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I have been a bit “fuzzy” these past few months. Most of you know that I had cataract surgery. I kept thinking I could make it a little while longer but realizing I better not drive in the dark forced me to take the whole thing seriously. (Harumph! That is “old lady” behavior to not drive in the dark! – and I will not have that!) Since reading has been a bit more difficult, I turned to my favorite activity of the pandemic – audio books. Dolly Parton’s memoir, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics was just what I needed – and her music is woven throughout the book. (Did you know that In my fantasy life I was a famous country western singer?) If you aren’t a country music fan, I challenge you to at least be a Dolly Parton fan. She just oozes each of the five characteristics of successful leadership that I will consistently challenge you with.
Dolly views her work with a lifetime perspective, seeing God’s shaping in each season. You will hear her talk about more mentors than you can count. She values each of them and their contributions to her life and legacy. She has been a life-long learner and her posture is one of always willing to learn new things. She shares the importance of spiritual retreat in her life and its necessity for her renewal. The overarching theme of her discipline and hard-work permeates her life as well.
Never imagined that one of my pieces of advice would be “BE LIKE DOLLY”.
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