People are hungry, poor, without work, and lacking resources. Even in our own cities there are many in need.

If you are reading this blog post, you would like to change that. You would like to step in and make a difference. First of all, thank you. Thanks for being willing to step out of your comfort zone to make change happen in the world. Second, you don’t have to wait. 

There is a way to guarantee that you’ll make a lasting difference.

HOW TO GUARANTEE THAT YOU WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE:

1. BE AN ACTION-TAKER: This may seem obvious, but I do not mean for it to be that way. Ultimately, if you are not taking action then you are sitting around waiting for something. 

Maybe you are waiting for the time, the money, the resources, business success, or something else altogether. It is time to stop waiting and start doing.

I would encourage you to do something in the next month. Give to a campaign. Plan a mission trip with your church or work friends. Deliver food to a family in need.

Taking action is not all about having money. Yes, money is helpful, but there are hundreds of ways you can help without spending much money at all. Take action. Doing this one thing will guarantee that you make a difference in the world.

2. POSITION YOURSELF TO SUCCEED: Taking action is key. However, it is helpful to have the resources to give generously when you want to do so. 

This involves positioning yourself so that you will succeed in business. If you do not know what you are doing, take a class. If you need help, hire an assistant. 

Or if you have not sold a product in many months, create a different more useful product!

Here is some tough love: this is all up to you. You have the ability to change your course and ensure success. Ultimately this will allow you to give generously of your money and time. 

You will make a huge difference in the world when you position yourself to succeed.

3. CHANGE YOUR ATTITUDE: Part of making a difference in the world is recognizing your own blessings and being grateful for them. 

If you are reading this blog post, you have more resources than a large portion of the world. If you aren’t grateful for what you have, how are you going to truly make a difference for those with less than you?

I like to remind people of the famous proverb about fish. It’s better to teach someone how to fish than it is to give them a fish. Why? Because then they can eat for a lifetime.

If you have resources, then you have something to teach. This is invaluable and will make a huge difference in the world!

4. FOCUS ON YOUR SPHERE OF INFLUENCE: We often think about making a difference in terms of the broader world. We think about sending money overseas or going on a mission trip. But what if you began to think about making in difference in terms of the people under your roof? Or the people you work with everyday?

Here is the truth: we all need to be reminded of hope. Our spouse needs hope. So do our children and our coworkers and our friends. And if you’re alive and breathing, you have hope to give.

Look around you and focus on your sphere of influence. Who do you see often that needs encouragement? How can you make a difference in your everyday walk of life?

5. START TODAY: It is never too late. It’s also never not the right time. (Yeah, read that sentence again.) There is always some way that you and I can make a difference in the world. Whether we give of our time or our money or our skills, we can make lasting change.

There are millions of needs all around the world. It can get overwhelming to think about what needs to be done and who needs to be helped. But if you long to make a difference, consider these five principles. It’s never too late to jump in and help someone in need – whether that someone is your child or a poor widow across the globe. 

You WILL make a difference!

Source: www.wealthbuilders.org

Now before you think I’m going to ask you to write a big check today, I want you to consider some more mundane tasks that make a huge social impact. These are things you can do right now!

I challenge you to take the knowledge and apply it. Use it. Take an action step today. Below, I’ve listed three powerful ways to make an impact right now.

HOW TO MAKE A BIG IMPACT RIGHT NOW:

1. PRAY: Start praying that the kingdoms of this world would become the Kingdom of God. If you are a born again Christian, you have entered into a beautiful relationship with God. This means that you cannot disassociate a relationship with God from his Kingdom. Relating to God is also about how we see and function in the Kingdom.

One of the best ways to relate to both God and his Kingdom is through prayer. You can give all of your money, time, and resources to great social causes. But if you’re not praying about the impact, I’m not sure you’ll see the results you’re hoping for.

You see, it’s not about us. Thank God that He cares for you and your family, of course. But recognize that it’s about more than that – it’s about His kingdom and the kind of impact you’re having to see lasting change on earth.
Jesus came preaching the gospel of the Kingdom. May we pray in this same way.

2. DISCOVER YOUR MOUNTAIN: How are you going to occupy this earth until Christ returns? We’ve already mentioned that this life is not about us. That means that our job is to do Jesus’ work until he returns. We are to do business and impact the cities and nations in His name. What a privilege! And a responsibility!

You can read more about the Seven Mountains here. I strongly encourage you to discover your mountain and overtake it in the name of the Lord. Just taking a few days to think through your sphere of influence and your resources/talents is time well spent. Why? Well, in order to be effective in your mountain, you must know which mountain is yours to occupy.

Be diligent to discover your mountain. Then, infiltrate it with the good news of the Kingdom of God – while also doing good business.

3. MANAGE YOUR MONEY WISELY: It may not seem like managing your money is a way to make a big social impact. I get it, but you’re wrong. Managing your money with wisdom has everything to do with making a grand-scale social impact. You have to have money to invest and give if you want to invest and give!

Maybe you already have money. Or maybe you’re already investing in something like Tricord Global. That’s great! Continue managing with wisdom.

However, if you aren’t in that position yet, dream a little. What if you could give away 70% of your income? 100%? What an amazing idea. If you use wisdom and practical systems, it is a reality. But you have to start NOW. Not in a year, not in 6 months, NOW.

You can make a big social impact. It will happen. Through prayer, discovering your mountain, and wisely managing your money, you will be making progress in ways many in our society – and even the church – are not. This is not to puff you up or stroke your ego. Rather, it’s to partner with you and glorify God. He is worthy of all of it!

Source - billyepperhart.com

When they met with one another in 1975 through conversation they realized God had spoken to them both individually about, “Seven Cultural Mountains or Gates!” Jesus was up to something!

God was showing them if Christianity was going to impact culture it had to impact seven areas. The 7 Mountains of culture are:

1. Business, 

2. Government,

3. Arts and Entertainment,

4. Media, 

5. Education,

6. Family and

7. Church or Religion.

Every Christian is Called:
Os Hillman says, “The Seven Mountain Strategy helps Christians understand that their calling is from the Lord.” People’s work and sphere of influence can be used in impacting the culture for the Gospel. Os continues saying the Seven Mountain Strategy, “is not a theology, it is not dominionism. 

It is simply a strategy for the Body of Christ. Bringing the Gospel of the Kingdom combined with the Gospel of Salvation.”

Loren Cunningham says, “This [strategy] is the way to reach nations for God.” Loren continues saying, “The wealth of the world can be used to bless the world.” This implies the importance of redeeming the business world for the glory of God.

The Mountain of Business Fuels and Funds All Other Mountains of Culture:

For many years the Church has largely ignored equipping believers in impacting their sphere of influence. But business can either be used in glorifying God or elevating man. 

Leaders of businesses are the main influencers of culture.

Almost 78% of people in the workplace believe spirituality and business mix. And more than 56 million Bible-believing Christians are in the business world. But 90% of Christians feel they are not being equipped to apply faith to their daily life.

Digital Missions Can Be Used To Impact the Mountain of Media:

Media is a mountain impacting culture. The news and faith articles, as well as videos and shows,  can be produced in a way that can change and shape a person’s destiny. Through sharing resources produced by Digital Missions, on social media you are part of impacting lives for eternity. 

This is a simple way you can be used in shaping culture and see the Holy Spirit transform lives.

Isaiah 2:2 says, “It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains. And shall be lifted up above the hills, and all the nations shall flow to it.“

Huddling in balls of fleecy clothing, the hustling in Harare was punctuated with a deafening silence in many neighbourhoods due to the prolonged hours of power outages from the on-going massive load shedding schedules. 

I had to keep vehemently fighting off the overwhelming thoughts of how and why Africa had to be burdened with the descriptive of being the dark continent. Realising that I could easily fall into an early morning depression, I boldly got up and made a decision to walk around making prophetic declarations over the nation of Zimbabwe and the African continent. 

I silently prayed that power would be restored early so that I could get an opportunity to watch whatever was remaining of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s speech as he took the oath of office at his inauguration as South African president.

Reflections on balanced leadership!
As soon as the power was restored after lunch, I scrambled through the many different news channels in order to catch up with what was happening on the African continent as her sons and daughters celebrated Africa Day. 

My remote-control escapades were arrested by South African leadership expert Dr Mazwe Majola’s comments on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s inauguration speech. In his interview on one of the news channels he shared his sentiments on the task at hand and the need for balanced leadership. As the news channel religiously played the key highlight of the speech, “I will be a president for all South Africans,” I deeply reflected on the depth and density of these words. 

How does a leader effectively balance results and relationships in order to leave a memorable legacy at the end of their term of office?

What’s wrong with being out of balance?
As a child, riding a seesaw was fun, wasn’t it? Well, except when you didn’t have equal weight on both sides—then it was just out of balance and someone got stuck in mid-air. That bears the question—is your leadership out of balance? 

Most likely it is because statistically, more than 85% of the population tilts toward being strong at either Results or Relationships and weak at the other. What’s wrong with being out of balance? 

The idea of balancing results and relationships is nothing new, but if we assume that character is the foundation of leadership, then there should be an inner motivation to accomplish the mission (get results) and take care of the people (build relationships). If you don’t get results, you can’t be truly successful in your work or justify your purpose and if you don’t take care of your people, some will quit and leave and some will quit and stay. 

In either case, it’s not a viable situation. So, in the long run, balancing a concern for people with accomplishing the mission is crucial to success.

The results-oriented manager focuses on efficiency, deadlines and budgets. The relationship-oriented manager focuses on people, and whether they’re happy and fulfilled in their work. Managing too strongly to either side of the equation can decrease initiative, drive, creativity and, ultimately, productivity. It also leads to distrust. The conundrum for all managers is in learning how to shape your natural leadership style to match the needs of your team. If you focus solely on results, your people will feel you don’t care about them, only about the bottom line. At the other extreme, focusing only on relationships leaves results-focused employees frustrated and demoralized.

What’s Wrong with Being Out of Balance?
Abraham Lincoln has been repeatedly voted as America’s most popular president, probably because he achieved great results in the face of incredibly difficult circumstances. But, how did he do it? 

When I posed this question to hundreds of corporate managers when facilitating leadership development, overall attributes fell into four areas of leadership—trust, relationships, results, and emotional intelligence.

The best leaders exhibit all of these qualities; however, behaviours regarding “results” and “relationships” were mentioned more than all the others. In fact, more than 85% of the population tilts toward one or the other.

The idea of balancing results and relationships is nothing new; but, if we assume that character is the foundation of leadership, there should be an inner motivation to balance accomplishing the mission (get results) and taking care of the people (build relationships). By themselves, neither one is viable.

How Do You Gain a Better Balance?
First, accept the fact that most of your strengths are natural—we are born with them, and they are naturally out of balance. To get better, we have to change by learning some new skills (behaviours). 

You don’t need to give up who you are, but augment your strengths by adapting new behaviours that will make you more effective and will bring you more in balance.

Results-oriented leaders need to soften up. If this is your style, just the idea of softening seems anathema; but developing good interpersonal skills is what’s needed to make you a better leader. For example, learning to patiently listen, really understand, and then affirm the ideas of others can feel very uncomfortable. 

For some, the needed skill might be learning to give specific, positive feedback. It takes intentional courage for a thick-skinned, results-oriented person to do these “people” things that are so important.

Relationship-oriented leaders need to toughen up. For this leadership style, learning to be more decisive and more direct in giving guidance and setting standards is the goal. Conducting difficult conversations is essential to keep the organization and individual team members moving ahead toward successful execution. It may be intimidating, so plan out what you are going to say and then courageously deliver your message.

Small Changes Pay Big Returns!
No matter which side of the balance scales you’re on, adapting new behaviours on your weak side—even at small levels—will lead to significant improvements. The key to growth is changing your behaviours under the daily pressures of life and work; there is no other way. Achieving a better balance is worth the effort. A productivity priority should always have a relationship counterbalance. Just remember, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. 

Organizations that focus exclusively on productivity often get a lot of work done, but have high turnover rates and poor cultures. Companies that focus too much on people and culture often struggle to be profitable. Striking the right balance becomes an important objective.

In order to have a healthy culture and productively get work done, a balance of priorities and Key Performance Indicators in the areas of people and productivity is vital.

Conflict often brings with it opportunity, and if we can see the possibilities, we can harness the opportunities from situations that may seem negative at first glance

Article Written By Cynthia Chirinda

Understanding Conflict!
Interpersonal conflict has been defined as “an expressed struggle between at least two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scarce resources, and interference from the other party in achieving their goals.” 

Conflict can exist on an Inter-personal and intra-personal level, Inter-group and intra-group level, it can also be competitive or disruptive. 

Three primary types of conflict include personal or relational conflicts, instrumental conflicts and conflicts of interest. Personal or relational conflicts are usually about identity or self-image, or important aspects of a relationship such as loyalty, breach of confidence, perceived betrayal or lack of respect. 

Instrumental conflicts are about goals, structures, procedures and means - something fairly tangible and structural within the organisation or for an individual. Conflicts of interest concern the ways in which the means of achieving goals are distributed, such as time, money, space and staff. 

They may also be about factors related to these, such as relative importance, or knowledge and expertise.

Conflict and Teamwork!
Conflict involves feelings and emotions potentially arising from you or others feeling under-appreciated, being taken for granted, an atmosphere of uncertainty in the environment, tacit allowance of poor performance or bad behaviour, misinformation or misperception.

Conflict in the workplace can be incredibly destructive to good teamwork. Managed in the wrong way, real and legitimate differences between people can quickly spiral out of control, resulting in situations where co-operation breaks down and the team's mission is threatened. 

This is particularly the case where the wrong approaches to conflict resolution are used. To calm these situations down, it helps to take a positive approach to conflict resolution, where discussion is courteous and non-confrontational, and the focus is on issues rather than on individuals. 

The benefits of resolving conflict successfully include increased understanding, increased group cohesion and improved self-knowledge. Conflict pushes individuals to examine their goals in close detail, helping them understand the things that are most important to them, sharpening their focus, and enhancing their effectiveness. 

However, if conflict is not handled effectively, the results can be damaging. Conflicting goals can quickly turn into personal dislike. 

Teamwork breaks down. Talent is wasted as people disengage from their work. And it is easy to end up in a vicious downward spiral of negativity and recrimination.

Fight, Flight, or Freeze!
In personal relationships, conflicts and arguments will not necessarily jeopardize a relationship. In fact, there are times when disagreements can actually bring a couple closer together. The key is in how you and your partner decide to handle the conflict. Couples with poor conflict resolution skills typically engage in Fight, Flight, or Freeze behaviours. 

They fight and stay mad, sometimes holding grudges for years. They flee and avoid important issues by sweeping them under the carpet. Sometimes, after endless arguments with no resolution in sight, they freeze emotionally and shut down. Someone who freezes in a relationship typically goes through the motions on the outside but has stopped caring on the inside. 

Unresolved conflict can lead to resentment and additional unresolved conflict in the relationship. Even more important, ongoing conflict can actually have a negative impact on your health and longevity. 

Poor conflict management can lead to higher production of the stress hormone cortisol, and also cause hardening of the arteries, leading to increased risk of heart attacks, and high blood pressure. 

Learning to deal with conflict in a positive and constructive way, without excessive stress, is, therefore, an important way to improve your well-being as well as your relationships.

Where is the opportunity in Conflict?
Conflict is a normal, inescapable part of life, a periodic occurrence in any relationship and an opportunity to understand opposing preferences and values. 

Scarce resources, conflicting attitudes, ambiguous jurisdictions, communication barriers, the need for consensus, unresolved prior conflicts and lack of knowledge of self and others are all antecedent conditions for conflict. 

Well managed conflicts stimulate competition, identify legitimate differences and become a powerful source of motivation. Conflict can be used as a springboard for dialogue and rallying a team of people to talk about what is on their minds. Conflict therefore becomes an energising necessity as it forces people out of their comfort zones. 

Conflict can help improve productivity when team members who are in disagreement are given an opportunity by the leadership to realise how their actions and problems are holistically impacting productivity. Conflict can provide opportunities for negotiations. 

Negotiations often start with conflict—conflict with or among employees; conflict with suppliers or conflict with customers. You can improve your opportunities for successful negotiations by gathering information to learn as much as you can about the situation, clarifying the levels of understanding, and looking at both sides of the story. 

Conflict also provides an opportunity for growth. 

Whilst on-going conflict can hinder operations and cause people to shut down, the more knowledge gained about how other individuals or team members prefer to deal with conflict, the more that conflict resolution skills develop to handle strategic and future challenges. Within organisations conflict can improve your meetings when team-building exercises, such as brainstorming or mind-mapping are used to get to the root of problems. 

Within personal relationships conflict enables previously hidden issues to be exposed and dealt with resulting in closer bonding and understanding of each other’s needs.

Cynthia Chirinda is an Organisational and Personal Development Consultant, a Life Coach, Author, and Strategist. 

Her two new additions to the Connection Factor Collection “The Connection Factor for Leaders” and “The Connection Factor for Women” speak to matters that position organisational leaders and women respectively, to achieve greater levels of success through their strategic connections. Looking at improving your career, personal effectiveness, communication skills, relationships, focus, faith and happiness? 

Wholeness Incorporated Coaching offers you strategies you can implement today to review your progress and achieve your goals. 

Email: cynthia@cynthiac.net.in 

LinkedIn: Cynthia Chirinda. 

Mobile: 263 717 013 206. 

Website: www.cynthiac.net.in

More than anything else, it is unsustainable. Eventually, the psyche just collapses in on itself, pressured by the weight of trying to figure out who other people want you to be. To be truly happy, you must honour the true essence of your being. But all too often, finding this truth is profoundly complicated. 

Whether you are trying to get hundreds of likes on your social media platforms or just hoping to connect with someone, sometimes it can seem like our happiness depends on other people in today’s society.

But there are ways to stop seeking the approval of others. 

The key is, to begin with addressing your own thought process.

Inspiration with Cynthia C Hakutangwi

Why do we seek validation and approval?
As much as you might love to say that you’re open-minded, it’s difficult to hear out people that have contrary opinions. It is natural to want to be around people with similar tastes that agree with you. 

You want to have fulfilling relationships and feel loved by friends and family. As per Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, esteem and love/belonging are an essential component of human motivation. We share photos and update statuses in the hope of getting approved by our social media friends. When the validating comments flow in we feel happy.

The pitfalls of consistently seeking validation and approval!
The first step to stop consistently seeking the approval of others is to become aware that we are stuck on doubt, insecurity, or uncertainty. We must recognise that our actions (of seeking approval) come from the emotions and beliefs that arise within us. Once you become aware of how often you’re seeking approval from others, you can begin to work on yourself from within.

Think of how many other things you could be doing besides arguing with people about your plans and trying to get them to see through your eyes? 

Honestly, some people may never understand you or even try to see things your way. Asking others for approval adds a superfluous step to making a decision. Not everyone will agree with you all the time. Maybe no one will agree with your plan besides you, and that’s not always a problem. This is not to say that you should not consult or seek guidance and mentoring where it is required, but being a people-pleaser usually makes everyone happy except you.

You need to realise that you are a critical part of the equation of your life. Everything stems from you — the quality of your relationships, your thoughts about life, what career you choose, etc. If you make major life decisions with everyone but you in mind, you will never find true happiness.

Not only does approval-seeking waste time, but it wastes energy as well. If you want to use energy in the most efficient ways, cut out unnecessary actions. If you want to keep the fire alive and truly transform your life, you will need to dismiss the need to gain outside approval for your decisions.
Consistent approval seeking can discourage you from following your heart. If something truly and deeply resonates with you, you will never know unless you try, and you will forever wonder where life would’ve gone, had you only listened to that inner calling.

Overly seeking approval and validation promotes fear. When you seek approval from others, you begin to form expectations of what they will say. You start to think of how the conversation will go if they don’t agree with you, and you become anxious of their response. Fear only holds you back, but love will set you free. If you truly love yourself and feel assured with your life, you won’t even think twice about giving up the need for acceptance. We have been conditioned to be afraid of many things — other people, their opinions of us, trying new things, listening to new ideas, and much more.

Are you well-connected with your essential self?
The relationship you have with yourself is extremely important. If you take time to connect with your essential self, you will better understand who you are and what you want out of life. Take some time to tune into you, to block out the voices from everyone else attempting to control your life and listen to your inner voice. Rather than seeking approval from external influences, try to find true happiness by developing a more stable relationship within yourself.

Who is in control?
People who lead significantly successful lives use creative strategies to reach their goals. Mentors, coaches and accountability partners are great resources on this journey to a significant life. They are there to assist you to unleash the best version of yourself, not to dictate the path you should take. It is difficult to build genuine friendships, full life and a healthy self-image if you’re always trying to please everybody. Next time you have the urge to get permission from someone to follow through with a plan, remind yourself that you are the one in control. Take time to listen to your heart and follow your inner spiritual compass, vision, goals, values and passion. Others are often unsure about their own life path, much less yours.

Her two new additions to the Connection Factor Collection The Connection Factor for Leaders and The Connection Factor for Women speak to matters that position organisational leaders and women respectively, to achieve greater levels of success through their strategic connections. 

Looking at improving your career, personal effectiveness, communication skills, relationships, focus, faith and happiness? 

Wholeness Incorporated Coaching offers you strategies you can implement today to review your progress and achieve your goals. 

Email: cynthia@cynthiac.net. 

LinkedIn: Cynthia Chirinda Hakutangwi. 

Mobile: +263 717 013 206. 

Website: www.cynthiac.net