Everyone is unique. A world of individuals. A world of personality, variety. People don’t feel the same, act the same or think the same. Everyone is like a snowflake or a fingerprint. There is only one of you. You have a distinct essence that is all your own. There are nuances that define you and no one else. Yes, I know there are commonalities among us. But that is a different BEAM.

  One of the chief causes of friction in relationships is the unfounded expectation; that others look at things in the same way, we do. We don’t like it when our definition of the world is not corroborated by those around us. It edges our nerves. It invades our comfort zone. We have this inner thought: You are OK, as long as you are like me…..

Yes, you have a right to be you.

But just make sure, whatever you do;

That your expression of who you want to be —-

Recognizes that its best to be ME.

     LOL!  Ok. Ok..  This is really shallow. But at the moment, I want to take a battering ram to your self concept. Most of us are really shallow!!!!!!  We have a hard time accepting deeper concepts of living than our own self service. Heck, I am no exception.… Even Service can be self-service. Are we doing what we do for others because we love them? Or are we doing it because it makes us feel better about ourselves? DON’T BE TOO QUICK to answer this… It is not an easy question and deserves repeated soul-searching. Sorry, not going to answer that question for you. My motive now is just to get you to be honest enough to ask yourself the question.

      Back to this individuality thing! So, I am a preacher. Or have been a preacher…….. or people think of me as a preacher….. or whatever. But I’m really a down to earth guy!! A down to earth guy, who is just as flawed as you are. Maybe I’ve worked a few of the flaws out and maybe I have a real good relationship, with the Divine Mechanic who can fix them. But still, I’m just an earthy, gutsy guy, with lots of problems and lots of promise. I realize this about myself and I like it this way. I never want to be a stiff shirt, phony acting religious type.  But nonetheless, being a servant of God defines me. It is who I am. It is part of my individual essence. It makes me; me.

     And I have found that the worst strategy as a servant of God is to try to make you like me. God doesn’t want that at all. While I point the way to Him; God wants me to continually remind you that He can speak to you; WITHOUT ME…       But God still does use me from time to time to point the way to Him!

     Ok.. Some of you are all hung up about me calling God; a Him. Try to remember that I am a Quaker and Quaker’s historically had just as many women leaders as men.  I tend to think that women are generally superior to men in matters of conscience and character. [Don’t let it go to your head, that I feel this way… There are sure exceptions to the rule.]… Anyway, we are hung up on sex; God is not! I saw His love in my mother. I saw His love in my father. I see maternal aspects to His love. I see paternal aspects to His love. // One of the most difficult roadblocks to our experience with God is our own flawed and limited concepts. Your experience with Him will not rise above your concept of Him. Forgive God for whatever experience in your life has inhibited a deeper experience with Him. It is hurting you; not Him. Get over it. Don’t let feelings of pettiness or bitterness inhibit your relationship with God or others.

     Back to Individuality…    More specifically, back to my individuality.  Individuality for a Preacher? What does that mean, you may ask? [Certainly different things for different preachers.] But let me explain some things that individuality means to this rough neck; err I mean Preacher.  Here is something really individual to me. I am a selling machine. I have been called this. And I have lived up to the name.

     Yes, sales is a major theme for me. I intend for my future career path to center around helping others be fulfilled in their sales careers.  You ask, How can I do that and still be a preacher? I ask you, How can I not still be a preacher, while I do that? It is who I am. Even the Apostle Paul made tents for a living. So I sell extraordinarily well & intend to help others do the same, in my professional career.

         I just do not intend to make my living from being a preacher. I have never and will never have any profit motive from sharing God’s message and being His messenger.That is my truest and highest love. I do it because I love Him. I do it because I love You. I do it because I believe that the best thing I can do is to help people find healthy, happy lives in relationship with God. 

     And in our world today; that seems to be pretty individual. Not many approach the ministry with no desire for profit & still have a healthy work ethic. But I do. So that is what I am going to do. When the occasion warrants; I am glad to preach. But I will focus my career direction around being an awesome sales speaker and trainer.

     So I tend to keep my sales topics focused on sales excellence and career fulfillment. People who want my help to grow their sales careers may or may not appreciate that I am a preacher. Cool! They are individuals. I do not have a cookie cutter approach to people. You do not have to be like me, for me to like you or want to help you. You do not have to espouse to my world view for me to still want to help you professionally. And I do not have to wear my beliefs on my sleeve. More lessons are caught than taught, anyway. So, in the selling context; I will rifle my energies singly into the venue of helping people develop their sales careers.

     Don’t get me wrong. I will never stop being a preacher. It is who I am. The apostle Paul said: “Woe is me if I preach not …. It is like a fire pent-up in my bones… “ So, I will still find plenty of contexts to be who I am & help many of you.

     God is as real to me as my breath; so I can not help but make Him real to others.  Still, I am an expert in the selling dimension & will focus my professional efforts in this field of expertise, not the ministry; (at least at this time in my life). Now that I have beat that horse to death.

    Back to this individuality thing. One of my favorite things to do on Twitter is to communicate with a diversity of people. It is fascinating and thrilling to learn more about human characteristics, backgrounds, beliefs, personalities and understandings. In fact, that is one of the key things that makes me so relevant to so many people in the selling environment. I have truly listened and can relate to people from many, many backgrounds. This being in touch with people of many varieties helps me know how to take principles of career fulfillment and relate them to you; whatever your personal make-up and history may be.

     Which leads to one of the power points of this BEAM. So whoever you are; whatever your personality style; your individual nuances can be power boosters to your career. Knowing who you are and enterprising how you can take your personality type and use it in your career will make you happy & successful. Your own personally defined style will become a brand to your career. Developing your own selling distinctives and “individual” polish can turn your sales job; into your prized passion.  It is my goal to help you do this!! 

     As you know, the name of this BEAM-site (blog if you must) is GUTSISTHEKEY. There is quite a story how this came to be. But suffice it to say for now; that I have learned that engaging your life courageously is the chief component to being happy and free. This is most especially true in your career.

     Keep reading as we continue to explore ideas how Guts is the key to your own personal, professional and career growth. You may discover treasures of worth inside the greatest treasure chest of all…. Yourself; that you did not even know were there!

    I will close this installment with another poem [this time a good one] that I wrote many years ago. Think about it & how you can harness your own individuality, into a life and career of value.

Most people blunder through the haze

     Never taking time to aim their gaze.

They worry about possible delays,

     Not understanding what really pays.

Frantically, they run toward their end

     Abreast with the rest, of their mediocre trend.

Glimly, they ponder where they might have went wrong

     And for their chances to return they hopelessly long.

If you desire to avoid their sad, sad waste,

     Then learn from their basic mistake with haste.

If they had taken fresh looks at their ways ………..

     They could have bright horizons and sunny days.

“SLAM”