From John Maxwell Company

How to Get More Than Easy Answers and Half-Baked Solutions:

3 Things Martin Luther King, Jr. Taught Us About Thinking

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Easy answers and half-baked solutions. How often are these really effective? A MacGyver-style fix usually works in the moment, but not forever. And split-second decisions often cause regrets. A little duct tape on this, a quick patch on that and we move ahead to the next project. It's definitely easier to just check off a task instead of giving ourselves the time necessary for planning and solid thinking.

John C. Maxwell says, successful people think differently than unsuccessful people. And, if you are willing to change your thinking, you can change your feelings, you can change your actions, and ultimately, you can change your life.

As we approach Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we reflect on a great man and a great thinker. He was not the kind of man to glaze over the details or take short cuts. He modeled solid, vision-driven thinking and because of that, he created a remarkable legacy.

As we celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., we reflect on three aspects of his skilled thinking that made him a successful leader. And, they are skills you can implement, too. These three methods of skilled thinking can help you discover new ways to consider the challenges and obstacles you face in your own leadership.

1. Strategic Thinking

What is needed is a strategy for change, a tactical program that will bring the Negro into the mainstream of American life as quickly as possible. - MLK

King knew hope wasn't a strategy. Having been denied their rights for the entirety of United States'
history, African-Americans could not expect change by working through the usual political
channels. The quest for racial equality would require radical activism. As King noted, "Freedom is never
voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed."
Inspired by the Montgomery bus boycott, King conceived a national strategy of widespread noncooperation
to challenge racist institutions.

In your leadership and personal life, you're responsible for doing the homework and planning the strategy for achieving your vision. It's not enough to hope for change or hope you reach your potential. Approaching your leadership with a strategy is the first step to success.

2. Uncommon Thinking

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, 'When will you be satisfied?' We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: For Whites Only. We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream. - MLK

When King said these words during his "I Have a Dream" speech, he was speaking out against a life-long prejudice that for hundreds of years was a cultural norm in the United States. What he said that day was radical, hard to imagine, and vastly different than any system the American public was familiar with. As a leader, he was courageous enough to share his uncommon, unpopular thinking. And, as a leader today, it's your job to inspire followers with the future and provide motivation day-by-day.

This means that the people in your organization must be able to look toward both the future and the present. They need to know where they’ll eventually be and what to do every day to get there. It’s your job to articulate an inspiring vision for the future and make sure everyone in the organization does the right things in the present to get you there.

 3. Big-Picture Thinking

An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity. - MLK

To be an inspirational leader, you must adopt an attitude of service toward those you lead. This requires laying aside selfish interests to add value to another person. When you serve, you awaken something magnetic inside of you. People are drawn to follow you because they know you'll find ways to make them better.

Having a vision, strategy and dream for your leadership will be key to the success of your 2016 goals. But, it all starts with solid, skilled thinking.

Legacy leaders like King show us the way and give us the inspiration to act. But, in order to carry this out in your own leadership, you need a plan.

How to Achieve Your Goals, part 2

You may not admit it that though you have told yourself that you will refrain from setting goals or New Year’s resolutions, you have unconsciously done some re-thinking. You will stay healthy; no more sugar, no more to couch potato, no more late nights, no more working on weekends, etc.  You don’t want to admit that you have set some goals for fear of not achieving them.

At the start of the New Year, you are very motivated to do all that you have set yourself to do. After a few weeks of success and seeing the results, you tend to be complacent and decide to reward yourself. You sit down and watch a new Netflix series over a dessert of cupcake. Before you know it, you are back into your old self, back to your old habits.

Frustration and disappointment made you to tell yourself, you will never change. You will never achieve your goals.

Why is it that some people are able to achieve their goals? What is their secret?

The secret to achieving goals lies in the brain. As the adage says, “It is all in the mind.” The secret to achieving your goals lies on how you are thinking.  Studies reveal that we can train our brains. We have control over the signals in our brain that affect our thinking. We can make our brain think and follow what we intend to do.

Follow these 4 thinking strategies (adapted from Mari Selby, Jump Start Your Motivation, Forbes Magazine, 2014.) to help you achieve your goals this year.

1.  Focus your attention to your goals. Keep your mind set on the “do it” signals. The more you focus on your goal and what you should do to achieve it, the more likely you are to move and win over de-motivating thoughts.
2. Focus on the benefits of your goal. You must be clear on the benefits of your goal. Knowing the benefits of what you hope to achieve will generate stronger positive thoughts. What will you gain by being physically healthy? Is it long life, ease of movement, look physically beautiful? Do you want all of these benefits? Then you need to work and do the necessary to achieve your goal.
3. Visualize the effect of your goal; think of it happening. The power of visualization and positive thinking will propel you mind to make your body work towards your goal. You will increase activity in the reward-related areas of your brain and reduce activity in areas that might otherwise slow you down with doubts against your capability to achieve what you desire and fear of failure or concern over the difficulty of the task.
4. Do more of “random acts of kindness”. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, or endorphin, which is linked to motivation. Studies say that endorphins are enhanced and increased with altruistic or selfless behavior. Therefore, acts of kindness are a motivation in themselves.  As we act more kindly and think of ourselves less, endorphins or motivating chemical in our brains increases. As motivation increases, the more likely we are to achieve our goals.

If you haven’t tried this thinking strategy, why not try it this year? It could be your key to finally achieving your goals. 

How to Achieve Your Goals for the New Year

A blessed New Year everyone.  I know we all had a long and well deserved holiday. For most of us, apart from all the parties and fun, we used the non-working days to reflect on the past year and to set our goals for the New Year. New Year’s resolutions are very common and are always the talk of the town at this time of the year. New Year’s resolutions are always (according to surveys) broken by the end of January. But how can you truly achieve your goals for the New Year?

Give time to set your goals.
I have a friend who stopped setting goals because according to her, she easily breaks them anyway. I guess the problem is that as easily as she sets her goals, the easier she breaks them. Goals must be carefully thought of. I love the acronym SMART when setting goals. That is, goals must be specific, measureable, attainable, realistic, and time bounded. Attainable and realistic does not mean that you set small goals to ensure that you can achieve them. Rather, attainable and realistic means that your goals must be something that you have the capacity to achieve because you have the skills and the means to reach them. Keep in mind that you set goals so that you reach the next level of your life; goals are set to improve your life.

Write down your goals.
Because of the consistency that you miss out on your goals every year you’ve decided not to write down your goals. This actually is the exact reason why you will not achieve your goals. Not writing them down will cause your mind and body to pay less attention to your goals. You become less committed and this is the start of failure. When you don’t write down your goals you actually allow fear to take control. Fear of failure can cripple us into inaction, keeping us right where we are at and never achieving where we want to be. Take control of your fear and doubts; take action and you will achieve what you have set your heart and mind to do for the year.

Break down the deadline of your goal.
Don’t say that you will lose 50 pounds within 12 months. Rather, break this down into monthly goals so that you are able to check and review your progress.  If you are not achieving what you have set for a few months (or quarter), analyze what you need to change. You should not change your goal but you should change your strategy. Probably, you need to diet apart from regular exercise to achieve the weight you desire. Breaking down your goals into small steps will help you achieve your year-end goal.

Rinse and repeat.
When you have found the right strategy to achieve your goals for the year, rinse and repeat. Do not be lazy because you will need energy to achieve your goals. Do not be complacent that you have found the strategy and that such is working well for the past few months. Repeat the strategy and review again after another month or quarter depending on your need.

Here’s to ensuring you will achieve your goals for this year and beyond. Have a blessed New Year.