The IIIIs Get It!

According to Robert’s Rules of Order (does Robert have a last name?) after a vote has been taken and the majority of the voters have said “Aye” it is declared that the “Ayes” have it.  This brief document is about how those who don’t have it can get it if they have the right “I”s in operation.

1.     Inspiration—You have got to believe in what you’re doing.  You must clearly focus on a goal that will bring fulfillment when accomplished.  (For more on this, get a copy of the SMART goals handout).

2.     Initiative—YOU have to take action towards the accomplishment of your goal.  You can’t wait for someone to grab your hand and
drag you toward your goal.  However, this first step of initiative should involve contacting someone who can help you toward your goal.  Contact someone who has excelled or is excelling at what you want to do.  Find out what they had to do to get where they are.  Principles of success can be learned and duplicated.

3.   Instruction—Experience is an inefficient teacher and an unwise investment when you have people who have already done what you’re trying to do.  Proverbs says only fools despise wisdom.  Ecclesiastes says there’s nothing new under the sun, so you and your situation are probably not quite as unique as you think.

4.      Implementation—You must practice the principles you’ve learned. 

a.      “Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.” ~Proverbs 16:3, KJV

b.      Don’t wait to develop contingency plans for every possibility before you get started.  That’s the paralysis of analysis.  Move toward the waters and watch God either part them or empower you to skim across the top.

c.    “Expect Great Things.--It is not the capabilities you now possess, or ever will have, that will give you success. It is that which the Lord can do for you… He longs to have you expect great things from Him. He longs to give you understanding in temporal as well as in spiritual matters. He can sharpen the intellect. He can give tact and skill. Put your talents into the work, ask God for wisdom, and it will be given you.”--Christ's Object Lessons, p. 146.

   d.  Teachers facilitate learning; coaches facilitate performance; ministers, spiritual growth; counselors, emotional stability and relationship skills; doctors, physical health.  Yet it is the student who must learn, the athletes who must perform, etc. 

      e.     Remember, “Not even God can make our characters noble or our lives useful, unless we become co-workers with Him. Those who decline the struggle lose the strength and joy of victory.” Help in Daily Living, p. 28.

     f.   Of course you’ll have to adapt your instruction for your purposes, but application precedes adaptation.  You have to practice the principles you learn and establish some consistency in what you are attempting before you know what needs to be adjusted.