What are you afraid of?

“Courage is the greatest of all the virtues. Because if you haven’t courage, you may not have an opportunity to use any of the others.”

Samuel Johnson

What are you most afraid of? Failure? Danger? Something else? 

What scares me most is not living up to my potential and using all of the gifts and talents that God has blessed me to have.  This is what fuels me and gives me courage. What enables you?

‘ “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey. He called his own servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two talents, and to another one talent, depending on each one’s ability. Then he went on a journey. Immediately the man who had received five talents went, put them to work, and earned five more. In the same way the man with two earned two more. But the man who had received one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master’s money. “After a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five talents approached, presented five more talents, and said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I’ve earned five more talents.’ “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You were faithful over a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Share your master’s joy.’ “The man with two talents also approached. He said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I’ve earned two more talents.’ “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You were faithful over a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Share your master’s joy.’ “The man who had received one talent also approached and said, ‘Master, I know you. You’re a harsh man, reaping where you haven’t sown and gathering where you haven’t scattered seed. So I was afraid and went off and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ “His master replied to him, ‘You evil, lazy servant! If you knew that I reap where I haven’t sown and gather where I haven’t scattered, then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and I would have received my money back with interest when I returned. “‘So take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents. For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. ‘ Matthew 25:14-29 

Talent + Discipline = Results

“Discipline is the refining fire by which talent becomes ability.”

Roy L. Smith

I used this quote just over a year ago (link here) and it is just so powerful that I had to use it again.

All the talent in the world isn’t going to make you successful over the long term. One must constantly and continually refine your talents so that you can turn it into your desired results. The discipline to do the hard work is what turns talent into action and that is what translates into the results you desire. Without discipline you won’t be able to grow and transform as the world changes around you.

Open your gifts…


“The buried talent is the sunken rock on which most lives strike and founder.”

Frederick William Faber

What is the talent or gift that you have left buried in your life?

Why is it still buried? Fear of failure? Inability to recognize the talent itself? Lack of desire to put in the effort to bring it to the surface?

But what if it wasn’t buried? How might your life be different if you embraced your buried talent and made it a gift, not just to yourself, but for others?

The challenge, as I see it, is that if you don’t seize every opportunity to bring your talents to the surface you are creating a life that WILL BE filled with regret and disappointment.

So why wait until it is too late? The timing will never be perfect. The stars might not align in just the right way. Your talent might be one that only serves to bring joy and appreciation to your life. But if you are happy, that has a cascade effect to those that you share your life with.

Don’t be content to leave the gifts you have been given under the surface. They are gifts, open them…

First who…


“If I were a young coach today, I would be extremely careful in selecting assistants.”

John Wooden

The people that you serve with are a direct reflection, and an extension of, your choices about who you are, your character, and who you want to be in your leadership of self and others. Picking the right ones is critical for both short-term and long-term success.

My first, and probably most influential, leadership mentor was a retired full bird U.S. Army Colonel. When I was leaving that company for another role he shared with me some of the best leadership advice I have ever received. Specifically it was on the topic of hiring and selecting talent: “Dusty, no matter what, if I could pass along one bit of advice it would be this. Never, ever, delegate completely the hiring of key talent and leaders. Always be involved in the process and ensure that you get to talk with them, even if they won’t be working for you directly. It will make a huge difference over the long haul. You have to be responsible for the quality of the leaders in your organization since you will be accountable for their performance.”

I haven’t always done this perfectly but it has been a guiding principle for me almost my entire career. The quality of the work produced by the team is dependent on the quality of the leaders that are guiding them. Never ever shortchange the leadership selection process.

The most important variables…

“Talent is God given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful.”

John Wooden

This is probably one of my favorite quotes. It states so clearly the danger of this world if you remove just two key variables. Humility and Gratitude. Without either you are going to go astray.

Why do you have your God given gifts and talents? Is it to serve others or serve yourself? If you have fame then how are you using that fame to serve others or impact the world? I would argue that if you aren’t using your gifts to serve then you are treading dangerously close to the definition of conceit.

The minute you believe you are better than someone else, that your life has more value or meaning than another person you have lost your way. My Dad used to tell me that “everyone puts their britches on the same way in the morning. No person is more important or deserves better treatment because of their role or wealth.”

How do you guard against conceit and selfishness?

Do you choose to exist or persist?

“Discipline is the refining fire by which talent becomes ability.”

Roy L. Smith

There is nothing worse than seeing someone with incredible talent choose to let that potential be wasted because they don’t have the discipline or drive to maximize their God given gifts.  It is a human choice when people put forth less effort than they are capable of doing and then achieve less that they were created to become.  Why does this happen?

We, as humans, are inherently lazy.  It isn’t fun to wake up at 4:00 AM and go train your body in order to achieve your goals.  It isn’t exciting to do the same task over and over again as you develop your body or your mind to become sharper and more focused.  It is far easier to sleep in, to make excuses, to settle for less than you are capable because that is the path of least resistance.  It is far easier to simply exist than it is to persist.  

The people who impress me the most are the ones that demonstrate the discipline and relentless will to pound right through their own mental walls and barriers.  These are the people who are forging their future on a daily basis with the decisions they make and the actions they take.  They never allow themselves to sit back and feel sorry for themselves when things don’t go their way.  They adapt, overcome, and set new goals and objectives.  This person knows that with relentless discipline and execution of the small things on a daily basis they can achieve greater results and realize their potential. 

God didn’t create us to have an easy life.  The challenges we face are there to help us grow our talents and maximize our potential to impact the lives of others.  To do this we have to be like the servant in the ‘Parable of the Talents’ and take the gifts  we are given and find a way to grow them into something much more valuable…

hot iron steel glow
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dusty

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