How Would You Move Mt. Fuji?

This morning I managed to set and keep my priorities in line for the first time in quite a while. On Sunday morning I woke up early, washed and fed the dog, did the dishes, started the laundry, and took the time to clear my mind, calm my spirit and pray. It's such a simple thing that I rarely take the time to stop and do. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 tells us to give thanks, be happy and pray at all times…and I do.

I walk out the door every morning thanking the Lord for the great day I'm going to have and asking him to protect my family, faith and future. I ask him to bless me with the fruit of the spirit and arm me with the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-18). It's a powerful, sincere prayer that reminds me to believe on Him as well as in Him. There are tons of great prayers out there that I've heard people say works for them. This is just what I've found works for me at this season in my life.

That being said, as good as that constant conversation with Him is, there's something calming about just being alone with God. Taking the time to give Him my full attention does everything for me. They say the voice of God is like the call of the sea. No one can hear it but those who have in them the nature of the sea. I figure it's somewhere in those still, silent moments alone that we develop our sea ears. It was a good morning.

I had the pleasure of hearing Pastor Paul Mason share a message on TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More) later that morning. He talked about how God has always built and worked through a team of people to move his Kingdom forward. Building God's Kingdom is a rather large task. It got me to thinking about a book I once read called How Would You Move Mt. Fuji. The book was a short explanation of Microsoft's riddle approach to interviewing candidates for key positions in the company. The questions are designed to see how you think. In most cases, the questions don't have any particular right or wrong answer; they are just designed so the interviewer can watch your wheels turn.

It's been about 4 years since I read the book and interviewed with MS. Since then I've been interviewed several times and heard many, many different riddles. To this day, "How would you move Mt. Fuji?" is still my favorite. Recently I had someone ask me the question again. Not surprisingly, my answer had changed.

Good riddles such as this stand the test of time because they speak to you at different phases of your life. I'll be completely transparent right now and admit that the first time I answered that question I included a cost and time breakdown as well as an attached note stating, "the actual costs may vary greatly depending on the relocation destination." That probably explains why I didn't get invited back for another interview ☺.

When I was asked the question again, my answer was shorter. It didn't involve shipping rates or currency exchange. It didn't depend on the annual rainfall in the South Pacific. My answer was simple. "How would you move Mt. Fuji?"

I'd believe I could do it.

Let me explain. Say I'm actually charged with moving Mt. Fuji. Hopefully you'll agree with me that Mt. Fuji is big enough that I cannot grab a shovel and hope to transplant it in my lifetime. That means that I'm going to need some help. In fact, it means I'll need a lot of help. I'll need an army of people – hundreds, maybe even thousands of people – all working together to get the job done. It means I'll need a team.

Any team that size is going to need leadership. What kind of leaders should I pull together? What characteristics should my leadership team have? Intelligence? A solid work ethic? Morality? Experience? Great communication skills? What should my team look like?

I've come to realize that what I want them to look like doesn't really matter. My team will look just like me. The book I read says that, "Like begets like." A friend of mine translated that for me one time as, "You can't make what you ain't is." That means that I can't create a team of people with great work ethics if I'm not a hard worker myself. I can't create a team of servant leaders if I don't serve people myself. I can't create a team of people with high moral standards if I don't hold myself to a high moral standard. Name the characteristic you want your team to have. It goes on and on. That's why leader is spelled "e-x-a-m-p-l-e."

So, my first step in moving Mt. Fuji is looking in the mirror and realizing that I've got some work to do on myself. If I want a great team to help me move the mountain, I'm going to have to shore up my own personal weaknesses. Am I a strong communicator? Am I good at facing and settling conflict? Am I a Godly husband? Am I the same in private as I am in person? Am I a liar? Am I good for my word? Am I a friend? Am I punctual? Am I an up-lifter of everyone around me? Am I a good listener? Am I an expert in the field I'm working in? Am I double minded? Ouch!!

Avoiding character issues is like scratching an itch with sand paper. It feels good for a second; but anything longer than that will scar you for life. I've been guilty of this. Truth be told, it's the reason I am where I'm at today. I looked in the mirror for a good 7 years convincing myself that there were no chinks in the armor. I kept telling myself that I didn't need to work on me. I convinced myself that if I surrounded myself with a bunch of people who had already faced their fears, mine would be hidden and they could pick up my slack. It was a nice idea, but it didn't work.

Life lesson 1: Influence is a prerequisite to leadership. People won't follow you if they have nothing to gain. In fact, your influence (and thus ability to lead people) is in direct proportion to the value to add to their life. The reason that I struggled so much to lead a team (baseball, work, friends, clubs, etc) of people way above my level was that I never had anything they wanted. If have less experience, money and character than everyone else, why would they follow me? Where could I possibly lead them that they couldn't go without me?

If you've ever watched cycling, associations are a lot like a peloton. A peloton is just a group of people riding together to reduce wind resistance. Rather quickly in any race, the top 10-20% of the riders naturally migrate toward one another to form the lead peloton. Everyone in the peloton is of comparable skill and focus. If you're a new or below average rider, your first competitive goal should be to catch up and ride with the peloton. It will make you stronger and teach you how to ride faster than you currently are. In fact the middle of the peloton is the best place to be in any race…unless you want to win. Winners see the peloton simply as a place where they can regain their strength before charging the front again. All winners know that the leader's jersey is never given to the middle of the pack. To be the leader means pulling away from the crowd and moving ahead.

It's the same way in life. Before I can lead anyone, I'm going to have to start separating myself from masses with good decisions, higher standards, and by taking more responsibility for who I am and where I want to go. It's called character and it's the foundation of all leadership. This is my first step in moving Mt. Fuji.

My next step in moving Mt Fuji is building my own belief. To do this I start digging. I dig when it's sunny. I dig when it's raining. I dig when it's snowing, sleeting and hailing. I dig in cold weather and the dead of night. I dig in the dog days of Summer. When I don't feel like digging anymore, I keep digging. I don't dig because I think I can move the mountain by myself. I dig because I'm proving to myself that the work is doable and I can do it. I'm proving to myself that even if no one else ever helped me move Mt. Fuji, I can and would still keep digging. I'm learning how to believe in myself.

Life lesson 2: Belief will always be found when going on faith one more time. I've found that the greatest part of any success is the journey. The journey is what makes it all worthwhile. It's where I earn my self-respect. It's where I begin to believe that I can win based on my decision not to quit. And it's where I choose to succeed based on my resolution to go one more time. It's called "one more time" mentality and it's the cornerstone of belief.

Consider Jesus. No one exemplified one more time mentality better than Jesus. Tied to a block and with the flesh torn from his back, he took a lash one more time. When the weight of the cross forced him to the ground, he willed himself back up and took another step forward one more time. When he hung from the cross with the weight of his body squeezing the air from his lungs, he pushed himself up and gasped for air one more time. Just before death, when he felt alone and abandoned in this world, he faithfully turned to prayer one more time. And when he had nothing left, having lost his very life, he rose from the grave to encourage us one more time.

Wherever there was a need, Jesus would go one more time. He never stopped moving forward. He stayed out front and never stopped saying, "You can do it too. You have what it takes. You can make a difference." That's a secret of leadership. Leaders don't weaken those around them by doing things for them that they can do for themselves. Leaders empower others to do things for themselves. Leaders know that if someone wants to rise up as a leader, they too will have to stand on their own and learn to go one more time. Leadership is never given; it must be earned. That's why leaders know the best thing they can be to their team is a good example. It is a constant reminder to the people on your team who want to become leaders of how to do so.

Life lesson 3: Belief is a snowball. That's why leaders never stand alone. As Bill Graham said, "Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened." That's what Jesus meant when he told us that belief the size of a mustard seed can move mountains. It works like this: great leaders believe in themselves and their cause with such conviction that other people start believing in them. When people hear a great leader tell them they can do something, they start believing in themselves. When people start believing in themselves, success happens and the process repeats. Like begets like. The snowball starts moving. Pretty soon it's an avalanche. Look at back through history. Pick a hero. The story is the same. One man with belief is a majority.

This brings us back to the beginning. Belief is how you move mountains and it's how I'd move Mt. Fuji. I'd simply believe that I could do it. My belief would come from my knowledge of myself as a person as character and my unwavering commitment to do the work and prove to myself that the work was doable and I could do it.

I tell you that to remind you of this. Whatever your name; wherever your home; whatever your past or present circumstances; whatever cards you were dealt; the ability to move mountains lies in you. You can do it. Believe that you can move a mountain and start digging. You won't be digging alone for long.

hilarious article

Quixtar explained: Why it's a scam
by Matt Lau

A Google search of "I hate Quixtar" produces 55 results. What is this company called Quixtar and why would people bother creating a web page devoted to addressing their hatred of it?

Quixtar has been accredited by the Better Business Association since 1999, the year it started business, and was determined by the Federal Trade Commission to be a legal and viable business model. Since its launch in 1999 the company has recorded $6.8 billion in sales and has paid out $2.2 billion in bonuses and incentives to its distributors. Quixtar, through it's One by One charity program has donated over $50 million and over 800,000 volunteer hours to a number of charitable organizations, including the American Red Cross, International Aid, and Easter Seals.

On the surface, this company appears to be an American corporate success story, but there are several reasons why Quixtar is a "scam." (Scam defined as "a fraudulent scheme, esp. for making a quick profit; swindle.")

It has been discovered that some people who become IBO's (Independent Business Owners) start using products that they did not use previously. For example, one source cited that his college roommate began drinking energy drinks. But he did not drink energy drinks BEFORE he was in Quixtar. You see, Quixtar manufactures XS Energy Drinks, the second best-selling energy drink on the market (and the top-selling, American-manufactured energy drink). Do you see now how Quixtar is a scam? Prior to becoming a business owner that distributes XS, his roommate drank Pepsi, coffee, and probably beer; but instead of drinking those products, he began drinking a product that was manufactured by Quixtar. True, every single product manufactured by Quixtar is covered by a 100% money back guarantee for 180 days, including empty boxes of totally consumed products, but he was probably too embarrassed to ask for it. Instead, he spent hard-earned money on a product that he reps rather than spending his hard-earned money on a competitor's product. Scam! Just like the poor pretzel-cart vendor who spends $30,000 for his Pret-zilla franchise and ends up eating a pretzel every day for lunch instead of his usual hot dog on a stick. Or the McDonald's owner who was tricked by McDonald's corporation into no longer eating a Whopper every day. Or the owner of the Ford dealership that was tricked into driving a Ford instead of a Mitsubishi. Don't fall for these scams.

Upon further research into the "roommate investigation," it was discovered that some people spend more money on products than they earn in commissions. Looking at the "roommate investigation" research we find that the "roommate" bought energy drinks, but these energy drinks cost more than the commission he earned for buying these energy drinks. What a scam! You mean to tell me that the poor, witless IBO earns less than a 100% commission on each case of energy drinks? To see how unrealistic it is to make a profit, let's look at what an IBO needs to do to earn a commission equal to the cost of a single 12-pack of XS. With a retail price of $19.99 and an estimated 20% mark-up, that is only a $4.00 profit per case sold. So assuming the "roommate" had four customers that each purchased a 12-pack of XS energy drinks each month, he would only break roughly even if he drank his own 12-pack a month, thus blowing his $16 profit on something that could have been spent on Pepsi, coffee, or beer. Fortunately the investigator recognized this scam and refused to purchase any products from the "roommate."

A widely known fact of Quixtar is that everyone has heard of it and it has reached market saturation. These known facts of course trump company claims that every day, globally over 12,000 people sign up as new distributors in Quixtar North America and its sister company Amway Global.

A sinister secret that Quixtar doesn't want anyone to know about it, is that the average "active" Quixtar IBO earns only $115 in gross monthly income. This is such a damning secret, that Quixtar prints it on a document called the Quixtar Business Opportunity Brochure that is required to be given to all prospects seeing the business opportunity. Here in this document is also the definition of what an "active" IBO is:

"'Active' IBOs: Based on an independent survey during 2001, 'active' means an IBO who attempted to make a retail sale, or presented the Marketing Plan, or received bonus money, or attended a company or IBO meeting in the year 2000."

So according to the "roommate investigation," by attempting to sell an energy drink, he qualified as an "active" IBO. Yet, he didn't make any money. This is as blatant a scam as professional athletics. When you hear about the so-called huge average incomes that basketball players earn, they are actually only including those basketball players that play on NBA teams! But they purposely exclude the literally millions of kids playing at the college, high school, and little league level that never collect any money in income from playing basketball. Scam!

Another hidden secret of Quixtar, is that many of the high-income earners provide training materials to their organizations and sell them at a profit. Of course, all new Quixtar IBO's (Independent Business Owners) are required to sign a contract which informs them that all BSMs (Business Support Materials) are optional and that the producers and sellers of the BSMs may make profit or loss from their sale (like any other business). Also, BSMs are required by Quixtar to be covered by the same 100% money back guarantee for 180 days that all Quixtar products are covered by. But brand new people starting a Quixtar business should not be expected to read a contract that they are signing or visit Quixtar web sites to learn these things. Instead, they are sucked in to buying tapes, books, and tickets to motivational seminars. All a part of the Quixtar scam.

If you don't believe that Quixtar is a scam by reading this one article, then you can always read Eric Scheibeler's eBook, Merchant's of Deception. You can trust what he has to say since he is a failed IBO whose business fell apart, he attempted to sue Quixtar and other IBOs for millions of dollars in alleged damages, was forced to recant on allegations that he admitted were false, and then later started his own Multi-Level Marketing company (a competitor to Quixtar) which later failed.

So you see, Quixtar is a scam when you delve into the negative articles, blogs, and websites devoted to it. In fact, the only place you will hear anything positive about a company like Quixtar is from your state Attorney General's office, the Better Business Bureau, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Federal Trade Commission, vice presidents of partner stores like Circuit City and Barnes & Nobles.com, charities such as Easter Seals, Red Cross, and U.S. Dream Academy, and business leaders like Robert Kiyosaki and Donald Trump. To get the true story on the Quixtar scam, limit your google search to "i hate quixtar." And to get the true story on some other truly negative things, try these other google searches:

"i hate democrats" (8390 results)
"i hate republicans" (11,200 results)
"i hate madonna" (4540 results)
"i hate donuts" (773 results)
"i hate cheese" (20,000 results), and of course...

"i hate cripples" (66 results)

Learn more about this author, Matt Lau.

Wild at Heart

It is fear that keeps a man at home where things are neat and orderly and under his control. But answers to his deepest questions are not to be found on television or in the refrigerator...If a man is ever to find out who he is and what he's here for, he's got to make that journey for himself. He's got to get his heart back.

"Where are all the real men?" You asked them to be women. How can a man know he is one when h is highest aim is minding his manners? [Men] know their heart is on the run, but they often do not know where to pick up the trail.

Instead of asking what you think you ought to do to become a better man, I want to ask, What makes you come alive? In the heart of every man is a desperate desire for a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to rescue.

A Battle to Fight:

Aggression is part of the masculine design, we are hardwired for it...Life needs a man to be fierce - and fiercely devoted. The wounds he will take throughout his life will cause him to lose heart if all he has been trained to be is soft. This is especially true in the murky waters of relationships, where a man feels least prepared to advance.

Women didn't make Braveheart one of the best-selling films of the decade. The Patriot, Rocky, Troy, Die Hard, Saving Private Ryan, Top Gun, Gladiator - the movies a man loves reveal what his heart longs for, what is set inside him from the day of his birth.

An Adventure to Live:

There's a reason the American cowboy has taken on mythic proportions. he embodies a yearning every man knows from very young - to "go West," to find a place where he can be all the knows he was meant to be.

If a man has lost this desire, says he doesn't want it, that's only because he doesn't know he has what it takes. He believes that he will fail the test. And so he decies it's better not to try...Most men hate the unknown and, like Cain, want to settle down and build their own city, get on top of their life. But you can't escape it - there is something wil in the heart of every man.

A Beauty to Rescue:

A man wants to be the hero to the beauty.. It's not just that a man needs a battle to fight; he needs someone to fight for. Remember Nehemiah's words to the few brave souls defending a wall-less Jerusalem? "Don't be afraid...fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes." The battle itself is never enough; a man years for romance. It's not enough to be a hero; it's that he is a hero to someone in particular, to the woman he loves.

The Feminine heart:

Every woman years to be fought for. She wants to be wanted. She wants to be pursued.

Every woman also wants an adventure to share. A woman doesn't want to be the adventure; she wants to be caught up into something greater than herself...There is also a deep desire to simply and truly be the beauty, and be delighted in.

The world kills a woman's heart when it tells her to be tough, efficient, and independent. [Face it] a Christian woman is...tired. No one is fighting for her heart; there is no grand adventure to be swept up in; and every woman doubts very much that she has any beauty to unveil...as for your own femininity, which would you rather have said of you - that you are a "tireless worker," or that you are a "captivating woman?"

God gave us eyes so that we might see; he gave us ears that we might hear; he gave us wills that wwe might choose, and he gave us hearts that we might live. The way we handle the heart is everything. A man must know he is powerful; he must know he has what it takes. A woman must know she is beautiful; she must know she is worth fighting for....Your heart may feel dead and gone, but it's there. Something wild and strong and valiant, just waiting to be released.

...For if you are going to know who you truly are as a man, if you are going to find a life worth living, if you are going to love a woman deeply and not pass on your confusion to your children, you simply must get your heart back.