It’s Labor Day. Take the Day Off.

The Way WE Work is a Monday morning audio blog from yours truly that offers an encouraging look at the world of work. 

Another Monday holiday. Oddly, this one we call Labor Day.  Need a history lesson to remember why we’re off today?

Time Magazine for kids gives us a good summary. And I quote: “More than a century ago, workers were forced to deal with harsh conditions. They were paid very little and they often worked 10- to 12-hour days. Men, women, and even small children were forced to work even when they were sick.

Tired of long hours and dangerous conditions, workers began organizing themselves into labor unions. On top of fighting for higher pay and shorter workdays, they also fought for the rights of children. The workers wanted employers to place limits on the age of their workers so that small children were not overworked or hurt in factories.”

Peter McGuire is often called the “father” of Labor Day, coming up with the idea for the holiday in 1882. Thanks, Pete.

Some of my favorite quotes on work include this one from Edgar Bergen: Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?
Jerome K. Jerome, who needs help on that name, once said, “I like work; it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours.”

And someone who wished to remain anonymous creatively admitted:  “Getting paid to sleep ... that's my dream job.”  I think a lot of people are there.

Truth be told…people should take more time off.

God loves the idea of a labor-free day. In fact, He would have us take one every week! God is a big fan of time off. In His thinking, you work six, you rest one. God was so convinced of this plan, He made it one of the Big Ten. Not the football conference, the Ten Commandments.

Now here’s the weird part. Many people don’t take His “work 6, goof-off-one” plan! They keep right on working that seventh day.

Despite the natural love of commerce that keeps doors open on Sunday, there are some great American companies that honor God’s thinking on this matter. You may have heard of them. Companies like Chick Fil A and Hobby Lobby. 

Other firms such as Interstate Batteries, Herman Miller, and Forever 21 think strategically on putting labor into perspective. God’s perspective. They make an effort to treat people the way they should be treated. Now THAT is something you can take to the bank.

Today, on Labor Day, keep in mind that our work is important for society. It’s vital to our well being in so many ways. Just keep it in balance.

King Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes this statement: People come into this world with nothing, and when they die they leave with nothing.
In spite of all their hard work, they leave just as they came. (Ecclesiastes 5:15 New Century Version)

Yep. That about says it. Now, back to my lounge chair.

That’s the way WE work. For Moody Radio, I’m Mark Elfstrand.

Christianese

The Way WE Work is a Monday morning audio blog from yours truly that offers an encouraging look at the world of work.

A Forbes Magazine article a while back revealed the most annoying, pretentious, and useless business jargon of our modern times. Jennifer Chatman is a management professor at the University of California, Berkeley. She claims, “Jargon masks real meaning. People use it as a substitute for thinking hard and clearly about their goals and the direction they want to give others.”

Here are some of those annoying words and phrases: Core Competency. Buy-In. SWOT Team. Empower. Bleeding edge. (You know, when you are BEYOND cutting edge.) Add to these … Lots of moving parts.  Best practice. Think outside the box. Over the wall. Take it to the next level.  And the mathematicians' all time favorite … giving 110%. Like that’s possible.

And be not mistaken! It isn’t just the higher ups using the gobbledygook. (I love that word.) It’s the rank and file. You know, average Joes like you and me. If you need to 'fess up on business gobbledygook, do it now. It will be good for your soul.

But wait! There’s more! More gobbledygook from … Christians. It’s called Christianese. We have our own special language that can scare people off. Or at least cause them serious concern about what planet we’re from. 

Urban Dictionary actually gives multiple definitions for Christianese:  Christianese is the language spoken by Christians. It makes no sense to anyone unfamiliar with biblical texts, but earns you major points in the eyes of other Christians, because it means your words are holy. Words or phrases like old man/new man, unblemished lamb, sanctified, washed in the blood. 

You get the picture.

Humorist blogger Jon Acuff dedicated a whole blog piece to Christianese. 

In business, and in the Christian life, we can build and reinforce subculture by creating buzz language. It weakens our message. We actually lose in communicating with others. And, I can’t resist, too many are drinking the Koolaid.

Proverbs, the great book of sentence sermons, doesn’t use buzz talk.  But it will sure get your attention. Try some of those thoughts on others. In contemporary language. Proverbs 10 has some good ones. One paraphrase gave us this gem: “Don’t talk so much. You keep putting your foot in your mouth. Be sensible and turn off the flow.” (Proverbs 10:20, 21 Living Bible) Good advice for many a meeting.

If we can avoid the trap of any kinds of language-ese, who knows what kind of silos we can take down. Oh man. Wow. I did it.

What Christianese are you using? What Christianese do others use that really bugs you? I'd like to read your comments.

That’s the way WE work.  For Moody Radio, I’m Mark Elfstrand.

The A-B-C’s of Selling

The Way WE Work is a Monday morning audio blog from yours truly that offers an encouraging look at the world of work.

There’s something about selling that I’ve always liked. Probably it’s the combination of creating good customer relationships and finding unique approaches to get your point across. I’ve been in sales, or sales management roles, several times in my earlier years.

Retail selling is okay, but professional selling where “more is on the line” is the real challenge. I was a part of Zig Ziglar’s Sunday School class in Dallas, Texas, in the late '80s. Zig often used his seminar material as a means to attract an audience to church, but you would never leave without Zig sharing the Good News on how to get to the real top. By all accounts, Zig was a super salesman.

Joining Zig at the top was Bob Woods. Bob held management positions in sales organizations with several respected companies. We worked together in California on some marketing related projects. Bob was a skilled networker and people were easily drawn to him.

During our time together, Bob taught me a very effective method of thinking about a sales presentation. He’d say, "It’s as simple as A-B-C!" And then he would spell it out …

*Arouse and intensify interest. Next,

*Build value. Then, if you've been effective so far, make direct effort to ...

*Close the sale.

A-B-C.  If you’re in sales, I’d recommend you consider the simplicity of that process. It really helped me. 

A young woman came to my door in Plainfield a few weeks ago and did the first two steps magnificently. Unfortunately, I didn’t need more magazine subscriptions. But she was good.

In sharing the Christian faith, we would be wise to apply some of the same methods effective sales people use to draw us in. Sales … and witnessing ... should never be about manipulation. But giving creative approaches and a compelling offer that includes unbelievable value for eternity makes a pretty powerful Gospel presentation. Look at the way Jesus engaged his audience. Or the apostle Paul on Mars Hill. 

That exchange Jesus had with Nicodemus at night, in secret, had all the elements. Jesus aroused the interest and curiosity of Nicodemus. He built value around securing eternal life. And we are confident Nicodemus placed his faith in Jesus along his life journey. The transaction was complete. Read about it in John, chapter 3. 

Great sales people devote time and energy to refining their skills. A wise Christ follower will find a way to make a compelling presentation as well. 

That should make us want to learn our A-B-Cs.

That’s the way WE work. For Moody Radio, I’m Mark Elfstrand.

Family Guys

Most of us need lessons to play golf well. Or at all.

Pro golfers of this era appear to be giving us a different kind of lesson. And an unexpected one at that.

The New York Times recently documented that which many followers of the game have already detected. The article is well titled, “On the Men’s Tour, It’s Always Fathers Day!” 

Yes, for male pro golfers, fatherhood and families … are in. But tandem to this message is one often forgotten in the work world: get your priorities straight. 

The article points to several glowing examples. Two of the most recent involved Phil Mickelson and Hunter Mahan. After Phil won the British Open, he immediately went to the embrace of not only his wife, but children as well. Then, when asked to take his photograph with the winner's trophy, Phil made it a family picture. But it goes deeper. Phil’s wife, Amy, has battled cancer. Phil has often devoted time away from the game to be with her.

Hunter Mahan took this family thing to the umpteenth level. With over a million dollars on the line, he withdrew from the Canadian Open while leading the tournament! Reason? His wife was about to deliver a baby. Like … really ready. So he dropped everything to be there for the arrival of his new little one. He can’t stop looking at the pictures.

Bubba Watson shows no lack of emotion in discussing family matters. And he surprised many when, after winning his first major championship, it was the SECOND best event of the year. First was the adoption of his son, Caleb.

Everyone who works full time knows the challenge of putting work in its place. Years ago, I was challenged by my greatest spiritual mentor to do two things: list my priorities … and define in writing how I would live them out. It was a powerful self-correcting exercise.

In the Christian life, men and women really have no excuse for prioritizing work to the detriment of family. Yet it’s so easy to do. And we often defend our position by saying we’re doing this neglect for the benefit of the family. 

The Bible is clear on this. Paul shares this life lesson to his protégé Timothy:
"But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." 

If you want to be an above par provider, best to prioritize doing what’s needed to keep the family together. Something we can all learn from the pros.

And that’s the way WE work. For Moody Radio, I’m Mark Elfstrand.

Check mornings.fm for audio of my comments today.

Walk. Talk. Stand.

Want to make a major move on improving your perception among peers and those around you in the workplace? It may not require an expensive seminar, executive coach, or college level course. It may be as simple as a few lessons from George Washington.

Author and columnist A.J. Jacobs committed himself to an interesting life challenge. First, he read up on Washington’s collection of the 110 Rules of Civility and Decent Behaviour in Company and Conversation. Then, Jacobs put himself on the track to try to live by those rules.

It’s a strange list in some ways, but there are some very helpful reminders for our day. Especially for those who want to make a better impression on, well, everyone! This list of rules G.W. hand copied from an etiquette book as a young man. It seems they served him well.

First, there was the way George would stand. Harvard researcher Amy Cuddy encourages standing in ways she calls power poses. Leaders should learn the open pose … chest out, shoulders back, and hands on the hips, open to the world. Learning good posture has a big payoff …mentally and physically.  George stood tall.

Also, the Father of our Country had a certain kind of walk. It’s now been shown that people who walk with long strides feel happier than whose who shuffle and look at their feet. George had the right stride.

Thirdly, while not on Washington’s list,  A.J. Jacobs learned to speak … faster.  Again, research now shows that if you talk rapidly, you are more convincing. And you’re more persuasive!

Besides these interesting rules of George Washington, I also like the way he led the nation in a petition to  prayer. While we find disagreement over just how spiritual a man George Washington truly was, his proclamations sure appeared to put his faith on the line. 

Writer A.J. Jacobs summarized his experiment to live by Washington’s rules in simple fashion: Walk. Talk. Stand. In the Christian life, those line up quite well.

Faith walking means we “walk the walk.” Sharing our faith means we appropriately “talk the talk.”  And to stand? Who in this age would not argue that we need to know our beliefs implicitly, and be able to hold our ground in a world where the terra is not so firma?

And here’s some advice from the Bible on selecting people to lead: “… keep a sharp eye out for competent men—men who fear God, men of integrity, men who are incorruptible—and appoint them as leaders ...” That would certainly apply to women as well.  (Exodus 18:21 / The Message)

If you are seeking to make a bigger impact in the workplace, and wherever you have influence, those three simple words have power …even in this age. Walk. Talk. Stand.

One more rule … practice makes perfect.

That’s the way WE work. For Moody Radio, I’m Mark Elfstrand.

Bottoming Out

In the workplace, what could be more noble than to be in public service?  As it turns out, if public service means being a politician, almost anything is nobler.

This from a recently released poll by the USA Today's Bipartisan Policy Center.  A bulk of Americans now believes the best way to make positive changes in society are through volunteer organizations and charities , not by government involvement. Those younger than 30 are particularly put off by politics.  (http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/2573743)

The greatest interest for careers was business ownership. 46%. More than a third polled like the idea of working for a small business or nonprofit group.  One in five put strong interest in working for the government, a large corporation or the military. And at the bottom of the list? Being an elected official or working for one.

There is a significant consequence to this. It means that some of the best and brightest and, might I add, people of character are avoiding public service. Analysts say this downward cycle is unlikely to change as perceptions of dysfunctional and corrupt politicians get worse. How sad!

When the USA Today published their findings recently, a companion article in the business section had more troubling news. It told of how moral failings have had little impact on many politicians' careers!

Columnist Michael Wolff writes, "Scandal does not tank your career any more. Scandal is, in many instances, no more than a résumé item that needs to be explained and integrated into a life story. Scandal is, arguably, an advantage, filling out that life story, adding a human dimension to it, and best of all, providing a bit of drama and a leap of name recognition." His words ... not mine. (http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/2567153)

Columnist Wolff should have added, "And all that failing and corruption has left us weakened as a nation, as a people ... and as a culture.” My words...not his.

Make no mistake here. Scandal is not new to this age. The Bible has many characters, men and women alike, who were leaders that missed the mark. Their behavior was never intended to be the model.

But in the Christian faith, we are called to not only higher standards, but the highest standards. Proverbs 2, verses 20 and 21, puts the call out this way:  “Follow the example of good people and live an honest life. If you are honest and innocent, you will keep your land.” (CEV)

Thank God for those who serve in government with noble hearts and a life of integrity! Thank God for those who pursue public service in its best form! We should pray for a revival of political integrity. Maybe millennials will help lead the way.

A political class with solid Kingdom values will appear like knights in shining armor in this age. Especially if they can avoid that armor … getting tarnished.

That's the way WE work.

For Moody Radio, I'm Mark Elfstrand.  

Miracle Makeover

Have you ever wandered into a store or restaurant and thought, "If I were in charge here, I would do this differently." For better or worse, I've had this thought often. And it happened again recently. This time with Kmart.

Here's a large chain discounter that needs help. A current ad campaign for back to school has kids trading insults. Bad move … since parents are the ones spending the money and don't need more insults from those often braggadocious children.

But the larger problem is a store that needs a makeover. A miracle makeover. Earlier this year, an MSN Money blogger (*) shared this review:

"Kmart is stuck in a rut … In the first nine months of its current fiscal year, the chain posted a $98 million operating loss and saw sales slide 5.5%.” 

He adds …“The Kmart stores that I've been to are remarkably similar. They're dirty. The shelves are cluttered, yet the customers are gone. Employees are nowhere to be found." He recommends they close. Wow.

So if I were in charge, I'd redesign a concept store between club membership stores like SAM’s and Costco. Anyone could shop at these stores, but members would instantly save 5 to 7% on purchases. And no membership fee. Simply agree to give us instant feedback as you shop on several items you try. 

I'd change the look of stores to create more of a stepped up warehouse store experience. House brands would have super deals. Use self-checkouts, unlike the fee based warehouse stores. Finally, I'd change the name ... to K-Club. And fix that advertising.  

The most successful businesses are in renovation mindset mode all the time. We call it “new and improved.”

I know. Everybody has got a better idea. I’m sure Kmart management has tried.

You know ... I’ve witnessed miracle makeovers. They are in human form. Here's what happened. Millions upon millions have become new creatures ... in Christ. The Bible tells us that when we experience spiritual renewal, the old has passed away. The new has arrived.  

Christian recording artist Brandon Heath experienced this and reflected on a past relationship that had become painful. His message ...

I wish you could see me now,

I wish I could show you how,

I'm not who I was ...

Friend, if you're tired of living like your past, go for the miracle makeover. No membership fees. Lifetime guarantee. Unlimited opportunities. The whole package is explained in writing. Let me know if you need a copy.

That's the way WE work.

For Moody Radio, I'm Mark Elfstrand

* http://money.msn.com/now/post.aspx?post=2f83065d-d47d-4135-b281-f0b607e1a306