Difference You Make , livre ebook

© 2013 by Pat Williams
Published by Revell
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.revellbooks.com
Ebook edition created 2013
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means for example, electronic, photocopy, recording without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
ISBN 978-1-4412-4095-8
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations identified THE MESSAGE are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson, copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations identified P HILLIPS are from The New Testament in Modern English, revised edition J. B. Phillips, translator. © J. B. Phillips 1958, 1960, 1972. Used by permission of Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc.
Scripture quotations identified KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.
The internet addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers in this book are accurate at the time of publication. They are provided as a resource. Baker Publishing Group does not endorse them or vouch for their content or permanence.
“We all have an enormous sphere of influence, though we’re not always aware of the influence we have. After you read The Difference You Make , you’ll never take your influence for granted again. Pat Williams gives you all the tools you need to refine, enrich, and expand your influence on the world around you.”
Mike Smith , Atlanta Falcons head coach
“As coaches, we are challenged on a daily basis to give the young people we work with the tools to be successful in life. We hope to show them what it means to think of others before themselves, to never set limits to their goals and dreams, and to always reach for the pinnacle of achievement. Sometimes we as teachers can use a road map of our own, a means of encouragement to remind us what we can do in our position to help shape the next generation. Pat has made this one of his important and guiding principles, and in this book, he shows just how we can use our influence for a positive purpose. This should be recommended reading, not only for coaches, but for people in all walks of life, as a blueprint of what is possible in our role as difference-makers.”
Muffet McGraw , University of Notre Dame head women’s basketball coach
“Pat Williams has spent the majority of his life influencing people to help make them better. His guidance for all of those he has touched has helped shape many successful lives. I know of no one more capable of helping others realize their potential and the ‘difference they can make’ more than Pat Williams.”
Terry Collins , New York Mets manager
“Pat Williams is a man of great influence in his book The Difference You Make . I love the way he reminds us that we all have the power to influence and be influenced. Pat challenges us and encourages us to accept that role to become a positive difference in the lives of others.”
Leslie Frazier , Minnesota Vikings head coach
“As a longtime coach in the NFL, I have always believed in the power of influence. After all, if you’re not influencing others in a positive way, then what are you living for? In The Difference You Make , Pat Williams not only inspires us to be people of influence, but he gives us the practical steps and tools we need to impact others in a powerful way.”
Romeo Crennel, Kansas City Chiefs head coach
“I’ve read Pat Williams’s The Difference You Make , and I really enjoyed it. This book is packed with valuable new insights about how to have a powerful, positive impact on people in your life. Read it and put these principles into practice. This book is a game changer.”
Don Mattingly, Los Angeles Dodgers manager
“Pat Williams always does an outstanding job in each of his books in terms of sharing life lessons through his personal stories. The Difference You Make resonated with me because the focus is the impact and influence you can have on others, and how that defines you as a person more than anything. That’s why I enjoy coaching and why I think coaching is one of the greatest professions you have the ability to impact the lives of young people each and every day. Pat has certainly impacted many people in a positive way through his life, and this book shares some great stories of how Pat and others attained success because of the influence other people had with them along the way.”
Nick Saban , University of Alabama head football coach
“As we move forward in life we realize that motivation from others is so short lived. The people who truly inspire us and influence us stand out in our lives and stand the test of time. Pat Williams has captured those people and qualities so well in this latest work of art, The Difference You Make . Using this book will be a force.”
Tom Crean , Indiana University head men’s basketball coach
“I’ve known Pat Williams for over fifty years and can assure you that he understands the impact of influence we have on others. Stop what you’re doing and start reading Pat’s latest book. It’ll be a life-changer for you!”
Jon McGlocklin , Milwaukee Bucks longtime player and broadcaster
“If you want to live a life of significance, then live to impact others! The Difference You Make is an indispensable resource for all people of influence. In its pages, Pat Williams gives you the practical insights and powerful motivation you need to live a life of influence in your home, your workplace, your community, and your world.”
Dr. Tony Evans , The Urban Alternative founder and president
“Pat Williams didn’t just write the book on influence. He’s lived a life of influence as a father to nineteen kids, as a sports executive, and as an author and speaker. In The Difference You Make , Pat shows you, step by step, how to have a powerful, positive, lasting impact on the world by influencing the people around you one person at a time.”
Dabo Swinney , Clemson University Tigers head football coach
“I have read every book by Pat Williams, and The Difference You Make is one of my favorites. Upon reading this book, every reader will come to realize that each of us has the ability to make a difference.”
Steve Alford , University of New Mexico head basketball coach
“Pat Williams has written a crucial book for these troubled times. Now, more than ever, we need people of influence who will step up and challenge the status quo. The Difference You Make will give you the inspiration, motivation, and practical tools to make a positive impact on your world and on generations to come.”
John Calipari , University of Kentucky head men’s basketball coach, 2012 NCAA Basketball Champions
I dedicate this book to three of my grandsons, Austin, Anthony, and Max.
May they grow up to truly understand the impact of their influence.
Contents
Cover 1
Title Page 2
Copyright Page 3
Endorsements 5
Dedication 8
Foreword by Joe Girardi 11
Acknowledgments 15
Introduction 17
1. The Influences That Have Shaped Your Life 23
2. Everyone Has Influence 39
3. Healthy Influence: Serving, Mentoring, and Empowerment 55
4. Character: The Key to Influence 77
5. The Influence of Our Actions 93
6. The Influence of Our Words 113
7. Be a Parent of Influence 135
8. Be a Leader of Influence 159
9. Be a Christian of Influence 185
Epilogue 209
Notes 213
About the Author 217
Also by Pat Williams with Jim Denney 219
Back Ads 221
Back Cover 223
Foreword
L ife is all about influence.
I remind myself every day that God didn’t give me the privilege of being a baseball player and manager all these years just for my own enjoyment. He gave me a position of influence, and He expects me to use it wisely.
Recently, before a Yankees-Phillies spring training game in Clearwater, Florida, I saw a man in the stands wearing a CC Sabathia jersey, holding up a hand-lettered sign that read, “Please Remember Steven E. Smith.” I recognized the man as Matt Smith, father of Yankees super-fan Steven Smith who had died in a car accident. Steven was just twenty-four years old, and had been hoping for a career in sports broadcasting.
As a father, my heart went out to Matt Smith. I could only imagine what he had gone through in the year and a half since his son died. So I went over and talked to him for a few moments, and we chatted about Steven and what a great young man he was. I invited Matt to meet some of the players, and I arranged to have his poster signed by the whole team.
It didn’t take much time or effort on my part to chat with Matt Smith. But I wanted Matt to know that the Yankees remembered Steven and were all touched by his love for the team. I wanted to do anything I could to lift Matt’s spirits and lessen his grief, even a little. That was one way all of us on the team could use our influence to help another human being.
Leadership is about influence. During my playing days, I wore number 25 on my jersey. When I took the job as manager of the New York Yankees, I wore number 27. Why? Influence. The Yankees had won twenty-six World Series titles, and I wanted to wear a visible reminder of our goal, a twenty-seventh championship.
Two years after I took the job, we reached that goal. So now, of course, I wear number 28. It’s about motivation. It’s about focus. It’s about keeping the vision always before our eyes as a team. And it’s about influence.
After we won the World Series in 2009, we had a great celebration at Yankee Stadium. Late that night, I was driving home along the Cross County Parkway. Approaching a curve in the parkway, I saw a car that had crashed into a