“You are today where your thoughts have brought you. You will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.” James Allen

Proverbs 23:7 – “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”

Everything begins with a thought: Victory begins with a thought – Defeat begins with a thought – What are you thinking? How are you thinking?

NINE CHARACTERISTICS OF THINKING BIG:

1) LEADERS THINK BIG

Benjamin Disraeli said, “You will never go higher than your thoughts.”
“Where success is concerned, people are not measured in inches, or pounds, or college degrees, or family background; they are measured by the size of their thinking.” (David Schwartz)
Leaders . . . dare to dream, prepare to dream, wear the dream, repair the dream, share the dream.

2) LEADERS THINK “OTHER PEOPLE.”

A successful person is evaluated by personal progress. A successful leader is evaluated by group progress.

3) LEADERS THINK CONTINUOUSLY

‘That which holds our attention determines our action.”
Leaders never stop thinking.

4) LEADERS THINK BOTTOM LINE

Leaders know where they are going, how to get there and how far they have to go to arrive.
“People do not want to hear about your labor pains. They want to see the baby.” (Peter Drucker)

5) LEADERS THINK CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Sign on an agricultural supply store: “If you don’t like the crop you are reaping, check the seed you are sowing.”

6) LEADERS THINK WITHOUT LINES

Within “the lines,” leaders think critically. What went wrong?
Beyond “the lines,” leaders think creatively. How can it be right?

Lines that limit us:

1) Only one way 2) Follow the ruler 3) Be practical 4) Failure is final 5) Don’t be foolish 6) Think serious 7) Be image conscious 8) Be logical 9) I’m not creative

7) LEADERS THINK SUCCESS

‘The winners in life think constantly in terms of I can, I will and I am. Losers, on the other hand, concentrate their waking thoughts on what they should have done, or what they don’t do.” (Denis Waitley)

Leadership assumptions: 1) They will succeed 2) Things will work out 3) People will follow 4) Setbacks will occur 5) Resources will come 6) They will succeed

8) LEADERS THINK INTANGIBLES

Leadership in its top form is artistic, not technical or methodical.
Words that are close to a leader’s heart:
1) Morale 2) Timing 3) Atmosphere 4) Momentum 5) Attitude 6) Felt need 7) Emotion 8) Process 9) Expectations

9) LEADERS EVALUATE QUICKLY

It isn’t what you know that counts. It is what you can think of in time. Leaders size up a situation and seize it immediately.

Essential Evaluations of a Leader:

1) People 2) Problems 3) Opportunities 4) Atmosphere 5) Process 6) Magic moment

A spiritual leader… sees things that others don’t see, feels things that others don’t feel, knows things that others don’t know.

These enable spiritual leaders to assume what appears to be foolish illogical and risky endeavors. Ask yourself these questions:

What enabled Nehemiah to leave a palace job for a construction site?
What enabled Joshua to lead a band not an army to defeat Jericho?
What enabled Joseph to stay steady from the pit to the prison to the palace?
What enabled Abraham to relinquish his security, his soil and his son in route to retirement?
What enabled Moses to leave the farm so he could lead Israel through a forty year journey?
What enabled David to go from protecting sheep as a shepherd to protecting an entire nation as a warrior and a king?