Category Archives: Inspiration

Today I Write

Today I’m writing because I committed to writing. Today I’m writing because I want to do this for real. Today I’m writing because I can’t let a day like to day go by without putting words on a page. I’ve read too many things lately about fear, resistance and the willingness NOT to write.

I’m tired of avoiding what I really want to do. I’m tired of being a victim of my willing lack of effort. I’m tired of giving in and giving up.

Today, I’m at my computer putting words down on the page so that It (fear, resistance, victimhood) don’t get me. Maybe it will inspire you to do the thing you’re avoiding. Maybe not.

Either way, today, I write, because I committed to writing.

The Secret to Learning Like Bill Gates

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Bill Gates’s Mobile Library

Leaders are readers. I don’t know who said it, but I believe it. I recently heard that that the typical college grad doesn’t read another book after graduating from college (the number may be as high as 80%). The most recent edition of Wired Magazine, edited by Bill Gates and Bill Clinton featured a picture of Gates’s “mobile library.” That got me thinking, whileI don’t read near as much as I think I should, I’ve made it a priority to read good books. I believe that everyone can grow in their leadership capacity. One of the best ways, to grow is by reading good books.

Here are eight reasons why I think reading is one of the best ways to grow:

Gaining new perspective—Most of us see the world through the lens of where we were raised, our family, our co-workers, and a few friends. Reading opens us up to people who live in other times and places, who work in other industries, and who assume things to be true that we’ve never even considered.
Gaining access to experts—whether you’re a pastor, a manager, a teacher, an executive, a medical doctor, or a mom, there are people in your field that know more than you do (unless you’re Stephen Hawking, but he reads). Many of them write books. While it’s nearly impossible to spend time with experts, we can learn from what they’ve written. (In fact, if you ever get to meet a respected expert, read what they’ve written first, so you ask good questions.)
Stimulating your own thinking—I find that reading is a great way to stimulate my own thinking. Sometimes I even stop reading and jot down notes in my journal or on my computer. Reading pulls me out of my mental ruts.
Challenging bad thinking and habits—We all need feedback. We all have ideas that are not well-reasoned, or lack good information. We also have bad habits. Reading exposes us to a better way to think and live.
Confirming good thinking and habits—It’s encouraging to emerge from your own little world and find you actually know what you’re doing!
Improving your ability to think—The challenges to reading good books make it rewarding. Reading takes time, concentration, the ability to follow an argument or story for multiple pages (even multiple chapters in some cases!). These skills are the skills of thinking and reasoning.
Expanding your horizons—When I read The Search for God in Guinness, I couldn’t believe the number ways Arthur Guinness and his beer company served their employees over the years (increased wages, health care, healthy employee housing, paying half salary to the families of employees while they were away fighting WWII, and more!). It opened up for me brand new possibilities in business and ministry.
Asking good questions—Good answers begin with good questions. The best way to learn to ask good questions is by spending time with those who do. The best questions of human history are captured in good books. Reading them gives you access to those good questions and provides a model for good questions.

2014 is around the corner, challenge yourself to read a great novel and a good non-fiction book this coming year!

I’d love to hear from you—why do you read?

Give Yourself Permission

What Would You Tell Your 20-Year-Old Self?

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Stephen Leonard in 1997

I recently joined a gym and as part of the intake one of the guys asked me, “Stephen, what would you tell your 20-year-old self?” His question made me reflect on 20-year-old Stephen. “What would I want him know—in college, trying to figure out how he’ll live in the world?”

Then it came to me, “Take more risks. I would tell 20-year-old Stephen to take more risks.”

I think back on classes I thought about taking but didn’t. The semester in the U.K. that I always wanted to do, but “couldn’t ever afford.” The girl I wanted to date, but couldn’t risk being rejected. The job I wanted, for which I never applied.

Hockey player Wayne Gretzky said, “You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take.”

How often have you missed out on an opportunity in life, not because you failed, or lacked the skill, or got beat out by someone more qualified, but because you never tried? In my life that’s true more often than I would like to admit.

I don’t want to be laughed at. I don’t want to be criticized. I can tell you every objection to every risk I take. Whether big or small, there’s always a reason to hold back, play it safe, and avoid finding out what I’m really and truly capable of doing.

But I also know risk works. That’s how I met and married my wife. That’s how Lisa and I built our business to the point I could leave my day job. That’s how we help the people who stare understand David and respect people with special needs. That’s how I got fired from one job to get a much better one.

Here’s the thing about avoiding risk—it’s impossible. Safety is an illusion. Life is risky. People are killed in automobile accidents everyday. I know an athletic and otherwise healthy 22-year-old who suddenly died days before college graduation. I’ve seen people in the intensive care unit for heart problems caused by stress. I’ve seen leaders endure criticism, failure, and loss as a result of avoiding risky decisions that they believed in. I’ve spoken with people in their late 80’s who characterize their lives with regret because they avoided the risk of the path they really wanted to follow.

Yes, we need to be responsible in our risk. Start small. Write a blog. Take that trip you’ve always to take. Volunteer your time in a cause you care about. Invite those people for dinner you’ve been wanting to get to know.

If I were to give my 20-year-old self advice, that’s what I would tell him. Risk more. Risk in the little things to gain practice. Learn from failures in risk. And risk again.

I’d love to hear from you. What Would You Tell Your 20-Year-Old Self?

The Secret to Joy in the Christmas Season

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Christmas is a time that seems to be a bundle of emotions—excitement, fear, expectation, loneliness, happiness, sadness—that happen all at the same time for many of us. In the midst of fighting traffic, running our business, shopping for gifts, preparing for guests, and all that goes into this crazy season, I want to take a moment and reflect on Christmas.

Holiday movies urge us to respond to this holiday a variety of ways. It’s about believing—in Santa, in the Christmas spirit, in belief itself (Buddy the Elf wouldn’t lead us astray, would he?), or for nostalgic longing—both for the perfect gift and recapturing childhood (A Christmas Story), having a loving community (How the Grinch Stole Christmas), avoiding stinginess to avoid punishment (A Christmas Carol) and miracles (Miracle on 34^th Street). Christmas is about love, sentiment, family and belief we’re told.

The Bible presents a different picture of Christmas in recounting the humble birth of The King in the midst of real life among real people. It’s easy to think of people in Bible stories as characters in…well a story…rather than as real people responding to the world and the events they experienced just like you and I do. But if we take a moment this season to notice how those first people responded to the first Christmas, it might provide us some ways to think about this Christmas. Luke 2:1-20 (you know, the passage Linus recites in A Charlie Brown Christmas) shows us three responses worth considering.

The people’s response – When the shepherds told people they met that they had seen the long awaited Savior, Messiah, they were amazed—Something big had happened, but they didn’t do anything differently. The people respond with indifference.

Mary’s response contrasts deeply with the crowd. Mary ponders and treasures her experience and all that had been told her. “You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.” Mary responds by embracing the news and taking time to consider the savior’s birth.

The shepherds’ response is to glorify God and to tell others what He has done. God has entered history to bring Salvation! The King has come—and that is good news for them and for you and for me. The shepherds’ respond by praising and talking about God.

The secret to joy in Christmas isn’t time with family, nostalgic memories, doing good deeds, miracles or even believing. It’s understanding that the Lord is come, the King, who rules the world in truth and grace, who puts an end to sins and sorrows and who “comes to make His blessings flow far as the curse is found.”

I want to be like Mary and take time to consider the miracle of the Savior’s birth. I want to be like the shepherds’ and praise God for changing history by sending his son.

How do you make room to consider and praise God in this season?

10 Ways to Live a Life Worth Living

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I recently turned 40 and have been taking stock of my life—where I’ve been, where I am, and where I want to go. It’s been both challenging and energizing. Maybe you can relate? To be honest, I’m in process, but thought I would share my current thoughts about ways to live a life worth living. Here’s my list:

Invest in the mundane. I tend to want to avoid things like doing dishes, changing diapers, taking out the trash, and helping to make dinner. But doing mundane tasks builds a character that’s other-focused and helpful.
Read more. I heard recently that the typical college grad doesn’t read after college. Bill Gates never graduated, but carries (and constantly reads) three bags of books with him as he travels! Which one is better?
Exercise regularly. I know everyone says this. But it’s true. Without being intentional, I sit in front of a computer all day long. I recently joined Gymnazo to be intentional about working out 3-4 times a week.
Invest in people. It’s easy to spend the day focused on getting tasks done. But I’ve noticed days where I make time to be with people and listen to them and hear their stories are better.
Eat well. I’m not a foody. I hate kale and kombucha. Still, I know that eating predominantly yellow—especially processed food (french fries, chips, cookies, pasta)—isn’t good for me. I need to eat foods that are green and blue and purple in much higher quantities than I prefer. So do you.
Share. I’ve noticed the people I regard most highly are those who share kindness, contacts and knowledge most freely (for more see Love is the Killer App by Tim Sanders).
Commit to growth. If you think you avoid challenges, you think effort is a waste of time, or you take criticism personally, then you’re a lot like me—and many others! We want to prove ourselves. Read Mindset and let Stanford professor Carol Dweck inspire you to grow.
Block out Sabbath time. We all need time to re-focus, rejuvenate, relax and re-energize. Schedule this time into your week. First.
Work smarter not harder. Working hard is good, not enough. You need a team to help you—whether at work, or at home, or in your personal life. Life is a team sport. There’s a reason Ecclesiastes says, “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!” (Eccl 4:9-10)
Change your story. As Americans we live by a story where we make ourselves the star of the show. Its true that we face challenges, but through the pursuit of our dreams we can finally create the kind of life we always wanted. The Bible tells a different story. It says Jesus is the star of the show. We rebelled against him, but he is pursuing us to create the kind of life we really need—one that surpasses the life we always wanted. And it will last forever. This story humbles me, but it frees me (and you!) to join Him in a life worth living.

Question: What would make your list of ways to live a life worth living? You can leave a comment below.

I’m an Artist

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Matthias Drawing at a Pub in England

I am not an artist, our youngest son Matthias is. He will tell you readily. When a person meets him, it is the number one label he gives to himself. And who am I to argue? Wherever we go and whatever we’re doing, Matthias has a pad of paper and a pencil. He has spent hours drawing on tables at restaurants, in waiting rooms, in the UCLA cafeteria while we wait for his brother during doctor appointments, up in his bed at night, and just about anywhere else he can find to pull up and start drawing.

Matthias Drawing at Lunch

Last year for Mother’s Day, He decided to make a book for Lisa. Of course it would be a superhero book. (What else would mom want anyway?) To make it special he decided it would be a book of superheros with names beginning at A and going to Z. And, each chapter (yes, I said chapter) needed to have at least three superheros. In the end it was 52 solid pages of superhero awesomeness–not bad for an 8 year old kid! (I won’t mention how I thought it would be a good idea to bind it and make color copies for grandparents, aunts and uncles. I worked it out in my head and the cost seemed pretty reasonable. Until we picked it up. Let’s just say, it’s the most expensive Mother’s Day gift to date.) Of course, we were impressed that the first book out of the Leonard house came by the hand of our 8 year year old son.

Matthias Drawing at a Restaurant

Now, it goes without saying that I love this kid and am a proud dad. Am I bragging? A little bit. Do I want everyone to know what an awesome kid Matthias is? Yes. But that’s not why I share all this. I share it because Matthias is an artist and he pursues it with the abandon of a child. He’d love for everyone to love his art. But that’s not why he draws. He draws because he loves to draw. He loves to create. He doesn’t worry whether people will like his drawings. He doesn’t get hung up about what to draw. He just draws. It’s pure and it’s beautiful.

Matthias Drawing at Church

As I get ready to turn 40 this year, I find I have never been so willing to let expectations and perceptions shape my pursuits. But how much do I do these days because I love it? How often do I identify myself with the things I love to do? I’m a writer. I’m a speaker. I’m a preacher. I’m a singer. I’m a cyclist. Even worse, how often do I engage in these activities and find every square inch there is in which to fit these things into my life? Not enough. I’m on a journey to do just that. I want to be more like my son, who now 9, has multiple books and art projects in the works because it’s who he is. I want you to join me. What do you love that you put off for 100 excuses? Let’s share and encourage each other!

“That Sucks” Best. Words. Ever.

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David at Birth 07/04/2002

July 4th 2002 was one of the best and darkest days of my life. After months of eager anticipation, days of anxiety and hours of fear, Lisa and I welcomed our son David into the world.

Lisa went in for her 36 week pregnancy check up (I almost didn’t go as they had become so routine) and the doctor told us she was measuring small–for 31 weeks! Thus began the whirlwind.

Over the next couple days we sought answers, saw more doctors, were told his small size “could mean anything” by the ultrasound doc at the hospital. I asked what she meant. Her reply? “It could be nothing. He could have a genetic disorder. It could be fatal.” Confusion and panic set in as we checked Lisa into the hospital to induce labor and play the waiting game.

In these anxious hours dear friends began to encourage us that it would all be OK. People tried to cheer us up and take our minds off of things. “I have a feeling it’ll turn out alright.” “Don’t worry, we had a scare with our first pregnancy too.” “Doctors make a big deal out things. I’m sure it will be fine.” To this day I am thankful for those people who were in the thick of it with us. Even while some of their words have given me pause in the days and months and years since, Lisa and I felt loved and buoyed up by our church family and close friends who sat with us on the phone and who brought Lisa El Burrito Jr. in the hospital when she wasn’t supposed to get it.

I remember cheering Lisa on as she endured labor. Both of us afraid of what lay ahead.

“Push baby! We’re going to meet our son!” I called out to her while wondering inside if our baby would come out dead or alive.

I said, “You can do it Honey–just a little more and we get to meet our beautiful son!”

I thought, “You have to do it Honey–just a little more and we learn if our son is beautiful.”

Finally, on the afternoon of that 4th of July (Lisa favorite holiday coincidentally), little David burst forth at a whopping 4lbs 2 oz., seven fingers, ten toes notably missing the crying sounds we had heard from down the hall every few hours as new lives emerged into the world.

24 hours later we learned David’s diagnosis. Cornelia de Lange Syndrome. We had shuffled quickly back to Lisa’s room leaving our son in the N.I.C.U. while we poured out our hearts in grief, when a knock came on the door. For some unknown reason I opened the door to find Rick, one of our church elders, standing there. I didn’t know what to say, but he quickly realized he happened upon us at a bad moment and excused himself. As I began to shut the door I realized I needed to share our awful news with someone and chased after him down the hospital hallway. “Hey Rick. They just told us a couple minutes ago that David has a genetic disorder called Cornelia de Lange Syndrome.” And the next moment is burned into my memory. Rick’s face dropped. He staggered backward until his body found the wall behind him. He looked me in the eyes, compassion on his face and said “That sucks. Steve I’m so sorry.”

Now, I know you’re not supposed to say “sucks.” I know stories like this are supposed to have some moment of profound wisdom and a turning point where everything turns out alright in the end. But this is real life. Those words have been a balm to my soul from that day until this one. Rick’s words gave me freedom to see that Cornelia de Lange Syndrome ought not to be in the world. It’s a sign that something is gravely and pervasively wrong in the world. Rick gave me freedom to hurt and weep and and question God and eventually to pick up the pieces again and move forward.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve walked through many hard moments with a great number of people since those days. I’ve sat at bedsides of dying and dead loved ones as a pastor. I’ve cried with friends enduring divorce. I’ve been in the hospital with people in crisis and more. I can’t remember all my words today. I know my own temptation toward platitudes. I know my instinct to try and make it OK. Still, the best words anyone has ever said to me came at the darkest moment. “That sucks.” Best. Words. Ever.

What words has someone shared with you that spoke to your heart in a time of hurt or crisis?