You Are Incomparable

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama! Each new day is such a gift! Let’s choose to honor this one by living it fully! 😊

Earlier this week I was listening to an older sermon from Life.Church. The title of the message is The Comparison Trap, Part 1: The Comparison Trap and Sam Roberts preached a phenomenal message! It originally aired on September 2, 2018.

Now there are a couple of really good tools that Pastor Roberts gave that I want to share with you quickly so I can get to what I really want to talk about! 😊

First, he stated that comparison has two distinct outcomes:

1. Leave us prideful.
2. Leave us jealous.

Neither is good! Pastor Roberts didn’t say that however I am happily sharing the obvious!

Second, Pastor Roberts gave two ways to live without comparing:

1. Recognize what you have.
2. Accept who you are.

If you remember nothing other than these two points from this Happy Friday, you will be on a much better path than you were two minutes ago when you started reading 2 minutes ago!

And then Pastor Roberts said this:

“Don’t lose you along the way!”

Please let that sink in Friends! Are you being the you that you were created to be? Are you striving to fulfill your potential? Or are you wishing you were something else? Someone else? If the latter is true, it would be a shame for you are incomparable!

Ephesians 2:10 (ESV) says:

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

If you have gone to church for any length of time you probably know this scripture, but do you KNOW this scripture?! Let’s break down a few things:

“For we are his workmanship” – how does that line up with what you say about yourself? You are not inadequate, broken, or insignificant! You are literally the workmanship of God. Please do me a favor and read this – “[Your name] is a workmanship of God.” Please, say it again and let it speak to the deepest recesses of your heart!

“created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand.” Ever feel inadequate or out of your league? Yeah, me too! But what if we really knew that we were created for good works, which God prepared for us to do beforehand? What if we really walked out this truth? Our talents and abilities are not a mistake neither are our platforms and appointments. In the beginning we might not have the experience – would kind of be weird to have experience at the beginning, wouldn’t it?!?! – however just because we have not done it yet doesn’t mean that we don’t have in us what it takes to do it!

And then this, “that we should walk in them.” Doesn’t leave much room for anything other than being the incomparable you that you are, does it? It doesn’t say, “that you should be like Bill, Bob, Nancy, or Martha, does it? No, it quite clearly states that WE should walk in them! Walk in what? The good works that God prepared for us when He created us! Truly powerful when you think about it and makes comparing seem silly!

I beg you, Friends, please be the you that you were created to be! You are unique and perfectly equipped for the purpose for which you were created. Embrace and honor this beautiful life that you are blessed to be living! You are incomparable – nobody can be exactly you and you can’t be anyone else! Let us not fall into the traps of pride or jealousy but rather let’s recognize what we have – and genuinely be grateful for all of our blessings! – and accept who we are! Please remember, [You name] is God’s workmanship! 😊

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well!

Kev

It's About Priorities

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a beautiful new has dawned in my Sweet Home Alabama! 😊

Well, for the second time in the past month I find myself writing Happy Friday on a Saturday morning! Yes, it has been that kind of month! Very busy but so very, very blessed! 😊

This morning I want to share a short message. It is something for all of us to think about and then determine how we want to live our lives…

My oldest Tender Warrior, Payton, attended an industry conference a couple of weeks ago. He was at a presentation by one of the leaders in his industry when the speaker was asked about time management. The speaker said something to the effect of, “You don’t manage time. You schedule your priorities.” He then went on to talk about the importance of his family to him, how the demands of the job are real and that sometimes there are things at work you absolutely can’t miss which might cause you to miss something with your family, but overall, you can schedule your priorities.

A few thoughts…

First, I am so thankful for leaders like this man. Payton is early in his career and to have leaders talk about knowing your priorities, keeping your priorities straight, and prioritizing family – a priority I share with this leader – makes a dads heart happy. It is far different than one of the early leaders in my professional life. That leader was teaching that you must stay at the office until 2:00 a.m., be back in the office by 6:00 a.m., and that these things are the things that matter most. It was a deep conviction in my Spirit that told me this was not right, that things can, and should be, different. This is probably why today I am so passionate with the people I am privileged to serve. I make sure they understand that their jobs are not the most important thing about them, that who they are as people and their families are their number one priority, and that we will be where our feet are – when we are home, be home.

Second, Inky Johnson had a great message a few weeks ago. He was talking about renewable and non-renewable moments. He was discussing the importance of honoring the non-renewable moments. Special moments in the life of your family – a birth, a birthday, a performance, etc. – are non-renewable moments and therefore cannot be missed for they will never occur again. There are plenty of renewable moments that, sadly, we attend while sacrificing the non-renewable moments. I pray we will identify, prioritize, and honor the non-renewable moments in our lives and in the lives of our families for if we don’t, we are apt to leave a path of hurt and regret that will last a lifetime.

And finally, let’s intentionally identify our priorities and order our lives accordingly. The thing about priorities is nobody can tell anyone else what their priorities should be. We will all choose our priorities, and those choices will determine the quality, depth, and breadth of the lives we live. Pretty simple, really. Here is the hard part; in prioritizing one thing, we will have to deprioritize something else. What we all eventually learn is you can do anything, but you can’t do everything. Going back to my example from early in my career; where is the time for my wife, for my family, when I am working until 2:00 a.m. and being back in the office at 6:00 a.m.? And the leader I was referring to? He got divorced. For him the job was the priority, he honored his priority, and he lost his family in the process. We would all be wise to consider what we want our story to be… Let’s take an assessment this weekend. What are our priorities? Are we honoring them? If we need to make changes, let’s make them. It’s not about time-management, it is about scheduling our priorities.

I want to share a few quotes with you here at the end…

“Boundaries are what you say no to. Priorities are what you say yes to.” – Nick Chellsen

“We don’t drift in good directions. We discipline and prioritize ourselves there.” – Andy Stanley

“Nobody’s life is ever all balanced. It’s a conscious decision to choose your priorities every day.” – Elisabeth Hasselbeck

“You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage – pleasantly, smilingly, non-apologetically – to say ‘no’ to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger ‘yes’ burning inside. The enemy of the ‘best’ is often the ‘good’” – Anonymous

“Good things happen when you set your priorities straight.” – Scott Caan

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well!

Kev 

Dad

 Happy Friday, Friends: 

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama! 😊 

This Sunday, June 18^th, is Father’s Day. While it seems most of us pour out our hearts expressing our love and celebrating our moms on Mother’s Day, Father’s Day tends to get a far different reaction. To be sure, those blessed with a present, attentive Dad seem to know how genuinely blessed they are and how different their life is from so many others, and they express it. For many, talking about their dad, if they know him, does not bring expressions of love or celebration. No, they often bring forth feelings of bitterness, resentment, or perhaps, anger.

Today I want to talk to two different groups of people. First, I want to talk to those whose dad was not what they wanted or expected him to be. I then want to take a few minutes to talk to all dads out there.

I chose to say “not what they wanted or expected him to be” as opposed to “bad dad” or some other negative description. I got there the hard way but, Praise the Lord, I got there.

My dad was not what I wanted or expected him to be. He was physically and emotionally abusive. Nothing, absolutely nothing, I ever did was good enough. As hard as I would try at anything, I would always hear “but.” Never, “Good job, buddy” it was always, “You had a pretty good game, but…” And yes, I did hear, “I love you” however I only remember those words being spoken to me after I had been spanked over and over again with a belt. Not what I wanted or expected him to be…

Like, I assume, many boys I wanted to be with my dad. I remember more times than I can count waking him up on a Saturday morning asking him to play catch with me. I don’t ever remember him saying yes. When my parents got divorced, we had a season of life where we would go to Arizona State football games together. It was nice. We would spend the afternoon or evening together though we never talked about anything more than sports. This all changed when he got a girlfriend, the woman who would become his wife. All of the sudden we didn’t talk anymore, and he didn’t return my calls. Not what I wanted or expected him to be…

My dad and I went 7 years without talking to one another. My Beautiful Bride and my mom used to prod me to call him. I would assure them that I wasn’t mad nor was I harboring any resentment towards him…I truly just didn’t feel like talking to him. After more than 20 years of trying to connect, the desire to reach out to him was gone. I assured them both that if I ever felt convicted to call him I would. Then, one morning when Kath and I were in Arizona visiting family, I felt convicted to call him, so I did. I invited him to breakfast, and we went. I don’t remember any part of our conversation other than when I first saw him that morning. He rolled up in a Cadillac. I said, “Nice car, when did you get it?” He said, “About 4 years ago.” A little awkward! Not what I wanted or expected him to be…

Over the next few years, I would call him occasionally but not consistently. I don’t remember him calling me. My family and I moved back to Arizona. I coached in a game less than 5 miles from his home…he wasn’t there. I wondered how come it was I who had reached out first after 7 years and not him. I wondered how come he did not show up at a game that would take him less than 10 minutes to drive to. I wondered how come he would not drive 3 hours to see his grandsons. Not what I wanted or expected him to be…

After living away from Arizona for a couple of years, my little family and I returned to Arizona when I went to work at Arizona State. Shortly after we arrived my dad was hospitalized and put on a ventilator. I was growing as a man and in my faith. The Lord was searching my heart and He was challenging me to grow. I prayed an earnest prayer; if He would allow my dad to live, I would be intentional about spending time with him. “Miraculously,” he got better. I kept my word to God; every Thursday morning I would go visit my dad and have coffee with him. In the summer I would mow his lawn as he sat there in a lawn chair watching me, not saying a word. At Christmas I would put lights on his house, and in the tree in his yard…my stepmom really liked that. Again, few words were spoken. Kathy would ask me, “How can you do all that work for him? He doesn’t talk to you or even act appreciative.” I told her, “It is not about him; it is about me and what I feel the Lord is calling me to do.” Not what I wanted or expected him to be…

A couple of years later, my dad was put into hospice care. As Kathy and I drove to the hospital that night, I remember talking to God. I was searching, trying desperately to understand what this all meant, what our relationship had meant, etc. And as clear as day I can remember realizing that it was because of who he was that I become who I am. My heart had a much deeper understanding and appreciation in that moment. While it was not what I wanted or expected him to be, by obeying where the Lord was leading me, and striving to serve him as God led me to do, I was there the moment my dad took his last breath and, for the only time in my life, I saw my dad at complete peace.

To those of you whose dad is not what you wanted or expected him to be, I want to share a few thoughts with you:

First, it was when I stopped wanting and expecting him to be different, when I simply accepted him for who he was, that I found peace. I spent years wanting, hoping, and praying that he would be different, that he would be the dad I envisioned in my mind. The problem with this is we can’t control another person, only ourselves. While I could not change him or what he said and did, I could choose how I would look at it and receive it. For me, this made all the difference in the world.

Second, I truly believe my dad did the best he could. Like me, he had his own issues, problems, and challenges. No, he is not the dad I wanted or expected, nor the dad that I want to be, however I do believe he did the best he knew how to do. Perhaps, though in your mind a complete failure, your dad is doing the best he can too.

Finally, and it is critically important that you hear this part, I forgave my dad. Many years ago, I placed that burden at Jesus’ feet, and I decided I would no longer live with bitterness, anger, resentment, etc. No, he never asked me to forgive him, and I have no indication that he ever felt remorse or thought anything he did was wrong. In fact, knowing my dad, I am pretty sure he was convinced in his mind that he was the one who had been offended. Truly, that was not the point. The point was what I felt in my heart. I am here to testify to the truth found in the quote by Lewis B. Smedes; “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” While I can also testify that it will not be easy, perhaps you have a long road yet to walk, I want you to know that you can walk in freedom. At any moment you can choose to lay down the burdens of bitterness, anger, resentment, etc. No, it will not change the past and it certainly will not make it right or o.k. It will, however, set you free. Your dads faults, failures, and inadequacies are not your burden to carry. Perhaps on this Father’s Day you will feel convicted to give yourself the gift of forgiveness.

I also want to take a few minutes to talk to all dads. Whether you consider yourself to be a good dad or a bad dad, whether your kids think you are an all-star or if they would say you are not what they wanted or expected you to be, I have a few things I want to say to you….

First, I believe it truly is an honor and privilege to be a dad. A precious soul is counting on you to love, lead, guide, and protect them. Think about that for a moment, please. They are counting on you…

Second, you matter more than you could ever imagine. While society may want to cancel or minimize your importance in the lives of your children, the truth of the matter is you are critically important. There are countless statistics that will show how important you are and the painfully critical consequences if you fail to show up and be a dad.

Third, you don’t have to be perfect…none of us are! Perhaps you had a bad day yesterday – I have had way more than my fair share of those! Today is a new day! Today you can choose to do things differently! Today you can choose to be fully present! Today you can choose to show up for your kid(s) – whether they are having a great day or a failing moment, what they want and need more than anything else is for you to be there with them!

You know, we so try to rate and compare…everything! On Sunday we will read testimonials espousing why this dad or that dad is “The Best Dad Ever” or the “#1 Dad.” What if you and I did not worry about being the best or comparing ourselves to others but rather we simply strive to be the best dads for our kids that we can be? What if we really listened to them when they shared their hopes, dreams, cares, and concerns? What if we put down our cell phones or turned off the ball game and engaged them in a conversation or did whatever they want to do? What if we simply loved them for who they are, where they are, and we kept the speeches about what they should be and where they should go to ourselves? How different would the world our kids grow up in be if we really showed up every day and were simply the best dads we could be on that day?

And my final plea is simply this; please don’t give up or run away! Please, man up! Perhaps the first thing you need to do is apologize…do it! Perhaps you need to show up…do it! Perhaps you need to change some of the things you are doing…do it! Perhaps you need to change some of the things you are not doing…do it! I promise you; the answer will not be found in running or quitting! I acknowledge that the road may be long and hard…walk it! A precious soul is waiting and counting on you! You will not find joy or peace in being less than what you are capable of being! Be the dad that you wish you had! Be the dad your child needs! Be the dad you are capable of becoming!

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, please stay well, and Happy Father’s Day!

Kev

Remembering Why

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day on an absolutely majestic Saturday morning!

I find myself writing this Happy Friday on Saturday morning as this past week was one of the busiest, and most fulfilling, weeks of my professional life! I am so very blessed to be living this life God has given me to live and I intend to honor it by living it fully – becoming all that God created me to become and using all that I am – time, talent, and treasure – to love, care for and serve others. Even if that means I find myself writing Happy Friday on Saturday morning! 😊

This week’s Happy Friday is about me remembering, and actually living out, my “Why.” For you it might simply be an understanding of why Kev is always saying and writing, “What Will You Influence Be…?” The prompting to write this Happy Friday came earlier this week during my prayer time. I felt a very strong conviction in my spirit of “are you actually intentionally living out ‘What Will Your Influence Be…?’ every day?” It is so easy for all of us to drift from our why, our purpose, and our calling when we don’t take the time to pause, evaluate, remember, implement, and act! I refuse to live my life not honoring the reason God created me, pursuing my purpose, and being a great steward of all that He has given me – my Beautiful Bride, my Tender Warriors, my time, my talent, and my treasure! They, after all, are not mine but His! 😊

Why – I believe to the depths of my soul that every person has value, meaning, and a purpose. I don’t believe a person has ever been born that is worthless, insignificant, or whose life has no purpose. I am not responsible for how they treat me or others, behave, or speak. I am only responsible for me. With this, I will choose to treat everyone – regardless of, well, anything! – like they have value, meaning, and purpose.

My Purpose – I truly believe that I was placed on this earth to encourage, empower, and equip others to become the best they are capable of becoming. That’s it! That is why Kevin Haslam is on this earth. I am not here to be rich, famous, have a lot of money, buy a big house or any of those material or societal things. I am not saying that it is wrong or bad to be/have any of those things. I am simply saying that those things have nothing to do with my purpose. With this, whether I am fulfilling my role vocationally, walking down the street, or sitting on a beach on vacation, my purpose is to encourage, empower, and equip others. That is the thing about purpose, we don’t retire from it, and we don’t take a vacation from it. My aim is to be fulfilling my purpose every day of my life until the Lord calls me home.

What Will Your Influence Be…? – What Will Your Influence Be…? was born while I was driving from Phoenix to Tucson in 2011 – so hard to believe it was 12 years ago. I was having my prayer and meditation time, just talking to God. I was really pouring out my heart, specifically for coaches and student-athletes. I was lamenting how social media was becoming such a big thing that they didn’t have to go looking for bad things, it would come and find them. And as I was pouring out my heart, I felt this conviction in my spirit asking, “What will your influence be?” As I write these words and so vividly remember that day, I am reminded of these lyrics to “Do Something” by Matthew West:

Well, I just couldn’t bear the thought of

People living in poverty,

Children sold into slavery.

The thought disgusted me.

So, I shook my fist at Heaven,

I said, “God, why don’t you do something?”

He said, “I did.” Yeah. “I created you.”

Now listen.

If not us, then who?

If not me and you?

Right now.

Well, it’s time for us to do something.

If not now, then when?

Will we see an end

To all this pain?

It’s not enough to do nothing.

It’s time for us to do something.

Does the conviction of my spirit make sense now? God had burdened my heart with something and now it was up to me as to what I would do with it. So, I did a couple of things….

First, I became obsessed with learning about influence. This is why I now know that research has shown that the most introverted person will influence 10,000 people in their lifetime and that the average person will influence 80,000 in theirs. Do you still wonder if the things you say and do everyday matter?

This is also why I am acutely aware of the influence that the things we watch, read, and listen to, the people spend the most time with, have on our lives. It is also why Proverbs 4:23 resonates with me so strongly – “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Not some things, EVERYTHING.

Second, I spent a lot of time praying and thinking about what I wanted my influence to be every day – not just some days. From this was born the desire to be “intentional, positive, and encouraging.”

Putting all this together, I promised God that I would honor the life He has given me to live (I would strive to become all He created me to become and I would be a good steward of everything he has given me, including the burden for the type of influence we have), that I would honor the purpose He has given me, and that I would do something about this burden I felt for others to have an intentional, positive, and encouraging influence in their lives every day. So, every day I seek God, pray, and read – none of us can pour from an empty cup! – and then I post positive and encouraging quotes on Twitter and Facebook. Once a week a write a message I call “Happy Friday” and I also try (I am being honest! 😊) to carve something (usually a heart/cross/anchor) for someone at least once a week. I also strive every day to be fully present, to notice the lost and hurting, and to love, care for, and serve everyone, any way I can.

What led me to write this Happy Friday is that piece about being intentional and actually doing. I don’t want to just wear a bracelet that says, “What Will Your Influence Be…?”, post a few quotes, and call it all good. To me, that would be a very shallow life. I want to actually live it! I want to – I am sorry, this is the only word that keeps coming to me! – HONOR my why, purpose, and calling…which is exactly what “What Will Your Influence Be…?” is.

To you I ask, what is the burden of your heart. Matthew West sings about poverty and children sold into slavery…what burdens your heart? What is the thing you shake your fist at Heaven at God and ask, “Why don’t you do something?” Please remember, He created you. The next move is yours…

Now, there are two quotes I came across this morning that have absolutely nothing to do with this Happy Friday however I thought they were awesome, and highly useful if applied, so I wanted to share them with all of you.

“Growth is when you improve your weaknesses. Greatness is when you maximize your strengths.” – Unknown

“Don’t take things too personally. Critique, failures, unwarranted advice – take it to mind, not to heart. What you hear out of the mouths of others are opinions and perspectives. It’s often worth listening to opinions and perspectives, but it’s not a requisite that you take them on board.” – Nate Hamon

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well!

Kev

How Are You Living?

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn in my Sweet Home Alabama! 😊

How are you living? Are you living or are you just alive?

Earlier this week I came across this quote again:

“To avoid criticism, say nothing, do nothing, and be nothing.” 

Now, from what I have learned, it was either said by Elbert Hubbard or Aristotle. Apparently, there is some debate about it…who knew?! 😊

I will ask again, how are you living? Are you relentlessly pursuing all you were created to be – doing everything you can to maximize the potential that is within you – and pursuing the goals and dreams held in the deepest recesses of your heart, or are you living something less because you are afraid you will be criticized? There are a whole lot of people walking the face of this earth who are alive but not actually living.

I recently heard somewhere – the danger of listening to tons of podcasts!!! – that this is the first “perfect” generation. Everything is geared towards social media likes, instant gratification, and perfection. Think about it; when was the last time you saw someone post a picture of the meal that they burned, of the kids fighting while trying to get them ready for church, or perhaps they simply said, “I had a really bad day”? These are not the things we see. Instead, we see the picture of the perfectly made meal, the children who are all dressed perfectly and smiling, and everyone and everything is “great.” Kind of hard to keep it real when it feels like nothing we see or hear is real.

And here is the tough part; pursuing goals and dreams, challenging ourselves to become all we are capable of becoming is very, very far from perfect. In fact, it is usually downright messy! If we ever try something new, the pathway to success will be marked by failure. Regardless of what you see on social media, none of us jumped up the first time and started walking or hopped on a bike and started riding all around the neighborhood. We all took a step and fell…we pedaled once or twice and fell. And then what did we do? We got back up and tried again. This is how we learned to walk or how to ride a bike and it gives us the key to how success is found in life.

There was a study several years ago where two different pottery classes were told they would be evaluated in two different ways. One class was told that they would be evaluated on how perfect that could make one pot. The goal was to make the perfect pot. The other class was told the quality of the pot did not matter; they would be evaluated on how many pots they could make…the more the better. Would it surprise you to learn that the best pots were made by the class that was focused on making the most pots, not the one perfect pot? The more they made, the better they got.

So, I am going to ask again; how are you living? Are you living like you are trying to make one perfect pot or are you trying to make as many pots as possible? Let’s get real; are you pursuing the goals and dreams in your heart or are you just alive, hoping nobody criticizes you? Yes, if you pursue your goals and dreams, if you strive to become all you were created to become, you will be criticized…you can absolutely count on it! I guess the bigger question is do you just want to be alive, or do you want to live your life to the fullest?

Please remember these wise words from Theodore Roosevelt:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

That last part always gets me! How would you like to answer the question that way?

“How are you living?”

“I am a cold and timid soul who neither knows victory or defeat.”

Please, I implore you, do not let that be your epitaph! Chase your lions! Climb your mountains! Pursue the greatness that is within you!

And I do realize that criticism is hard, and it can hurt. Some criticism is good – we refer to that as constructive criticism. It will come from people who genuinely care about us and are offering criticism to help us get better. I hope we are all blessed with people in our lives that love us enough to give us honest feedback so we can learn, grow, and become all we are capable of becoming. Cherish these people!

And then there will be people who will criticize just to criticize. They are angry, bitter, and have no desire to help us get better. We would be wise to discount their words and distance ourselves from them.

I am reminded of the quote, “Don’t take criticism from someone you would not go to for advice.” I have no idea what is going on however there is apparently an issue about who said this one as well!!! 😊

When looking into this a little further, I came across a couple of excerpts from Dr. Bohdi Sanders that I thought were pretty good pieces of advice.

“Whenever someone criticizes you, consider the source. If the person criticizing you is someone who hates you, who has an agenda, who doesn’t know you and knows nothing about you outside silly gossip, or is simply someone you do not respect, just ignore him. He does not know what he is talking about, does not care about you, and his opinions concerning you are worthless. This is especially true if he criticizes you in public. If he had good intentions, he would have come to you in private with a good heart.”

“You must learn to ignore the opinions of others, unless they are people who you trust and who you know have your best interest at heart. In addition, you need to discern the motive behind someone’s criticism before taking it seriously. Many people use criticism as a means of manipulation. Listen to advice and criticism from those you respect, but always think for yourself and make your own decisions.”

Finally, I want to close with something I found which was written by Philosiblog and originally published on July 12, 2013:

“Say something. Do something. Be something. Critics will criticize, after all, that’s what they do. Give those who are worthy some consideration, and ignore the comments of those who are unworthy. You must do what you do.”

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.blogspot.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well! 😊

Kev