My Manifesto – Part 8....

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I have deep faith but yet do not require anyone to share in my commitment to these covenants. I am completely respectful of all faiths or of no faith at all when it comes to spiritual choices in our lives. I have committed my life to Jesus Christ and have chosen to honor these covenants at the deepest point of my soul. I will live by his gift of grace and extend his love and patience to all! I ask that you respect my choice and allow me to express my beliefs, as I will honor this with you. I hope that you will not feel threatened by my choices and feel free to explore faith, as you feel led. I believe faith is one of the cornerstones of our organization as it is a cornerstone to all humanity. But religion and faith are two very different things. Religion is a set of rules and protocols, I believe designed to control people and thus keep people under fear and submission. Faith is a deep relationship of love and grace. It brings me great peace and never in any way radiates anger or fear. We are loved and forgiven and I pray we will extend this kindness and mercy to all mankind regardless of their spiritual or personal preferences.....

We launch this journey with nothing more than our brains and hearts. From this wellspring we will help people find a path to peace and prosperity. We are creating a future that doesn’t even exist yet, something extraordinary and a cause worth fighting for. This will take great courage, commitment and initiative. It is much easier to react than it is to respond or initiate. Reacting is often instinctive and done without much forethought. It is often dangerous and ill-advised, taking you down a road that you later regret. Responding requires patience and grace. A response is a respectful way to acknowledge the issue and peacefully find a solution. There is a big difference between asking a man a question and questioning a man. One will have insight anger and defensiveness while the other will suggest respect and patience. However, initiating is truly the work of an insightful confident leader. Our goal is to make the first move and suggest a peaceful resolution before emotions can arise. It is our intention to develop the insight to foresee turmoil or challenges, and proactively make choices that lead to everyone feeling loved and respected. We vow to do our best but will always extend grace when any of us fall short.....

I know that as we launch down this road many mistakes will be made and many significant leaders will challenge our beliefs and choices. I read the other day that IBM thought the global need for computers was around 5 in the early 1950s, that Steve Ballmer of Microsoft said that “Google is not a real company and a house of cards” and that “there can’t be any more deep technology in Facebook than what dozens of people could write in a couple of years. That’s for sure”. Sir Isaac Newton was completely wrong about his theory of alchemy of which he spent most of his life on. He was as wrong as a scientist can be and yet he, like the others, is regarded as one of the greatest scientist, and innovators of all time. Over and over throughout modern and ancient history leadership has been wrong, but this does not discredit their lives work. My mentors are amazing people and have proven that throughout their lives. I am eternally grateful for their love and guidance but have chosen to take a new path that I pray will honor them not discredit or bring them discomfort. Steve Jobs was wrong about apple III, Mac FX and the NeXt computer. The secret of being wrong isn’t to avoid being wrong; the secret is being willing to “BE” wrong. The secret is realizing that wrong isn’t fatal. I will certainly make my share of wrong decisions and will have to make many adjustments as we go down this path. It is safe to assume to that our initial launch of change will not be better than the system we are departing from. If we all need the alternative to be better from the very start we may as well never begin. Soon enough we will surpass our original mentors. Truly our goal is not to be better but to offer the best solution possible to help our teammates live their dreams. Shouldn’t this be our predecessor’s goal anyways? Don’t we all want our kids to do better than we have? Isn’t it our life’s purpose for the next generation to stand on our shoulders and see the future and then lead them to this place? I also know that our past does not predict our future. Both our successes and failures do not dictate our destinies. Past success does not guarantee future success and transgressions do not create future failures, in fact, if anything they will guide us through these landmines of the future. The secret to leadership is simple. Do what you believe in, paint a picture of it and then go there with all your heart and soul.....

I feel as though I have spent the last decade of my life trying to influence change from the inside of a massive powerful and wonderful organization. I am compelled to come to the realization that it is my calling to lead change from outside this group and develop a new tribe of growth and change. It may have been foolish to try and create change from the inside but I felt that it was my duty and responsibility to serve and influence a new path in every way I could without causing too much disharmony. Clearly this has been my intent but it has been frequently misinterpreted. I realize the view of the majority is to maintain the status quo and continue on their path. I have chosen to lead a new tribe of leaders that are willing to risk comfort and run with them. Instead of standing around waiting for change to happen and letting this opportunity fade away from our hearts I am choosing to boldly step out and believe that many feel the same way and just need to be led. I believe that it is riskier to play it safe and hope that things will change than it is to step out and invent our futures. The world is clearly changing and I intend to embrace this opportunity.....