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| PHOTOS: Desmond Tan |
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On a Thursday evening, about 400 people gathered at City Harvest Church’s premises at The Riverwalk to listen to Reverend Robb Thompson, who spoke on “The Anatomy of Influence”.
It was a relevant and timely message for this regular group of business individuals and professionals who had been hearing related messages emphasizing the need as influencers to wield influence by doing community works.
Thompson, an internationally-renown leadership speaker, author of 18 books and senior pastor of Family Harvest Church in Chicago, said to his audience: “Our main purpose must be to know God; our purpose is not to make money or even do works of compassion.” When the purpose is right, the right works will follow. God-centered compassion is not just about doing the right thing, but about realizing that when we know God and try to influence others to know God, we become people who do what we believe in, instead of believing what we do. And as a result we become people of influence. Just a moment spent with a person of influence can have an eternal impact on our lives.
Robb Thompson also reminded the business group that leaders are people who lead by influence, not position. Hence, employees of corporations can be people of influence. There is good influence, and there is bad influence. A person can choose to influence by force, intimidation, manipulation, position, exchange, persuasion or by respect. Influencing by respect is when a person is influenced by someone to do what the person requests for, and also out of respect for the person.
He also shared 7 qualities of a person of influence: unflinching courage, a submissive heart, deep-seated self-control, integrity, unswerving diligence, uncompromising relationships and a commitment to sow.
Robb Thompson ended the meeting by telling the people that our future is created by something we are doing in the present. He encouraged the people to be people of character. If we lose our wealth, we lose nothing. If we lose our health, we lose something. But when we lose our character, we lose everything.
