In July 2014, I was working with YSAs to prepare for the first YSA convention in Perth on the west coast of Australia. The challenge we faced was to persuade YSA from the east coast to come. It was the equivalent of convincing YSA in Washington DC to travel and attend a convention in Los Angeles.
The YSA decided to produce a series of YouTube promotion clips. They invited me to introduce a couple of them. Here is one example.
We filmed in July--midwinter in the Southern Hemisphere, so I'm glad it only took one take. The obvious differentiator is the suit with white shirt and tie. The clip continued with marvelous YSAs talking about and demonstrating some of their plans for the convention.
Like the suit in the video, I hope that you realize that you have an incredible differentiator in your life. It sets you apart from the world. It makes you stand out from the crowd and is of immeasurable value.
Your greatest differentiator is the gospel of Jesus Christ. As you live and apply the principles of the gospel, to your future career and every other activity in life, you will positively stand out from the world.
Every part of your church experience, when applied to the world, is extremely valuable. Personal gospel study; the challenge of church callings; the things you learn as a full-time missionary; your ability to speak, to organize, to plan, to motivate; and your understanding of the joy found in service are all precious assets. When you combine these with your secular learning, you are prepared to make a significant contribution in your chosen field or profession.
Let's consider six gospel based differentiators.
1. Virtue--Unceasingly
In the D&C we read, "Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God."[1]
One dictionary definition of unceasingly is "with unflagging resolve." When we listen to a true virtuoso musician, our emotions are stirred. It seems effortless, they naturally harmonize with fellow musicians, they evoke strong feelings in us, we want to keep listening.
Similarly, in your future careers, if you let virtue garnish your thoughts unceasingly--as you demonstrate unflagging resolve to be virtuous in every situation, you will be sought after and valued. Virtues and principles such as honesty, frugality, dependability, integrity, unselfishness, respect for modesty and chastity, consistently speaking positively about others make for the equivalent of a virtuoso leader. As you exemplify these principles, you will naturally lift the level of thinking of all around you.
Consider for a moment the life of Nelson Mandela. His virtuosity while in a prison cell in the apartheid South Africa for 27 years, inspired millions around the world.
Individuals and organizations that establish cultures that truly value virtue are much more likely to succeed. They are trusted by their customers and service providers and naturally deliver greater value.
2. Unwearyingness
The Lord said to Nephi, "And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will."[2] Unwearyingness is a sermon in a word. It implies continuing when we are weary. It implies doing things when others would simply give up.
In the October 2012 general conference, Elder David Bednar taught, "The key characteristics associated with conversion are experiencing a mighty change in our hearts, having a disposition to do good continually, going forward in the path of duty, walking circumspectly before God, keeping the commandments, and serving with unwearied diligence."[3]
Missionaries the world over know that miracles often follow a trial of our faith. The same is true in the business world. Twenty percent of salesmen get 80 percent of the sales mainly because they are consistent. They follow up and go back when so many give up immediately following the first rejection.
As one of the founders and directors of a restarted company, Worley Engineering, in Perth, in 1988, I visited each of the previous customers. They told me about the demise of the former Worley and that they did not want to do business with Worley again. They rejected me and the new beginning I was proposing. What they did not know is that I was a returned missionary. To me rejection meant needing to increase my understanding of the concerns and needs of these potential customers so that I could offer them something more compelling.
I found reasons to go back. Each time I would follow up on things that I had previously learned and offer something new that I felt could be of value. In the process, I discovered that it takes about seven visits to establish a business relationship.
On the first visit, many people show little interest.
On the second visit, they are trying to remember if they have seen you before.
On the third visit, the discussion can move to business possibilities.
On the fourth visit, they listen to proposals, and the relationship develops.
On the fifth visit, you start talking details, and real trust becomes evident.
After the sixth or seventh visit, you often start working together.
The natural man gives up after the first failure or rejection. The differentiator--unwearyingness, acting, following up or going back when others would not--can add blessings to your life that you can only imagine.
3. Humility
"I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."[4]
As a missionary, I learned that some of the companions that were most different to me could teach me the most and that our skills could be complementary as we respected each other and worked together.
This has been an invaluable lesson in the business world, where I found that some of the most difficult people can offer incredible value in their field of expertise. It is often worth putting up with or seeing past some idiosyncrasies and differences. In fact, if you surround yourself by people just like you, you are likely to severely limit your potential.
Our church experience helps us to develop the humility to work with and contribute as part of a team. At church and in the world, some indications of humility in a leader include:
- Generously giving credit for ideas and service
- Listening carefully to suggestions and proposals
- Delegating with a clear vision of what needs to be achieved without giving instructions on how to achieve it
- Always serving those that we work with
My father taught me a principle of humility as a young man. He said, "Peter, whatever job you have, if you will work hard and consistently contribute more value than you are paid for, then one day you will be paid more than you can ever earn."
This and the concept of always striving to add additional value have been guiding principles for my life--they lead us to search for ways to work smarter, challenge norms, and constantly think about the best ways to achieve important overall objectives.
4. Revelation through Councils
Elder Ballard has consistently taught us about the power and effectiveness of councils.
God called a grand council in the premortal world to present His glorious plan for our eternal welfare. The Lord's church is organized with councils at every level, beginning with the Council of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and extending to stake, ward, quorum, auxiliary, and family councils.
President Stephen L Richards said: "The genius of our Church government is government through councils. I have had enough experience to know the value of councils. Hardly a day passes but that I see ... God's wisdom, in creating councils ... to govern his Kingdom. ...
"... I have no hesitancy in giving you the assurance, if you will confer in council as you are expected to do, God will give you solutions to the problems that confront you."[5]
In church and family leadership, we quickly discover that revelation, solutions, and change come through councils. The Lord consistently teaches us his pattern of councils in the scriptures. He says that council decisions "are to be made in all righteousness, in holiness, and lowliness of heart, meekness and long-suffering, and in faith, and virtue, and knowledge ... patience ... and charity.... If these things abound in them they shall not be unfruitful in the knowledge of the Lord."[6]
I found that the principles of councils apply powerfully in the business world. As a leader, I was most effective when I engaged with my associates with a question, issue, or problem. In these settings, it was important to show confidence in the council's ability to deliver a solution. I continue to be amazed at the quality of the solution and the ownership participants in councils have in delivering results together.
This is in stark contrast to the approach of many leaders who feel that they have sole responsibility and capability to come up with solutions to the big issues. They feel that their job is to roll out their solution rather than engage their associates in developing it.
The concept can be extended to suppliers and contractors. Part of my career involved delivering major resource development projects. The normal engineering process is to send detailed specification documents to equipment suppliers and detailed procedure documents to contractors. While this is effective in controlling outcomes, it limits the opportunity for suppliers and contractors to apply their skills and experience to the solution.
I found it more helpful to seek input and suggestions for delivering the required outcomes rather than initially constraining contractors and suppliers with specification requirements and contract terms.
5. & 6. Prayer and Repentance
Amulek taught the importance of praying while at and about work. He admonished,
Cry unto him when ye are in your fields, yea, over all your flocks.
Cry unto him over the crops of yours fields, that ye may prosper in them.
Cry over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase.[7]
The Lord speaking through the Prophet Joseph Smith declared in the D&C, "He who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more. By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins--behold, he will confess them and forsake them."[8]
My first job was building an oil production pipeline to connect a new offshore oil platform to an existing platform, and hence the pipeline network. The offshore pipeline was the first in the world (in 1982) to be installed using the bottom tow technique. For many reasons, this was an exciting project for a young engineer. The excitement intensified when my boss, the project manager, was moved to another international assignment, making me the responsible project engineer.
The project involved making up 1-kilometer-long strings of 12-inch-diameter steel pipe at a beach site, then towing lengths of pipe into the ocean and joining sections until a 3.5-kilometer pipeline was complete. A tow vessel would pull the complete pipeline 85 kilometers along the seafloor to the offshore location. Sophisticated deflection connection procedures, using winches and hydraulic connectors, were planned for the final connections.
Success depended on towing the pipeline along a prescribed path, then stopping the tow so that it would be exactly positioned and aligned for subsea connection at 280-foot water depth.
This was many years before GPS satellites. We used the best available navigation systems and acoustics transponders on the pipeline to track its position.
The tow had some significant challenges; however, we followed the prescribed route exactly and felt that we had stopped the tow leaving the connecting sleds at the front and back end of the pipeline exactly in the target positions.
With the tow complete, a survey boat pinged acoustic transponders on the pipeline and reported positioning data by radio to a control hut on one of the platforms. We were delighted as the survey confirmed that the front end was exactly in the right position and, a little later, that the pipeline alignment was also perfect.
That, however, was the end of the good news.
The final check on the tail end of the pipeline reported that it was 36 meters out of position. After triple-checking, we concluded that the pipeline was 36 meters too long.
Everyone immediately wanted to know how we had measured and confirmed the length before the tow. As the responsible project engineer, I could not answer the question. I had been so deeply engaged and interested (as a young engineer) in all the high-tech systems and processes that I had missed the fact that the pipeline length was equally vital to success.
Investigation identified the cause of the error. Late in the project, we needed a weight change for stability during the tow and added 3-by-12-meter lengths of heavy wall pipe to the tail end. We had inadvertently added 36 meters without taking anything off.
I radioed the developments project director at Esso to report the problem. He simply said, "Meurs, don't come back onshore until that pipeline is connected."
Things initially went from bad to worse. We were still able to complete the first pull-in procedure connecting the tail end of the pipeline to the new platform. We then decided to use the tow vessel to lift the other end of the pipeline off the seafloor by tensioning the tow wire. The plan was to walk the suspended length of pipeline sideways to use the extra length.
With the pipeline under tension and lifted off the seafloor, we commenced the sideways maneuver. Partway through the critical move, the tow vessel engines stopped. Under tension, the boat was pulled backwards, and the pipeline hit the seafloor with such great force that a rubber shear sphere in the end dislodged. Sea water rushed in, and the pipeline weight went from 80 tons to 400 tons in a few seconds.
What had seemed like a most exciting and challenging project for a young engineer suddenly looked like a disaster. I had been praying night and morning, but now I poured out my soul to Heavenly Father. I explained that I had served a mission, married in the temple, we had started our family while at university and now had two beautiful daughters. After all of this, it looked to me like my engineering career was coming to an end. I pleaded for inspiration and help.
My prayers were answered, and within a couple of weeks, with promptings, hard work, and input from a wonderful team, we connected the pipeline and tested it. I returned to shore to face the music. The extra 36 meters had added $3 million to a $15 million project.
I had to write a project closeout report. Thankfully I understood repentance.
- First, I started by detailing all the mistakes that I had made: failure to properly survey the pipeline length before tow being the main one.
- Next, I then explained the changes and improvements we should make in the next bottom-tow installation.
- Finally, I asked if I could have a second chance and if I could be assigned to lead the next pipeline projects.
To my surprise, my report was received very positively. Over the next two years, I led a team that installed longer and more complicated bottom-tow pipelines. Cost savings were more than twice the extra cost of the first installation.
I had learned many more important lessons than checking the measurement before towing a pipeline--I had learned that Heavenly Father is willing to answer all our prayers, even when we pray about our work. I also learned the power, in the world, of stepping forward and taking responsibility when we make mistakes.
Prayer and principles learned through repentance--taking responsibility and offering to be part of the solutions are valuable differentiators.
Conclusion
My message today to you, the great students of Brigham Young University-Idaho, is simply this: You are blessed to study and learn in your chosen fields. You are blessed to be taught by a faculty that have been carefully selected based on their talents and secular achievements and their faith and commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a result, you have the opportunity to prepare to make important contributions in a world that has great need of you. We live in an age of opportunity and change.
It is my hope that you will ponder on the power of the combination of your secular education and the gospel of Jesus Christ. I hope that you will understand that applying gospel principles to everything you do will bless you and all those you associate and work with. I hope that you will resolve to be completely consistent in applying gospel principles to your lives.
In the D&C we read this comprehensive promise:
There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated--
And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.[9]
In his October 2016 general conference talk, President Russell M. Nelson taught us about joy.
"If we look to the world and follow its formulas for happiness, we will never know joy. The unrighteous may experience any number of emotions and sensations, but they will never experience joy! Joy is a gift for the faithful. It is the gift that comes from intentionally trying to live a righteous life, as taught by Jesus Christ.
"Every day that you and I choose to live celestial laws, every day that we keep our covenants and help others to do the same, joy will be ours."
I share my witness that our Heavenly Father lives and loves us, that His Son Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer, and that the Father's plan presented by the Savior is a plan of happiness and joy. I know that applying gospel principles to every aspect of our lives will bring us joy on the earth and eternal success.
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] D&C 121:45
[2] Helaman 10:5
[3] Elder David A. Bednar, "Converted unto the Lord", General Conference, October 2012
[4] Ether 12:27
[5] "Strength in Counsel", General Conference, October 1993
[6] D&C 107:30-31
[7] Alma 34:20, 24-25
[8] D&C 58:42-43
[9] D&C 130:20-21