My pastor recently took a three-month sabbatical. I imagined him sleeping in until ten every morning, followed by extensive periods of crossword puzzles and personal grooming. But he assured me that his time off was really more professional in nature: he studied up on the Emergent Church and did a biblical tour of Turkey. Am I jealous? No, of course not. Resentful is probably a better word.
Six Ways to Take a Micro-Sabbatical
Finding the Courage to Speak Up
I don’t like conflict. In fact, sometimes I think I am conflictaphobic. (I just made that word up.) I will do almost anything to avoid it. However, soon after I became head of one of our publishing divisions, I had to confront one of my authors. He was pleasant and cooperative when I spoke with him. But he was demanding, uncooperative, and downright nasty to my staff. Finally, one of them came to me, nearly in tears, and said, “I’m sorry, but I just can’t take it any more.” I had to make a choice.
Eight Leadership Lessons from Martin Luther King, Jr.
Today is Martin Luther King Day in the United States. On this day we celebrate the life and work of one of the greatest leaders the world has ever known. I want to take a few minutes and reflect on what is commonly referred to as his “I Have a Dream” speech. While the speech is a masterpiece of rhetoric, I believe it also provides eight insights into what it takes to be a truly great leader.
Five Ways to Comply with the New FTC Guidelines for Bloggers
Last fall, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued new guidelines that require bloggers to “disclose material connections” for product or service endorsements. in fact, according to The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), “People who blog, tweet or use Facebook to post opinions about consumer products could be fined $11,000 for repeat violations of new federal disclosure rules.”
I don’t know how serious the FTC will be in enforcing these guidelines. I have read some reports that indicate they will be primarily focused on advertisers who attempt to influence bloggers without requiring them to disclose that they were either paid or received free goods or services.
Using Email Templates to Say “No” with Grace
I hate saying “no” to people. In fact, I don’t know anyone who enjoys it. So to make the process less painful, I have developed a series of email templates that I can use for these requests. Here is my list of requests by category with my boilerplate text.
Why You Should Sign Up for a Half Marathon
”Let’s be honest. You ate too much high octane food during the holidays. The weather outside was bitter cold, so you ditched your exercise program. You haven’t darkened the door of the gym since the week after Thanksgiving. And the scale doesn’t lie: you’ve gained a few pounds.” This is the conversation I had with myself in the mirror on New Year’s day.