Teaching Skills

Successful teaching requires you to inspire others to want to cooperate with you.

When you endeavor to teach new skills to others, you are attempting to motivate specific behavior changes in them. This is more effective if you can convince those you are teaching that, by acting as you suggest, they will gain something that they value. Successful teaching requires you to inspire others to want to cooperate with you.

However, different people consider different skills to be more or less valuable to them, so you will also discover that the majority of responsibility for the learning of a new skills rest with the person you are teaching. Learners who really want to improve their skills and are willing to put in the effort will be successful.

ACTION POINT: Ensure there is value in what you are trying to teach.

Eighth Fruit of the Spirit: Patience

Ask and it will be given to you...
Matthew 7:7

The eighth Fruit of the Spirit is Long-suffering (patience). Long-suffering is certitude in God's unwavering fidelity to his promises. Our security is no longer based on anything we might possess or accomplish, but rather on our conviction of God's unfailing protection and readiness to forgive. Hence we are not easily disturbed by the ebb and flow of human events and our emotional reactions to them. Feelings continue to be felt, at times more strongly than ever, but they not longer dominate our awareness or our activity. We are content to wait with confidence for God's deliverance in every situation, especially during prolonged periods of dryness and the dark nights. We have interiorized the words of the Gospel: "Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened to you"

Matthew 7:7
Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened to you

Rules of Thumb

Brilliant Guestimates, Shortcuts, and a few Shots in the Dark.

• Not sure which puppy to pick from the litter? Choose the one whose tail wags in sync with its stride, a sign of calmness.
• Exercising for life: For every hour that you're physically active, you can expect to live two hours longer
• Calling in an order: When buying something over the phone, ask for the salesperson's full name. Then he or she is less likely to make a mistake with our order.
• Buying an eyesore: The best way to make money in residential real estate is to buy the worst home on the best street.
• Saving for Retirement: Buy age 30 you should aim to be saving an investing at least 10 percent of your income for retirement.
• Handsome handwriting: the most pleasing height for lowercase italic letters is five times the width of the pen pint, or nib.
• Four Legged Search parties: One trained dog equals 60 search-and-rescue workers.
• Caught Napping: An hour's nap in the middle of the day equals three hours of sleep at night.
• Sleeping in Tongues: You know you've become comfortable with a foreign language when you dream in that language.
• Pausing to Think: When asked an important question, always pause for at least a silent count of three before answering. You will appear to be more thoughtful and intelligent.

Teaching Skills

"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand"

As a manager, an important part of your role is to help those you are managing to develop their skills. If you can encourage the development of skills such as self-awareness, communication, and time management, you will be rewarded with a high-performing team.

People learn faster and retain more information if they have to exert some kind of active effort. The famous quote, attributed to Confucius: "I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand" is frequently used to support the value of learning through experience. A major implication of this notion is that new skills can be learned only through experimenting with new behaviors, observing the results, and learning from the experience. The learning of new skills is maximized when learners get the opportunity to combine watching, thinking, and doing. The experiential learning model encompasses four elements: learning new concepts (conceptualization), planning how to test the ideas (plan to test), actively applying the skill in a new experience (gaining concrete experience), and examining the consequences of the experience (reflective observation). After reflecting on the experience, the learner uses the lessons they have learned from what happened to create a refined conceptual map of the skill, and the cycle continues.

To use the experiential learning model to teach skills you need to: ensure that the learner understands the skill both conceptually and behaviorally; give them opportunities to practice it; give feedback on how well they are performing the skill; and encourage them to use the skill often enough so that it becomes integrated into their behavioral repertoire.

ACTION POINT: Teach new skills by using the following:

• Helping the learner to form a conceptual understanding of a new skill.
• Plan how the learner can test their understanding of the skill.
• Get the learner to apply the new skill in concrete experience.
• Observe what happened and discuss ways in which they can improve.

Decoding the Truth

If a person says one thing but communicates something different through intonation and body language, tension and distrust can arise;

The visual part of nonverbal communication is often called body language. It included expressions eye movement, posture, and gestures. The face is the best communicator of nonverbal messages. By "reading" a person's facial expression, we can detect unvocalized feelings.

Appearance is important, people do judge a book by its cover, and most of us react favorable to an expected image. In terms of dress, color can convey meaning (brown can convey trust; dark colors, power), as does style (pure fibers such as wool or silk suggest higher status). Posture is important--a relaxed posture, such as sitting back with legs stretched out and hand behind the head, signals confidence.

If a person says one thing but communicates something different through intonation and body language, tension and distrust can arise; the receiver will typically choose the nonverbal interpretation because it is more reliable than the verbal. For example, if you ask your boss when you will be eligible for a promotion and she looks out of the window, covers a yawn, and says, "I would say you might have a chance in the not-to-distant future," you should not count on being promoted soon.

ACTION POINT: Consider the importance of body language, appearance, and posture in the process of communication.

Reading Nonverbal Cues

As much as 93 percent of the meaning...can come from nonverbal channels,

Nonverbal communication is made up of visual, vocal, and tactile signals and the use of time, space, and image. As much as 93 percent of the meaning that is transmitted in face-to-face communication can come from nonverbal channels, so you should be aware of these cues.

• Nervousness. Clearing ones throat, covering the mouth while speaking, fidgeting, shifting weight from one foot to the other, tapping fingers, pacing.
• Boredom or impatience. Drumming fingers, foot swinging, brushing or picking at lint, doodling, or looking at one's watch.
• Confidence, superiority, and authority. Using relaxed and expansive gestures, such as leaning back with fingers laced behind the head and hands together at the back with chin thrust upward.
• Openness. Holding hands in an open position, having an unbuttoned coat or collar, removing one's coat, moving closer, leaning slightly forward, and uncrossing arms and legs.
• Defensiveness. Holding body rigid, with arms or legs tightly crossed, eyes glancing sideways, minimal eye contact, lips pursed, fists clenched, and downcast head.

ACTION POINT: Study nonverbal cues to help understand what is being communicated by body language.

Listening Well

...there are a number of specific techniques you can use to improve your skills

Active listening is hard work and starts with your own personal motivation. If you are unwilling to exert the effort to hear and understand, no amount of additional advice is going to improve your listening effectiveness. If you are motivated to become an effective listener, there are a number of specific techniques you can use to improve your skills:

• Make eye contact: this focuses your attention, and reduces the likelihood that you will be come distracted, and encourages the speaker.
• Show interest: use nonverbal signals, such as head nods, to convey to the speaker that you're listening.
• Avoid distracting actions: looking at your watch or shuffling papers are signs that you aren't fully attentive and might be missing part of the message.
• Take in the whole picture: interpret feelings and emotions as well as factual content.
• Ask questions: seek clarification if you don't understand something. This also reassures the speaker that you're listening to them.
• Paraphrase: restate what the speaker has said in your own words with phrases such as "what I hear you saying is..." or "Do you mean...?"
• Don't interrupt: let speakers complete their thoughts before you try to respond.
• Confront your biases: use information about speakers to improve your understanding of what they are saying, but don't let your biases distort the message.

ACTION POINT: Employ the listening skills listed above to improve understanding.

Listening Actively

To listen actively, you must concentrate intensely on what the speaker is saying

Many communication problems develop because listening skills are ignored, forgotten, or taken for granted. Active listening is making sense of what you hear. It requires paying attention and interpreting all verbal, visual, an vocal stimuli presented to you. Active listening has four essential ingredients: concentration, empathy, acceptance, and taking responsibility for completely understanding the message.

To listen actively, you must concentrate intensely on what the speaker is saying and tune out competing miscellaneous thoughts that create distractions. Try to understand what the speaker wants to communicate rather than what you want to understand. Listen objectively and resist the urge to start evaluating what the person is saying, or you may miss the rest of the message. Finally, do whatever is necessary to get the full, intended meaning from the speaker's message--listen for feelings an content, and ask questions to ensure you understood.

ACTION POINT: Take responsibility to listen actively to completely understand what is being said.

Seventh Fruit of the Spirit: Goodness

Everything God...created is good...
1 Timothy 4:4

The seventh Fruit of the Spirit is Goodness. Goodness is the affirmation of creation as good, together with a sense of oneness with the universe and with everything created. It is the disposition that perceives events, even the tragic things of life, as manifestations of God's love.

It recognizes the beauty of all creation in spite of the damage that human selfishness has imposed upon it. As a result, gratitude to God abounds in our hears and a positive attitude characterizes our relationship with others and with the wear and tear of daily life.

Psalm 27:13
I am confident that I will see the Lord's goodness while I am here in the land of the living

Being Credible

Be warm, friendly, and supportive:

Sender credibility is reflected in the recipient's belief that the sender is trustworthy. To increase your sender credibility, ensure that you:

• Know what you are talking about: recipients are more attentive when they perceive that senders have expertise.
• Establish mutual trust: owning up to your motives can eliminate the recipient's anxiety about your intentions.
• Share all relevant information: senders are seen as unethical when they intentionally provoke receivers into doing things they would not have done if they had had all of the information.
• Be honest: one of the key things people want in a leader and co-worker is honesty. As a sender, avoid any form of deception, which is the conscious alteration of information to influence another's perceptions.
• Be reliable: if you are dependable, predictable, and consistent, recipients will perceive you as being trustworthy.
• Be warm, friendly, and supportive: this will give you more personal credibility than a posture of hostility, arrogance, or abruptness.
• Be dynamic: being confident, dynamic, and positive in your delivery of information will make you seem more credible than someone who is passive, withdrawn, and unsure.
• Make appropriate self-disclosures: responsibly revealing your feelings, reactions, needs, and desires to others is essential when establishing supportive relationships. It facilitates congruency, builds trust and credibility, and helps recipients of your messages develop empathy and understanding with you.

ACTION POINT: Employ the tips above to build credibility when communicating.

Sending Messages

To be successful, every manager must develop the ability to send clear, unambiguous messages

Effective communication with those you are managing requires that you send clear and comprehensible messages that will be understood as you intend them to be. You can transmit messages more effectively by making them clearer and developing your credibility.

To be successful, every manager must develop the ability to send clear, unambiguous messages that efficiently convey the information they want to deliver. Effective messages use multiple channels to get the information across; for example, if you match your facial and body gestures to the intended meaning of a message while drawing a diagram to explain it, you are using three channels. Make sure that you take responsibility for the feelings and evaluations in your messages, using personal pronouns such as “I” and “mine.” Make the information in your messages specific, and refer to concrete details to avoid the possibility of misinterpretation. Keep your language simple and avoid technical jargon.

ACTION POINT: Ensure that your messages are congruent with your actions. Saying one thing and doing another is confusing and creates distrust.

Reduce Noise

…keep your messages clear, concise, and to the point

Noise is anything that interferes, at any stage, with the communication process. The ultimate success of the communication process depends to a large degree on overcoming noise, so make an effort to keep your messages clear, concise, and to the point.

ACTION POINT: Be quick but never in a hurry.

Delivering Messages

Before you send a message, ask yourself how much you understand about it

The components of the communication process are the sender, the receiver, the message, and the channel. First, the message is encoded into a format that will get the idea across. Then it is transmitted through the most appropriate channel. This is chosen on the basis of efficiency and effectiveness, as well as practical factors, such as the need to produce a stable record of the communication; whether the information needs to be kept confidential; speed and cost; and the complexity of the communication.

Channels can be oral (speeches, meetings, phone calls, presentations, or informal discussions); written (letters, memoranda, reports, or manuals); electronic (emails, text messages, podcasts, video conferences, websites, or web casts); or non-verbal (touch, facial expression, or intonation). Finally, the message must be successfully decoded by the receiver. Many factors may intrude, preventing the receiver from correctly understanding what they are told. These range from semantics or different word interpretations to different frames of reference, cultural attitudes, and mistrust.

Before you send a message, ask yourself how much you understand about it, and what is the level of the recipient’s understanding? Will the recipient understand the language and jargon you use, and do they have technology that is compatible with yours?

ACTION POINT: Understand and use the components of the communication process.

Interacting with Others

…good communication is a proven tool for improving commitment in those you are managing

Your effectiveness as a manager is defined by your ability to interact with other people. A manager needs to guide others through careful communication, teaching, and assessment to work to their full potential, both individually and as a team.
It is easy to see investment in communication as a luxury, especially in times of economic adversity. However, good communication is a proven tool for improving commitment in those you are managing, and so for boosting revenue and product quality.

Communication is the process of sending a message to another person with the intent of evoking an outcome or a change in behavior. It is more efficient when it uses less time and fewer resources; it is effective when the information in conveyed exactly as you intend. Good communication means balancing the two: for example, explaining a new procedure to each staff member individually may be less efficient than calling a meeting where everyone can hear about it. However, if staff members have very disparate sets of interests, one-to-one coaching may be more effective.

ACTION POINT: Maximize communication by using the appropriate time, setting and resources.

Sixth Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness

Help me to learn God's gentle way.

The sixth Fruit of the Spirit is Gentleness. Gentleness is a participation in God's way of doing things that is at once gentle and firm, sustaining all creation with its enormous diversity, yet without effort. We labor in the service of God more than ever, and yet have the sense of stepping back and watching God make things happen according to his will both in ourselves and in others.

Our anxious efforts to serve God and our anguished search of God cease. Like God we labor and are at rest at the same time. We work hard but we know by experience, even by bitter experience, that our efforts are not going to go anywhere except insofar as God makes them fruitful. Hence vanity, jealousy, and contention--which often accompany even our spiritual endeavors--are gradually evacuated, leaving immense freedom just to be who we are and to serve the special needs of those around us.

Matthew 11:29 Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart...

Fathers Be Good to Your Daughters

This lyric got stuck in my head this past week. Not the whole song but just that lyric. It stuck when my youngest daughter brought home her proofs for her senior pictures. That's my Pie on the left. She's my youngest, smart, brave (actually fearless to a fault) and beautiful. She is starting her senior year and thinking about college.

That's my bear on the right. Kind, hilarious and beautiful. She's all grown up now with a few years of college behind her and the uncertain road of the future before her. She is nannying and thinking about what her next step will be.

Daughters like these make that lyric stand out. "Fathers be good to your daughters." That's a weighty call to a dad. What does it mean to be good to your daughter? I don't know the answer. I only know that I wanted to treat these girls in such a way that any man that ever wanted to date them would have to meet a high standard for what "being good to them" meant. After all these girls are smart, kind, fearless, funny, beautiful and most of all, loved.

When I look at these pictures, or when I'm having dinner with my daughters, or when I think about the years of their growing up, I think about that lyric. I think about what wonderful daughters I have. I think about being good to them. I love these girls.

ACTION POINT: Fathers be good to your daughters.

Dealing with Conflict

Having a clear understanding of your own personal values will help you to manage these conflict situations.

It can be challenging when your personal values conflict with those of your organization, or when there are conflicting values between individuals or sub-groups. Value differences can exist, for example, about how to perform jobs, the nature of reward systems, or the degree of intimacy in work relationships. Having a clear understanding of your own personal value will help you to manage these conflict situations. If you are clear about your own values, you can act with integrity and practice what you preach regardless of emotional or social pressure.

To address a conflict situation, first make sure you are aware of, understand, and are tolerant of the value differences held by the other parties. This will help you to determine whether the value conflict is, in fact, irresolvable and will require personnel changes, or whether compromises and adjustments can be made to accommodate the different perspectives.

Values can be classified into two types: terminal and instrumental. Terminal values (your “ends” in life) are desirable ends or goals, such as a comfortable, prosperous life, world peace, great wisdom, or salvation. Instrumental values (the “means” to those ends) are beliefs about what behaviors are appropriate in striving for desired goals and ends. Consider a manager who works extra hours to help deliver a customers rush order. The attitude displayed is a willingness to help a customer with a problem. The value that serves as the foundation for this attitude might be that of service to others.

ACTION POINT: Understand the roles that values play in conflicts.

Clarifying Your Values

Your values manifest themselves in everything you do and the choices that you make.

Values are stable and enduring beliefs about what is good, right and worthwhile and about the behavior that is desirable for achieving what is worthwhile. To be an effective manager, it is necessary to have a good understanding of what your values are and to act accordingly.

Values are formed early in our lives, from the influence of our parents, teachers, friends, religious leaders and media role models. Some may change as we go through life and experience different behaviors. Your values manifest themselves in everything you do and the choices that you make. If you are someone who particularly values promptness, for example, you will make sure that you always behave in ways that mean you are on time for appointments. The thought of being late will stimulate feelings of stress in you, and induce a subsequent adrenaline rush as you hurry to be at the appointment on time. As a manager, it is important for you to clarify your values, so that you can determine what your goals are and how you want to manage yourself and others to achieve them.

It may sound strange, but one of the best ways to clarify your personal values and gain a clear understanding of what is important to you to is to think about how you would like to be remembered in your eulogy. Sit quietly and consider how you want your friends and family to remember you, and what you want your work colleagues to say they thought of you. Also think of your broader contributions—how would you like to be remembered in the communities you are a part of?

ACTION POINT: Identify and clarify your values.

Shaping the Environment

Organizations differ based on the management style used.

Organizations that are designed based on X-style assumptions are very different to those designed by Y-style managers. For example, because they believe that their workers are motivated to help the organization reach its goals, Y-style managers will decentralize authority and give more control to workers than will X-style managers. A Y-style manager realizes that most people are not resistant to organizational needs by nature, but may have become so as a result of negative experiences, and strives to design structures that involve the employees in executing their work roles, such as participative management and joint goal setting. These approaches allow employees to exercise some self-directions and self-control in their work lives.

In Y-style management, although individuals and groups are still accountable for their activities, the role of the manger is not to exert control but to provide support and advice and to make sure that workers have the resources they need to effectively perform their jobs. By contrast, X-style managers consider their role to be to monitor workers to ensure that they contribute to the production process and do not threaten product quality.

ACTION POINT: Consider which management style is more effective for the team you manage.

X and Y Management Styles

… two management styles-X and Y-based on the assumptions held by managers about the motives of their staff.

Management theorist Douglas McGregor distinguished two management styles-X and Y-based on the assumptions held by managers about the motives of their staff. X-style managers believe that workers need to be coerced and directed. They tend to be strict and controlling, giving their workers little latitude and punishing poor performance. They use few rewards and typically give only negative feedback. These managers see little point in workers having autonomy, because they think that the workforce neither expects nor desires cooperation.

Y-style assumptions reflect a much more optimistic view of human nature. Y-style management contends that people will gladly direct themselves toward objectives if their efforts are appropriately rewarded. Managers who hold Y assumptions assume a great deal of confidence in their workers. They are less directive and empower workers, giving them more responsibilities and freedom to accomplish tasks as they deem appropriate. They believe that people have hidden potential and the job of the manager is to find and utilize it.

ACTION POINT: Evaluate your management style. Are you X or Y?

Examining your Assumptions

Challenging your own assumptions is one of the first steps in becoming a better manager.

Managers tend to treat their staff according to assumptions they hold about what motivates people. These assumptions create self-fulfilling prophecies in the behavior of the staff. Managers reward what they expect, and consequently only get what they expect. Challenging your own assumptions is one of the first steps in becoming a better manager.

Honestly review every decision you make and every task you delegate. In each case ask yourself what you assumed the staff involved would think and how you expected them to behave. Remember that positive expectations help to produce positive results.

ACTION POINT: Review your decisions and your decision making process.

Fifth Fruit of the Spirit: Faithfulness

All for thee, sweet Jesus - Prayer from childhood

The fifth Fruit of the Spirit is Faithfulness (fidelity). Faithfulness is the dynamic expression of meekness. It is the daily oblation of ourselves and all our actions to God out of compassion for others, especially in service to their concrete needs. It serves God without dwelling on what God or others will do for us, and perseveres in giving without thinking of any return. Our normal need for affirmation is coming from a new place: the growing conviction of being loved by God that greatly reduces the desire for human approval.

1 Corinthians 16:14

Let everything you do be done in love.

Becoming More Assertive

Ask yourself, Am I assertive enough?

• Does my response accurately reflect how I feel if I'm given a compliment about my work?
• Am I able to speak up when I'm in a group of strangers?
• If others interrupt me when I am talking, can I hold my ground?
• Do I avoid being taken advantage of by other people?
• Am I able to criticize others work if I think they might react badly?

Becoming more assertive can be developed by practicing the following:

• State your case - Try beginning your conversations with "I" phrases, such as "I think," "i believe," or "I need."
• Be prepared - Prepare for tricky encounters: have all the facts at hand, and try to anticipate the other person's replies.
• Use open questions - If you are finding it hard to get a person to talk to you, use open questions that cannot be answered with a simple "yes" or "no" answer.
• Visualize yourself - try assertive role play with a trusted colleague, to help you to see yourself as an assertive person.
• Get perspective - Try to see the situation form the other person's point of view. Most workplace bullies, for example, are hiding their own insecurities or an inability to do the job. Use this knowledge to give you perspective on any feelings of intimidation or offense you experience, and offer the bull help to overcome their problems.
• Be patient - You'll need time to practice to become comfortable with the new behavior. if you are naturally a passive person, recognize that those around you may initially be uncomfortable when you start to become more assertive.

ACTION POINT: Use preparation, perspective and patience to develop your assertiveness.

Applying Assertiveness

Assertive - being able to make clear statements of what you want from others in a given situation, without being abrasive or demeaning.

An effective manager needs to behave in an active and assertive manner to get things done. Assertive managers are able to express their feelings and act with appropriate degrees of openness and candor, but still have a regard for the feelings or rights of others.

Assertiveness and the ability to express your feelings to others are skills that people possess to different extents. Some are aggressive, direct, and blunt, and can appear domineering, pushy, or self-centered. Most people tend to be passive, inhibited, and submissive; they bottle up their feelings and fail even to stand up for their legitimate rights. Passive individuals seek to avoid conflicts and tend to sublimate their own needs and feelings in order to satisfy others.

Most people fall between the extremes of passive and aggressive. At these extremes, passive and aggressive behaviors hinder effective managerial relations because neither encourages openness. Effective managers need to be assertive, express their ideas and feelings openly, and stand up for their rights, and all in a way that makes it easier for those they are managing to do the same. The assertive manager is always sensitive to the needs of others; he or she does not seek to rule less assertive people. Trying to achieve dominance may produce short-term results but will not make the best use of the abilities of members of your team.

ACTION POINT: Express your ideas clearly and confidently and encourage your team to do the same.

Using Emotional Intelligence at Work

Applying emotional intelligence at work means you are open to the ideas of others and can build and mend relationships with others.

To be a successful manager in today's business world, a high EQ may be more important than sheer intellectual or technical ability. A manager who leads a project team of diverse people will need to understand and interact successfully with others.

Applying emotional intelligence at work means you are open to the ideas of others and can build and mend relationships with others. You are aware of your feelings and act accordingly, articulating ideas so that others can understand them, developing rapport, building trust, and working toward consensus.

Managers who are attuned to their own feelings and the feelings of others use this understanding to enhance personal, team , and organizational performance.

ACTION POINT: Improve team and organizational performance by developing EI in yourself and others.

Managing Emotions

Both inward and outward facing aspects of emotional intelligence are made up a of number of skills or competencies.

Emotional intelligence has two aspects: one inward facing and one outward facing. The first of these is your emotional self-awareness and your ability to manage your own emotions. The second is your degree of empathy, or awareness of others emotions, and your ability to productively manage relationships with others. Both inward and outward facing aspects of emotional intelligence are made up a of number of skills or competencies.

The four competencies of emotional intelligence are:

• Self-Awareness - accurate self-assessment, self confidence
• Self-Management - Emotional self-control; trustworthiness' conscientiousness' achievement orientation; adaptability; optimism initiative
• Social Awareness - Empathy, organizational awareness; service orientation
• Relationship management - Development of others; inspirational leadership; influence; communication; change catalyst; conflict management; bond building; teamwork and collaboration.

ACTION POINT: Develop the four competencies above to improve your emotional intelligence.

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence can be developed over time and can be improved through training.

Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to monitor and work with your and others emotions. It is measured in EQ, which is the emotional equivalent of IQ. A technically proficient manager with a high EQ will be more successful than a manager who has only a high IQ.

You EQ is the measure of your ability to understand and interact with others and becomes more important the more people you deal with. EQ does not measure personality traits or cognitive capacity. Emotional intelligence can be developed over time and can be improved through training. Those with a high EQ will be better able to control their own emotions, while at the same time using them as a basis for action.

Working with emotions, rather than being at the mercy of them, makes individuals more successful in dealing with the demands of the environment around them. They are better able to control impulses and deal with stress, and better at problem solving. All of these qualities help the individual to perform more competently at work.

ACTION POINT: Understand the role of emotion in yourself and your team.

Fourth Fruit of the Spirit: Meekness

Make me Resemble you, Jesus! - St. Therese of Lisieux

The fourth Fruit of the Spirit is Meekness (kindness). Meekness is freedom from the energy of hostility, hatred, or outbursts of anger. Anger is necessary for human health and growth. but it needs to be transmuted into a growing capacity to persevere in the pursuit of the difficult good, especially the immense goods of the spiritual journey and of the imitation of Christ. the growth of meekness opens us to the continual awareness of God's presence and the acceptance of everyone with their limitations. One does not approve of the harmful things that others may do, but one accepts them as they are and is ready to help whenever possible-- but without trying to change them. One is even content with one's inability to change oneself as one would like while continuing to do what one can to improve, relying more and more upon God and less and less on one's own efforts.

Matthew 5:1-2
His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them, saying:...Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Labor and Grace

Creations grace birthed the perfect spot near the California coast to receive a cooling sea fog. That fog rolls up and down a 30 x 5 mile valley filled with varietal grapevines throughout the growing season. Labor and Grace kiss in that valley, blessing man with the with the fruit of their union.

Konstantin Dmitrich Levin is a character from a Tolstoy novel and Robert Mondavi is a world renowned vintner. Imagine my surprise when I encountered the footsteps of both of these men last Wednesday while touring a Napa vineyard.

Levin theorizes that agriculture is more than soil and vegetation. It must include the hands of the laborer. Agriculture becomes art when the soil, plant and laborers love for his work come together to form a crop.

Mondavi is a winemaker who envisions wines of balance. He wants no single characteristic to stand out; instead he aims for a balanced, gracious wine. To do this his winery still harvests 500 acres of grapes by hand. The idea being that hand labor is a more gracious way to treat the fruit, resulting in a finer nectar in the bottle.

Proof is in the pudding as they say so after a recent vineyard tour I was treated to three of the Mondavi wines. Balanced and gracious one and all. Levin and Mondavi were on my mind as I pondered the gifts of labor and grace and what they brought forth in the beautiful valley of Napa.

Cheers!