Bob Buford

They're prepared to give money to things that aren't necessarily going to build their own empire.

Bob Buford, who is a great spiritual grandfather of so many wonderful ministries around the world, uses this line that I want my fruit to grow on other people's trees.

It's not about fruit growing on my trees.

It's actually about what is the legacy that I'm leaving behind.

I've talked about this book many times before.

It's called Halftime, Moving from Success to Significance by Bob Buford.

I think I've been referencing this book even more so recently because it feels very applicable to this season and transition of my life right now.

Bob Buford in Halftime says, for the second half of life to be better than the first, you must make the choice to step outside of the safety of living on autopilot.

You must wrestle with who you are, why you believe what you profess to believe about your life, and what you do to provide meaning and structure to your daily activities and relationships.

The key to a successful second half is not a change of jobs.

Who am I to think that this is a new idea? What if, what if part of that leadership isn't just the ability to lead an organization, but if you can't lead yourself first, you're going to strike the, you're going to strike the rock twice.

And now you're going to end up missing the very gifting of what God wants, which is, you know, Bob Buford's to finish well.

Oh, I love that.

Bob Buford.

Hey, um, yeah.

Um, I want to go back to strike the rock twice because some people don't know what that is.

Yeah.

kind of show that right now, Halftime by Bob Buford, that kind of talks a little bit about some of the things that, you know, sellers might want to consider before they, you know, commit themselves to the process.

Maybe you want to share a little bit about your thoughts, both, you know, on the book, and of course, what you've seen in the marketplace.

Yeah, it's, you know, I'm just really feel fortunate to be at this, you know, kind of juncture having seen transactions with 86 buyers and sellers.

I feel like I can give in another way that can be more significant.

And there's a book that Bob Buford wrote.

You may know this book called Half Time.

And the book is actually Half Time, Moving from Success to Significance.

Most of you probably won't know it.

It was called Halftime by Bob Buford.

Does anyone know this book? Anybody know it? It came out in 1984 I think, something like that.

I remember buying it way back then, 1984.

Changing Your Game Plan from Success to Significance.

Now let me tell you a story.

Bob Buford, he was a very successful Christian businessman.

Uh, he owned a, uh, cable television station.

You know, 40 is a big year for a lot of this kind of halftime.

There's a great book by a guy named Bob Buford called Halftime.

And he kind of said, you know, when you turn 40, it's a good time to evaluate your life and what's it all about.

And, you know, how do you have a meaningful life? And I think my dad was trying to have me ask that question.

I, I wanted to, I, I, if I would've gone back to coaching, the family would've continued to make sacrifices.

I got to a point in that at, at, you know-- And there's a great Christian author named Bob Buford.

Have you ever heard of him, Matt?

Matt?Mm-mm.

It's really cool.

Actually, it's, you can still get it in any Christian bookstore.

And Bob Buford's, uh, theor- thesis of the book is the first half of your life you're striving for success.

You wanna be the best, you wanna make money, you wanna do this, you wanna be thought of as the best salesman, the best coach, whatever.

And so I said, "Man, I gotta go meet this guy." He's a professor at University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.

[lips smack] Bob Buford went with me, if y'all remember Bob, and we went down there, and we spent some time with him, and he was the first one that said, "Jimmy, I think what the Willow Creek Association is, and Leadership Network, these are diffusion networks." I was like, "Well, what's a diffusion network?" [laughs]

Yeah, yeah.

Let's talk about that.

But they're influenced by their fellow Methodist church or Presbyterian church or Lutheran church, whatever.

So you're talking to the pioneers and the innovators in each of these systems, and that's why even though you had 200 churches, you already had s- over 60 denominations, over 60 church systems represented.

So we designed, uh, and, and Bob Buford designed his leadership network ministry to focus on the two percenters, and we organized the Willow Creek Association to focus more on the early adopter 14 percenters.

So, um, and we were very strategic about that, in creating magnet experiences and resources that would serve the innovators, the pioneers.