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RENEWAL REMINDER
Don't forget we are in a new year. That means it is time for many of you to renew!!! |
| Featured Member |
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Carol Venn has been a CBN-USA Cincinnati North member for four years and has been very involved in the Cincinnati region, in particular in membership. She is also Co-Membership Director for CBN-USA. Any of you who know Carol know she is relentless in this area, in particular in renewing existing members.
Carol is a member of Montgomery Presbyterian Church and recently "retired" as Stewardship elder for the past six years. On many occasions she provides special music during the anthem and offertory.
She is a graduate of Indiana University in Bloomington Indiana with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Economics and Minors in Music (flute) and Physical Education (swimming).
What many may not know is Carol lost her chance for fame when she missed the qualifying time by 3/10 of a second for the Munich Olympics competing in 800-meter free style swimming.
During the past 6-1/2 years she has been a District Sales Manager with AFLAC. Previously she was the Regional Vice President of the Cash Management Sales Department for Ohio with Bank One (now Chase Bank).
Carol is very married to David for 36 1/2 years and is blessed with two children, Vicki 28 and Michael 27 and especially with five grandchildren, ranging in age from 8 years to 4 months.
Thank you Carol for your service and commitment to CBN-USA.
If you have a suggestion for Featured Member, please send it to the editor. |
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Happenings/Events | | The 2008 CBN-USA charity golf outing is just around the corner. The date is May 12th. Information is on the web site.
Let us know what is going on in your region! |
| Partner Events
The Gathering will be shortly announcing a half day leadership conference in Columbus on June 6th. The conference will feature nationally recognized business leader, author and speaker John Maxwell, as well as Jim Tressell and Harvey Hook. Inofrmation will be available soon on both the CBN-USA and Gathering web sies.
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Helpful Business Hints |
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Last month I mentioned a new networking organization, SmallBizSuccess Network, in Dayton. I continue to be overwhelmed by the content and value of their weekly newsletter. As the name implies it is all about networking. If anyone can take this free newsletter and not get at least one new practical tip a week I want to he about it. You can find newsletter archives and subscription details on their web site.
We are always looking for tips for saving time and/or money or help with producing addtional revenue. Please share them with others. |
| Don't Forget
Constant Contact |
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Don't forget CBN-USA is a business partner of Constant Contact. By subscribing to Constant Contact through CBN-USA you can save additional money and provide us with a little income.
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From the Editor...
by Bill Gaffney
Recently I have been involved in several discussions about mission and focus. Let me start out with a couple brief examples.
I have a good friend, fellow coach and long time CBN-USA member who a few years back had a fairly lucrative contract with a client. The work he was doing, however, for the client was not a service he normally offered in his portfolio. After much thought and consultation he amicably ended the contract as he felt it was detracting from what his mission was as a business owner. It has since proven to be the right decision.
In Numbers 3 we find the families of Levi assigned responsibility for the transportation of the Tabernacle and its elements. These instructions are very specific.
We have recently published the new CBN-USA mission statement, purpose, etc. As an organization we need to be very focused and purposeful about our mission. It is very easy to get focused in other very worthwhile areas but that only detracts from our mission, as well as from the msission of other organizations and/or individuals whose direction and process we tend to interfere with.
Our mission, in case you have forgot, is focused around businesspeople and assisting and supporting them in the marketplace. That is a broad generalization but that is the starting point.
If you have any additional questions on this topic please see one of the regional or national leaders or e-mail the newsletter.
Enjoy this month's newsletter.
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WHAT FOLLOWERS REALLY WANT IN A LEADER
by Rick Boxx
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Have you ever worked for a leader you just could not help but follow? The company I began working with after college was managed by such a person. I recall a time when one of my peers told me that Mr. Mills wanted to see me. This coworker forewarned me that I was about to be asked to do something I would be dead-set against doing.
However, several minutes into my meeting I found myself thoroughly infected with Mr. Mills' infectious enthusiasm, kindness, respect and dignity. As I left work that day, I was amazed by how a task that had seemed so distasteful had become transformed by this leader into a challenge I was looking forward to taking on and conquering.
People enjoy following a gifted leader, someone that inspires and motivates them to work to their greatest capabilities and perhaps even beyond what they thought they could do. In contrast, there are many people in the workplace who are regarded as leaders, but who upon close examination have no devoted followers. So what makes the difference?
Barna Research Ltd., a major international research organization, in 1997 conducted a poll to determine what people desired and expected in a leader. The top five responses were the ability to:
· Motivate people to get involved (87%)
· Negotiate a compromise when there is conflict (78%)
· Identify the correct course of action to take (77%)
· Make decisions which are in the best interests of the people, even if those decisions might not be popular (76%)
· Train and develop other leaders to help (75%)
In the Bibles Old Testament, Proverbs 14:28 teaches, "A large population is a king's glory, but without subjects a prince is ruined". Many people believe once they receive a position of authority people will follow automatically, just on the basis of their status. Often, however, this positional authority results in the boss standing alone in the heat of battle.
By comparison, the effective leader recognizes the fact that positional authority is meaningless without the willing support and cooperation of the staff. As Proverbs states elsewhere, "When a country is rebellious, it has many rulers, but a man of understanding and knowledge maintains order". (Proverbs 28:2). As many true leaders have observed, "You win with people".
If you are a leader and want willing subjects that enthusiastically will follow you into the many battles of the workplace, remember what it requires to get them there. A strong leader motivates others; negotiates conflicts skillfully; charts a clear, well-conceived course of action; seeks and serves the people's best interest, and develops future leaders. Which of these five will you need to address this week?
(Copyright 2008, Integrity Resource Center, Inc.) Adapted with permission from "Integrity Moments with Rick Boxx," a commentary on issues of integrity in the workplace from a Christian perspective. For more information about receiving Integrity Moments in their e-mail box, write to: rboxx@IntegrityMoments.com and type "subscribe" in the subject line or visit his website,
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| WORKLIFE LESSON: YOUR GOD MATTERS AT WORK
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Every Christian is called to full-time service to God. The places where we serve will look different, but the principles that guide us are absolute, eternal and practical. Even in places where God isn't always welcome. Here are but a few ways for you to consider the influence your faith is having on your work, and the people who surround you there.
* Why did I pick this job? Did I consider God in the course of picking this job?
* Does the product or service I produce in my job offer value to the culture that's consistent with God's moral principles?
* Does the way I provide those products or services offer value to the culture that's consistent with God's moral principles?
* Is the marketing of those products and services consistent with God's moral principles?
* Does my management of the budget areas I'm responsible for reflect principles of stewardship?
* Am I making decisions that reflect concern for the long-term well-being of the investors, owners, customers, and employees where I serve?
* Are the workers, coworkers and customers I'm responsible for being treated with dignity?
* Are the workers, coworkers and customers I'm responsible for being treated with equity?
* Are the workers, coworkers and customers I'm responsible for being treated with justice, and where possible, with mercy?
* Am I resolving conflict at work in ways that honor God?
* Am I differentiating between mistakes (the natural result of trial and error/research and development processes) and negligence (the unnatural result of not being diligent in our labors)?
* Do I refrain from criticizing customers, coworkers and employees to others? (Gossip)
* Do I exhibit forgiveness?
* Are the expectations of my job enabling me to meet the other requirements God gives me in life?
* Do my expectations of my workers enable them to meet the other requirements God gives them?
* Do my memorandums, reports, conversations, discussions and other communications reflect a commitment to honesty always?
* Do I withhold information that might be useful to others in my company because it gives them an advantage in promotion or influence?
* Do my natural conversations at work reflect the nature and depth of my relationship with Jesus Christ, and to God?
* Do I refrain from retaliation, and from seeking revenge against customers, coworkers and competitors?
* Do I know my coworkers well enough to describe my faith in terms they can understand when the opportunity presents itself?
* Am I willing to sacrifice gain in my own career if it produces an outcome that serves others in my work culture more effectively?
Scripture is full of practical instruction for living in the world God created. In fact, the Bible is not merely a guide to spiritual life, but to every part of our lives, especially work. The less we know of the Bible, the less equipped we are to be stewards of God's economy; the less wisely we use the assets He entrusts to us; and the less wisely we care for the people He places near us. The joy of the journey is realizing God speaks to each of us through His Word, turning timeless principles into timely insights for our marketplace moments.
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AN ENCOURAGING WORD
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This was recently shared by Ken Becker in his newsletter. I thought all of us who are "marketplace ministers" would be encouraged.
Kevin Gregor, the manager at Potbelly's who has been such a blessing to us, has left his position to go to another company. As he was transitioning out, I stopped by to see him on his last day. Kevin has helped us out in so many ways and I wasn't sure how things would be in the future. I shared it with him and he told me to come with him to the back of Potbelly's. He opened the door and called for Mike. (Mike is the District Manager). Mike came and Kevin said, "I am going to give Mike your email and phone number. If he needs the room (G4L's meeting room), I will have him contact you directly". Mike then interrupted and said, "And if you need anything at all from us, you contact either myself or Kelly, the new manager, and we'll provide it for you. I
don't want our relationship to change at all just because Kevin is leaving".
What a blessing that is for us! I was excited to know that we had developed a deep enough relationship with Mike that he sees the value that we can bring to his employees at The Greene. We have ministered to a number of them and I know that it was passed on to him.
Groundz4Living is a one of a kind marketplace ministry, serving as chaplains to employees, owners and patrons of The Greene Shopping Center. It is the location of a monthely CBN-USA breakfast and Ken Becker serves in regional leadership in Dayton
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PULLING UP ROOTS
From Sandler Sales Briefs
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Andy was a small Mountain Ash growing near the center of the forest. The soil around him was rich. The winds blew soothingly. The gentle rains were refreshing. Andy had many friends nearby. Andy was a happy tree.
One day, Andy took a good look around and noticed off in the distance that many of the trees were taller than he was. "It must be the soil over there," he pondered. Wanting to be bigger and taller, like the other trees, Andy pulled up his roots and made his way over to the area of the forest where the taller trees stood.
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| MINISTRY/NON-PROFIT FOCUS
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Each month we would like to highlight a ministry/non-profit who is a CBN-USA member. We invite you to tell us about your organization. Here are the guidelines:
- The ministry/non-profit must be a CBN-USA member.
- The submission has to be 100 words or less
- We want you to tell us about the organization. It cannot be an overt fundraising piece.
- All submissions are subject to editing.
We will supply a link to your website at the end of the piece. We welcome all submissions.
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ANGEL DONOR'S FUND
From Jeff Davidson
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Jeff and Helen Davidson opened the "Angel Donors Fund" at The Columbus Foundation in October 2005, because they were passionate about helping good people in Ohio who were failing to provide "basic needs" for their families! They were also angry about the income disparity in this country. Only 10% of all charitable donations go to the poor nationally.
With the Davidson's $150,000 in donations to the fund since Oct. 2005, they just didn't want to "send a grant from their living room," they wanted the "feel good of hands-on philanthropy". As CPAs, they also wanted to collaborate with others who share their passion and apply business principles to leverage their donations.
The fund's most recent collaboration for the poor is entitled "Ending Hunger in Ohio" and is attracting attention from Ohio church and civic leaders. For more information, please call Jeff at (614) 580-1561 and/or visit the weblink.
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