Tuesday; April 14

          I grew up on the music of Lynyrd Skynyrd.  The country rock of the boys from Jacksonville, Florida are part of the soundtrack of my life.  If you are familiar with the group you know they have had their share of ups and downs, so when I got the chance to hear them in person a couple years ago, I didn’t know what to expect.  I had been disappointed by aging acts in the past, so I tried not to get too excited.  Needless to say, I was thrilled with the show the group put on.  They played their golden oldies, but did so with a professionalism that transcended the years.
          As I thought about this experience it got me to thinking about what it takes to keep us at the top of our game even as we begin to age.  What do we need to do to continue to bless the people around us with our talents?       
1.  Never lose the love you have for doing what you do.  I believe that much of the degradation of our talents comes from getting bored or taking success for granted.  As long as we a passion for what we do, we will be able to do it at a higher level.
2.  Remember to keep first things first.  It is easy to get distracted from what made us successful in the beginning.  Sometimes the thing that helps us stand out is doing the little things very well.  Stay fresh by being true to what we do well.
3.  Introduce new people to your established talents.  As long as there are new people being influenced by what we have to give, success is possible.  When we invest the same amount of attention into our new audience as we do our established relationships, we’ll stay relevant.
          It is easy to quit; but what would happen if, instead of giving up, we gave our best?  Remember, the talents God has given us have no expiration date!
          Think About It!

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