To all my friends in ministry and personal business, this is going to apply more to you than to the casual readers who are in a role of which they are not able to change the make-up of the company they are within. However, to those who are, this is a book that I would recommend to all of you.

In 2009, a goal of mine was to be much more intentional about my time and what we are doing at theBURN. In doing so, I needed to get a sense of who we are and what we are about. I knew it in my head. I've even shared it with others. In practice and who we are, it wasn't happening. I thought one clear aspect that needed to happen was a clear and defined vision and to get a sense of where we are going. Built to Last : Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins popped up and I thought, it couldn't hurt. From the start, I was encouraged incredibly. The key phrase that pops up over and over within the book is "preserve the core." Preserve who you and and build from that. Don't try to be someone else. Don't get caught in someone else's cool thing. Build upon who you are. What YOU are passionate about. What YOUR heartbeat is. To catch on to something else will only be a fad. To produce out of yourself will produce real results because it isn't work, it's reproduction. I couldn't tell you how good that was for me. In looking to next year, the last thing I wanted to do was to "create" something. However, once I found that preserving the core of who I am (and who theBURN is), I was doing what companies like GE, HP, Ford, Merck, Sony and Boeing have done since their inception (written in the 90s).

The next phrase was "stimulate progress." He called this the ying-yang of business. It's the genius of the AND. When you preserve your core and stimulate progress, you are simply refining how you are you. You refine how you do things, how your heart happens in all that you do. It was great. Through each chapter I was uncovering ways for theBURN to be better and in planning 2009, it has made me incredibly excited.

For some of my friends in business and ministry, this comes too late because you are on the ball and have your year lined up. For others, this may be a welcome sign to get a sense of what 09 looks for you. If you are in any position to influence any dynamics where you live and work, check this out. It will refine your vision and set more mind to goals and accomplishing them. Without painting a picture to your specific dynamic, you will find the practices that makes the vision happen. Jim Collins calls them "teeth" to the vision. We needed some teeth in theBURN and now we are headed that way.

Built to Last : A+
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Now playing: The Almost - Dirty And Left Out [McTague-lectro Version]