A New Hope

There is a way forward.

These are some of the most powerful words someone can hear in a time of need. When faced with insurmountable odds or circumstances, finding the hope that there is a way through the darkness, pain, uncertainty or confusion is life giving.

A friend of mine was facing some huge challenges in his marriage after his wife uncovered his infidelity. He was broken, confused, distraught and utterly overwhelmed by the reality of the weight of the potential consequences for his actions.

But somehow, he still found hope...and so did his wife. Together, they pursued restoration, healing and forgiveness and today they marital union is vibrant and inspiring.

I imagine their story would have unfolded differently had they not been given the gift of seeing a way forward that didn't further deepen their pain.

Their story isn't unlike yours or mine. Every single one of us is faced with difficult realities in life. And when these moments are revealed, we have a choice to make. We can choose to uncover a way forward, or we can choose to become overwhelmed and immobilized by the fear of uncertainty.

Leadership is chalked full of moments of uncertainty, second-guessing, confusion, clarity and more. It's in these moments that I am learning to pursue hope while taking the time to discover a way forward. And for me as a follower of Jesus, this has meant much prayer, listening and facing the fear that has attempted to immobilize me at every turn.

You and I are not dissimilar. No matter what you may find yourself immersed in at the moment, there is a way forward. Find the hope amidst the chaos. Face the fear with courage. Create a new normal.

There is a way forward.

All Shapes and Sizes

Leaders look different.

This is one of the many gifts the millennial generation is innovating in the leadership world of today. There is no longer this desire to be like everyone else. Individuality is the flavour du jour, accompanied with a deepening appreciation for diversity and variety.

One question that I've been stewing over lately is the correlation between personality and confidence.

How does one's propensity towards extroversion or introversion affect their level of confidence as a leader?

I'm a pseudo-sociologist junkie by nature. Armed with my keen powers of observation, there are some general realities. that I've discovered with having the privilege of interacting with hundreds of different leaders over the years...and this one is preoccupying my thoughts the most as of late.

The most confident people tend to be the most quiet. 

Volume doesn't equal confidence. There is a time and place to rally people towards a cause using one's exuberance and energy, but there is also a time to be still and quiet in order to discover what is really happening on the leadership level internally, not just externally.

I've made the mistake of assuming that quiet person in the room is the one that needs to be encouraged or spurred on the most. Often times this had led to me swallowing both my feet right in front of them as I've unsuccessfully attempted to woo them towards the perceived elusive confidence I believe they are lacking.

Sometimes being quiet has allowed a person to embrace their identity at a deeper level. Those of us who tend to be loud may simply be attempting to control the environment in which we are seen or perceived so that it can continue to fuel our insecurity through verbal affirmation and relational reward.

If you've ever spent some time being still and enjoying a part of nature (mountains, beach, forest, etc.) you'll understand that there is a different layer of enjoyment when the noise and clutter are removed from the moment.

Leaders create spaces and opportunities to grow in confidence. When you think about who you are as a leader, what are you learning the most about remaining confident in who you are or in who those around you are meant to be?

Are you someone who is motivated by your own insecurity, or are you able to appreciate the rich diversity and variety that are essential to leadership health?

Personality or Substance - What kind of leader are you?

Yesterday was a first for me.

I had the privilege of working in the federal election of my home country Canada. My role was to serve electors and help them cast their vote. It was an exhilarating experience to observe democracy and freedom in action.

As I watched all the activities and events leading up to election, I couldn't help but be reminded of a key concept that I've continued to learn as a leader; that being the principle of personality or substance.

There will be a lot of different political satire pieces dispersed in the world of the inter-web today, but this my friends isn't one of them.

It's true that this election process has reminded me of this leadership principle most recently, but it is my drive and passion as a dad that truly inspires me to understand the relationship between personality and substance. This is a non-partisan conversation about leadership, being a dad and desiring to disciple those in my sphere of influence to be all they have been created to be.

#MySonDeklon

I love all of my children dearly!! Each of them is amazingly unique. It just so happens that what I'm learning today relates more directly to Deklon at the moment.

My son Deklon shares some similarities with our newly elected Prime Minister, Mr. Justin Trudeau. Both men can enter a room, entertain their community and leave people wanting more.

The greatest challenge that I face as a dad to Deklon is to teach him to use his talent for inspiring and captivating people to draw them into the depth of substance...because substance is where people will truly grow and develop, and personality come sometimes be a barrier to this growth and development.




Suppose I tell you the story of a woman who lights up the room every time she walks in. Friends, colleagues, strangers...they all admire her for the beauty she possesses that transcends her stunning outward appearance. She is elevated to a position of power and influence because of this gift, and uses it to reshape the course of history for generations to come.

What would you say were her most important gifts, talents and abilities to have been able to create this new future?

This story is a true story. It's the story of a woman named Esther, which is recorded in the bible (read it here). Esther inspires a king, who makes her his queen so that she can be used by God to create a hope and future for her people...her tribe. It's the depth of her character that allows her personality to flourish and grow into something beautiful.

Being a leader

All leaders face the tension of personality or substance. The most prolific ones are those who can learn to marry personality and substance together to create a hope and a future. 

Brody Jesperson, a friend of mine, recently posted this on Facebook - "What you attract people with will be what they are attracted to." 

He shared this in the context of being a youth minister. It can be very tempting to use hype and mystery to draw a crowd, but also very humbling when you recognize that hype is a permeable thing, shifting effortlessly and simultaneously all at once...don't believe me, watch a Jays game in the playoffs this year!!

Leadership is different...it has to be. People rely on leaders to be persons of integrity, of hope, of stability and of future thinking. Leaders can possess a dynamic personality, but they don't always have to. The character behind the personality leads to the future, not the other way around.

As a leader I ask myself these gut check questions:

1. Is this about me or something greater than I?

2. Can I see beyond myself in this moment?

3. What is the long-term reality of this decision I am making?

4. Who am I allowing to speak into my life to help shape my present and my future?

5. Am I teachable and willing to learn?

When you come face to face with the tension that can be a personality or substance dichotomy, how do you respond?

My hope

My hope for my son Deklon and all other folks who are gifted with a dynamic personality is that they would learn to marry substance with their gift: leading from a place that is full of integrity, honesty, goodness and the future. 

I'm praying for my son. I cannot wait to see how him grow and develop. I pray for him like I pray for his sister Saydie, his brother Cannon and the child we are waiting to add to our family through adoption. I pray for their hope and future.

And I pray for you reader...you brave soul who chose to click on a link to the ramblings of a crazy Canadian. May you be inspired to merge your personality with substance to create something beautiful!

Best Play or Worst Play

I love sports. If you have ever watched a sports highlight show, you will know that they usually end their show with a highlight real package of the best or worst plays of the day/week.

Lately I've been asking myself the question about my best play or worst play as it pertains to leadership.

I've been involved in leadership in one way or another for the better part of the last 20 years...first as someone who was being grown and developed as a leader as a teen, then someone who was hired to be a leader and now someone who is learning to grow and develop leaders around me. During this time, I have personally felt tempted to try and make myself fit into a variety of different moulds or expectations. There were seasons where I wanted to change my personality or reinvent my passions in order to fit what other people were looking for...and in doing so, I often wonder if I was making my best play or my worst play in terms of leadership.


In a conversation I had with my wife recently, she shared this quote with me:

Oscar Wilde - Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken

Have you ever been tempted to try and be someone different than who you are as a leader? Have you ever wondered what your best play or worst play might be? 

My best play...it's to help introduce people to their future. That's how I lead and that's who I am. I'm not ashamed that I'm different...I kinda like it. I'm learning to lead with this notion in mind; how about you?

Living in Inspiration

For our 10th wedding anniversary I surprised my wife with a trip to Las Vegas. Friends of ours had a condo in Vegas which they generously allowed us to stay at for free, and I had been saving up air miles for 5 years to offset the purchase of our flights.

One of our most favourite things to do as a couple as we have gotten older is to explore the outdoors through walking, hiking and other activities. We have been inspired by the many things we have seen.

This photo was taken in Red Rock Canyon. What do you think of when you see it?

This photo inspires me towards hope. Even in a dry climate like the Nevada desert, life can be found. 

In my current occupation, I have the opportunity to listen to thousands of different stories told by many different people about their own lives, their own dreams and their own wounds that they have sometimes endured. As I hear about the loss, the frustration, the hurt or the bitterness, this image I took from Red Rock Canyon often comes to mind. 

There are times when we are overwhelmed to the point where we can no longer see hope. In these dark seasons where life sometimes leads, there is only one question that is really worth asking:

When life seems to be at its' worst can you find what really inspires you?

Waiting when it hurts

I've been taking a hiatus from writing as of late. There is so much content available for the browser courtesy of Google & the inter-webs that I sometimes forget that what I do end up writing may only be meant for one person who's in a tough space and may be in search of something that inspires them towards hope.

So, for anyone who is reading this, please forgive me. Forgive me for being selfish. Forgive me for forgetting what it means to love through this digital medium by sharing story, asking questions and hopefully illustrating something that inspires you.

I am in a season of waiting.

In 2009, my wife and I had the honour of adopting our oldest son, Cannon. It was a process that we were told may not even happen...and yet it did. It was a process that seem overwhelming at times...and yet we were determined. It is something that has changed my life for the better, and I will always be grateful for that.

Fast forward 6 years and we find ourselves in a similar space yet again. Today we wait. We wait for a phone call that will once again change our lives for the better. But friends, I must say, there is pain in the waiting. Questions of what if, what's next, when will it happen and more can become all consuming when perspective is lost in the moment. It hurts to wait. Are we not good enough? Have we missed our opportunity? Did we forget something along the way?

I am learning that the wait and the pain are actually a gift. Perverse as it might seem, I realize that I and my pain produced by waiting are becoming friends, not because we have chosen one another, but because we are in the last 2 people on the planet type of scenario. It's me and my pain, alone. Sometimes in the dark, but always searching for the light. It's a space that is difficult to explain, but familiar to those who have experienced the emptiness of a season of waiting.

So, if that's where you are I want to inspire you. You are not alone. There are others who have found a way through the pain that waiting can bring. It's true, not all seasons of waiting are the same, and neither is the pain that they bring. Waiting for a loved one to pass is much different than waiting for a long lost friend to finally come home for a visit. Find the courage and strength to identify with what may be similar while never forget what is truly different.

Wait, friends. Wait, even when it hurts. At some point in the not so distant future the season will come to a close and with it will be a new set of opportunities, hopes and dreams...and the perspective on the season of waiting you just went through.

When Options Become King

I had the opportunity to share with a local church community this summer about the complexity of living in an option filled society. Take a listen and share your thoughts with me!!

Listen now