FirePoint Leadership Podcast

Find your FirePoint

I am extremely excited and humbled that Joel Anderson, founder of the FirePoint leadership development system, invited me to share my story and some principles of leadership with his audience. Joel is a master firefighter and has his whole system set up based on his knowledge and experience leading on the fire ground.

Joel is a great example of what it means to be a real, authentic leader.  Joel’s podcast is one of the best formats I have seen to allow someone to share their entire story in a structured, point driven direction. This podcast is pretty much a summary of everything I have written intertwined in my life story. I share the major lessons, setbacks and my philosophy of how I try to live my life. By listening you will be able to take away some very important practical applications that you can use to find your unique calling or FirePoint.

I really appreciate Joel for going against the status-quo and making a difference through leadership development. I also want to say that none of my story would be even worth sharing without the support and example of my family, friends  and the LIFE Leadership community.

 

 MFP 028: Adam Wallis

 

All at once?

 

When it rains….. 

Have you ever felt like when it rains it pours sometimes during different periods of your life? It has been a little while since I have been active on my blog or writing in general. My family and I just recently moved from Phoenix to the Twin Cities area and are in that awkward phase of waiting for a loan to be processed on a property so we can move in. We wanted to move to be closer to family and to give our children the same roots that we were blessed to have been raised with living in the Midwest.

With all that said, I want to share some perspectives from the challenges we have been going through recently. Most of the time I try my best to have a positive attitude towards setbacks so they can be used as opportunities to grow, but have you ever felt like they aren’t going to end? Over the past month, I have moved our family across the country and in with relatives (not recommended), we got hit by a truck that did $2,600 worth of damage to my car, found out my dad has cancer, got taken for $1000 on a security deposit, had my character assaulted and currently have sick children. It has been an emotional roller coaster to say the least. While I know that many of you can look at this list and make me ashamed that I am even sharing this because you are going through much worse, I also do understand that struggles are real to the individuals that are going through them personally. I have much more to be thankful for, but for the purposes of this post, I will focus on sharing whats on my heart.

 

 Lessons learned….and they don’t come cheap….

I have an awesome wife, brother and a few trusted friends that I always call to talk to when I need perspective and I am so grateful for them. One of my best friends, we will call him Kevin to hide his identity, has always been there for me to help provide a proper, Christ-centered outlook on things when I need it. I am going to share a few principles that I have learned that will help if you apply them when it come to facing life’s obstacles so you can learn the lessons needed. Remember, lessons usually continue until the lesson is learned.

1. God’s in control

One thing my buddy Kevin always reminds me of is that God is in control. Of everything, at all times! No matter what happens, if we keep our minds focused on the fact that nothing happens outside of God’s divine providence, then it will give us peace during difficult times. Every time I think that I am going through struggles alone, I try to pull myself back to remember that everything happens for a purpose and a specific reason. The thing that makes it hard is that we aren’t always told why things happen or for what reason. This is where trust and faith have to be engaged and strengthened. Just understand that God has a plan for our good if we just trust him and seek him through struggles. (Romans 8:28) (Jeremiah 29:11)

2. Look for the lesson

I know this is going to be a hard pill to swallow, but one of the most frequently used methods God employs for character development in us, is through struggles (James 1:2-4). I always preach that we should focus on our blessings to get a proper perspective on our challenges. This, for sure, is not easy. Some people tell me that it is very hard to see the “blessings” when they are walking through such hard struggles. I understand this thinking, but in my experience, the lessons that I have learned through dealing with adversity have actually proven to be the biggest blessings in my life, even though they come hard and usually through pain. Every experience we go through is meant to teach us something and to build our character. Think about all the points in your life when you made it through a hard time and realized, afterwards, that you are now more equipped to handle the next Goliath. God sends us all through the refining fire, at different levels, to grow us into the people He needs us to be in order to accomplish His purpose for our lives. It is a continual and never ending process called sanctification. If you are going through multiple challenges all at once, be encouraged that God is most likely preparing you for the next BIG phase of your mission. I don’t like obstacles as much as the next person, but I do understand now that everything is a process to help me move to the next step of the journey.

3. Trials become testimonies

Have you ever been moved by another persons story of how they overcame a setback? One reason I know that God sends us through the fire is so that we can be a blessing to someone else that is going through the same trial. I don’t know how many times I have personally experienced this. Right when I was at my low, God used the story of another person to touch my soul and change my perspective on what I was going through. It is very powerful! Always be thinking of who we will be lead to help once we make it through our own personal struggles. You just never know how you will be used in touching another persons life through sharing your stories.

4. People and Legacy

The only real things that will last throughout eternity is the souls of people and the legacy they leave behind. What we do with our life does matter and the struggles we overcome to become the people who leave lasting legacies also matter. Our struggles are ultimately not for us to solely learn from. They are meant to grow us personally, be used to prepare us for a larger vision and to share with others along the way. Leaving a lasting legacy always involves making a positive impact in the lives of other people. The struggles that we overcome can serve to give us a bigger platform to share with others.

 

Every good movie….

Every great book or movie that is memorable in our minds and has made a lasting impression in our lives has followed this process: Dream…Struggle…Victory. We have a great story to tell and the pages are blank for us to write. If we are honest, we all have dreams and hopes for a better future that we currently haven’t attained yet. We start out on the journey with the end vision in mind and then, WHAM, struggles hit. Some people will quit when obstacles appear, hiding behind the excuse that “it wasn’t meant to be or it would have happened easy.” This is a lie that we are told that things are supposed to be easy. If I can leave this post with one final takeaway, I would say that struggles and hard times are necessary in order to get to where we want to go. If we push through the struggles, God has promised to develop us into the people we need to be in order to accomplish what we need to accomplish.  “What we receive to easily, we esteem too lightly.” -Thomas Paine

 

God Bless,

 

Adam

Formula for High Achievement

Is it Talent?

Ever wonder how some people seem to achieve huge things in life while others don’t? Do you really think it is all about innate talent and that’s it? I am reading some awesome information I wanted to share. Everybody has certain talents they are prone towards and everyone has a purpose in life. The question is; how do I DEVELOP my skills and talents to achieve huge significance in whatever I am built for?

The Formula                

This is the formula for high achievement: hard/smart work+consistency X time=high achievement. That’s it!!! We can apply this principle to any endeavor in our lives and have success. The problem is that it is hard and requires daily focused effort.

How much time?  

In his book” Outliers” Malcolm Gladwell describes that it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice in order to be a master in any field of endeavor. Some people might say: I have put in 10,000 hours on my job or maybe 20 years. But the crux is this: we can say we have 20 years experience, when in reality it is one years experience 20 times. Orrin Woodward in his awesome book “Resolved” explains this further by a process called PDCA. Originally an engineering term, it stands for Plan, Do, Check and Adjust. As we are working towards our 10,000 hours, this process is vital in our pursuit of mastery because it allows us to make course corrections and really learn the necessary lessons.

Don’t give up

Most people give up right before major breakthroughs because they are not seeing the result “now.” Think about it, Micheal Jordan got cut from his high school team, Sam Walton’s first Walmart store was a joke! Steve Jobs was fired from his own company. The only difference between them and the average person in their field is that they all applied this principle and became the best at what they do over time. The challenge for us is to, first, know where it is we want to go and then start applying this principle and watch our life change. It is very liberating to know that ANYONE can apply this to their lives and be the best at whatever they do. It all has to do with believing you can do it and getting after applying the formula to your life. Consistency in the process over time will change everything. I am just starting to see and understand this stuff for myself and felt led to share it!

God Bless,

Adam

Book of the Week

“PAiLS” by Chris Brady

Overiew

“Your place in this world is an address only you can occupy.” Learn how to fulfill your unique purpose and live the life you’ve always wanted as bestselling author and successful entrepreneur Chris Brady helps you find meaning and direction in life. With his newest book PAiLS, New York Times bestselling author Chris Brady leads you through the adventure of your life like a veteran tour guide and provides a fresh approach to finding meaning along the way. His creative PAiLS illustration and ziggurat/layer-cake construct help you determine a clear direction toward living the life you’ve always wanted. He shows you how all that you have seen and done so far, even your mistakes, are just stepping stones for your next ascent in fulfilling your purposeful calling and contributing to the world what only you can. You will learn that: It’s not as important to succeed As it is to matter, And you’ll likely accomplish the former If you shoot for the latter.

This is the best book I have ever read for perspective on my life purpose and the process for success in finding my authentic self. It is a must read for anyone who is looking for direction and fulfillment in accomplishing their unique and authentic calling.

Great PAiLS Quotes   

“Remember that it’s your life. Only you can live the life that God alone has called you to live. Only you can fulfill your particular destiny and higher purpose. Sooner or later, you’ve got to get after what it is you were put here to do, or you’ll suffer miserably for knowing that you’re not doing it.”

“There most certainly is a “too late.” There always is. It’s just not yet. It’s not too late yet.” 

“We may hate opposition and struggle, but they are critical for our mental health. Without the struggle, we would feel no joy in victory at all.”

“Nothing of significance was ever achieved without negative input from other people.”

“So don’t worry if you get people who hate what you do. That’s okay. And be doubly sure not to change what you do in an effort to please them. You’ll never please that crowd! You are not here for them! If you focus any energy trying to please those you’re not for, you will change how you do things and simultaneously stop thrilling those you are for! In other words, don’t conform for critics; perform for fans.”

“A personal brand is whatever you do or bring to the world that is entirely and uniquely yours. Perhaps surprisingly, the more you stick to what is uniquely yours and the more authentic you are in what you do, the more interesting it is to others and the more marketable it is.”

“I promise there will be fans cheering for your authentic output. there will always be a market for your original best.”

Don’t be offended

But they said…… 

If someone says or does something that is offensive, it is up to us, as individuals, how we respond and if we choose to be offended. It is a choice! Most of the time the person who is saying or doing something offensive, their words or actions are a reflection of their own heart and character, not yours. You just happen to be the outlet of their hurts or frustrations at the present time. Your heart and character are reflected in your response to a potential offense. There is a quote that says: “you can tell the size of a person by what it takes to make them mad.”

Assigning motives

If we are honest, it is hard to know our own motives for doing things a lot of the time. We have to be constantly searching and making sure our motives and intentions are right as we operate through life. If it so hard to understand ourselves, how can we possibly assign motives to others we sometimes don’t even know? Someone cuts us off in traffic and we automatically think they meant to do it, when in reality, they were adjusting their seat belt and accidentally swerved. Or someone makes a comment that is totally neutral, but because of the way we hear it based on emotion or context, we think they are assaulting our character. The point with this is to be very careful to jump the gun and assign motives to others right away. This is a main root in the start of conflict and people being offended. More often than not, people are not out to get you.

Don’t be childish   

Stephen Covey says that “between stimulus and response, we have a choice.” It doesn’t matter what happens to us, but how we choose to respond and the story we tell ourselves about the event that will make all the difference. A wise pastor said to take the higher road, don’t play the childish pride game of reacting to an offense with one of your own. Nobody ever wins. When a potentially offensive situation comes up, how much better would the relationships in our life be, if we were able to stop and apply this principle with the people we love and those we interact with each day? I bet it would make a difference.

Practical applications    

Here are a few practical steps we can follow as situations arise that require us to act with the proper perspective.

1. Stop and ask this question: is this worth dying over? If not, then just let it pass and hold your tongue.

2. Seek first to understand where the person is coming from and why they are behaving the way they are before you react.

3. Keep your tone low and don’t raise your voice. Raising your voice will only heighten the situation and create more stress.

4. Pray silently for the person! Realize that they are probably going through something and could use some prayer.

5. Ask the other person strait up if you did something that offended them or made them upset? If so, then be quick to apologize to the person by letting them know that you did not mean for that to happen and it was not your intention to offend them. Be the bigger person. The person with the higher emotional intelligence is usually the first to apologize. Trust me, this can be hard, but it works like magic when done sincerely.

6. Just realize that whatever behavior someone is exhibiting to you is most likely an emotional response to something that is happening to them personally. Always remember this and it will give you the mindset to know that you are not really the target, just the convenient object for venting their frustrations.

I hope this helps. I have personally applied these principles and they have made a HUGE difference in my relationships and interactions with others. I have learned all of this from the materials provided by my company, LIFE Leadership.

God Bless,

Adam

Eternity is a long time to be wrong

My Hopes

I have really been thinking about the purpose of our lives and what we are called to do while we are here. Life is so short and we are called to make a difference with the time we have been given. This is one of my favorite passages of scripture and I hope some of my thoughts will provide encouragement for some of the bigger things in life!

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.”
–Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

The Bad News

In the Bible it is explained that God created man in His image to live in perfect obedience to His will. Adam and Eve had perfect communion with God in the garden of Eden and enjoyed a sinless, perfect relationship with Him. However, Satan was also present in the garden and he tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit that God commanded them not to eat. This event is referred to as “original sin” or the “fall of man.” The bad news from this story is that the human race was infected with the cancerous disease called sin. Everybody, from that moment forward, has sinned against God in one way or another. In the scriptures, God says that the only way we can get to Heaven is to be one hundred percent holy and to live up to His standard of perfection (Matthew 5:48). This, however, is an impossibility because we have all fell short of the mark of perfection (if we’re honest!). This might seem bleak and hopeless. The question I logically had to ask myself a few years ago was: “then what can we do to earn salvation to make things right with God?” The answer I found was and is: NOTHING! There is hope, however, and the story ends positively. Read on, because the good news is explained in the next few thoughts!

The Good News   

Just over 2000 years ago, God created a miracle and sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to earth. This was the greatest event in human history. Jesus Christ, while on earth for 33 years, lived a perfectly obedient life to the commandments of God, all while experiencing everything we go through as humans. Every joy, heartache, emotion and temptation, all without sin. With every word, thought and deed he lived a one hundred percent sinless life. God knew that, since we cannot save ourselves by our own works, He needed to send a savior to act on our behalf to be a “propitiation” or “substitute” for us. Jesus, in the greatest act of love this world has ever witnessed, willingly went to the cross and died the most painful and gruesome death for us as sinners. He took the whole weight of the world on His shoulders for us! Romans 5:8 explains this very point: “8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

If you haven’t ever watched the “Passion of the Christ” movie, I would highly recommend it to get a picture of what Jesus did for us and the physical and emotional pain he suffered from His sacrifice.

Jesus lived a perfect life, died on a cross and rose again on that third day defeating death and sin once and for all. He now lives in Heaven and is the great mediator between God and man. The work of salvation is now completed by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

What’s this have to do with me? 

The question that begs to be asked now is: “what does this mean for me?” The simple answer is faith in His finished work. All God calls us to do now is to have faith that Jesus paid the penalty on our behalf and trust that the work of salvation has been completed through Him. No matter what you have done or where you have been, Christ paid the lofty price for ALL sins! You can now be freed from the bondage of sin and the hopelessness that has separated us all from God. This is the greatest news of all time and Romans 10:9-10 and 5:1 say it best: “9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.’ -Romans 10:9-10
“1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”  -Romans 5:1

What Next?   

I have now clearly explained the good news the Bible refers to as the “Gospel.” There are two things that now can be done with this information.
1. We can act like the Bible is not true, go about our lives and act like none of this matters; or
2. We can admit with a humble heart that we have fallen short and trust God at His word and believe that faith and trust in Jesus is the answer that leads to eternal life.

Legacy

Everything changed in my life after I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I still make many mistakes daily, but the questions of eternity have been answered and I am now filled with hope and joy no matter what my circumstances are. Life went from black and white to technicolor! I was instilled with a purpose to make a difference in this world and I knew that my actions would be used to bless the lives other people. I think if we are honest, when our lives are almost over, we all would like to look back and know that our time here was used for good and that there were many others who were affected positively by our actions and example. That is called leaving a legacy. We will never know the ripple effect that one life can leave when it is lived well!

 Are you Ready? 

These things are heavy on my heart because the Bible is very clear that Jesus will be back again soon and He will come for all those who have believed in Him as the savior of mankind. This faith and trust will allow you to live in Heaven forever with God as He originally intended. But a lack of faith or indifference to these truths will result in the opposite. You don’t have to agree with me, but I urge you to dig in for yourself and find out why you believe what you believe. That is exactly what I did and I am now just sharing the results of what I found. The questions of eternity are the most important ones to be asked in this life. Will you leave a lasting legacy? Will you be ready for that day when Jesus returns? Eternity is a long time to be wrong!!

Pieces of the Puzzle

The End Picture

How many of us would have a sure and quick answer to the question: what does your life stand for? It is a deep question and one that each of us should readily know. Your life’s  purpose and unique calling are very important, in fact, it is the reason you were created. There are specific things you are built for that only you can do and in order to accomplish those things, to make the world a little bit better, we have to know what the end picture is.

Life Sentence and Puzzle Pieces

Stephen Covey, in his book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” talks about the “tombstone test” in order to define your life purpose. Think about the one SENTENCE that people at your tombstone will define your entire life by. It is a great starting point to know what your life stands for. Once you know that, then you can start to work backwards from that end picture. Another great analogy I love to use is to think of a puzzle. We go to the store and choose a puzzle to buy, a beautiful picture of something that is meaningful to us. We bring the puzzle home, dump out the pieces on the table and get to work. We first put the frame together around the outside and then we start working our way inward filling in the pieces one by one. All the while, right beside us, is the box top with the end picture of what the completed puzzle will look like that serves as a constant reference point. Life is the same way. If we have a very clear and defined picture of what we want to have as an end result in our lives, then putting the pieces together will be a lot easier, more meaningful and will make sense as we go along. Just imagine how much harder it would be to put together a puzzle that you had no idea what the end picture was. What if you labored without a reference point or clear vision of the end picture and finally got the puzzle put together and hated the picture? Don’t live with the regret that you wish you would have chose a different picture for your puzzle instead of the one that someone else gave you. Your pieces are unique and there are other people out there waiting for you to do what only you can do. Know your own picture and get to work on putting your pieces together.

Human Impact

Your specific purpose in life matters! It’s the reason you were created. I want you to think of the human impact of not fulfilling that purpose. Think about the people’s lives that won’t be affected for good if you don’t do what you are supposed to do. Don’t have regrets. You might think that you can’t make a big difference, but this is exactly how big differences are made. Collectively, as one person at a time lives out their authentic purpose, there can be a ripple effect that will echo throughout time and generations. It all starts by individuals having a positive impact on their own personal sphere of influence. If everyone did this, the world would change for the good, guaranteed.

Practical Applications

In his awesome book: “PAiLS” Chris Brady asks the question right on the front cover: in 20 years from now, what will you have wished you had done today? Here are a few practical applications you can do to get your puzzle assembly started.

1.) Write down in detail what you want your life to represent (your desired puzzle picture).

2.) Start to work backwards by asking questions like: What are my specific gifts? strengths? passions? areas of fulfillment? affirmation from others I trust and love?

3.) Take action! Start to do things everyday that are in line with and will move you closer to that end picture.

There is a too late

I want to finish up with a quote from PAiLS: “Remember that it’s your life. Only you can live the life that God alone has called you to live. Only you can fulfill your particular destiny and higher purpose. Sooner or later, you’ve got to get after what it is you were put here to do, or you’ll suffer miserably for knowing that your not doing it.”

“There most certainly is a “too late.” There always is. It’s just not yet. It’s not too late yet.”

Book of the week

Overview

The Magic of Thinking Big gives you time tested principles, methods and experiences that anyone can apply. Dr. Schwartz presents a carefully designed program for getting the most out of your job, your marriage and family life, and your community. He proves that you don’t need to be an intellectual or have innate talent to attain great success and satisfaction—but you do need to learn and understand the habit of thinking and behaving in ways that will get you there. This book gives you those secrets! Page for page, it is the best book I have ever read to this day on gaining the proper perspectives about life, leadership and success.

Why you NEED to read this

Books are the most powerful tool for gaining experience through imagination and principle application. You can read in a few hours the sum total of what took, sometimes, decades for the author to learn and implement. They went through the success minefield and are telling you through the principles and experiences where to step so you can get to the other side (success) faster. Here are just a few things you will take away from this groundbreaking book!!

• Power of belief
• Cure yourself of the fear of failure
• Think and dream creatively
• You are what you think you are
• Make your attitudes your allies
• Learn how to think positively
• Turn defeat into victory
• Use goals to help you grow
• Think like a leader

Enjoy and comment on your main takeaways.

God Bless,

Adam

Gotta have hope

Sunday perspective: HOPE

Life is hard. I think everyone can agree with that statement. It is filled with disappointments, struggles, heartaches, loss, failures, tragedies, suffering, setbacks and sacrifices. So what is it that allows us to keep going amidst all of life’s hurdles? The word is: HOPE! Hope gives us perspective in times of failure. It allows us to have strength through tragedy and suffering. It keeps us pushing forward when we are disappointed. It allows our heartache to heal. Hope keeps us focused on all of our many blessings, even when we feel like we have very few when times get tough. It is responsible for every success, victory and innovation. It is one of God’s greatest gifts to us.

Different times

It seems that we live in a different world now, where hope has suddenly disappeared on a wide scale. Without hope, people do crazy things that not only effect themselves, but all those in their personal sphere of influence. Is it any wonder that all this crap is happening today in our nation? You can not give away to another person something you don’t have yourself. There are never hopeless situations or circumstances, only hopeless people lost in the midst of them. Have you lost hope in any area of your life? This is a sobering question because it forces us to look at our lives as a whole. It causes us to think about how we are living our lives and how we effect the people around us we know and love.

An amazing gift

Hope is an amazing gift from God that he gives freely because he has created us all, individually, for a specific and unique purpose. One of the most dangerous places you can be in is to think of your situation and life as hopeless. If anyone is there, please remind yourself that you were fearfully and wonderfully created by God and he has a plan for YOUR life. Please keep a proper perspective on all of our blessings in this life and then pass along the hope you have inside of you to another person. Who knows, it might just save a life.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” –Jeremiah 29:11

Struggle to strive

Proper Mindset

We all want to live a life of happiness and fulfillment. Nobody wants to go through struggles or hard times. Although, fortunately, they are a part of life. You might be thinking, how can you say we are fortunate to go through struggles and hard times? I can say this because they are necessary in order to develop our character and to provide a proper perspective on our blessings. Most of the time we get so focused on the pursuit of happiness, as an end, we forget to enjoy the journey and take stock of the joy in our lives that is all around us every day. Most of us have big goals and an “end destination” in our mind for the future, but have we ever stopped to think that the person we are right now might not have the capacity to handle the success we want to have in the future, or we would already have it?

Growth is required

We all need to grow in order to BECOME the person worthy of our goals and dreams. This growth process will only come through overcoming adversity and resistance. It is in the struggle that we really see what we are made of. When we work out, the only way to grow is to put a higher resistance against our muscles than they could previously handle. As a result, they grow and get stronger. It is the same way in our lives as we set out to accomplish our passions and purpose. Success always comes on the other side of inconvenience and overcoming struggles. Struggles WILL happen in various forms to everyone. There is no avoiding them. The question is: do we have the proper mindset to look for the seeds of growth and opportunity when they do come? No pain, no gain.

God Bless,

Adam