha” moment. A sudden revelation. When you become aware of something important. The appearance or manifestation of something.

Christians celebrate Epiphany on January 6, twelve days after Christmas. Many countries refer to it as “Three Kings Day”. On this day, Western Christianity recognizes Christ’s manifestation to the Gentiles. The Gentiles were represented when the Magi visited Jesus. It showed how God’s gift of the Good News is for everyone. Epiphany celebrates God revealing himself to the world

Because the church celebrates Epiphany on the first Sunday in January, this past Sunday was Epiphany. Pastor Lisa pointed out that –

The song We Three Kings is a fitting message for Epiphany.

We three kings of Orient are
Bearing gifts we traverse afar
Field and fountain, moor and mountain
Following yonder star

The men in the song weren’t really kings, they were Wise Men or Magi. They were astronomers or stargazers. This is told to us in Matthew 2:1-12 where they follow a star to go visit Jesus as a child.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” (verses 1-2)

These wise men had been looking for the fulfillment of prophesies for generations. They were paying attention and ready.

When God sent them the star they acted and went to find and follow Jesus.

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy Perfect Light

The Magi brought gifts to Jesus that showed that they had been paying attention and knew who He was. They gave Him gold. Gold was a gift given to kings.

Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King forever, ceasing never
Over us all to reign

They gave Him frankincense. This represents divinity. Frankincense is a fragrant resin that was poured out in worship. It was something given to gods. They knew who Jesus was.

Frankincense to offer have I
Incense owns a Deity nigh
Prayer and praising, all men raising
Worship Him, God most high

They gave Him myrrh. Myrrh was used for embalming. These wise men knew what was coming.

Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes of life of gathering gloom
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying
Sealed in the stone-cold tomb

The wise men paid attention. God spoke to them through dreams and a star. God told them to not tell Herod and to go home a different way.

God told them what to do and they listened. Then they acted.

The last verse of the song tells the story going forward.

Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice
Alleluia, Alleluia
Earth to heav’n replies

We need to be like the wise men. We need to read Scripture. We need to seek Jesus. We need to discern and obey God. We need to act.

At the end of Matthew, Jesus tells us what we’re supposed to do.

“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The wise men were seeking Jesus. They found Him and shared that with others. They wouldn’t have found Him if they hadn’t acted on what they knew.

We need to be wise and do the same thing.

The Next Step in Building Your Business

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Going Forward from Core Values

Building a business is like building a construction project. You need to know what you want the end product to be. You need to know what you have to work with. You need to have a plan for building and then build accordingly.

Who you are is like the ground you build on.

Just like building on sand is different than building on clay. You need to know who you are and then build the business so that you will be able to support it. Your why is the thing that supports everything else. This is who you were made to be.

Previous posts about this –

Next comes the foundation. This is your core values. The things that you choose based on what you believe. These can be different for different people.

Just like foundations can be different depending on what they’re built on, there are some things that are required regardless of what the ground is like. The foundation is more flexible than the ground it’s built on. It can be modified and improved.

It’s important to be clear on your core values.

Previous post about this –

Now that you have a solid foundation built on solid ground you can start framing.

This part is where it’s really important to have a plan. There are a lot of different styles of building, and you need to have clarity.

I know that when I started my construction business, I thought I knew what I was doing. Then after several years of struggling, I decided that what I was doing wasn’t working. I concluded that this mess was just how construction and my life were going to be.

I was aware of the problems but didn’t know what to do.

Then I had an “aha” moment. It involved being smacked upside the head.

In December of 2012, I was literally hit in the head with a board. It was a pretty big one too (a 14’ long 2×12 plank).

We were installing wafer board boxing to the second-floor wall of an addition. I was standing on the plank approximately 8’ above the ground when it broke. Luckily, I don’t remember any of the ordeal from the time I was measuring until I woke up in the hospital three days later. Based on what I was told, I fell, I hit my head on one of the ladders, then on the concrete slab, and then the board hit me in the head.

It sure is good that I have a hard head. Seriously, I was fortunate that I came away from this accident with only a concussion.

The reason I’m telling you this is that while I was recovering I read The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews. I really connected with this story and where I was.

Forty-six-year-old David Ponder feels like a total failure. Once a high-flying executive in a Fortune 500 company, he now works a part-time, minimum wage job and struggles to support his family. Then, an even greater crisis hits: his daughter becomes ill, and he can’t afford to get her the medical help she needs.

 When his car skids on an icy road, he wonders if he even cares to survive the crash.

But an extraordinary experience awaits David Ponder. He finds himself traveling back in time, meeting leaders and heroes at crucial moments in their lives—from Abraham Lincoln to Anne Frank. By the time his journey is over, he has received seven secrets for success—and a second chance. The Traveler’s Gift offers a modern-day parable of one man’s choices—and the attitudes that make the difference between failure and success.

After reading this book I realized that if things were going to change, I would have to do something. I was the one who had control. I had the power of choice.

Next week we’ll look at the Seven Decisions presented to David Ponder and how I incorporated them in my life.

You can incorporate them in your life too.

Do We Really Know What We Think We Know?

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Our View of Things is Pretty Small

We get pretty comfortable in our own perspectives. Even when we see amazing miracles we tend to not give them their full worth.

In Luke 2:25-35 Mary and Joseph took Jesus to be consecrated as per the Law of Moses.

Simeon was a good man who loved God. God’s Spirit had come to him and told him that he would not die until he had seen Christ the Lord.

When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple, the Spirit told Simeon to go into the temple. Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms and praised God,

29 “Lord, I am your servant,
    and now I can die in peace,
because you have kept
    your promise to me.
30 With my own eyes I have seen
what you have done
    to save your people,
31 and foreign nations
    will also see this.
32 Your mighty power is a light
    for all nations,
and it will bring honor
    to your people Israel.”

33 Jesus’ parents were surprised at what Simeon had said.

How is it that what Simeon said surprised them? Hadn’t they both been visited by angels? Didn’t they experience Mary giving birth to God?

We think we know so much, until we realize we don’t. If we believe the Bible we shouldn’t be surprised…yet we are.

Mary knew she was giving birth to the baby Jesus. So why was she surprised by what Simeon said?

Part of our discussion in Sunday School was about the song, Mary Did You Know? I don’t think there is any doubt that Mary knew. Yet she was surprised by Simeon.

I think we tend to limit our perspectives and understanding.

I think this is what the song is saying. Yes she knew that she was giving birth to Jesus, but at His birth she didn’t know what was coming.

I think this is the point of the song –

Mary, did you know that your baby boy

Will one day walk on water?

Mary, did you know that your baby boy

Will save our sons and daughters?

Did you know that your baby boy

Has come to make you new?

This child that you’ve delivered

Will soon deliver you

Mary, did you know that your baby boy

Will give sight to a blind man?

Mary, did you know that your baby boy

Will calm a storm with His hand?

Did you know that your baby boy

Has walked where angels trod?

When you kissed your little baby

You’ve kissed the face of God

The blind will see, the deaf will hear

And the dead will live again

The lame will leap, the dumb will speak

The praises of the Lamb

Mary, did you know that your baby boy

Is Lord of all creation?

Mary, did you know that your baby boy

Will one day rule the nations?

Did you know that your baby boy

Is Heaven’s perfect Lamb?

This sleeping child you’re holding

Is the great ‘I Am’

We think we know so much, yet we are constantly being surprised. We need to be open to the surprises and not limit what God can and will do.

Here’s an interview with the two men who wrote Mary Did You Know?

A New Year, A Clean Slate

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Why Did the Turkey Cross the Road?

It’s just a few days until the beginning of a new year. This start represents an opportunity for new possibilities. The thought of this can be exciting. The chance to do better…to be better. This is what encourages us to make ‘New Year’s Resolutions’.

The process of making resolutions but failing at them over and over makes us hesitant though. Most of the time people give up on resolutions after a few weeks. Only about 8% of people that make resolutions will stick to them.

Most resolutions are good, and if kept, would make us better.

The possibilities are exciting, we want to be better. Most resolutions are admirable, so why don’t we keep them?

I think most of the time it is the lack of a clear plan.

It reminds me of some wild turkeys that were crossing the road near my home. There were fifteen or twenty birds going across as I approached them in my truck. Some continued on across, some turned and went back, but one couldn’t decide which way to go.

It ran back and forth going in circles in the middle of the road. This indecision and lack of clarity put this bird at risk of failure…and in this case, failure could have been really bad.

Good thing I was driving slowly.

If we don’t want to be like that turkey we need a clear plan. We need to know where we want to go. Then take the necessary actions to get there.

The first thing to do is determine WHY. WHY do we want to accomplish this thing? The WHY will be the motivating factor. The WHY gives us the reason to move.

WHY do I want to cross the road?

Next, we need to know HOW. HOW gives us the map to get from here to there. The HOW gives us a direction to go.

Now I know HOW best to cross the road.

But, this is where things begin to get tougher. There are a lot of different systems that you can use for this. The problem is that what works for one person may not work for another.

I’ve used several different things over the years. The conclusion I have come to is this. It matters less what the system is and more about whether you use it or not.

You have to move, otherwise you’ll be left standing in the middle of the road.

As I’m thinking forward to the new year, I will be working on a plan for 2025. Each year, I modify and tweak my systems so that they work better. I schedule time between Christmas and New Year’s Day for working on my ‘Life Plan’.

It starts with scheduling it on my calendar. It’s critical to being intentional.

I will look back at what worked and what didn’t throughout the past year. I will look to the future to see where we want to go. Most importantly, I will plan to take action. And I will have a way to measure progress, so I can see how we’re doing.

Resolutions are only as good as our actions. Like Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, we have to decide to be different if we’re going to be different.

Don’t be a turkey. Make a plan before you start crossing the road and stick with it. Don’t stop in the middle of the road. You can continue to improve on the plan every day if you keep moving.

Make a plan and get out of the middle of the road!

Sometimes, the best plan includes seeking guidance from someone with 40 years of experience in refining and implementing business systems. One of the most impactful systems for construction businesses is a well-designed proposal system.

To help one lucky construction company break free from the chaos, we’re giving away a free, customized construction proposal system!

Win a free construction proposal banner and start the new year off right

Here’s what you’ll win:

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If you, or someone you know, would benefit from having a proposal system, don’t miss this chance!

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A Story That Only God Could Write

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We All Have a Part in It

Life is a collection of stories inside of a story. We all write our part of the story. The most important character in this story is the same as the Author. They are one in the same.

Today is Christmas. The celebration of the birth of Jesus. The most important character in the story of life.

The Bible is often called the Living Word of God. In Hebrews 4:12 it says, “God’s word is alive and powerful!”

We’re all a part of this living story being written daily.

We all play a part in writing the story. This is where things can go sideways. Too often we forget or neglect to check with the Author before we start writing. This leads to unnecessary struggles.

We saw the Israelites write like this over and over. They would write the story the way they wanted to and would end up paying the price. God would point this out to them multiple times. Then they would change their story to be aligned with His.

In Isaiah 9:1-7 they have been going through one of those times where they were paying for their writing.

Then they’re introduced to the main character in the story.

“For a child is born to us,
    a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
    And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Verse 6)

Life can be hard. It doesn’t always go the way we would like.

We want life to be quick and easy. We don’t want to go through the tough difficult things. This is where aligning our writing with the Author will help us through.

Back to the introduction of the main character.

When Jesus was born the shepherds were nearby guarding their flocks. Shepherds were considered to be the lowest of the low. But, that night they were visited by an angel. They were told of the birth of Jesus, the Savior, the Messiah, the Lord.

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in highest heaven,
    and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished… 

 20 The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.

Luke 2:8-20

Even though the shepherds didn’t hold a high place in society, they shared the story with others.

We should glorify and praise God and share the story of Jesus with others.

Too much of the time we get caught up in what the world thinks. This is upside down thinking. In 1 Corinthians 1:26-28, Paul tells us to remember the people of this world don’t think that many of you are wise, and not many of you come from important families.

But God chose the foolish things of this world to put the wise to shame. He chose the weak things of this world to put the powerful to shame.

 What the world thinks is worthless, useless, and nothing at all is what God has used to destroy what the world considers important.

Remember to celebrate the Main Character of Life’s story.

Write your story with Jesus as the Main Character.

It’s Not Too Late to Build a Better Construction Business

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Learn from the Past, Look to the Future, Live in the Present

As we are rapidly approaching the end of another year, I’m beginning to think about what things I can do to make my business better. There are things that we know we need to do and have been putting off.

Life is busy, especially at this time of year.

Looking back can be disappointing and discouraging if things haven’t gone as you planned.

Going forward we can do better. But this requires being intentional and taking action.

While thinking about areas where I fell short and opportunities I missed or ignored, I was reminded of the Hallmark Christmas movie, A Shoe Addict’s Christmas. Its story is similar to A Christmas Carol.

In this movie a woman, Noelle, accidently gets locked in the department store where she works. While waiting to be rescued, a quirky woman named Charlie appears. Over the next few days, Charlie—a guardian angel—helps Noelle rediscover the life she has been avoiding, by visiting Christmases past, present, and future.

We’ve all had situations that we can look back on and wish we had done things differently.

We can’t change the past, but what we do today will affect the future.

In the movie, Charlie tells Noelle a story about a man caught in a snowstorm.

It goes like this: there was man who was out in the snow, and someone came by in a sleigh and offered him a ride. The man refused. He said, “God will take care of me”. Later, as the snow continued to get deeper, another man in a sleigh came by and offered to help. Once again, the man refused, “God will take care of me.” The next time a sleigh came by, the snow was up to the man’s chin. For a third time the man declined the help and said, “God will take care of me.” Then, when the man goes to Heaven, he asks God why He didn’t save him. God answers, “I sent three sleighs, and you ignored them all.”

Too often we ignore the sleighs that God sends us.

As long as we’re still alive, even if we’ve missed or ignored sleighs in the past, it’s never too late to get on the next one. It is up to us to decide.

“God moves mountains to create the opportunity of His choosing. It is up to you to be ready to move yourself,” The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews.

If you don’t want to get buried in the snow, you need to shovel what you can, when you can, and take the sleighs when they come along.

In business, a sleigh could be learning from someone with more experience, or it could be using systems and processes that will provide you with the tools you need to build a better business.

Learn from the past, look to the future, live in the present.

One such sleigh that could help you get out of your snow drift is a construction proposal system designed specifically for your business. We’re currently offering a free, customized construction proposal system to one lucky winner.

Here’s what you’ll win:

  • Custom System: Built to match your unique business needs
  • Digital Tools & Templates: Easy-to-use resources to save you time
  • 1-on-1 Coaching: Weekly sessions to guide you step-by-step
  • Follow-up & Reviews: Stay on track with ongoing support

If you or someone you know would benefit from having a proposal system…

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Make Room for Healing and Joy

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Don’t Hold on to Things You Shouldn’t

We’ve all found ourselves in unpleasant situations. Places where we feel trapped. Sometimes it’s because of things we’ve done. Sometimes we’re there due to no fault of our own.

The Israelites found themselves in bad situations repeatedly. They would go through times when they would be captives of other countries. Most of the time this was because they would be doing things they shouldn’t.

There was a lot of guilt and judgement.

God would give them chances to change. These opportunities would come to them through prophets of God.

One of these messages of hope came in Isaiah 6:1-7. Isaiah received a message from God and he felt doomed because he was a sinful man. A Seraphim that was attending to God touched Isaiah’s lips with a burning coal and said, “This coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.

The year of Jubilee was a time for the Israelites to dedicate a year of rest to God, acknowledging that God would provide for their needs.

The Year of Jubilee, which came every 50th year, was full of releasing people from their debts, releasing all slaves, and returning property to those who owned it. During this time, the Israelites were not supposed to reap or harvest; it was a time for people to return to their families and loved ones.

The Year of Jubilee was a time of Restoration.

So, after seven years of Sabbaths, we reach the 50th year. A year dedicated to rest, the restoration of property, and freeing people from debts, servitude, and slavery.

Because everyone was released from their debts and slavery, everyone got to rest and could start the next year with a clean slate. 

It’s important to note that God owns everything. Anything He’s given to us, such as resources, crops, etc., belongs to him. Therefore, the Israelites would dedicate this year of rest to him, acknowledging that God would provide for their needs.

The Israelites went into captivity because they didn’t observe these resting years (Leviticus 26). Because they didn’t trust that God would provide and dedicate time to resting, they reaped the consequences.

God also instituted the Year of Jubilee as a foreshadowing for his future work on the cross. Jesus relieves us of all spiritual debts and our slavery to sin by His death and Resurrection.

In Matthew 1:18-25, Joseph learned of the coming of Jesus when an Angel came to him in a dream. He was told what would happen and what he was supposed to do. And he did it.

Our ultimate forgiveness is through Jesus. But we have to accept this gift.

Jubilee was a release from the past. A restoring. It brought hope for the future.

The Israelites held on to things and wouldn’t let them go. They neglected to take advantage of Jubilee, and they suffered unnecessarily because of this.

Too often we do the same thing. We’ve been hurt by someone, and we don’t let go. Then we’re the ones who suffer. We tend to hold on to things as a way of protecting ourselves. Even when we’ve let go of something, it has a way of creeping back.

We have the power of choice. We can forgive. We can release the past. This makes room for healing and joy.

Jesus is our Jubilee.

Core Values are Where Success Begins, Part 2

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They Will Help You Avoid Wandering

Core values are the foundation your life and business are built on. Last week I gave you a brief definition of what my first six core values mean to me. This week I’ll do the same thing with the final six.

Here are the final six:

Build the wall one brick at a time

A more common saying is to eat the elephant one bite at a time. Building the wall one brick at a time is the same thing. It’s just a more construction-focused message. When there is so much to do, it is easy to be pulled in many directions and to lose focus. It is important to concentrate on one thing at a time. Otherwise, we can become overwhelmed and unable to focus on any one thing well. It takes thousands of bricks to build a building, but we can only lay one brick at a time. Focus on that one next brick.

I have two ears and one mouth

It is important to be quiet and to listen to what others have to say. As I process information, I tend to think out loud, which is me talking. I need to remember to listen better and talk less. We are all in such a hurry and have so much going on in our heads that it can be hard to listen. This core value reminds me of the importance of slowing down and listening.

Avoid drama

Life is too short to get caught up in things that are out of our control and/or have no or little effect on what is truly important. Some people aren’t happy unless they have some drama going on. This means they want to pull everyone around them into the fray. Those of us who want to make things better can be pulled into these situations. Don’t be pulled in.

Be accountable

I am responsible for my actions, whatever they are. I have the power to make decisions and act accordingly. Choice is the one superpower that we all have. Too many times we choose not to use it. It’s easy to point the finger at someone else and not take the blame for things that are our fault. If it’s our fault we need to own it.

Take off the blinders, be more observant

Intentionally slow down and be observant. Look around and really SEE things. It can be hard to do this when there is so much to do. Being focused on work and projects is a good thing unless it becomes the only thing. You can be so focused that you miss out on other important things. I tend to get focused like this. That is why this is one of my core values. It reminds me of the importance of this.

Intentional action

This is the second most important one behind “honoring God in all that I do”. Nothing happens without action, and we need to be intentional about doing something. It can be hard to move forward when attempting to achieve perfection. It is important to stop thinking and talking about it, but rather take action and do it. A lack of action holds more people back than anything else. Action without being intentional can take us in the wrong direction if we aren’t careful. Too many times we get stuck looking for a guarantee that what we’re thinking about doing is right. Take intentional action.

And that is all of my core values.

I read through them at the start and end of each day. This helps me to continually build my business and life on a solid foundation.

If you would like to figure out what your core values are you can use the process for building your business on a solid foundation.

Another way to avoid wandering is having good business tools. We’re currently offering a free, customized construction proposal system to one lucky winner.

Here’s what you’ll win:

  • Tailored System: Built to match your unique business needs
  • Digital Tools & Templates: Easy-to-use resources to save you time
  • 1-on-1 Coaching: Weekly sessions to guide you step-by-step
  • Follow-up & Reviews: Stay on track with ongoing support

If you or someone you know would benefit from having a proposal system.

Enter the Giveaway Here

A Straight Path is the Shortest Way

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This Can Be Hard in the Wilderness

In geometry, a straight line is the shortest distance between two points (on a flat surface). When going from point A to point B, on a map or in life, it’s rare that we can go in a straight line. In this case we want to find the “most straight” line.

The same is true for our path to salvation.

The fewer detours or obstructions we have to deal with the sooner we get to where we’re going.

The Israelites had been in exile for years. Isaiah explained over and over that they had been dealing with this judgement because of their own self-inflicted obstacles. Then in Chapter 40 he shifts to a message of hope.

In verses 3-5 he tells them,

“Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God! Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills. Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places. Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The Lord has spoken!”

Isaiah is telling them to get ready for the coming of Jesus. That the path is straight. There is only one way to salvation and that is Jesus. They needed to quit wandering around out in the wilderness.

In the New Testament, when Mary visited Elizabeth, the unborn John leapt in Elizabeth’s womb. John already knew he was going to have a part in the Christmas story before he was born. He was going to make a path through the wilderness to Jesus.

We need to do the same thing as John and help each other through the wilderness. We can do this by sharing the road map of life. This map can be found in the Bible. This isn’t to say that it’s easy, but it is the straightest line.

The best path is the straightest line.

We need to use this map in our own lives as well. Life can be a hard road. But it is easier if we know the best path to take.

Advent is the preparing for the coming of Jesus. This is a good time to focus on the path and find our way through the wilderness of life.

Part of preparing for Jesus is repenting of the things we shouldn’t do. Repenting can seem like a negative thing. But it shouldn’t be. Repenting doesn’t mean stop, don’t, no.

Instead of looking at it negatively, look at it positively. It’s not the ending of something, but rather the beginning. Start, do, yes.

Start down the right path. Do something to move you closer to Jesus. Say yes to the straightest line.

Even though the wilderness can seem overwhelming and easy to get lost in, look for the straight path. Nothing is too hard or too difficult for Jesus. He will show you the right way to go.