Monthly Archives: September 2013

Myles Munroe on Leadership

The Leadership Spirit

To exercise leadership, you must believe that you are inherently a leader.

Leadership really comes down to two things: who you are and how you think. It is about discovering your identity as a born leader and then understanding the way true leaders think so that you can fulfil your inherent calling. If you don’t first establish your leadership nature, it will be very difficult to have the mind-set of leadership.

True leadership is first concerned with who you are, as opposed to what you do. Leadership action flows naturally from a personal leadership revelation. To exercise leadership, you must believe that you are inherently a leader. Again, to purse purpose as leaders do, you must think like a leader. To think like a leader, you must receive the thoughts of leadership. To receive the thoughts of leadership, you must have a personal encounter with your true self; a discovery of your nature, ability, and essence as a human being. Just as a product cannot know its true purpose or worth except in its relationship with its manufacturer, so it is with you and me.

Earlier, I made a distinction between the leadership spirit and the spirit of leadership. The leadership spirit is the inherent leadership capacity and potential that is the essential nature of human beings. The spirit of leadership, is the mind-set or attitudes that accompany a true leadership spirit and allow the dormant leadership potential to be fully manifested and maximized. Clearly understanding this difference is critical for discovering and living out your leadership capacity.

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9 Genetically Modified (GM) Ingredients To Avoid

Genetically modified foods (GM foods, or biotech foods) are foods produced from organisms that have had specific changes introduced into their DNA using the methods of genetic engineering. These techniques have allowed for the introduction of new crop traits as well as a far greater control over a food’s genetic structure than previously afforded by methods such as selective breeding and mutation breeding.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetically_modified_food

Because of the prevalence of soy and corn in processed foods, about 30,000 genetically modified food products sit on US grocery store shelves.

Here are the top 9 GM ingredients to watch for: 

1. SOY
Genetically modified since: 1996
How widespread: 94 percent of the US soybean crop was genetically modified in 2011, according to the USDA.
What to watch for: Soybeans show up in many traditional (i.e. not organic) soy products, such as tofu, soy milk, soy sauce, miso, and tempeh, as well as any product containing the emulsifier lecithin (often derived from soybean oil), such as ice cream and candy. 

2. COTTONSEED
Genetically modified since: 1996
How widespread: 90 percent of the US cotton crop was genetically modified in 2011, according to the USDA.
What to watch for: The cotton plant, genetically modified to be pest-resistant, produces not only fibers for fabric, but also cottonseed oil, available on US shelves as a standalone product, and also commonly used as an ingredient in margarine, in salad dressings, and as a frying oil for potato chips and other snacks.

3. CORN
Genetically modified since: 1996
How widespread: 88 percent of the US corn crop was genetically modified in 2011, according to the USDA.
What to watch for: GM corn can make its way into hundreds of products: breakfast cereals, corn-flour products (tortillas, chips, etc.), corn oil products (mayonnaise, shortening, etc.), and literally anything sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup, which covers sweetened fruit drinks, processed cookies and other snacks, yogurts, soups, condiments, and many other products.

4. CANOLA OIL
Genetically modified since: 1996
How widespread: 90 percent of the US canola crop was genetically modified in 2010, according to the New York Times
What to watch for: Any canola oil made in the USA. This popular cooking oil, originally derived from rapeseed oil by breeders in Canada (the name is a contraction for “Canadian oil, low acid”) comes from a genetically modified plant that is no longer simply cultivated, but grows wild across the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Canada.

5. U.S. PAPAYA
Genetically modified since: 1998
How widespread: 80 percent of the US papaya crop was genetically modified in 2010, according to the New York Times.
What to watch for: All papaya grown in the US. Hawaiian papaya was genetically engineered to withstand the ringspot virus in the late 1990s, with the GM version rapidly taking over the industry. In 2009, the USDA rescinded regulations prohibiting GM papaya on the US mainland; they have since been introduced to Florida plantations.

6. ALFALFA
Genetically modified since: In 2005, the USDA deregulated GM alfalfa, though cultivation was later halted in 2007, following lawsuits from the Center for Food Safety and others who demanded a full evaluation of the threats to conventional alfalfa plants, and the emergence of herbicide-resistant weeds. Following a new environmental impact study, the USDA in 2011 again deregulated GM alfalfa, which is grown primarily as feed for dairy and sometimes beef cattle.
How widespread: Data on the re-introduction of GM alfalfa in 2011 will be available from the USDA in July. At present, GM alfalfa is used primarily as hay for cattle. The Monsanto Technology Use Agreement for “Roundup Ready” GM alfalfa forbids its use for sprouts.
What to watch for: It’s difficult to tell from a meat or dairy product whether it is from cows fed GM alfalfa. Look for organic dairy products and organic or 100 percent grassfed meat. An even better option is to go vegetarian or vegan. 

7. SUGAR BEETS
Genetically modified since: 2005
How widespread: 95 percent of the US sugar-beet crop was genetically modified in 2009, according to the USDA. Around half of the sugar produced in the US comes from sugar beets.
What to watch for: If a non-organic bag of sugar or a product containing conventional sugar as an ingredient does not specify “pure cane sugar,” the sugar is likely a combination of cane sugar and GM sugar beets. 

8. MILK
Genetically modified since: 1994
How widespread: Recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) is a GM synthetic hormone injected into dairy cows to boost milk production. 17 percent of US cows were injected with rBGH in 2007 (most recent figure). Milk from rBGH-treated cows contains elevated levels of Insulin Growth Factor-1, a hormone linked to increased risks for certain cancers.
What to watch for: No label is required for milk from rBGH-treated cows, though many brands of non-treated milk label their containers as such.

9. ASPARTAME
Genetically modified since: 1965
How widespread: Aspartame, an artificial sweetener, is derived from GM microorganisms. It is found in over 6,000 products, including diet sodas.
What to watch for: Avoid anything labeled as containing Nutrasweet, Equal, or aspartame.

Cited Source: http://action.greenamerica.org/p/salsa/web/common/public/signup?signup_page_KEY=7608&gclid=CLmVjP7P67kCFXRp7Aod2DkA_g

Book Review – Leading Change

51lVDPDAJtL__AA160_Be open to what can be learned from change. Instead of resisting, always ask yourself this question. “What can this change teach me?” You always want to lead the change and not let the change lead you. In order to do that you need to understand the effects and the impact of the expected change and try to adapt to the change and work in concert with others, to implement the change effectively, if possible. That is, if the change makes sense and is not just change for change sake. You always want to be part of the solution and not the problem. So, try to keep a positive perspective and think outside the box. Can this change work? Is this doable? How can we make this happen?

In the book, Leading Change, the author John P. Kotter describes the eight stage process of creating major change. They are:

  1. Establishing a Sense of Urgency
    1. Helping others see the need for change and the importance of acting immediately
  2. Creating the Guiding Coalition
    1. Putting together a group with enough power to lead the change
    2. This group/team must have the right composition, a significant level of trust, and a shared objective.
  3. Developing a Change Vision
    1. Clarify how the future will be different from the past
    2. A vision must provide real guidance
    3. It must be focused, flexible and easy to communicate
    4. It must both inspire action and guide that action in foreseeable ways
  4. Communicating the Vision For Buy-In
    1. The vision should be simple, vivid, repeatable and invitational. In other words, it should invite two-way communication
    2. Actions speak louder than words, so lead by example and walk the talk
  5. Empowering People and Removing Barriers
    1. Remove as many barriers as possible and unleash people to do their best work
    2. Realign incentives and performance appraisals to reflect the change vision can have a profound effect on the ability to accomplish the change vision
  6. Generating Short-Term Wins
    1. Create some visible, unambiguous success as soon as possible
    2. These wins also serve to reward the change agents by providing positive feedback that boosts morale and motivation
  7. Don’t Let Up
    1. If you let up before the job is done, critical momentum can be lost and regression may soon follow
    2. The new behaviors and practices must be driven into the culture to ensure long-term success
  8. Make It Stick
    1. New practices must grow deep roots to remain planted in the organizational culture
    2. Be patient and consistent. Lasting change takes time to become ingrained.

~JWOW

Kicking “But” Along Your Journey

The difference between a dreamer and a doer isn’t luck, talent, skill or money. Unlike some dreamers who never get around to putting their dreams into action, doers make a promise to themselves to reach a goal and honor that commitment by taking determined action. So what keeps doers moving toward their dreams? Doers don’t allow “buts” to hold them back and control their lives – Thoughts such as, “But I don’t have enough time…” “But there’s not enough money…”, “But I’m not smart enough….” are not part of the doer’s dialog. People who make and keep promises to themselves believe that following through to completion is more important than any adversity that could potentially impede their success.

So what do you want to accomplish? Do you want to look for a better job? Quit smoking? Learn to skydive? Build a house? Your “buts” will hold you back if you let them. Instead, kick them out of the way by taking small steps toward your goal. Small successes will help you to gain courage, momentum and confidence. And soon you’ll notice that your “buts” will fade away.

~ jwow