As the U.S. presidential election goes into full swing following both major conventions, voters will be considering which candidate will serve best as the nation’s leader. This decision is not an easy one, as both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have some of the worst favorability ratings in history. Ideally, voters should be thinking about candidates’ character traits, but most will prioritize self-interest and vote based on their pocketbooks. Media pundits will analyze every insignificant point as if it is…well, significant. In the face of global terrorism and financial uncertainty, what character trait genuinely sets a successful leader apart? Problems will arise. Trouble will come, and leaders who possess intrinsic drive will have the highest chance of overcoming obstacles and external factors in their environment. We will examines the nature of grit for leaders caught in today’s chaotic world.
Effective leaders have a special quality called “grit,” which refers to a drive to overcome all sorts of hurdles. People define grit in various ways: according to Gostrengths.com, grit is “a personality trait possessed by individuals who demonstrate passion and perseverance toward a goal despite being confronted by significant obstacles and distractions.” Along similar lines, blogger AJ Julian wrote an article on grit in education in which he shared an outstanding acronym: Guts, Resilience, Integrity, Tenacity.[1]
In 2012, Desmond Hatchett, a Knoxville resident, made a big impression in the news. At the time, the 33 year old man was requesting relieve from his child support payments. According to news sources, Hatchett had 30 children by 11 different women. However, Hatchett struggled with his financial commitments with his children due to his low paying minimum wage job. For many people across the nation, this story struck a moral cord. Continue reading →
Here’s a tribute to all good mothers this month! I want to especially thank my mother, Annette Green Elias, and my wife, Estraletta Andrews Green, for being two godly women in my life. [I want to share an excerpt from one of my 2012 columns.]
With the media bombards us with unrealistic expectations for mothers, it is any wonder that today’s mothers feel under huge pressures to be perfect. Stay-at-home mothers feel guilt of not provides financially as it takes two people to make ends meet. Working mothers feel the guilt of attempting to balance a career and a family at the same time. Any person worth any salt would recognize that mothers are often the glue that holds families together. Continue reading →
Are you fearful about your career future? Good people can’t find jobs. College graduates are losing Hope. Our world is filled with uncertainty. My co-author William Bailey and I wrote our latest book, Job Strategies for the 21st Century: How to Assist Today’s College Students during Economic Turbulence. Through our research, we found that there is a huge disconnect between what organizations are looking for in potential employees, and what today’s job seeker are providing. I will share some of the key insights from our undertaking. Continue reading →
So also have countless leaders over the centuries.
It’s the elusive secret of successful leadership: leaders with presence radiate a magnetic effect that comes from being authentic and inspires people to trust them. Continue reading →
Today’s employees expect managers to model corporate values. Sadly, some managers do not take this invisible code seriously. Hypocrisy is the rule of the day. When I was sitting in my Sunday lecture, the instructor brought home what it meant to be hypocritical when discussing Jesus’ interaction with the leaders of his time, The Pharisees. Jesus openly criticized their actions to his followers in Matthew 23:2: “Therefore, whatever they [Pharisees] tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do their works. For they speak, but do nothing.They fasten heavy loads that are hard to carry and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with their finger.” Sadly, many workers face some less than genuine managers that fail to inspire them for greater performance. In this post, we will examine the concept of authentic leadership in today’s society. Continue reading →
Helen was a highly successful career woman. Her star shined bright in her corporation. Yet, in spite of these corporate accomplishments, Helen had no meaningful relationships. Her husband was distanced due to Helen’s businesslike approaches to her. Helen’s three children resent her because she was emotional absent in their lives. On the dark days when Helen was alone and uninterrupted, she longed for more meaningful relationships.
During a Christmas banquet, Pastor Nathan Wilson was the keynote speaker and led a lively topic on All I Want for Christmas Is You. In his speech, Pastor Wilson harked on the true meaning of Christmas as the birth of Jesus Christmas instead of the commercialization of the holidays. Continue reading →
Has our society forgotten how to be appreciative? Many people are too busy running the rat race to say, “Thank you.” I remember sitting in a Sunday school class of young students during my college experience at Southern University. One student was saying how ungrateful he had been toward his parents. I also felt guilty. My parents bought me my first car while I was in high school; most students did not have cars. I had envisioned receiving a brand new car. Well, I did not.
I got an old 1973 Dodge Charger. I was disappointed. But, I ended up falling in love with that old car which I later called “The New Wave Cruisemobile.” My car was far more dependable than most automobiles. I remember never having said “Thank you” for my car – I had also taken my parents for granted. Our society does not teach us that being appreciative is a virtue. We will examines the importance of developing a spirit of gratitude as a competitive advantage toward employability. Continue reading →
When I was growing up, my mother was the youth director of our church. In elementary school, there are pressures about being cool. I was an active church member (and yes, a choir boy in the literal sense).
My mother expected her children to be the model young person, which involved participating in church required activities. For me, that meant participating in morning worship where the youth were required to lead devotion periodically. A call for volunteers would go out to the youth. Of course, most of my peers felt comfortable rejecting those requests to participate. Continue reading →
There is an increasing need for individuals to provide caregiving services. Social changes, such as financial crises, growing unemployment, job loss, homelessness, family break-ups, relationship issues, and other problematic concerns, place huge demands on government and community-based support services.
Pastor Richard S. Brown, a community advocate in Tennessee, talks about the pressing need of churches and other service organizations that are reaching out to the needs of people: “Everyone at one time or another will face giants in life. Giants represent those insurmountable problems, challenges, and obstacles in life.”
Often times, these giants of life cannot be solved without direct intervention from others. For example, the aging population is a growing problem for organizations providing caregiving services. According to the U.S. Census, 13% of the population is over 65 years old. The average life expectancy is 77 years. Women live longer than men. Seniors over 85 years old are the fastest growing segment of the population. Seventy five percent of people over 65 have one or more chronic health conditions.
Today’s organizations need to rethink the concept of caregiving in today’s society. First Lady Rosalynn Carter noted the importance of caregiving: “There are four kinds of people in this world: those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.” A caregiver can be defined as ‘anyone who provides assistance to someone who is incapacitated and needs help.
Caregiving can be performed informally via unpaid (family members and friends) or formally (volunteer or paid caregivers associated with a service system). Currently, there are over 50 million caregivers. By 2020, caregivers will number 80 million. If one was to profile the typical caregiver, it would be described as the following: female (75%), over 50 years old (51%), sole provider (37%), and a relative (i.e. adult children- 57%).
Many organizations seek to address caregiving with generic solutions for their constituents instead of applying holistic approach to the specific person. The generic approach is faster and cheaper in many cases. However, Dr. Kenneth Haugh, author of Christian Caregiving: A Way of Life, argues the importance of understanding the needs of those individuals you are serving. Dr. Haugh observes, “Treating people as objects, as territory to be gained, is not only bad manners, but also completely fails to meet their unique needs and to respect their spiritual dignity before God.”
Organizations should value the welfare of the caregiver. Many people who provide care to others are overworked, stressed out, and on the verge of quitting. However, the organization that they are serving does not see this taking place. Some organizations treat their caregivers like objects. Caregivers suffer a variety of problems associated with caregiving.
In fact, caregivers have higher levels of stress, depression, fatigue, burnout, and lower levels of well-being and physical health. Furthermore, 49% of females and 31% of males experience depression as a result of caregiving.
High performing organizations understand that they must continuously re-assess their processes in order to sustain success. Yet, many nonprofit organizations and community-based organizations like churches that serve society forget about the mental and physical welfare of their caregivers in offering needed services to the area.
Here are some methods to use: (a) communicate the objectives of your organization and the desired outcomes, (b) train the caregivers so that they deal holistically with clients, (c) determine what the caregivers needs in order to perform an outstanding job and sustain this performance, (d) look for creative ways to prevent caregiver burnout and fatigue, and (f) provide an mechanism where caregivers and clients can provide feedback on continuous improvement in the caregiving area.
The pressures of life will continue to be problems for many people. Some individuals cannot overcome these giants in life without interventions. Caregivers play a critical role in assisting people in solving their problems. However, today’s organizations cannot continue to take caregivers for granted. Many caregivers are stressed out and underpaid; perhaps even on the verge of giving up their jobs in caregiving.
Therefore, this article maintains that today’s organizations must rethink their strategies for administering caregiving in the near future. Organizations that can make the necessary changes will be better prepared to sustain future success.
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