Mike Tyson was once quoted as saying, “Everyone has a plan ’til they get punched in the mouth.” While I am not a Tyson fan, I do think his quote should get our attention. Our “plan” to define success as hearing Jesus say, “Well done” is one thing. Living it out when there are difficult circumstances…that’s a different story.
I have written before about quotes that get stuck in my mind and will not fade. Well, today I would like to share another one. This quote was not necessarily directed specifically at those of us in business, but you will quickly see that it applies directly to us and how we each define success!
The quote in the spotlight today is from Billy Graham. Graham is not one of the original disciples or even the author of any of the lesser known books of the Bible. At the same time, he is someone that most of us look up to and respect immensely. He has lived a life true to his talk. He has certainly remained committed to spreading the gospel and is arguably one of the all-time greatest evangelists. Here is his quote:
When you first read that quote, what are your thoughts?
As followers of Jesus, we often look around at the culture in which we live and wonder how it has become this bad. We look at poor leadership at whatever level – whether in our businesses, community, or even in the nation overall – and we wish for better. We wonder what it would be like if our leaders also followed Jesus.
In my last post, I talked about how we should behave when working in an environment where the open sharing of our Christian faith is either limited or even prohibited altogether. We looked at the example of David in 1 Samuel 24:1-7 to see how he handled remaining under Saul’s authority as king, even though he had been anointed to follow Saul as king.
Today, I want us to think about the various reasons that God may have for leaving Saul in authority as long as He did. Have you ever thought about that?
If you have been reading this blog for long, you realize that the majority of what I write is directed at those people that are followers of Christ AND in a position of leadership in business. Unfortunately, some disciples of Jesus are working for a non-believer or are otherwise in a position where they feel they are limited in their ability to exercise their faith. What are you to do if in this position?
First, I want to make sure to tell you that the following ideas will not necessarily apply to every situation like this. In some cases, you may need to get out of your situation. In other cases, God may have you exactly where He wants you. It is these latter situations that I want to address today.
Sometimes I get focused on leveraging our business for eternal return. It is easy for me to overlook the details of the business. If you own or lead a business with any number of employees, you likely have experienced something similar. However, we are responsible for running businesses of excellence. We cannot afford to overlook the basics for long. This includes a safe workplace!
As a result of some turnover in our business recently, I have seen two out-of-the-ordinary accusations against us. While these accusations were certainly unusual for us, they are not uncommon in our industry.
With all of the recent news about mass shootings, have you ever stopped to think about how you would respond if you had advance notice of a similar pending tragedy and had the time to avert it? Would you step in and prevent the crisis? What if this exact same danger is coming from your hiring practices?
I have been going back through the book of Proverbs with my “business glasses” on. I have been looking for business truths that we can apply to our business. If you have never done this, I strongly recommend that you try it. If you would rather let someone else do that and tell you about it, then keep reading!
This is not the first time you have heard this question. It will not be the last. I guess the real question is whether you can quickly answer it or not. If you are given no time to think about it or wordsmith a response, how would you answer the question, “Why do you get out of bed?”
Obviously, there is a lot more depth to this question than meets the eye. This question demands more than a shallow, off-the-cuff answer. This question is not really about getting out of bed at all.
Instead, this question really drives at what drives you.
Maybe it is the material I am choosing to read. It could be the kind of people I am around these days. Whatever the case, I am hearing more and more about life plans and finding a “calling” from God. I wonder if there might be a serious problem in these discussions that too many people are missing?
First of all, I do not want anyone to think I believe life plans are bad! I have one myself that I tweak and clarify every year. I have written a great deal about being intentional in living out or lives for eternal impact. A solid life plan can be a great tool in this process.
Assume for a moment that you only have enough tuition money to engage a teacher for yourself OR for your children. What do you do? If you are a Christian business leader, this same question could apply to you OR your employees. Who do you teach first?
In his book, Thou Shall Prosper: Ten Commandments for Making Money, Rabbi Daniel Lapin refers to Deuteronomy 11:19 to give us the answer.
Whether you are trying to run a business or build a subscriber base for your blog, reputation is something that concerns you. It is no secret that a good reputation increases your likelihood of success in either situation. What is too often forgotten is that when you really need the good reputation, it is most likely too late to build it.