Lessons from the ant on how to build a collaborative team

Lessons from the ant on how to build a collaborative team

One of my favourite books of the Bible is Proverbs. When I’m feeling particularly demotivated (typically first thing in the morning), my go to scripture is Proverbs 6:10-11:

A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to sleep—
So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler,
And your need like an armed man.

It literally snatches my edges and gathers me all the way together!

I’ve always really loved the lines before this scripture too. For example, Proverbs 6:6-8

Which reads:

Go to the ant, you sluggard!
Consider her ways and be wise,
Which, having no captain,
Overseer or ruler,
Provides her supplies in the summer,
And gathers her food in the harvest.

Prior to my recent trip to Costa Rica, I always saw these lines a simple admonishment to:

  • Be a self-starter

  • Not procrastinate

  • Prepare

That all changed when I saw a group of ants in action and managed to capture it in the video below

Lessons from Zipporah on How to get People to Follow and Support You

Lessons from Zipporah on How to get People to Follow and Support You

One of my favourite quotes from John Maxwell is: “If you think you’re leading, but no one is following, then you are only taking a long walk”

Because, the truth is, as much as you may have a mission and vision that you feel called to establish- you can’t do it by yourself, sis!

In fact, to quote from a devotional that I once wrote on Euodia and Syntyche and make this more clear:

A God-given vision will always require the assembling of a team, as teamwork makes the dream work more effectively and efficiently than doing things alone. However they also teach us that teamwork only makes the dream work if they remain like-minded, just as Paul implored [Euodia and Syntyche] to be [in Philippians 4:2-3] . Without “complete sympathy with the object of the alliance” (in the words of Andrew Carnegie) the vision will fall apart and never come to pass.

But how can you get people to willingly follow and support your cause like that?

Well, there are 5 main steps which we see really clearly outlined in the events of Zipporah’s life (particularly as Moses’ wife)- as detailed in the video below.

Lessons from Zipporah on How to Harness the Law of Reciprocity while Networking

Lessons from Zipporah on How to Harness the Law of Reciprocity while Networking

I hate to burst your bubble, sis, but…

<sigh>

As much as it’s really important to set a firm foundation for your networking and PR efforts by knowing your “why,” no-one else cares about it

#justsaying

“So how do I get other people to care about my mission and vision, Nina?” I hear you say

Well…

It all comes down to knowing how to harness the power of reciprocity

Which is something that is really well demonstrated through Moses and Zipporah’s relationship- as detailed in the video below.

Lessons from Zipporah on why your "why" is important

Lessons from Zipporah on why your "why" is important

So last week, we talked about how to start networking from scratch in order to bring our God-given dreams to fruition. The first (of the five) steps that I gave was to “know your why” because, when it comes to building profitable relationships, you must first establish a firm foundation. This is why in my High Visibility Hexagon, I call this initial step the "Firm Foundation Framework".

When it comes to putting ourselves our there (or our networking and PR efforts), we already talked about the fact that knowing your why will keep you motivated through hard times but it goes even deeper than that for 2 very practical reasons- as detailed in the video below.

Lessons from Zipporah on how to start networking from scratch

Lessons from Zipporah on how to start networking from scratch

So last week, lovely, we talked about how the same relationships that were once blessings can also go on to hold us back from speaking up, stepping out and shining as the woman of God that He created us to be, if we don’t know how to spot the 4 tell-tale signs that this is happening. I based this on the evolution of Moses’ relationship with his adopted mother (Pharaoh’s Daughter), as recorded in Hebrews 11:24-26.

However, if Pharaoh’s Daughter symbolises relationships that are holding us back, Moses’ relationship with his wife (Zipporah) is really useful for giving us tips on how to:

  • Leave those kind of relationships

  • Build new, positive and profitable business relationships from scratch

All of which I shared in the video below.

Lessons from Pharaoh's Daughter on how to tell if a relationship is holding you back

Lessons from Pharaoh's Daughter on how to tell if a relationship is holding you back

I once did a whole blog post and devotional about the fact that Pharaoh’s Daughter was a fore-shadow of Christ. “How?” you ask, lovely? Because she:

Yet imagine my surprise when I recently rediscovered Hebrews 11:24-25, which says that:

“Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin…”

This showed me that the same relationships that were once blessings can also go on to hold us back from speaking up, stepping out and shining as the woman of God that He created us to be, if we don’t know how to spot the 4 tell-tale signs that I shared on my Facebook page this week via the video below.

Lessons from Elisheba on how to know when to walk away from an opportunity

Lessons from Elisheba on how to know when to walk away from an opportunity

So last week, we talked about Moses’ sister-in-law (Elisheba) and the lessons she teaches us on why it’s important to know that God is our oath as we pursue our God given visions.

Today, we’ll be digging a little deeper in talking about:

  1. How to know when to walk away from an opportunity

  2. Why knowing God is your oath will help you in your decision making-

all of which I shared on my Facebook page this week via the (live) video below.

Lessons from Elisheba on why knowing God is your oath will help you achieve success

Lessons from Elisheba on why knowing God is your oath will help you achieve success

Exodus 6:23 reveals that Moses’ sister-in-law’s name was Elisheba (or Elisheva) which translates as "God is my oath". As women of purpose, this is important to know for 2 main reasons- all of which I shared on my Facebook page this week via the (live) video below.