Leadership

6 Reasons you SHOULD go to grad school immediately

August 18, 2016 by Greg Darley

The average student is graduating with $25,000+ worth of debt. (This is for an undergraduate degree!) The job market is crowded. Unemployment continues to hover in uncomfortable heights.

What should you do, you ask. “Go to grad school” many will say. You’ll have a better chance of finding a job. You’ll be better equipped for a “better” job.

Is this true?

Grad school can be great for some, but it’s not for everyone. How do you know if it’s right for you?

Read below the 6 reasons you SHOULD go to graduate school?

Be sure to read 6 reasons you should NOT go to graduate school here.

You SHOULD go to grad school if:

You have a clear career goal

There are many careers that require a graduate degree. You can’t practice law with out one, unless you’re Mike Ross. If you have a specific career or job that requires a grad degree, then go for it.

Your employer is paying for it

If you can get a free or greatly reduced degree, then this can be a great move. You may have to go part-time or take night/weekend classes, but it could save you thousands of dollars.

Finances aren’t an issue

If you have little or no undergraduate debt, it will be far less stressful going to graduate school. If you have an education fund or enough savings, this could make sense.

If you really love the topics and have the time

When I went to graduate school, it was because I genuinley loved the topics and I had the time. This was before my wife and I had children, so it was much easier. (Don’t think it would be possible now!)

You want to teach

If you want to be a professor or one day teach in higher education, most schools will require a graduate degree. If teaching is remotely on your radar, you should consider an advanced degree.

You want a raise

Many companies and organizations will give you an increase in salary if you increase your knowledge. Many in the public school system pursue advanced degrees for the increase in income. This can have significant impact over the life of your career.

How to Lead in the Valley

July 24, 2016 by Greg Darley

In the life of every leader, whether of an organization, Campus Chapter, ministry, church, business, or of an individual creative endeavor, there are natural peaks and valleys. There are stretches of great successes and valleys of disappointing results.

When in the valley, don’t lose hope. Three things to do when entering a valley of disappointment:

With all this darkness in the world, here’s how you can make a difference

July 18, 2016 by Greg Darley

I can’t help but hold my breath when I turn on my phone or computer. Every breaking news headline tells reminds us of the broken world. Where will the next tragedy strike? What selfish act will cause further pain? The level of hate, violence and injustice in the world seems like something out of a history book. There seems to be more darkness than light.

I’m left wondering what any of us can do, much less what I can do.

As I’ve pondered how in the world I could help, I was reminded of this quote by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.:

Dr. King spoke these words in a time that feels in many ways the same as today. Society was brimming with hatred, racism, fear, confusion, and doubt.

I know I cannot solve these complex issues. But, If King is correct, then you and I can be a part of the solution. We can help drive out the darkness with light. We can drive out hate with love.

This is not to say we should ignore the pain caused by the darkness. It is real. There are hurting families. There are children without fathers. There are families without husbands. We should lament. We should feel sad. And as time provides healing, we should strive to act. We should strive to be agents of light in the darkness.

How You Can Help

What if we all decided to add a little light to the world? What if we made a conscious effort to add love to the world?

One of the most important ways you will bring light and love into the world is by finding and fulfilling your calling.

When you find your calling, you bring a level of joy and potential to your own life like nothing else. Your energy increases. You see a future worth creating. You are willing to give more (or you should be!). But often unbeknownst to person fulfilling their calling, it’s others that benefit even more.

Have you ever gotten lost in a beautiful story that captured your imagination? Have you ever listened to a piece of music or the words of a song that inspired you? Have you ever had a photograph perfectly captures your newborn or wedding day? Have you ever laughed at a witty YouTube video?

If the answer is yes, then you’ve benefited from someone finding and fulfilling their calling.
Finding your calling can change your world and the world like nothing else.

What does this look like?

I think of friends like Tripp and Tyler that have fully embraced their calling to making people laugh.

Then there’s friends like Chris loving on the hurting in 8 communities around the world.

Victor is changing education and inspiring thousands in the process.

Jeremy has launched so many incredible ideas to serve the world. His latest is bigger and bolder than anything yet: a hotel where every interaction serves a needed cause. (I’m a Kickstarter backer and think you should too!)

I could name hundreds of people following their calling and bringing light and love to the world. You don’t have to start an organization or work for a non-profit either. You can be a softball coach like my friend Sarah. You can be a designer like my friend Stephen. You can be a full-time parent. You can be a full-time anything and volunteer a few hours a week and do more good than most.

When you are around people like this, you can not help but be inspired. This is what happens when you find your calling and pursue it with great passion.

Your Turn

When you share your passion with the world, whether that’s writing or painting, teaching or singing, being an accountant or a social worker, you bring a little light to the world. You bring a little more hope and beauty that can only come from you.

I love helping people find their calling and passion. I love seeing people take a chance and starting their dream. I believe there’s never been a better time than now to do this. And there’s never been a more urgent time.

We need your art more than ever.
We need to read your words.
We need to feel your passion.
We need to hear your beautiful song.
We need to see your beautiful pictures.
We need to hear your wisdom.
We need to feel your energy for organizing.
We need to taste your incredible food.
We need you to be a great councilor.
We need you to be a joyful accountant.
We need you to be an inspiring teacher.

The world needs your passion for what you’ve been called to do. No one can do it like you can. No one can impact the same people as you. No one can influence your community like you. No one can love your family like you. No one else has inside them what you have inside of you.

“Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone’s face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.” – Henri Nouwen

I love this by quote by Henri Nouwen. Can you imagine the potential change if everyone added a little light to the world?

I know the problems we are facing are complex and everyone walking around with a smile on their face won’t solve them. But we need more light to drive out the darkness. We need to focus on the beauty that’s possible, the change that’s possible, the hope that’s possible. Where can you add light?

Anne Frank was no stranger to evil.

“I don’t think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains.” Anne Frank

Desmond Tutu was no stranger to darkness.

“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” Desmond Tutu

Where do I start?

Where you are:
Start in your home, school, work and community. Start by being a light in your home. This is not a sprint, this is a marathon. Be a light in your school or workplace. This can be as simple as saying thank you more often. Help someone with a chore that’s not your responsibility.

With what you have:
You don’t need to be famous, a CEO, or President to make an impact. Use what you have at your disposal today. Use your time. Use your connections. Smile. Be polite.

Social Media:
Use your social media connections to raise others up, instead of adding to the negativity that weighs much of online interactions down. Commit to only commenting with positive comments. Don’t throw more fuel on the fire. There’s enough people that do that.

Be Creative
Do you have a creative idea, but don’t know where to start? Have something that could bring light and love to the world, but you’re stuck? Here’s a 30 Day action plan for bringing the idea to life.

The world needs you to find your calling and pursue it with everything you’ve got.

What is your calling?

How are you pursuing it?

The Difficulty is the Opportunity [a creative plea]

July 12, 2016 by Greg Darley

[A creative plea]

There’s a reason so few people make the Olympics–because it’s an incredibly difficult (impossible) task for everyone. This includes those who make it. Few people are willing to get up every morning at 4:00 before work or school to practice. Fewer still are willing to do this for multiple years.

When it comes to pursuing your dream and your calling, you will face challenges and opportunities along the way. Many times it will become difficult. Obstacles will impede progress. Doors will shut and roads will close.

But most of the time it’s the struggle to consistently show up, putting in the hours of work, receiving little or no recognition. This is the difficult work.

If changing the world were easy, everyone would do it. (Tweet This)

But this is your opportunity. This is the cost of success. Everyone knows the formula, though few are willing to follow it because it takes too long. Here’s how to take advantage of the opportunity:

Show Up: Make a commitment to show up and do the work. This means whether you feel like it or not. Others don’t feel like showing up, so they don’t. Fewer people are showing up to do hard work, so you have an opportunity

Don’t Track Results in the Beginning: Too many ideas were killed prematurely because the results weren’t world changing in the beginning. Don’t track your blog readers in the beginning, just write. Don’t count the audience size when starting to speak, just speak with passion and energy like there’s 5000 people in the crowd. Too many people see meager results in the beginning and quit too soon. This is your opportunity to push through and make it.

Keep Learning: Part of what makes fulfilling your calling and dream in the beginning is there’s a gap between your knowledge, experience and today. Make a commitment to keep learning. While most people stopped reading books in high school, you keep reading. Most people stopped paying for education after college, but you sign up for seminars, workshops and conferences. By shortening the gap of your knowledge and experience, you will gain an advantage. While others turn to Netflix, you turn to growing. This is your opportunity.

When excitement and passion wear off, most people quit—giving up on their calling. This is YOUR OPPORTUNITY. Those that changed the world, that fulfill their callings didn’t quit, they kept working, they continued to show up, the increased their learning and pushed through.

This is your opportunity too. The fact that it’s difficult is the reason you should lean in and embrace it.

Few thoughts on how to keep going when it seems far easier to quit:

Remember why you started in the first place. Recall the passion that started you down the road years ago. Rekindle that passion to keep going.

Find the Finish line. Pause and figure out where the finish line is. Often it’s closer than we realize. Sometimes it’s literally over the hill we’re climbing.

Consider the Change. What would your life look like if you were to fulfill your calling? What would happen if you could get that degree? What would happen if you wrote the book, started the non-profit, launched the business?

Think of what hangs in the balance. Consider what hangs in the balance of your decision. How many people will miss out on being helped, healed, or blessed if you quit now? I had a reader of one of my books tell me it inspired her to reconcile with a estranged sibling after decades of not talking! There are people that need your help, ideas, writing, service, business, and passion.

I know it’s difficult. I know it’s not easy. The good news is, that’s the same for everyone else. The question is, what are you going to do?

How to make what you read stick

July 4, 2016 by Greg Darley

How to make what you read Stick

Here’s how I make sure what I learn from books stays with me. Here’s how I make it stick. Because it’s such a waste of time to spend hours (days?) reading a book with tons of ideas, principles and content that could improve your life, business, relationships, creativity, health or a number of other things and not remember them. If you don’t remember them, you want implement them. And isn’t that the reason you read the book in the first place?

Learn It

First, I write in all the books I read. I take notes, I underline, I highlight. I put smiley faces at something that I find funny. I put stars for something I like. I put double stars for something I love. I will write “wow” for something that really blows my mind. This helps me to work with the content.

The main idea is to mark up what I want to remember, what I want to implement. It’s also helpful for me when I go back through a book the second time or even years later when I’m remember something in a certain book, but don’t remember exactly what it was. I will scan through my markings to trigger my memory. This is all preparation for what’s next.

Second, I go back through chapter by chapter or section by section and write up the main themes/ideas from each. If there are powerful quotes, I will quote them in my notes. If there are stories or examples that I want to remember, I’ll put those down.

My goal is to put everything on a single piece of paper. This gives me the ability to glance at the entire book, with all the principles, in two minutes or less. Doing this a few times helps push the ideas closer to long-term memory.

Teach It

Nothing forces you to learn a topic like having to stand in front of someone and explain it. You can do this by teaching a class, speaking at a church, talking to a friend over coffee, or shooting a Periscope or YouTube video. Teaching a topic forces you to know it well enough to explain the why, how, what of the idea. Often you’ll need to come up with your own examples, stories and illustrations to explain it. This will further help you internalize the content.

Use It

This is where you find ways to make the content/ideas your own. This is not about stealing or plagiarizing. This is about taking the principles you want to use and use them in your life. If you learn a new health principle about increasing protein in the mornings after a workout, then start eating more eggs after your run. Find ways to begin using the ideas. Try them out, see if they work for you.

Review It

This is just a habit to review the content every so often. I do this with some content on the principles and foundation of writing. There are a few books that I review almost every year. I get a new team of leaders every spring that I teach the principles of high performing team. I use my one page summary and review it every year before teaching it to them.