Coaching The Bible

Quote of the Week:

'To finish a work? To finish a picture? What nonsense! To finish it means to be through with it, to kill it, to rid it of its soul, to give it its final blow the coup de grace for the painter as well as for the picture.'

-Pablo Picasso

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Hi all!

We have reached the end of Season 2!

This is Episode 109 (S2:E55).

Thanks, everyone for joining me on this ride through not just through year 1, but now, year 2! 

I appreciate you all!

Keep sharing your ideas, questions, comments, critiques, and sources. ALL of them keep me going!

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This week's topic: On Closing

This week we close out the annual cycle of studying the 5 Books of Moses. In the Jewish community the holiday of 'Simchat Torah' (translated as 'Joy of Torah'), is celebrated upon this accomplishment. It is a special day of singing, dancing and of course eating!

The next thing we do? Well, begin again! No breaks.

I wanted to jump a bit into how the 5 Books end, how Moses' life and story come to an end and then spend a few minutes talking about the art and skill of 'closing'.

Closing a deal or an 'ask' or a game is an expertise that some of us just seem to 'have,' but, the truth is, it is one that we can also learn, grow, and develop. We may marvel at someone who always seems to get the deal done or finish every project, and we should because it is impressive. At the same time, we too can be more like that and therefore succeed more often and at a greater level.

Let's learn!

See you in Season 3!

“Who are we, if not measured by our impact on others? That’s who we are! We’re not who we say we are, we’re not who we want to be – we are the sum of the influence and impact that we have, in our lives, on others.”

— Carl Sagan

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Hi All!

Episode 108 is here! The second to last in the 5 Books of Moses, which means...

...that's right...

...next week we COMPLETE (AGAIN!!!!) OUR 2ND CYCLE!!! 

{Insert celebratory emoji here}

As always, I appreciate every single one of you and continue to encourage you to share ideas, comments, questions, sources, books, quotes, critiques, whatever with me! It's the only way I know how to do it and the best way to continue to grow and get better.

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Our topic this week: 'On Compounding Impact'

Last week we discussed lasting impressions and as a corollary to that, I thought we'd talk and think about how it is that we compound our impact over time.

Not sure what I mean? 

Think about compounding your money through interest and investment every year and then transfer that to your impact on others and on yourself and you'll get the beginnings of where we are headed.

Excited about this one and about completing the cycle!

Happy Learning!

Quote of the Week:

“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

― Maya Angelou

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Hi all!

This is episode 107 (S2:E53)

Happy New Year to all those who celebrated this week!

Our topic this week: On Lasting Impressions

What is the connection between the commandment to gather the people every 7th year for the Hakhel ceremony and the concept of the lasting impressions we leave on others? It's actually a lot more than we think...

Happy Learning!

Quote of the Week:

“All power is from within and therefore under our control.”

— Robert Collier

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Hi all!

This is Episode 106 (S2:E52) and the last for the Jewish Year of 5782!

Our Topic this week:

'Upon Further Review'

We'll take a look at how we believe we did this past year and how we measure that. 

> On Track or Off Track?

> Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down?

We'll also take a look at our goals from last year (specifically some of mine), our successes and failures, and how we can establish better ones for the coming year.

I just want to take a moment and thank you for continuing to join me each week as we dig deeper and go further with our growth. I appreciate every one of you.

Here's wishing you and yours a year of blessing, happiness, joy, pleasure, success, health, wealth, and all that is good in life!

Quote of the Week:

'If you can change the voice in your mind, then you can do anything.'- Proverb

Hi all!

This is Episode 105 (S2:E51)!

Our topic for this week: Self Praise

Think about the conversation that goes on in your mind after you've done something great...

Are you kind to yourself?

Do you give yourself praise?

Do you come away feeling good about yourself?

Or is it the opposite?

The bigger question is: How do you talk to yourself?

For many of us, it's not good, not positive, and certainly not healthy.

*Why is that true and what can we do to change it?

The simple truth is, that how we talk to ourselves actually impacts the results of nearly everything we do.

Let's learn about it together.

Enjoy and Happy Learning!

Quote of the Week:

'Good Habits Result from Resisting Temptation'- Proverb

Hi all!

This is Episode 104 (S2:E50)

Our topic this week: Temptation & Bad Behavior

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There is sooooo much to say on this topic, and as often is the case, we will only scratch the surface of it.

Quick question:

* What are the things that tempt you?

* What comes up for you when you think about them?

* Why?

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The Bible begins the portion by talking about 'going to war.' 

The commentaries immediately tell us that the text operates at a second level: the war within each of us.

This is where we begin...

Happy Learning!

Hi all!

This is Episode 103 (S2:E49)

Our topic this week: On Being Wholehearted

I usually come to the podcast each week feeling 'ok' about where I am in relation to the subject matter of the discussion. So when I'm talking about strategy, leadership, or fundraising-related topics, it feels comfortable, as if I know what I'm talking about (at least a little).

Not so much this week.

Wholehearted living is such an important topic and vital for living a meaningful life, and I and so many people struggle with it.

If you're new to the concept and even if you've read, heard, or have worked on being more 'wholehearted' in your day-to-day, then this week is worth a listen.

We'll link Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Dr. Brene Brown and work to weave in some commentaries and a little bit of Hasidic thought as we work to develop a more 'wholehearted life.'

Here's Brene Brown's definition:

“Wholehearted living is about engaging with our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the courage, compassion and connection to wake up in the morning and think, ‘No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough.’ It’s going to bed at night thinking, ‘Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am also brave and worthy of love and belonging.”

Happy Learning & Enjoy!

Hi all!

This is Episode 102 (S2:E48)

Our topic this week:

On Home

We'll jump into the idea that the People of Israel are on the edge of coming into the Promised Land and what that means for them and what is expected of them while living there...

We'll go from there into some of these questions...

* What separates a 'house' from a 'home'?

* Why is it important for someone to have a 'good home'?

* What are the things you've done to make your place a 'home' rather than a 'house'?

Happy Learning!

Quote of the Week:

'There's no place like home' -Dorothy (Gale)

Quote of the Week:

'When you know your role in life, living makes sense because of clarity, and the loads become enjoyable to carry.'

-Innocent Mwatsikesimbe

Hi all!

This is Episode 101 (S2:E47)

Our topic this week: On Role Clarity

One of the things I spend a lot of time on with leaders is getting clarity around the role(s) that they and their employees/ teams/ partners play in their respective teams.

Getting clarity there: what is the role, who does it, how will they do it, how will it be measured, who else needs to be communicated with, etc, is VITAL to success.

A lack of clarity, or better true ambiguity, leads to frustration, disappointment, sometimes anger, and ultimately failure.

Let's take a minute and learn about the People of Israel's role and how that may help us understand better.

Happy Learning!

Hi all!

We have reached a milestone!

100 Episodes!!!

Thank you for joining me each week on an exploration of a biblical and coaching theme.

I appreciate you all!!

Your encouragement, your questions, your disagreements, your interpretations, your recommendations, and your ideas! 

All of it is welcome, appreciated, and invited!

On to the NEXT 100!!! (somehow! I mean, what's left to talk about???)

This week's topic:

'On Representing'

Enjoy and as always Happy Learning!

Quote of the Week:

'Attend well to your character, and your reputation will look out for itself'- Napoleon Hill