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Junkyard Management

Deconstructing

A bit of advice for my friends deconstructing their faith.

The junkyard is where things are taken apart. There’s a reason people in the business called them auto dismantling centers! We earned our living by stripping cars of every valuable part, then selling the bits and pieces to our customers.

And what did our customers do once they bought those parts? They fixed their car. They made something better.

I admired our customers. They had a finished product. It ran well, or it looked good, or was more whole. They didn’t just strip something apart in a few moments of …

Generosity, Goble Properties, Junkyard Management, Leadership,

Faith and work

My flight to Philadelphia was scheduled to leave at 11:35 AM. But there was no plane at the gate at 11:30 AM, which was obviously a bad sign. About that time the ticket agent explained the plane was ready and sitting in the hanger about a quarter mile away, but there was no one to move the plane to the gate. A classic worker shortage situation.

The drama continued for a few hours as they scrambled for crew, extra ticket agents, and maintenance staff. Eventually they cancelled the flight. I won’t bore you with the (irritating) details.

There’s a misplaced …

Goble Properties, Junkyard Management, Leadership, Random Thoughts,

Small Business

Hey, do you know anyone who owns a small business? Odds are you do. So you probably know how hard the past year plus has been for all small businesses.

If the person you know is a person of faith, you might forward this article to them: Buy Local (For God’s Sake): Why the Church Should Partner With Small Business.

Also, if you know anyone in church ministry, you might share that same article.

One of the reasons I volunteer for the De Pree Center and admire groups like Faith Driven Entrepreneur (among others) is because they see how our …

Generosity, Junkyard Management, Philanthropy,

Financial Planners and Generosity

Last week I wrote about not expecting pastors to be your primary source of information about generosity.

This week it’s about financial planners. Don’t assume that because they know the difference between a charitable remainder trust and a charitable gift annuity that they know anything at all about actual generosity.

The truth is that most financial planners are trained at, well, planning your finances. Most have a financial incentive in mind — namely fees for managing your money.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. I use them regularly. In this increasingly complex world we all need their expertise.

But … …

Goble Properties, Junkyard Management, Leadership, Random Thoughts,

The Morning Welcome

Each morning when I arrive at work I say hello to the folks who sweep the streets, maintain the landscaping, pick up the garbage, and touch up paint on the curbs. They do the overlooked but crucial jobs, allowing the rest of us the luxury of focusing on our jobs.

My office is on the second floor of a shopping center. The retail businesses are on ground level, offering such things as health foods, jewelry repair, cooking utensils, and pizza by the slice. Most of them open about 10 AM.

Typically I arrive at my office around 8 AM. So …

Junkyard Management, Leadership, Random Thoughts,

Community is Not Transactional

A few months ago I had a meeting with a young man with big dreams. It was a get to know each other conversation over bad coffee (do not EVER buy a Starbucks cappuccino … not going to make that mistake again). The guy across the table was an idealist. The good thing about idealists is they push all of us to be better. The bad thing is they are never truly satisfied with anything, like a grumpy perfectionist armed with moral arrogance. But then maybe the coffee was just souring my mood.

Our conversation meandered across a variety of …

Junkyard Management, Leadership, Philanthropy,

Which Part Are You?

Last week I wrote about junkyard wisdom and used the line, “Junk cars, like broken people, often have the parts to make something whole.”

It triggered some fun/silly exchanges with friends about what car part they actually are. One said he was a UV joint because he held things together, another said a seatbelt because he was strong but passive, and another said a spare wheel just waiting to go but enjoying the downtime (sounds Covid induced to me). There were others, but you get the idea.

So I was thinking about what spare part I am, and the metaphors …

Junkyard Management, Junkyard Wisdom Book, Leadership,

What’s Wisdom Got To Do With It?

Apologies to Tina Turner for hijacking her song title and making it worse, but the question of the day is why junkyard … wisdom?

Everybody understands the junkyard piece, at least they do when they read my bio. I grew up working Saturdays and summers in our family’s wrecking yard – aka junkyard – and it shaped my perspective on the world. I see life through the prism of a family business that bought junk and sold parts.

But how does wisdom fit into this perspective?

Wisdom is elusive to define. It is many layered, showing up in …