The 5 Degrees of E’s!
Presented by:
The 5 Degrees of E’s!
• Empowerment
• Encouragement
• Enthusiasm
• Embracing
• Energy
The 5 Degrees of E’s!
Purpose:
•Explore the attitudes and approaches we
can adopt that will give our team their best
opportunity to shine
•To enjoy the rewards of their spirit of
accomplishment
1st Degree of E:
EMPOWERMENT
EMPOWERMENT
• If a huge heart could render all that must
be accomplished we could assemble our
team—and go shopping!
• Remember, huge hearts need guidance
• The planning of events are far too important
to leave to chance – the organization of our life
shouldn’t be left to happen stance!
EMPOWERMENT
We need a plan:
• What has been done
• And what still needs to be done
• And wondering who that lady was I asked to
check on the name tags and flowers ~ and by
the way – Where is she? What about the person
that is your ‘everything’ in your office?
EMPOWERMENT
• A volunteer effort or an assigned task is only as
good as we are clear
• Critically important is delegation
• People giving their time can’t be asked to
mystically know what we need or want
• Or even try to understand us
EMPOWERMENT
• Clearly defined assignments lead to instant
confidence
• Tentative steps versus a confident “go forth”
stride are in direct proportion to the existence
of clear instructions
EMPOWERMENT
• To delegate means to entrust to another,
to assign responsibility or authority
• Feel a sense of personal responsibility and
pride when presented with a task
EMPOWERMENT
• Delegation is truly empowering another to
act on our behalf
• Empowering another to truly care about
the results
EMPOWERMENT
• Clearly defined delegations of duty
we empower:
– Self worth
– Confidence
– And self-reliance
EMPOWERMENT
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The big picture is firmly planted
How do we all fit in
We must do our homework
Our “master plan” is critical to the success
of the team
• It is like a blueprint showing details such as where
the light switches will be and where the
important items are in the office
EMPOWERMENT
Volunteers or team members must:
• Envision the results
• Have a clear sense and understanding of
how their role fits in
• See the importance of all roles
• And not expected to assume anything!
EMPOWERMENT
• Envision then empower!
2nd Degree of E:
ENCOURAGEMENT
ENCOURAGEMENT
• Hand in hand with empowerment is
encouragement
• Affirm each volunteer or employee’s results,
efforts and attitude
ENCOURAGEMENT
Affirmation
• Every person gets to shine
• Every person gets to feel important
• Affirmation gives purpose
ENCOURAGEMENT
• As written by George Herbert:
True praise roots and spreads
• Praise is that added lift in one’s spirit that is
sustaining and contagious
ENCOURAGEMENT
• Affirmation grows:
– Self-assurance
– Happiness
– And gratitude
ENCOURAGEMENT
Encouragement can be:
• A voice of calm and reason in franticness
• An appreciated volunteer who works hard
• An employee that knows how much you care
more than how much you know!
ENCOURAGEMENT
• Well-meaning, truthful praise is the best
encouragement
• We can’t say it enough:
– You’re doing great.
– Thank you so much!!
• There is nothing like hearing how grateful
an organization is
ENCOURAGEMENT
• Encouragement comes in the form
of thoughtful suggestions
• In art form of writing
• And suggestions that leads to“Oh, I never
thought of that, now I can do better”
ENCOURAGEMENT
• Praise and affirmation are always warranted
– Thank you for showing up
– Thank you for caring
– Thank you for giving your day
– Thank you for your service
– Than you for loving me
3rd Degree of E:
ENTHUSIASM
ENTHUSIASM
• Emerson said it, “Nothing great was ever
achieved without enthusiasm”
ENTHUSIASM
• We can achieve nothing great without
enthusiasm
• Especially if we’ve grown up with an
unflappable work ethic
ENTHUSIASM
Enthusiasm means:
• To be inspired
• To maintain one’s grateful cheerfulness, in spite
of anything that might make us grumble
ENTHUSIASM
Enthusiasm is:
• Whistling while you work
• Enjoying the most humdrum of tasks
• Thinking about chores as a privilege or a means
to our primary purpose
ENTHUSIASM
A primary purpose that might be:
• Serving a greater purpose
• Leading an ethical life
• A decision each morning to do one’s best
ENTHUSIASM
Enthusiasm is:
• Going above and beyond the call of duty
• Achieving greater and greater greatness
• Seeing what needs to be done
ENTHUSIASM
• Enthusiasm is stick-to-it-ive-ness
• No matter the humdrum, tedious, or timeconsuming the task is
ENTHUSIASM
• Enthusiasm is self-perpetuating
• Enthusiasm is rewarded with even more
enthusiasm
• We get back more than we can give
ENTHUSIASM
• Enthusiasm always offers us our best chance of
being an example to others
• Enthusiasm is its own reward – and it is
contagious
• I encourage you to let it take root
• And then, spread it as far and wide as you can!
4th Degree of E:
EMBRACING
EMBRACING
Consider the process of thinking that allows us to
assign tasks
• Do we pull numbers out of a hat?
• Do we pass out multiple choice and let the
volunteer choose?
It doesn’t really matter
EMBRACING
• Certainly embrace each person’s strengths –
they come to you to help
• If that’s all we need to know, then the
assignment is easy
EMBRACING
Embracing our gifts, our talents, our inclinations and
those of our employees and volunteers and
putting those gifts to work for us is an important
idea
We can wake up every trait, talent, and attribute
we all possess and put them to work.
Do what you love – when this happens it is easy to
step up an extra degree
EMBRACING
• Fully embrace who we are
(and who we are not)
• Accepting the whole of a person;
not just the pieces
EMBRACING
The first benefit of a welcoming attitude:
• Fit the person to the position then embracing
becomes empowering!
• Focus on the strengths – lead on the weaknesses
• Sometimes, we just need a ‘YOU can do this’
EMBRACING
The second benefit of a welcoming attitude:
• The gift of surprise (“Wow! I didn’t think I’d
be good at this”)
EMBRACING
Mysteriously,
o We can truly find our legs and character and our
reason to be while working or volunteering by
reaching outside the box
o By doing different things than we might have chosen,
we can often find out where our real talents lie
o What suits us to a tea
EMBRACING
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This gives me, more of me
This gives you, more of me
This gives you, more of you!
This gives our volunteers and our employees
more of themselves!
5th Degree of E:
ENERGY
ENERGY
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I run marathons
I run a company
I teach for University of Texas
I live life to its fullest – always looking for the
opportunity to step up a degree
• And I am a Nana to 15 grandchildren
• What creates your energy?
ENERGY
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I know what it means to step it up
To push harder
To stay in it longer
To aim for the next bend
And then the next
ENERGY
Energy creates energy
If I walk or run 3 miles every morning, I have
infinitely more energy for my day
If you do anything, whether it be a morning
devotional, spiritual time, or exercise, YOU will
have more energy for the day
ENERGY
If you’ve done any volunteering at all, you know
a certain satisfaction that few other endeavors
produce
Sometimes we think – do we have the time?
Better leave that to those with leisure, or those
who are younger, or older and retired.
ENERGY
But oh my, no! It’s just the opposite
• The time we take away from work, family and
friends to give of our time is time that actually
multiplies geometrically
• Thinking of others charges my batteries
• I can do twice as much in half the time, with
enthusiasm!
ENERGY
Giving is its own reward; a reward which
sustains and nourishes itself with daily doses
of thankfulness
ENERGY
• Energy, like enthusiasm, is also self-perpetuating
and contagious
• It is our second wind, our new day, our blue skies,
our hopes springing eternal.
The 5 Degrees of E’s
Closing:
• All we need to experience power and ability
and follow-through of a measure quite beyond
the words, is to just step everything we do up
one degree.
• Just one degree!
The 5 Degrees of E’s
Water boils at 211 degrees. It becomes steam;
powerful steam, at 212 degrees. Steam ran the
locomotives that built our country. As did the
men and women who stepped up, one degree,
everything they had of courage and grace
and grit.
The 5 Degrees of E’s
Think of it! If we just step up, one degree,
our intent to empower every life we touch,
to encourage everyone we meet, to pass on our
enthusiasm, to embrace all our gifts (and others’
gifts), and to spend energy to have more
energy, imagine what great things we
can achieve!
The 5 Degrees of E’s
So friends. Gather your volunteers, encourage your
employees, motivate your family to step up one
degree in everything that you do. And join me in
experiencing daily doses of wonder.
Daily doses of gratitude for all that you accomplish
because you made the conscious decision to
step on one degree!
The 5 Degrees of E’s
I wish you 5 Powerful Degrees of E!
It’s great sharing our time together.
God’s blessings to you and yours!
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