How Much Do Leaders Care?

25 January 201416 April 2020 ~ MD Harris Institute ~ Leave a comment

It is true that no one cares how much you know until they know how much you care

A husband and father earns the right to lead his family by caring for his wife and children.
A minister earns the right to preach by caring for his congregation.
A physician earns the right to teach medical students and residents by caring for them, and the right to influence and even direct his patients by caring for them.
A commander earns the right to command by caring for his soldiers.
A manager earns the right to lead by caring for his employees.
A teacher earns the right to teach by caring for his students.
A king earns the right to rule and a prime minister or president earns the right to preside (exercise authority or control) by caring for his citizens.

Caring is not merely feeling benevolent emotions. Actually, since emotions are merely a side effect of thoughts and actions, benevolent emotions are an outgrowth, not a cause or a definition, or caring. Leaders who care do the following for those who follow them:

Learn about them
Pray for them
Encourage them
Talk to them
Listen to them
Rebuke them
Mentor them
Teach them
Be accountable to them

On Disagreements

23 December 20129 October 2023 ~ MD Harris Institute ~ Leave a comment

How to disagree with others but maintain a good relationship with them, and minimize disagreements in the future.

By Mark D. Harris

Last night my family and I hosted a party for our children’s friends, about 30 kids from elementary school through high school. Our daughter and two of her high school friends who are all home from college were here as all. After the party, our family and Anna’s friends, Megan and Jamie, watched the 1947 movie Miracle on 34^th Street, a perennial Christmas favorite. Megan had seen the movie at our house the year before and loved it. Like most young millennials in our experience, Jamie rarely watched old movies and hadn’t seen it. We all hoped that Jamie would enjoy the film, just as we had when Megan watched it the year before, but between texting and stepping away, I feared that she would miss the subtleties that make many old movies so good. As the courtroom scene reached its climax, Jamie became more and more engaged. At the end, with a smile a mile wide, she said that it was a terrific movie.

When others don’t like what we like

We all want others to enjoy the things that we enjoy, because doing such things together brings us together as people. Friends who like Chinese food, baseball games, and reading Shakespeare will enjoy doing these things together, making them more fun for all and building their relationships. People who have little or nothing in common will not likely be friends, or stay friends for long.

Continue reading →

Be Thou My Vision – Fixing Our Sight on God

13 October 201210 October 2023 ~ MD Harris Institute ~ 2 Comments

God is not the giver of blessings; He is the blessing. God is not the enabler of accomplishments; knowing Him is the accomplishment. God is the center of our provision and the center of our ambition. And yet why is that so easy to say and so hard to do? We fix our sight on God.

One of my favorite hymns is the Irish “Be thou my vision”, its words are attributed to Dallan Forgaill in the 6^th century and its tune an Irish folk song, “Slane”. The theme is that God alone should be the vision and goal of every Christian, just as He was for Paul in Philippians 3:7-14.

What does it mean to have God for our vision in our purpose for life?

The modern mantra of finding ones’ purpose for life seems to be “follow your inner star”, “find your dream” or “do your own thing.” The idea is that within each person is something that will guide him or her to meaning and fulfillment in life if only he or she follows it. Books, music, and movies parrot this idea relentlessly, and many people simply accept it as truth. Under certain assumptions this could be logical: