A Life of Listening

 

Issue No. 435 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (April 22, 2020) suggests you leverage the slower pace during COVID-19 to discern God’s voice in the stillness. Leighton Ford, now 88, shares his transparent journey. Perfect timing! And this reminder: click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies).   The Cosmic Loom “Lord, what book should I read and review next?” is my on-going prayer. Many times I sense the Holy Spirit’s nudge about a specific book. So perhaps for you also—while hunkered down during this COVID-19 crisis—it may be God’s timing for us to read Leighton Ford’s masterful memoir of his very personal journey, A Life of Listening: Discerning God's Voice and Discovering Our Own. When Leighton Ford reflects on calling and vocation, he notes that “we spend the first part of our lives finding a role—professional or parent, executive or explorer, solider or artist.” But then (quoting Thomas Keating), “the paradox is that we can never fully fulfill our role until we are ready to let it go.” So who is Leighton Ford? One global title is noteworthy: Honorary Lifetime Executive Chair of the Lausanne Movement. But is he a preacher, or a proclaimer, or a prophet, or a painter, or a poet? Yes—all of the above. He’s also a listener. And his life has impacted mine across the years. I’m so grateful. Coaching a young leader—early thirties—who was second-guessing his pastoral call, Leighton encouraged him. “Remember God is an artist. He doesn’t do copies. He does originals. And if you are called here, God will do something new through you.” Thus, at age 88, when asked to declare his mission statement, Leighton Ford now says “To be an artist of the soul. And a friend on the journey.” What’s your mission statement—and has it changed over the decades? But let me back up a bit—with a LOL story that will provide some context. At age 14 (because he was tall!), Leighton was named the president of his local Youth for Christ club in Ontario, Canada. In the late 1940s, Billy Graham—the emerging evangelist—was invited to speak at the YFC rally in Chatham, Leighton’s hometown. So with this God-planned connection—fast forward—Billy Graham tells his sister, Jeanie, about this young Canadian and Leighton and Jeanie meet at Wheaton College and eventually marry. Then, as part of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Team, Leighton formed a team to focus on Canada and other parts of the world. Once, when Leighton’s team was conducting a two-week crusade in Nova Scotia, Billy Graham was invited to preach on the final weekend. Billy arrived a day early and sat quietly in the back of the crowd. During the invitation—when seekers would go forward to place their trust in Christ—Billy noticed an older man who perhaps needed encouragement. So Billy “tapped the man on the shoulder, and asked if he wanted to go down and give his life to Christ.” “The old fellow turned, and, not recognizing Billy, who was wearing dark glasses, thought a moment, then said, ‘Nah, I think I’ll wait until the big gun comes tomorrow night!’” So…you’re Billy Graham’s brother-in-law. Life is good. Bed of roses. Opportunities. Acclaim. Success. God’s blessings. (Eh?) Hardly—and maybe you’ve hit a rough patch also along the way. So that’s why now would be the perfect time to listen, to go deep, and to discern God’s voice with the help of an experienced guide, Leighton Ford. Here’s a taste of the guidance: • “As you read my story, perhaps it will stir a remembering of the voices you have heard in your life…” • Following the tragic loss of their 21-year-old son, Sandy: “It’s been said that there are places in our hearts we don’t even know are there until our hearts are broken.” He then discovered: “My preaching was more from the heart, but what I sought was not so much more places to preach as more still places to listen. Silence and solitude, which I had often avoided, became more welcome and compelling.” • The endnotes deliver readings for a graduate course in discernment: Leonard Cohen, Henri Nouwen, N.T. Wright, Mary Oliver, Parker Palmer, Richard Rohr, E. Stanley Jones, Amy Carmichael, Oswald Chambers, and dozens of others. • On his birth parents and his adoptive parents: “It has also taught me that I cannot be a rescuer in unhealthy ways of those who carry deep wounds from life. To discern the difference calls for a lifetime of listening.” • On recognizing God’s call to launch Arrow Leadership, a ministry to younger leaders: “For some time I had been keeping what I called my GGTW List—Guys and Gals to Watch. These were younger men and women in whom I observed strong potential for leadership.” • In the chapter, “When We Lose Our Way,” he transparently describes his own angst during a devastating conflict: “Motives are misunderstood, and those involved project onto leaders their own needs. Reason shuts down, and emotions rule. We get wrapped in the ‘fog of war.’ The desire for power and control take over. And when those we have trusted let us down, the sense of betrayal is acute.” On a country path walk through farm fields in northern England, Leighton remembered the discerning words from his “spiritual father,” an Anglican bishop, who tenderly said to him, “You just need to find a way to let the pain and hurt go. Hold it loosely even if you can’t fix it.” So Leighton “picked up a stick and drew a line on the dirt.” He stepped across the line and breathed this prayer: “Lord, as best as I can, I let go of the hurt, the resentment, the anger. I don’t know if the breach will ever be repaired. But as much as is in me I leave it behind. Help me to do so.” • He quotes Frederick Buechner: “The place where God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” And Leighton adds, “…where the Spirit’s deepest promptings bring a deepening conviction of being in the right place.” • Looking for a deeper leadership model than the ones many believers adapt from secular models, Leighton notes how Jesus led: “the leadership of a son, a storyteller, a servant, and a shepherd-maker.” (Four S’s: that will preach!) • Noting how E. Stanley Jones pictured a “Cosmic Loom” metaphor emanating from the unshakeable kingdom in Hebrews 12:28, Leighton writes, “As I respond to his calling, I may make mistakes. But he does not. And even my mistakes he can weave into his pattern.” • An editor’s advice to Leighton and Jeanie’s son, Kevin (also an author), on making college decisions—discernment counsel from A.W. Tozer: “When you have to make a decision, concentrate on loving God from your heart. If there are several doors open, some will likely close. Then if more than one is open, go through the door you want to go, and trust God to make it right.” • And this from a Quaker woman when asked how “to discern God’s way in her life.” Her answer: “Way has not often opened before me, but way has often closed behind me.” (Prophetic words during COVID-19?) • Don’t miss Leighton’s exposition on the three-step process for discerning your calling: Observe, Reflect, Act. He notes John Wesley’s encouragement that we should “second the motions of the Holy Spirit.” He quotes Mary Oliver’s instructions for living a life:    --Pay attention    --Be astonished    --Tell about it. • How might God get your attention? Study the great characters of the Bible and reflect on the diversity of attention-getting moments (see Moses, Samuel, Mary, Peter, and others). • Leighton punctuates this powerful memoir with a probing question: “If right now the Lord walked up the back steps to where I am sitting on my porch, I wonder, how might his voice sound?” He answers his own question with 19 bullet-point phrases (arresting insights)—the strongest and most meaningful final two pages of a book I’ve ever read. Stunning. A Life of Listening is rich. I read it slowly and I’m still discerning and discussing the book with my favorite listener—my wife, Joanne. I never aspired to be a Billy Graham or a Leighton Ford (not my calling)—but the book prompted me to think ahead to 2034, when I’m 88 (Lord willing). Will I have been a faithful lifelong learner and listener over the previous 15 years—so I might have something to write home about? Yikes. Or even this, as Leighton notes: Inscribed on Ruth Graham’s memorial plaque at the Billy Graham Library, “Construction complete. Thanks for your patience.” To order from Amazon, click on the title for A Life of Listening: Discerning God's Voice and Discovering Our Own, A Memoir by Leighton Ford. YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS: 1) In Ruth Haley Barton’s book, Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership (my 2009 book-of-the-year), Leighton Ford’s foreword pulls you into the richness of the text. The 10th anniversary expanded edition (2018), includes a new “afterword” also by Leighton Ford. He writes about the book’s impact: “My own soul responds both with ‘Ouch!’ and ‘Yes!’” Mention a book you’ve read or listened to recently that prompted an “Ouch!” response! 2) “Most of us need some kind of spiritual jolt to start us on the second journey, to make us stop and listen long enough to pay attention to what God is saying to us,” writes Leighton Ford in The Attentive Life: Discerning God's Presence in All Things. Describe a “spiritual jolt” you’ve experienced—and the result.    Bullet Point Your Life! Insights from Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook  One of the big ideas in the Team Bucket is that “…we leverage the unique set of talents and strengths given to each person by God. Thus we serve with more fulfillment and joy.”  Have you ever “bullet pointed” your life’s journey? During this unique COVID-19 period, in addition to reading A Life of Listening, by Leighton Ford (above), select a second book from the list below—and use another person’s journey to reflect on your own journey.  #1. The Joseph Road: Choices That Determine Your Destiny, by Jerry White. The author’s bullet point summary of Joseph’s life is fascinating and so he convinced me to “bullet point” my major life events—to see what I could learn from those forks-in-the-Joseph Road. Jerry illustrates how to do this exercise with bullet points of his own life.   #2. Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation, by Parker J. Palmer #3. Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson. Warning! You’ll weep as you journey with John Ames, the 76-year-old still-in-the-pulpit Congregational minister in Gilead, Iowa. It’s 1956 and Pastor Ames is journaling a life letter to his seven-year-old son, an extraordinary blessing from his second and younger wife.   #4. Listen to My Life: Maps for Recognizing and Responding to God in My Story, is a unique visual tool that helps you invite God into the process of reviewing your past, assessing your present, and enriching your walk with God into your future. Created by Sibyl Towner and Sharon Swing. #5. Soul Keeping: Caring for the Most Important Part of You, by John Ortberg #6. Leading Me: Eight Practices for a Christian Leader's Most Important Assignment, by Steve A. Brown (president of Arrow Leadership) #7. The Prince of Darkness: 50 Years Reporting in Washington, by Robert D. Novak #8. Myself and Other More Important Matters, by Charles Handy #9. Eisenhower 1956: The President’s Year of Crisis—Suez and the Brink of War, by David A. Nichols. After a heart attack in 1955, the “doctors told him to take it easy—and in that we get a humorous picture of Ike. He wrote a friend that he had been ordered ‘to avoid all situations that tend to bring about such reactions as irritation, frustration, anxiety, fear and, above all anger.’ So he had snapped at the doctors, ‘Just what do you think the presidency is?’” #10. Crafting a Rule of Life: An Invitation to the Well-Ordered Way, by Stephen A. Macchia. Note: Click here to download PDFs of three lists from the Book Bucket, including more biographies, autobiographies, and other resources for the journey.                   JASON PEARSON: UNEXPECTED CREATIVE. Your organization is also on a journey. How effectively are you painting your past, your present, and your future? Check out the innovative work from Jason Pearson at Pearpod Media (branding, digital, print, and video). And while in your bunker this month, it’s the perfect time to invest in your family by completing the fun and meaningful journal by Jason Pearson and Doug Fields, THIS. 52 Ways to Share Your World With Those You Love. (Read John’s review here.) Note: This is the NEW location for John Pearson's Buckets Blog. Slowly (!), the previous 650+ blogs posted (between 2006 and 2025) will gradually populate this blogsite, along with new book reviews each month. MORE LESSONS: Effectiveness, Excellence, Elephants! Click here to order More Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom, by Dan Busby and John Pearson. Click here to follow the new blog with 40 guest bloggers. Pop Quiz! Click here to take the boardroom pop quiz and then read John's short thoughts on five ways to bless your board: 1) Memo to Self: Shut Up! 2) Help our CEO discern “The ONE Thing.” 3) Don’t make the problem worse. 4) Consult outside wisdom. 5) Delegate!

A Board Prayer

 

Issue No. 672 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Feb. 13, 2026) urges you to buy Dan Bolin’s new book, A Board Prayer, for every person on your board. Really. You'll thank Dan for this powerful resource. Plus, click here for recent issues posted at the NEW site for John Pearson’s Buckets Blog, including my recent review of If I Knew Then What I Know Now. Also, check out the 20 management buckets (core competencies) and more book reviews at the Pails in Comparison Blog. Dan Bolin urges leaders and board members to pray, “Help me to tell the whole truth not just the parts that make me look good.” And, “Let me not bury bad news in mounds of data and detail…”   “When was the last time a mistake was owned before the board?” “Father, allow me to report honestly.” That’s one of the seven powerful prayers topics (with seven board best practices) in this new book I highly recommend:   A Board Prayer:  Explore Seven God-Honoring Board Practices by Dan Bolin (Feb. 2, 2026)   That prayer reminded me of the panel discussion I facilitated some years back with four ministry CEOs. The national conference workshop topic: “What I would do differently in my first five years as CEO.”  One well-known leader absolutely silenced the room: “I wouldn’t lie to my board!” (He shared the rest of the story. Oh, my.) Dan Bolin has been around the block (and the world). When leading Christian Camping International, his board was meeting in Bangalore, India, for their annual board meeting. As you’ll read in A Board Prayer, Dan was inspired that week to write this powerful prayer that boards worldwide are now reading together at every meeting. GOOD NEWS! Dan has generously shared this two-page prayer with leaders everywhere—and today the ripple effect is still rippling:    • The prayer is included in at least four books and a board governance toolbox. (See below.)    • I’ve facilitated this board prayer practice in dozens and dozens of board meetings with clients and clergy. Next week, I’m blessing board members again with this prayer.    • You can download the two-page prayer right here. (And LOL: read here why Dan had ample time to write this prayer in the hallway—while his board was conducting his annual performance review!) MORE GOOD NEWS! Wow. Dan Bolin has now blessed-the-socks-off of board members everywhere by adding his inspired color commentary to his original two-page prayer. His new book, A Board Prayer, features seven short chapters—exploring seven God-honoring board best practices. This is the perfect book to gift to every board member and senior team member. (If I were still a CEO or board chair, I would personally pay for the books. A praying board is very cost-effective! A no-brainer.) I know. I know. I recommend way too many “must-read” books—but please trust me on this one. This prayer has been pilot-tested around the world. I’ve read this remarkable prayer hundreds of times, yet each time the Holy Spirit faithfully elbows me about one or more lines in the prayer. (I’m a slow learner.) I’ve also seen board members respond to those holy jabs. What fun and what joy! Imagine…your board members praying these words together from Chapter 2: “Father, allow me to REPORT HONESTLY.    • Help me to tell the whole truth not just the parts that make me look good.    • Let me not bury bad news in mounds of data and detail, and don’t let me gloss over painful issues or personal failures.    • Help me to give credit to others and take responsibility for failure and lack of progress.    • Don’t let me trivialize serious issues or magnify minor successes.    • Let me tell stories and provide statistics that represent accurately.    • Help me remember that good information provides a smooth pathway to good decisions.” Each short chapter concludes with a “Personal Reflections” page and a “Board Discussion” page. Dan has done our work for us. (Thanks, Dan!) And yikes. Ask this discussion question from Chapter 2 at your next board meeting: “When was the last time a mistake was owned before the board? Has that been too long?” Note: If you’re a longtime reader of this eNews, you know I’m pretty good at mistake-making. See the awkward moment I experienced with a board member in Mistake #8, “Incessantly Whining About Being Too Busy,” in Mastering Mistake-Making. (Thanks to Jim Brown and Dick Daniels for helping me learn from Mistake #8.) Dan writes: “I have worked directly for boards for about 40 years. I have interacted with some of the best people on the planet—and a few curmudgeons.” (Can you relate?) As the new and very young CEO of Pine Cove Christian Camps in Texas, Dan was blessed to have Bob Buford (1939-2018) on his board. Buford simply asked him, “What can I do to help you be successful?” Wow. (Another must read: Drucker & Me, by Bob Buford.) CONTRARIAN! You’ll appreciate Dan’s wisdom, heart, and contrarian thinking. “Boards are badly mistaken when they think their work is about them. Boards exist to serve their organizations, consider the interest of the many stakeholders connected to the church or ministry, and ultimately to be good stewards of God’s resources." “The purpose of a board meeting is never about the board.” You’ll love his suggestion that maybe “these gatherings should be called beneficiary meetings.”  And this: “God loves the people served by the ministry, the campers, parishioners, students, patients, hungry, homeless, addicts, artists, scientists, athletes, clients of every stripe. And he loves the board members too. In fact, he loves the board enough to entrust the work of caring for his people to them, for better or for worse." “In a sense, they are not board meetings, or beneficiary meetings, they are God’s meetings.” I’m gonna borrow that line! Brilliant. When your board members read this book—their vision will be enlarged and enriched. I predict your board meetings will be less ho-hum and more hoopla! (in the best sense of the word). Dan writes, “Boards count inputs and outcomes: volunteer hours, meals served, beds filled, Sunday attendance, offering size, and any number of actions that tend to be measurable. We love to count, and that is not a bad thing, just not the only thing."    Then Dan asks, “What then, does honor God look like? (You’ll appreciate why “speaking with one voice” requires that “debate, opposing opinions, and candid deliberations stay in the room.”) And this: “Probably the least considered and yet most significant stakeholders are the people of the future. Someday, many years downstream, people’s lives will be influenced by the decisions made in the boardroom today.” (See Idea #5 below, "The Board and the Bachelor Farmer.") You don’t need any further commentary from me—so just bless your board and order one copy of A Board Prayer for every board member. (See below for creative ways to then leverage the learnings.) TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for A Board Prayer: Explore Seven God-Honoring Board Practices, by Dan Bolin. P.S. Dan Bolin and I go way back and in my review of the book, Succession, by Peter Greer and Doug Fagerstrom, I mentioned that years ago, over lunch in Dallas with Dan, we were discussing the possibility of his serving on the board of Christian Management Association (now CLA). We were good friends and I wanted an honest answer from him. If he were on the board and sensed that it was time for me to exit—would he have the guts to…? Dan interrupted before I finished my question. “You’re asking, John, could I fire you—if needed? No problem!” We both laughed—and I believed him! Gratefully, I was privileged to serve 11 years (without a pink slip) as the CEO of that national association now celebrating 50 years—but I’ll never forget that succession conversation with Dan!   10 IDEAS FOR ENRICHING FUTURE BOARD MEETINGS  HINT! Delegate your reading! Appoint a “Leaders Are Readers Champion” and begin each board meeting with “10 Minutes for Governance.”  [   ] IDEA #1. Download the two-page PDF, “A Board Prayer.” [   ] IDEA #2. Order the book, A Board Prayer, by Dan Bolin, for every board member and senior team member (and prospective board members). Order from Amazon. [   ] IDEA #3. Deputize a “Leaders Are Readers Champion,” per the book, Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom. Read Chapter 38, “Great Boards Delegate Their Reading.” Read the blog by Kent Stroman. Order the book. [   ] IDEA #4. Begin the practice of investing “10 Minutes for Governance in Every Board Meeting” per the book, Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom. Read Chapter 39. Read the blog by John Walling. Order the book. [   ] IDEA #5. Pray about planning for the next generation and read “The Board and the Bachelor Farmer,” per the book, More Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom: Effectiveness, Excellence, Elephants! Read Chapter 1. Read the blog by Wayne Pederson. Order the book. [   ] IDEA #6. Pray about what to measure—and much more. Read the book, Effectiveness by the Numbers: Counting What Counts in the Church, by William R. Hoyt. Order the book. (Read my review.) [   ] IDEA #7. Read why a board chair insisted Jeff Lilley bring the two-page board prayer to every board meeting at Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission! See “Prioritize Prayer Over Problems: Create space for prayer—serious supplications for a serious work.” From: Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom. Read Chapter 10. Read the blog by Jeff Lilley. Order the book. [   ] IDEA #8. You’ll appreciate Dan Bolin’s writing style and heart for God. Visit his website to see other books by this gifted and prolific author, including:     • Blueprints: Biblical Designs for Christian Camping Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow. (Read my review.)     • Jesus: Camp Director: 5,000 Campers, 12 Interns, 0 Kitchen Staff (Read my review.)     • Valentine’s Day Idea! Wives, here’s a gift suggestion for your husband: How to Be Your Wife's Best Friend: 365 Ways to Express Your Love, by Dan Bolin and John Trent. (Order from Amazon.)    And speaking of Christian camping, read my very personal—but poignant—story recently published on the God Reports website (a prayerful God moment!).   [   ] IDEA #9. The two-page board prayer is included in the following books and resources:    • Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom: 40 Insights for Better Board Meetings (2nd Edition), by Dan Busby and John Pearson (2018) - Order from Amazon.    • *Lessons From the Church Boardroom: 40 Insights for Exceptional Governance (2nd Edition), by Dan Busby and John Pearson (2019) - Order from Amazon.    • TRUST: The Firm Foundation for Kingdom Fruitfulness, by Dan Busby (2015) – Order from Amazon. (Read my review.) Read more about Dan Busby (1941-2022).    • The 8 Big Mistakes to Avoid With Your Nonprofit Board: How Leaders Enrich Their Ministry Results Through God-Honoring Governance, by John Pearson (Oct. 14, 2025) – Order from Amazon.    • ECFA Governance Toolbox Series No. 3: Conflicts of Interest - Addressing Board and Organizational Conflicts of Interest—Avoiding Trouble, Trouble, Trouble with Related–Party Transactions. (Order from ECFA.)    *For more resources for church board members, see the three books/manuals I reviewed in 2023 on the Pails in Comparison Blog. [   ] IDEA #10. Now that you’ve already inspired a board member to be your “Leaders Are Readers Champion” (see Idea #3), check out the mini-reviews of “Best Board Books: Index to 18 Governance Stimulators” at ECFA's Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Blog. (And oops! Please add Book #19, The Board and the CEO. And another oops! Please add A Board Prayer as Book #20!) [   ] BONUS IDEA. Read sample pages. It was my privilege to write the foreword to A Board Prayer. I meant every word and ChatGPT did not write it! Visit Amazon here to read my foreword and Dan’s introductory chapter.       SECOND READS: Fresh Solutions From Classic Books You have changed—and your problems have changed—since you read this the first time! Book #40 of 99: The Secret to a Good Meeting… For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #40 of 99 in our series, “Second Reads.” The big idea: REREAD TO LEAD! Discover how your favorite books still have more to teach you and the people you’re coaching and mentoring.   The Secret to a Good Meeting  Is the Meeting Before the Meeting  (Lesson 18 from Leadership Gold)  by John C. Maxwell  In just 16 quick-reading pages in Lesson 18 of Leadership Gold, the leadership guru John Maxwell builds the case for turning routine meetings into productive action-oriented gatherings. Following the counsel of Olan Hendrix, he writes that the meeting before the meeting: 1) helps you receive buy-in, 2) helps followers to gain perspective, 3) increases your influence, 4) helps you develop trust, and 5) avoids your being blindsided.     • Lesson 18 reviewed in Issue No. 367 (Aug. 30, 2017).    • Read my review on Amazon.    • Order the Kindle chapter on Amazon.    • Full book reviewed in Issue No. 84 (April 14, 2008).    • Read my review on Amazon.    • Order the full book on Amazon.    • Management Bucket #20 of 20: The Meetings Bucket  Maxwell preaches: “If you can’t have the meeting before the meeting, don’t have the meeting. If you do have the meeting before the meeting, but it doesn’t go well, don’t have the meeting. If you have the meeting before the meeting and it goes as well as you hoped, then have the meeting!”   CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN      Mistake #8 of 8: “Making Decisions vs. Discerning God’s Voice.” Read more in the new workbook, The 8 Big Mistakes to Avoid With Your Nonprofit Board——and leverage the action steps on page 97 about spiritual discernment and mission drift. MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE:  Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Note: This is the NEW location for John Pearson's Buckets Blog. Slowly (!), the previous 650+ blogs posted (between 2006 and 2025) will gradually populate this blogsite, along with new book reviews each month. "DEAR GOD ...about those stories and stats." More than 300 board governance blogs by John Pearson (and guest bloggers) are archived at ECFA’s Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Blog. Read Dan Bolin’s commentary on Lesson 40 from Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom, “A Board Prayer,” which includes this: “Dear God…Let me tell stories and provide statistics that represent accurately.” "Lord...bring a what?" That was my initial response when I sensed the Lord asked me to bring a shepherd’s staff to my brother’s Celebration of Life service last month. I shared this story at our church’s weekly prayer gathering and a friend, Mark Ellis, posted the story on the God Reports website. (My Christian camping colleagues, especially, will appreciate this God moment.)

How Leaders Learn

 

Issue No. 610 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (June 6, 2024) delivers bite-sized lifelong learning snippets from 105 leaders. The author quotes Peter Drucker, “The most pressing task is teaching people how to learn.” Plus, click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies). David Novak, author of How Leaders Learn, says that every time he gives a speech, he asks his wife for a letter grade! (Spoiler alert! She doesn’t always give A’s.)   How 105 Leaders Learn! So…as is my habit (sometimes annoying, apparently) to share book insights with my wife, Joanne, who patiently listens (sometimes)—this week I read her a brief paragraph from the new Harvard Business Review Press book: How Leaders Learn: Master the Habits of the World's Most Successful People  by David Novak with Lari Bishop (June 4, 2024)   The author writes that a colleague (kindly) asked Patrick Lencioni, “Why are you like this?” This coworker noticed that Lencioni “showed up in the morning excited for the day but would suddenly turn into a grump in the middle of a meeting. Then, in the next meeting, he would be upbeat again. He recognized it himself, and it bothered him, but he could never figure out why he was hot and cold.”  Novak leveraged that story—and the Lencioni book that resulted—to discuss what leaders often don’t learn about themselves. Joanne’s response, “Do you think this is common for most leaders—that they have gaps that need to be filled in?” I couldn’t believe her question! “Are you kidding me?” I asked. “That’s the title of Novak’s third chapter, ‘Fill Your Gaps.’ How did you know that?” (LOL! She may also have mentioned something about my reading fewer books and just learning from her!) BITE-SIZED LEARNING. There’s no need to read any more of this review—if you’ll just read this book (or schedule a session with my wife). How Leaders Learn is very, very practical. The format is brilliant: 27 short chapters (in bite-sized, 15-minute insights)—with each chapter featuring the learning habits of three to five leaders. You’ll be familiar with many of the 105 people spotlighted: PATRICK LENCIONI discovered that of his six “working geniuses,” he was strong in just two of them: invention and discernment. (Read more and take the assessment mentioned in his book, The 6 Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations, and Your Team.) CONDOLEEZZA RICE, former U.S. Secretary of State, tells the author that as a young professor, she received a one-year fellowship to work for the strategic nuclear planning division of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “I was three things they had never seen. Female, black, and civilian…” And yes, on her first day, they told her, “The rookie makes the coffee.” Read how she responded. HENRY KISSINGER is quoted in the chapter on what you can learn from a crisis: “There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.” LOL! Novak spotlights five leaders facing crises, including Oscar Munoz, who had to face the media as CEO of United Airlines when a 2017 PR disaster went viral. (Read more in Turnaround Time.) Munoz told Novak, “My barometer is the business schools around the country that initially wrote it as a case of exactly what not to do. Those business cases shifted to become lessons in ‘It’s never too late to do the right thing.’”   MICHAEL BUNGAY STANIER is interviewed for the chapter on learning to ask better questions, “What If, How Could, and Why.” I was delighted to see that two books from “MBS” were included: The Advice Trap (my 2020 book-of-the-year) and The Coaching Habit. Novak affirms, “Active learners make the effort to stay curious first and dole out advice second so they don’t fall victim to what Michael calls the ‘Advice Monster,’ which grows from our need to tell it, save it, or control it.” And…speaking of good questions, several years ago I mentioned to a client that the next time he was in town, he should bring his wife—and I’d treat the four of us to the (now) $7.00 dinner at the San Clemente Pier. I suggested that his wife would appreciate meeting Joanne. “She often asks probing questions,” I added, “and people often respond, ‘I’ve never been asked that question before!’” (Oops! My client told me the next day, “I mentioned that to my wife last night—and she doesn’t want to meet Joanne!”) GINNI ROMETTY, former CEO of IBM, is interviewed for the chapter, “Ditch the Blinders”—an important wake-up call about how our biases and assumptions ignore reality and cause harm. In her book, Good Power, she describes how she challenged “two faulty assumptions” at IBM: “…people with at least a bachelor’s degree and with experience would be better hires.” Yet Novak writes that we must “learn to make—and check—your own judgments.” So IBM started looking for talent at high schools and community colleges and “…they started testing for the traits that made people successful through transformation: curiosity, grit, and drive.” DAVID NOVAK actually didn’t need 105 people to learn how to learn (my opinion), because you’ll learn a lot just from his own life lessons. He’s the co-author of the self-coaching book, Take Charge of You, and he’s the cofounder and former Chairman and CEO of Yum! Brands (over 1.5 million team members in 135 countries!). Check out his top-ranked podcast, How Leaders Lead. Here are just three of the dozens of insights from Novak that I underlined in my book:    • “The biggest truth-teller in my life is my wife, Wendy.” Every time he gives a speech, he asks her for a letter grade! You read that right—and she doesn’t give all A’s! When she does give the rare A, “I know without a doubt I’m doing my best work.” (And yes—not thinking clearly, I read that to my wife, Joanne!)    • When leaving Yum! Brands as CEO, he was invited to serve on numerous boards—but he said “yes” to Comcast because “I’d constantly learn about the most current ideas in media and tech.” (Attn: Board Chairs! Are you recruiting new board members by aligning board service with the gaps in their lifelong learning aspirations?)    • In the first chapter, “Trailer Park University,” Novak confesses to accepting a big promotion by moving from Pizza Hut over to PepsiCo—without asking his current boss for counsel. “He had given me the biggest break in my career, and I owed him a lot more sensitivity than I had given him.” (This prompted me to reflect on my own transitions.) URI LEVINE, founder of Waze and author of Fall in Love with the Problem, Not the Solution, is featured in the chapter, “From Pain to Possibility: Learn by tackling problems.” Novak writes, “Most of my career moves reflect a theme: I took jobs with organizations that were experiencing trouble. Those might seem like jobs to avoid, but I have never felt that way.” He adds, “Solving problems and active learning go hand in hand.” He notes that Levine embraces problems because they deliver at least two values. Must-read! When you ask for input, “you kind of sign up for a mission” and Novak adds, “…sometimes, you discover new and bigger problems to tackle next.” (That’s a good thing!) THERE’S MORE! I’ve barely scratched the surface of the deep learning (practical!) in this treasure chest for lifelong learners. Novak uncovers more “how leaders learn” wisdom from Coach John Wooden, Chip Heath and Dan Heath, Jason Goldsmith, Stephen M.R. Covey (The Speed of Trust), and more than 90 other leaders.  You’ll love this: INDRA NOOYI, former CEO of PepsiCo, told Novak that when she was young, her mother inspired her and her siblings “to be both aspirational and competitive.” For a task at dinner, her mother would ask, “Give me a speech about what you would do if you were the prime minister of the country.” After the speeches, “her mother chose the best speech and handed out the prize—a tiny piece of chocolate.” Her mother didn’t play favorites: the best speech always earned the chocolate. (Another must-read chapter!) This is a perfect book for your “10 minutes for lifelong learning” segment at your next 27 weekly staff meetings! And by the way, when you’re writing your next book, ask Novak to write your chapter titles. They’re brilliant bumper stickers! To order from Amazon, click on the title for How Leaders Learn: Master the Habits of the World's Most Successful People, by David Novak with Lari Bishop. (Note: the seven-hour audio book is coming.) And thanks to Harvard Business Review Press for sending me a review copy.    YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS: 1) In Lessons From the Nonprofit Boardroom, Dan Busby and I asked, "Would you trust a surgeon who was not a lifelong learner? Would you trust an airline pilot who relied on outdated training?" The first chapter, “Wanted: Lifelong Learners,” ends with a prayer: “Lord, Romans 12:8 says that I am to lead diligently. Give me a heart to be a lifelong learner in my leadership journey. Amen.” Do you know how leaders learn? 2) Abraham Lincoln said, “My best friend is a person who will give me a book I have not read.” What friend needs a book from you this week?        Mastering 100 Must-Read Books Part 14: Leadership & Management at War Book #80 of 100: Make Your Bed For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #80 in Mastering 100 Must-Read Books.  Make Your Bed:  Little Things That Can Change Your Life …and Maybe the World by Admiral William H. McRaven (U.S. Navy Retired)   Books #77 through #81 spotlight five fascinating books with military viewpoints on leadership and management. “If you want to change the world…” writes Admiral McRaven, “…start off by making your bed.” The first chapter, from the author’s Navy SEAL training days, is “Start Your Day With a Task Completed.” Sage advice!     • Order from Amazon: Make Your Bed     • Listen on Libro (1 hours, 53 minutes).     • Download the 100 Must-Read Books list (from John and Jason Pearson). Looking for a graduation gift? This book packs a punch at the fast clip of one big punch every 10 short pages. Adm. McRaven’s 10 principles were delivered first as a university commencement address. His 19-minute speech on May 21, 2014, to the graduating class of the University of Texas at Austin went viral—with over 10 million views! View it here. Note: Today is the 80th anniversary of D-Day. As we thank God for the men and women who served and are serving, listen to this poignant song, "Till They Came Home."   CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN          Do you serve on a regional or national association staff or board? John Pearson was invited by Christian Camping International to discuss “5 Ways to Organize Your CCI Association (1 Size Doesn’t Fit All)” on the “Campfire Conversations” webinar on May 14, 2024. CCI Worldwide inspires 27 associations in 80 countries whose members serve 10 million campers each year! View the webinar on YouTube.   MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE:  Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Note: This is the NEW location for John Pearson's Buckets Blog. Slowly (!), the previous 650+ blogs posted (between 2006 and 2025) will gradually populate this blogsite, along with new book reviews each month. Ceiling Power! David Novak (see above) is also the co-author of Take Charge of You: How Self-Coaching Can Transform Your Life and Career. Read my review to learn why Novak filled his office walls (and home office walls) with pictures of people that mattered to him. He ran out of wall space—so more pictures adorn his ceilings! For more book reviews, visit the Pails in Comparison Blog.

When Kingdom Light Shines

 

Issue No. 629 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Dec. 3, 2024) recommends an inspirational book—with 60 true stories—for your Christmas gift-giving. Plus, click here to see book recommendations in all 20 management buckets (core competencies), and click here for more book reviews. Also, learn about my son, Jason, and his new documentary film, “Spares: Second Chance Stories of Frozen Embryos” (view it for free here).  Yikes! Yow! Oh, My! Amazing! Amen! Those were my out-loud exclamations when I read When Kingdom Light Shines—with 60 unbelievable true stories!   Christmas Gift Idea #1: 60 Inspiring Stories!  OH, MY! This new book—jam-packed with 60 inspiring stories—is so, so powerful that I’ve already gifted the book to seven people and it’s not even Christmas! Here’s my Christmas Gift Idea #1: When Kingdom Light Shines:  Stories That Inspire Faith by Mark Ellis (2024) YIKES! When Mark Ellis generously gave me this book on Nov. 3, 2024, I had a brilliant reading plan: 60 stories/60 days. But after reading the first inspiring story—I couldn’t stop! I averaged three chapters every day and completed this unbelievable book in 21 days! AMAZING! I started with Chapter 20, “How God Answered Francis Chan’s Ridiculous Prayer for a Son-in-Law.” (Did I mention, amazing?) You’ll read about this daring prayer (just three pages) by author and speaker Francis Chan, “who lifted up a bold, audacious matchmaking prayer, and God answered in a way that confounded Francis himself.” (Have you ever prayed a “ridiculous” prayer?) The 60 short stories feature the author’s favorite “God reports” from the last 25 years. Mark Ellis believes that “God’s stories are the best stories, and that He is doing even greater things in the world today than he did in the first century.” So Ellis launched the God Reports website “with a mission to support and encourage Christian missions, by sharing stories and testimonies from believers around the world.”  YOW! There are two powerful bookends in When Kingdom Light Shines: Stories That Inspire Faith. Chapter 1, “Dream Led to Hidden Tribe,” begins with this: “In 2013, Caleb Byerly woke up with a start and began to furiously write in his journal everything he saw in a rather unusual dream.” This missionary had sensed that “God had spoken to Caleb through dreams previously, so he meticulously recorded” the dream details.  “I feel like when God speaks to you, it’s an invitation to partner and walk with God,” Byerly said. (This reminded me of Henry Blackaby’s wisdom, “When God speaks, it is important to write it down.”) What follows will shock you (in a really good way!)—and you’ll retell the story to family and friends. Chapter 60, “Dying Farmer Left Civil War Bible Behind for New Age Homebuyer,” is another breathtaking story that concludes this marathon of miracles. Dale Walker reports that he “graduated from Wesleyan University without knowing who John Wesley was, or who Jesus Christ was. And I never really met a single person that knew God or could tell me about God.”  At age 31, he practiced Eastern meditation, but “his inner emptiness wouldn’t go away.” He notes, “At the same time, my personal life was tangled into a series of knots which I didn’t know how to untie.” (This reminded me of a recent "Hidden Streams" podcast and the original song, “Tied Down,” at the end of the podcast.) Read why after his first-ever prayer on his knees to “ANYBODY UP THERE,” Walker sprinted (no pun intended) across a farmer’s field to a farm house he had recently purchased—and found the previous owner’s 1865 family Bible in the attic. (Yes. It was dusty!) He read “The Lord is my shepherd” from the 23rd Psalm—and it changed his life! There’s more! Read how that same night Walker randomly views a TV program about Roy Campanella. The program depicted the famous Brooklyn Dodgers catcher in the emergency room after a paralyzing injury from a car accident. The program flashed back to a young Campanella who remembers a Scripture his mother had taught him. (Guess which one?) AMEN! I generally read silently—but dozens and dozens of times when reading this stunning book, I heard myself audibly respond: Amen! Wow! Yikes! Amazing! Praise the Lord! Examples: • Chapter 34, “Lost Forty-Seven Days at Sea,” spotlights Louis Zamperini, the USC track star, 1936 Olympics runner, and WW2 POW. Read about the event that rid him of his extreme PTSD. • Chapter 32, “Vincent Van Gogh’s Unappreciated Journey with Christ,” will prompt your own “Amen!” You’ll never look the same way again at “The Starry Night” or other Van Gogh masterpieces. • Chapter 58, “He Preached the Gospel as Hijacked Plane Hit the Water,” is an excellent God story to share with the seatmate on your next plane ride. Andy Meakins, “a gentle giant of the faith,” was airborne on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 from Addis Ababa to Abidjan—when “three hijackers stormed the cabin and demanded to be flown to Australia." (No way!) When the plane ran out of fuel, it hit the water, yet 50 people miraculously survived—but all 175 passengers and crew heard the Gospel story during those fateful final minutes. Must-read! •    Chapter 10, “Missionary Died Thinking He Was a Failure,” describes the 17-year ministry, beginning in 1912, of a doctor’s work among tribal people in a remote corner of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Failure? You decide. All of these God stories reminded me that writer David Sedaris called Tobias Wolff “America’s greatest short-story writer.” (See my review of My Ideal Bookshelf—also a Christmas gift option.) Sedaris notes: “Sometimes I meet ministers, and I always say to them, ’If I had a church, I’d read a Tobias Wolff story every week, and then I’d say to people, “Go home.”’ There’s nothing else you would need to say. Every story is a manual on how to be a good person, but without ever being preachy. They’re deeply moral stories; the best of them read like parables.” Ditto these 60 God stories. I envision a surge in storytelling at weekly staff meetings—and hopefully—in pulpits across the globe. Thank you, Mark Ellis! TO ORDER, click on the title for When Kingdom Light Shines: Stories That Inspire Faith, by Mark Ellis.   UP NEXT! Watch for my review of “Christmas Gift Idea #2”—a new book just released today, Dec. 3, 2024. Read Glad I Didn’t Know: Lessons Learned Through Life’s Challenges and Unexpected Blessings, by Vonna Laue.   YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS: 1) Read Chapter 20, “How God Answered Francis Chan’s Ridiculous Prayer for a Son-in-Law,” and then ask this question: “Have you ever asked the Lord for something that others might consider a ridiculous prayer request?” What’s your “ridiculous” prayer request for 2025? 2) After you’ve read all 60 short stories (or featured four or five stories at future weekly staff meetings), then host a gathering and call it, “Chapter 61.” Invite staff members, board members, and key volunteers to nominate God stories from your organization that are so remarkable they could become Chapter 61 in When Kingdom Light Shines.        Mastering 100 Must-Read Books Part 18: The Final Four Book #99 of 100: Leadership Core For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #99 in Mastering 100 Must-Read Books.  Leadership Core:  Character, Competence, Capacity (Leadership Multipliers) by Dick Daniels   Books #97 through #100 spotlight “the final four” books in this recommended volume of 100 must-read books. Daniels writes: “Every leader will face at least one impossible situation during their leadership tenure. That time is described as having your back against the wall, with no way out, completely alone, and the feeling of gloom you have when it seems like the end is near.”     • Read my review.     • Order from Amazon.     • Download the 100 Must-Read Books list (from John and Jason Pearson). Did you know that “people lie more on Monday and Friday than Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday?” Daniels notes research indicating “people lie two to four times a day.” So the author discusses five times when your staff might lie: 1) Lying to land a job, 2) Lying to get ahead, 3) Lying to achieve work-life balance, 4) Lying with feedback, and 5) Lying during the exit interview.  BONUS! Read my review of the latest book from Dick Daniels, The 365 Day Leader: Recalibrate Your Calling Every Day. (Another Christmas gift book option for leaders and managers!)   CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN        MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE:  Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Note: This is the NEW location for John Pearson's Buckets Blog. Slowly (!), the previous 650+ blogs posted (between 2006 and 2025) will gradually populate this blogsite, along with new book reviews each month. A Berkeley Frat House & Josh McDowell’s Book! Mark Ellis, the author of When Kingdom Light Shines (see above), wrote a very personal narrative in 2021, The House at Channing and Moonsail (read my review). Read what prompted Ellis, who said "God was not on my radar," to read Josh McDowell’s book, Evidence That Demands a Verdict. For more book reviews, visit the Pails in Comparison Blog.