Do you think you are a leader? Many people say yes, but often people get in over their heads believing they are good leaders and fail.
On the Morning Thing Thursday, Eric shared ways that you can lead like Jesus, even if you’re not in charge.
Two important things to remember are
• Be empathetic: Whenever something bad or unexpected happens, put yourself in the person’s shoes and try and think how they feel before reacting. Everyone is fighting a battle of some kind and it could be a sign that they need help in more ways than just at work.
• Don’t be just a leader, set the example (Eric uses S-T-E as a reminder). Many employees believe that their bosses live by the credo, “Do as I say, not as I do.” That is not a good attitude to have when dealing with anyone.
The bible teaches us “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”
1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV)

Click HERE to read the full article.

Click HERE to hear the full conversation.

On the Morning Thing Wednesday, Olivia Toth with the Knox County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau talks about Ariel Foundation Park being added to Ohio’s creativity trail. The creativity trail is a new initiative from the America 250-Ohio Commission.
She says the honor came about working with the commission on adding the park to the trail. She knows it’s a wonderful place, but they want to show the creativity behind the park itself as well.
Olivia gives more information about the park which sits just outside downtown Mount Vernon. It changed from an industrial site to a place where hundreds of thousands of people have visited. There is a ton of free activities including fishing and boating.
She also gives the park’s website and talks about the upcoming events tab on the page including the Summer Kickoff Concert this year.
Click HERE to find out more about Ariel-Foundation Park

Making a big change in your life does not have to be monumental or time consuming.
On the Morning Thing Tuesday, Marcy, Xander and Eric gave 10 quick habits you can do to make a positive impact including:
• Review and appreciate your day at the end of it. If something negative happens, don’t dwell on it. Appreciate what you did and thought.
• Set a low bar for happiness for the day. Feel happy about the things you have instead of focusing on what you don’t have.
• Breath when you are stressed. Site down. Focus on breathing through your nose for two minutes. It will help you calm down.
• Be interested instead of interesting. Pay attention to whoever you are talking to and not just for the next time when you can talk about your day. If they are having a bad day try to lift them up instead of trying to “one up” them.
• Finally, be empathetic. If you feel the need to judge someone, take a minute and ask yourself: What part of the person do I see in myself or how is she or he like me?
As Christians we are to serve others with humility and compassion (Philippians 2: 3-4) and loving your neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:31).

Click HERE for more tips from Henrik Edberg’s post on the Positivity Blog.

On the Morning Thing Friday, Marcy and Shawn had a list of small gestures that are surprisingly romantic.
Let’s face it. Not everyone likes Valentine’s Day, especially the commercialism that surrounds the day. Instead of doing a “big thing” on Valentine’s Day, try doing “little things” all the time to show your love.
Here are some of the suggestions from Imom.com:
• You hold hands in a crowd.
• Thank each other for the little things.
• He gasses up your car and you make him lunch.
• You put away the phone when you talk.
• You do something you said you were going to do.
Just remember no little thing should be overlooked despite how “minor” you think it may be and simply say “Thank you.”

Even the smallest thing could be “the mustard seed” in your relationship with each other.
“He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”
The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
Matthew 13:31-32 (NIV)

Click HERE for the complete article written by Abby Watts on Imom.com