All posts by Keith Thompson

80-10-10

Career, Life

In every organization, group, business or church there is an 80-10-10 rule. It simply says that 10% of the people are leaders and visionaries for the group, 80% are maintainers and then the final 10% are inhibitors.

Let’s take them by title. The 10% leaders, they are the ones who set the example, serve on committees, share ideas and believe in the future growth of the organization. The 80% are very important because they make up the bulk of the organization and they also believe in the growth of the organization and will serve where asked. They are faithful to the future of the group. The only difference between the leaders and the maintainers, are the maintainers don’t want a leadership role but will put their support behind the ideas and future of the organization.

This brings me to the inhibitors. They are in every company and every organization and they are easy to spot. They are easy to spot because they never agree with any change or any idea and are usually the ones that talk behind behind everyone’s back. They look good, smell good but they basically have “stinking thinking.” The sooner they can be identified and marginalized the better for the organization. They will always be there and will always be involved but it is critical to the organization that they not be in leadership roles. They are the ones that gossip, talk down the organization and they try to carry as many people with them as they can. They are the ones that you see whispering their brand of thinking to anyone that will listen.

Like everything in life you need to decide what category you are in. If you are an inhibitor, you simple need to move to a company or organization where you can have a positive impact and feel that you are a part of something good instead of tearing down the company you are with. This is not scriptural, but I think when God sees us gossip and when he sees his children acting in such a non-Christian manner, it particularly hurts his feelings.

We all want to be where we are wanted and respected and where we feel we are a part of what is going on. My advice is to find a place where you can be in the 90% that celebrate the organization doing well. KT

Juggling balls

Family, Life

You have heard the term, “I am juggling a lot of balls.” The person means that they have a lot going on in their life and have “a lot of balls in the air.”

I met with a client DJ Rama this week for lunch and he said something about this subject that I thought was very insightful and so very true. The balls we usually juggle are centered around business, family, religion and health. He said to me that some of the balls are rubber and some are glass. I stopped and looked at him when I understood the very simple, yet very true meaning.

We assume all the balls are rubber and if dropped they will bounce back. This is not true. Business and religon are rubber balls and if you drop them, you just pick them up and start again. The family and health balls are made of glass. Once they drop, they break and can never be picked back up.

This is a very good image of our lives that we need to listen to and hear. All the “balls” you are juggling in your life are not the same. We often think that tomorrow will be just like today and next week will be just like this week. People think their children and their spouse will always be there and if you messed up this week you will always have next week. That ball is glass and if you drop and break it, you may never get it back.

When people pass away they always leave behind plans of what they were going to do that day or next week or next year. When they leave this earth, all the plans end. That ball is glass and once it drops and breaks, you never get it back.

My client’s point was very direct. Make sure you know which of the balls are the important ones and which of the balls are not. Don’t drop the glass ones because they will not bounce back. Happy Easter. KT

Wishing

Life

Wishing for a better life is not enough. Many people wish they had a better life but don’t want it bad enough to change. It is like wishing you were in good physical shape and imagining running a 10k and crossing the finish line, yet not actually getting off the couch. Ha.

If you could wish for one thing and only one thing and know that the wish would be granted, what would you wish for? That is a very good question and one that is not easy to answer. What wish would make the most impact on your long term life and the life of your family? Take lottery winners for instance. Do you know that in most cases the money they win destroys their life and the life of those closest to them? There is something deep within each of us that wants to earn what we have and not have it given to us. There is a peace and life contentment that comes with striving to make something of yourself and earning it.

So we all should know and realize that free money, unearned money or winning the lottery is probably not what your one wish should be. Over the years I have worked with many older children of wealthy parents that found themselves owning hotels that their family built with wealth that their parents built. You would be surprised how many of these children are spoiled, lazy and leave a ruined life in their wake. They obviously thought that having wealth given to them would fulfill them. Many times it turns out to be the worst thing that could happen to them.

Let me tell you a bible story about King Solomon. Solomon was King David’s son and he had everything. Literally everything. He became king when he was just a boy and God told him he would give him any thing his heart desired. This boy asked God for wisdom and an understanding heart instead of riches and gold. The result was he became the wisest person to have ever lived and his wealth was so great it could not be calculated. No other human will ever have a level of wisdom and understanding that surpasses that of Solomon.

Wishing for something is just that, wishful thinking. The real test becomes if you are willing to make a change that will result in what you have wished for. I wish I was in better shape, the answer is to start getting in shape. I wish I a better relationship with my children, the answer is to start trying to repair that relationship. I wish I had a better education, the answer is to go get a better education. I wish I had a retirement plan, the answer is to start saving with this Friday’s paycheck. The list could go on and on but the central truth is that wishing something would change will get you nowhere. Acting toward change will start you going anywhere. KT

Change in business

Career

Sometimes an unexpected change can be God’s way of doing for us what we need done before we even know we need it. The New Testament is pretty clear that God is there for us but he will not intrude uninvited. That said, there are moments when I think he lets a change happen that we need, even though we didn’t know we needed it. I will give two examples.

When I was in the Marine Corps, we were having a two week drill at 29 Palms California. Don’t let the reference to “Palms” make you think it was a vacation spot. Far from It. The Marine Base at 29 Palms is a two hour drive to the middle of the Mojave Dessert. We were in tents for two weeks in the middle of the desert. It was 130 degrees in the day time and we were in full military uniform all day every day. We even slept in our uniforms. Got the picture? Well there were two camps and we were stationed in the west camp and had already gotten set up and unpacked and ready. I was with my own unit and my own guys. Our Captain came in and said he was transferring me to the other camp with guys I didn’t know. I was not happy. As it turned out, he wanted me to be his personally driver for the two weeks to handle all the dignitaries that were coming in. In short, it was a blast and I had fun and even got to leave 3 days sooner than the rest of my unit. So what started out as a bad change turned out to be better for me.

The second example was when I left JLL in May of 2007. The idea was that I would sell hotels on my own and work on a few hotel deals each year. Just me selling by myself. We had gone out to eat with Lanie and Brad about a week after that. At the time Brad was still on staff at the church and he expressed an interest in learning the hotel business. I told him we would think about it some and maybe we could work something out at some later date when I knew what I was going to do. He was married to my daughter so the father in me was concerned about income and stability for my daughter and new son in-law. The plan was we would revisit the idea at some time in the future. Well, the next day Brad resigned from the church and called me to say he was ready. Ha.

My first impression was, how we could have gotten our wires any more crossed up. One day he was gainfully employed and the next day he was looking for job. Well as you can guess, I scrambled around and created a job for him to help me sell hotels.

The point is, God knew I needed Brad to help me when I didn’t even know myself. God knew what I needed and he did for me what I would not have done for myself. That single decision was what launched Hotel AG. If Brad had not quit his church job we might have never formed Hotel AG. God is good and he knows better than we do what we need.

If you are a tither and a believer, sometimes God does the unexpected and lets you see a glimpse into where he sees your future. Many times those decisions come in the form of an unexpected change in our lives. Therefore not every change is a bad thing and we need to step back sometimes and watch God at work in our lives. KT

Pictures

Family

I was on Google last night looking at pictures from the early 1900’s. That time period for some reason interests me and gives me great pause. I was looking at a wedding picture from 1904 that had 8 bridesmaids and 8 groomsmen. Everyone looked so full of life and so young and so expectant of their life ahead. While looking at those pictures I remembered that all the people in that picture have passed away and that their time on earth was gone. You only get a short window.

Your picture will be viewed a 100 years from now by family and friends or interested parties. When I think of these type things I cannot help but think about how I will be remembered and what my family will remember me for. Many people think it’s only about your accomplishments or the money you make. That could not be farther from the truth. It is much more about how you lived, what you stood for, what you wrote about and what physical writings your future family will have of yours.

I asked myself last night how great it would be if I had the diary of my grandfather’s Maynard Bell and Verla Thompson. What if I had my great grandfather Charlie Thompson’s diary or his father Jeremiah Thompson? See where I am going with this? I believe if I have my forefather’s written words of life instructions, what a gift that would be.

So it is not about money and the house you live in or the car you drive. All those things will pass away and mean nothing to your great great grandchildren. Your words however and instructions will carry meaning for generations. Tell them who you are and what you believe in and the “story” of your life.

Google “Gilded Age Photos” and look at the images of lives from long ago, people that have passed away, years that have gone by and ask yourself what will you be remembered for? If you are reading this blog, it is not too late to turn off the TV occasionally and start writing about yourself and your life and the meaning of who you are. Your family linage will cherish having those written memories of you and to know who you were. KT