5 Power Tools for True Success

Principles for success—whether personal or business related—can ultimately be traced back to the Bible. You will find that God is very invested in your success, and He provides you with all the tools, talents, and grace you need.

“For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth  come knowledge and understanding” (Prov. 2:6, NKJV). 

In more than thirty years of business and ministry experience, I have collected a few pieces of wisdom I like to call keys to success or best practices. These are simple things you deal with on a daily basis, and when you add them up, they will head you in the direction of peace and success. You no doubt want to be successful in your career, business, marriage, and family. These keys can be learned, practiced, and applied in every area of your life with time-tested results. Let’s dig in!

#1 - Enthusiasm Can Be Contagious 

You can influence and attract others and be a change-maker in your sphere.

Think about a time in your home or office when the atmosphere needed to change. Have you ever had enthusiastic teachers or colleagues change the atmosphere in the room because their passion for the subject or confidence in the team became contagious? Scripture indicates that it all starts with delighting in the Lord and His Word. “Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] is the man who fears the Lord [with awe-inspired reverence and worships Him with obedience], who delights greatly in His commandments” (Ps. 112:1, AMP). This is only one verse, but I encourage you to read the whole chapter.

As leader of an organization, team, or family, if you approach the office, a Zoom call, or a meeting with a lack of enthusiasm, how can you expect the people around you to be encouraged or upbeat? Galatians 6:9-10 says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (ESV).

On the positive side, let me give you an example. Recently, I was leading a project where we ran into some deadlines and problems, putting the entire project at risk. Several steps were required to get this project back on track. I knew that whatever attitude I had was going to carry over to the team. I knew I needed to go into our conference call with enthusiasm and courage, despite the obstacles and challenges. I  could encourage the team to complete the four or five things outlined and propose we could certainly hit the deadline. Or the opposite—I could take the call lacking enthusiasm and communicate that the deadline was impossible to meet due to the work required. The people looking to me for leadership and hope would literally have to fight against the atmosphere I had created to be able to hit the deadline   and accomplish what we all wanted to achieve. In that situation of bringing enthusiasm to the group, I gave them hope and lifted the energy level. The entire team left the meeting feeling that they could handle the task ahead.

With enthusiasm, you can overcome obstacles that would otherwise feel impossible. I want to encourage you to come with enthusiasm to your leadership role, whether of your family or your colleagues. When you do, you will find other people enjoy being around you.

#2 - Force of Habit 

Your life is a result of what you do daily. It all begins one day at a time.

Sometimes you don’t want to hear that, because frankly there are days you would really like to sit around and not accomplish a lot.  And one day every once in a while is not a problem, but regular, daily, negative habits are. Galatians 6:7 tells us, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap” (ESV).

My Husband, Dave and I try to watch what we eat and stay away from sugar. We were in a habit of not eating sweets and found we didn’t miss sugar much. Then we went on a mini-vacation, and a friend recommended a place that made great chocolate crepes. When we arrived, we found the restaurant, but crepe season was over. However, they had incredible brownies, which we decided to try. We had developed a habit of generally avoiding desserts, but we were going to enjoy the brownie on our cheat day. So, we ate the brownie, and it was good. But then we had a dinner party a few days later at a friend’s house with a lovely meal and special ice cream purchased from Santa Ana, California. We would normally have passed, but that night we looked at each other and said, “Let’s try it!” Before I knew it, we had stopped our habit of no sugar, and we were having sweets three times that week. We realized we were going to have to back off on the sweets because it had started to become a habit.

Now again, there’s nothing wrong with eating sweets once in a while, and I don’t mean to make a big deal about food. I’m just making a point about allowing things in our lives on a consistent basis. Sometimes it can start to become our habit, even if we don’t see it ourselves. We saw ourselves eating healthy, but we were making exceptions on a daily basis, making the exceptions a habit. There are some things we all do every day that we may need to stop doing.

Then there are some things we don’t do every day that we may want to start doing. There are productive habits we can incorporate that bring life on a daily basis. “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much” (Luke 16:10, ESV). An example of someone who accomplished amazing things set in place by a daily habit is John  Maxwell. Maxwell is one of the greatest authors on leadership in the world, having written nearly 100 books on the subject.

So what’s the secret to someone being able to write that many books? My husband had the opportunity to sit with him at lunch one day and asked him. How are you able to write so many books? John explained to Dave that he disciplines himself to write daily for at least thirty minutes. He writes down his thoughts on a subject, and then later hands the compiled material over to an assistant who works with him. That person takes the information, sorts, and edits it into order for future books. All the information is coming out of John as the author, born out of a daily habit of writing a little bit every day. That was encouraging to me because writing a book or sitting down and writing several pages on a report can honestly be overwhelming. But anybody can take fifteen minutes a day and write. “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master’” (Matt. 25:21, ESV).

#3 - Develop a Positive Mental Attitude

You cannot control what other people do, but you can control how you respond. Negativity steals hope.

One of the keys to maintaining a positive attitude is to listen to things, read things, and pay attention to things that are positive around you. How is that possible when there is so much negative attitude and information out there? You learn to look at things through the lens of God’s Word. You can even look at challenges you face on a daily basis, believing God is in control and has the best life planned for you. Philippians 4:8-9 tells us how to do this: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you” (ESV). When you look at things with a positive mental attitude, it gives you an incredible edge, and you are a much happier person.

Being an agent of change myself, I frequently work toward bringing change through alternative techniques and fresh ideas. Change usually requires doing things differently, and not everyone is happy about change. There are many who will openly speak out about the change and question the new direction you’ve implemented. I have learned not to stew about things like this but to develop a positive mental attitude toward these situations.

Even though it’s discouraging initially, I’ve found if I look with a positive mental attitude, realizing that change is hard for people, I can see the whole situation differently. Instead of getting upset at someone resisting my changes, I see it as helping me identify someone who needs more clarity to understand the process and the steps being taken toward the final goal. It’s helpful to find those people, then take a moment to talk to them rather than submit to the temptation to do something just to make myself look good. Proverbs 16:24 says, “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body” (ESV). Or, in other words, you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

During my life, I have endured betrayal, lies to and about me, theft, slander, false accusation, disappointment, and sorrow. Although these were sad moments, I’ve still had much more joy than sorrow! Often, it made people angrier that I remained positive, but a positive mental attitude is what got me through these things and more without offense, bitterness, or anger. I had a boss tell me one time, “Karen, you are stronger than ten acres of garlic!” I think that was a compliment. What made me appear so strong? Living out this key and believing that the Word is true. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Rom. 8:28, ESV).

#4 - Make a Commitment to Excellence 

Be prepared to pay the full price for excellence, and count the cost.

I have to work at this one pretty consistently, and I will tell you why. I like to get things done and done quickly. Every day, I see another reason why God brought Dave and me together. He helps remind me that we need to do things with excellence. We’ve been doing some projects around the house, and one is whitewashing over orange brick then painting the floor gray on our porch. In my enthusiasm, I wanted it done quickly. As Dave walked me through all the necessary steps in preparation for the paint, I appreciated that he wanted to do the job right, not just get it done fast. We have a push-pull in our relationship that I mostly love. Things may take just a little longer to get done in the house, but the result is always better, and it’s done with excellence. That has been exceedingly helpful for me. “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” (Col. 3:23-24, ESV).

Excellence usually requires extra time and extra effort, but the result is worth it in every area. Good examples of this are proofing what you write before you send it, pausing and not rushing an emotional response, looking through things produced like a newsletter and making sure all the information is correct, or checking grammar when documenting a written process. All these things can help assure you’re going to develop the best opportunity for excellence. Not everyone is gifted in the area of details. I can look at details if I need to, but it’s difficult for me. Because I don’t like to look at details—I’m not very good at it—I like to surround myself with people who love details. You can utilize these keys, but you don’t have to accomplish all of them yourself. By being aware of them, you can surround yourself with a team or put processes in place to help leverage these keys for success. In the areas where you’re not as strong, you can find a team member who is.

“By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks” (Heb. 11:4, ESV). Long-term, you’re always going to be happier doing things with excellence. I want to encourage you that this is one of those key areas you can bring people around you. Pull the gifts and talents out of those in your family, your spouse, and your colleagues at work. Hire people who can fill gaps for you. The spirit of excellence is something that pleases God because it reflects His Spirit.

# 5 - Develop Persistence and Perseverance 

This comes through enduring difficulties. Struggle develops character.

One of the examples I like to use for perseverance is starting a business or ministry. What if, after ten years, there hasn’t been much difficulty or any major issues to work through? The prevailing mindset would be a false sense that everything is going to be perfect. But after significant growth, challenges start to arise. Unfortunately, you wouldn’t know how to handle them. Dealing with challenges is cumulative. You must build up to it.

“And not only this, but [with joy] let us exult in our sufferings and rejoice in our hardships, knowing that hardship (distress, pressure, trouble) produces patient endurance; and endurance, proven character (spiritual maturity); and proven character, hope and confident assurance [of eternal salvation]. Such hope [in God’s promises] never disappoints us, because God’s love has been abundantly poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Rom. 5:3-5, AMP).

As you gain influence moving toward your mission or vision, you’re going to face opposition. That certainly was true in the life of Jesus and His disciples. If the disciples had not encountered challenges along the way, it would have been much more difficult for them after Jesus ascended into heaven. There is a biblical way, and a biblical purpose for acquiring this skill. The path to obtaining hope includes tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and then character, hope. Going through difficult times helps you gain strength. As things come against you, surprise you, or disappoint you, hope based on past tribulations and difficulties catapults you into handling what’s ahead so you can push through in a positive way.

Along with that dream house was a pretty substantial mortgage based on both our incomes. Even though I was working and contributed significantly to our monthly income, I had lost the person who was responsible to oversee our financial well-being in the family unit. As a banker, I knew the answer would be to refinance into a thirty-year note or obtain a lower interest rate. But I didn’t qualify on just my income. This was also during the time I had quit my executive job and moved to Colorado when Levi was attending Charis Bible College. There was absolutely no way I could take on such a significant monthly payment, so I had rented out our house. I had found good tenants, but I was always thinking about the possibility of something going wrong. I didn’t have enough reserves to handle any loss. We were upside down with the mortgage because of the 2008 recession, and like many executive homes at that time, there was a substantial drop in value.

It was highly stressful, and during that time I came to the end of myself. I realized I couldn’t possibly oversee the house or guarantee that nothing would go wrong. I couldn’t guarantee I would have a renter to cover the expenses. In fact, I was going backward, and certainly working at the phone center for $10 per hour wasn’t going to pay a monthly mortgage. I had so much stacked against me, trying to take on this responsibility and figure out what to do by myself. I was headed for dire consequences, worrying about all that was involved. I was worn out, stressed out, and I had no choice but to give it to God. I had to let God know, “I can’t do anything about this. I need You to take care of it.” It was at that point when He probably said, “Phew! Finally, she gave up.” I persevered through those difficult times, and it was miraculous. For eight years, I did not miss one payment, nothing was late, and just a few months ago, we were able to sell the home, yielding a substantial check at closing.

Had I not learned to persevere in that situation and give everything to God to bring about hope for the future, I would have missed something special. During this period, I tried to sell the house multiple times, but God put on my heart the reason it wasn’t selling— He would cause it to sell when it would benefit me most. That’s exactly what happened.

How did that help me? Well, now when I’m facing a financial situation, purchasing property, facing a shortfall or starting a business, I’m able to tap into my experience, hold on to peace, and receive hope that God will see me through every situation. “Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints” (Eph. 6:18, ESV).

Persistence and perseverance will always work to your benefit. Through perseverance, I was also able to grab hold of my emotional maturity. It’s exhausting to throw emotional fits—especially when they could be daily occurrences. Because I was faced with constant pressure in this area, I had to grow up. I had to find peace in every situation. So even though the financial pressure was intense, I kept it between the Lord and me, and He taught me to hang in there with Him. There were times I felt emotionally lost and gave in to fear, but He helped me stay steady amidst the pressure.

I tell you what, nothing works like the Word when going through difficulties. “You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness” (2 Tim. 3:10, ESV). Difficulties are not brought on by God. Tim and I had made a decision to go into substantial debt with high payments, not knowing what was ahead of us. It was a decision we made, but even in that God was with us, and He helped me walk through it.  Perseverance is important. It brings about hope, and it builds character that’s necessary for success in all areas of life.