Reach for the Stars

I listened for the familiar sound of the plane engine as our corporate leadership team departed for Denver, Colorado, looking to make an impact through our "Belonging Tour." As I watched the dark tarmac disappear below us, I focused my attention on Tim Elmore's book, The Art of Transformational Leadership.

I read the first chapter, which relates a leader to a quarterback, rather than a referee, and then I began the second chapter, which talks about three buckets. The first bucket is the one we can control. The second bucket is one we cannot control, and the third bucket is the one we can influence.

I love to read. In fact, before 10 a.m. today, I had read three chapters of Deepa Purushothaman's book, The First and The Few, two chapters of my Bible, and a chapter from my devotional book.

Sometimes, people wait until they receive a leadership position to read about leadership. Other people think of themselves as leaders but never pick up a book to read and learn. They assume "winging it" has gotten them this far, so why change now?

My papa used to always recite to me, "Two men sit behind prison bars, one looked at the bars and the other looked at the stars."

As a little girl in our concrete block home where the roof never quite connected with the walls, reading was my window to a world I never knew: a world where hot water flowed freely through faucets, enough to sit and enjoy for hours, a world where people didn't make their clothes but could walk into a store and choose something off the rack. Reading took me to countries where people were viewed on their merit and not on their skin color, a place where married women had opinions and were free to express them. Reading gave me the stars!

I am grateful for reaching many of those stars that I read about only in books. But more than that, I am grateful for my love of reading. Stars evolve just as our dreams do, and reading, rather than scrolling through Facebook, Tik-Tok, Instagram or LinkedIn, has become my solace in an ever-changing world. It is the enrichment of my dreams. Unlike social media that leaves a person wanting and feeling "less than," every amazing book that I read leaves me filled with knowledge, perspective, and a richness I did not have before.

Don't hope for it by looking at others. Reach for the stars through a book, and you will soon achieve your goals!