Coach Dan Foster

One of my greatest struggles is to remain disciplined and focused on the priorities in my life and business. There are so many “things” calling out to me during the day that take me away from being fully engaged in what I need to be doing. The ability to stay focused and disciplined at work and in life, in my opinion, has never been more difficult.

I believe two of the most difficult disciplines in life are being patient and persistent. We want success right away. We want to achieve our goals on our timeline. Instant gratification is the strongest conviction and temptation in our culture today. Life sometimes has a different agenda. Unexpected obstacles show up in our pathway to achieving our goals or living our purpose. When this happens we are left with a choice. We either give up or patiently persist.

When you read those words and examine the two choices, you might think, well that’s easy, just keep pressing on and moving towards your goal. Like many things in life though, that is easier said than done. Fighting through the discouragement that comes from seeing your vision so clearly but just not being able to grab hold of it can take its toll on your emotions, personal relationships, self-confidence and focus.

So how does one patiently persist when obstacles arise between you and your vision for success?

My Christian faith is a major part of who I am. I try to bring my faith into my work as much as I can without it being a stumbling block to my team and clients. The struggle for most Christians in the work place is to be a reflection of Christ and not a reflection of the judgmental legalistic stereotype of Christians that exist today.

This is a major challenge and one that I’ve struggled with for most of my career. Far too often I reflect the stereotype instead of Christ, and I don’t want that to be the case. Over the past few years I’ve identified four ways to bring faith into the workplace in a loving and kind way instead of coming across as a Bible thumping legalistic judgmental Christian. Consider the following:

Going through life there are key events, decisions, and relationships that shape us into who we are. In the past, people would often retell their life stories and family history over dinner or on special occasions to remember these pivotal moments. They did this in the hope that their stories would remind them, and future generations, of the courage, faith, and sacrifice it took to get through certain seasons of life.

To be known is everyone’s deepest desire. Why? Because, when we are known we feel a sense of completion and wholeness that brings inner peace. To be known requires not only a level of transparency on our part but an act of engagement on the part of those we wish to be known by. When we are recognized for whom we are – no masks, no titles, no judgment – we experience a freedom to grow and develop in all areas of our life. Being known gives us the freedom to be all we are destined to be.