Re-post: Why You Should Be An Entrepreneur – Part 1

“Find something, found something, or fund something.” – Bob Shank Recent news stories point to improved job prospects and increased pay to go with them. This is encouraging if you have the credentials (read: degree and/or certification) your prospective employer is looking for, but what if you don’t? At a recent convention I attended, I […]

The Price of Dissent – You may be called to pay it

We have the unhappy privilege of living in deeply divided times. Where neighbors used to disagree about sports, politics, and even religion, they maintained friendships and remained neighborly. Now thanks to the accelerant known as the internet, and its igniter, Social Media, differences become grounds for lifetime bans — and worse — for holding an […]

Hope Is Not a Strategy — But Try Living Without It

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” – Proverbs 13:12 (NIV) I worked with a colleague who took particular delight in reciting the title of this post — the first part, anyway — whenever anyone began a statement with, “I hope…” To be fair to my colleague, […]

Classic Post Encore: The Unsung Hero of Christmas

Merry Christmas! While we celebrate the incarnation of Christ Jesus, I want to ask you to consider the example of a man who was indispensable to the Christmas story — Joseph the carpenter. Meet Joseph When we first meet Joseph in the Bible, he is defined in terms of his relationships — as the son […]

Re-post: How to Shine at This Year’s Thanksgiving Dinner

“And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack And you may find yourself in another part of the world And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife And you may ask yourself-Well…How did I get here?” […]

Rader’s Rules: Great Career Advice — UPDATED

Here's some time-tested wisdom. Now put it to work

“Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men. – Proverbs 22: 29 (ESV) When I was a graduate student, the Institute had a series of guest lectures intended to enhance and broaden our thinking.  Attendance was mandatory. I can’t recall all the […]

Classic Post: Wynton’s Ways to Practice

A jazz great breaks it down for us

“Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.” – Proverbs 22:29 (ESV) I’ve been a musician since my early teens — ever since I spent an entire summer harvesting tobacco –by hand! — to buy my first bass guitar and my first […]

Re-post: Stand for Something

Follow the example of the Friendship Nine

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” -Romans 12:18 (ESV) In Rock Hill, South Carolina, a judge recently vacated the sentences of nine civil rights activists who were arrested and convicted in the 1960’s. Their crime was sitting at the same lunch counter as whites in a local five and dime […]

Re-post: What Your Boss Wants

Shine at work by mastering these old-school basics

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” – Colossians 3:23 (NIV) Congratulations! You got the job! Now what? If you’re just entering the work force, or changing to a new job, you wouldn’t be human if your excitement didn’t also contain a bit of […]

Why You Should Be An Entrepreneur – Part 1

And why you should expect to fail at first

“Find something, found something, or fund something.” – Bob Shank Recent news stories point to improved job prospects and increased pay to go with them. This is encouraging if you have the credentials (read: degree and/or certification) your prospective employer is looking for, but what if you don’t? At a recent convention I attended, I […]