Apr 30, 2013
Proverbs 13:11
11Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.
Have you watched a business grow quickly and reap much cash and then, just as quickly as it grew, come crashing down? Oftentimes, when you dig deeply into what happened, you find there were dishonest business practices occurring, misrepresentations of products, and not much substance surrounding the basis of the company’s success. Although some fail quickly, some dishonest businesses seem to go on, regardless. But they will fail at some point, and the failure may be far greater to the owner after a sustained period of time rather than if the company had crashed within the first year.
All good ideas need time to grow
My experiences tells me that, when leaders are deliberate in making choices, and slow in the development of their strategies and plans, favor seems to come from God. Any good idea needs time to grow, and any great business was not developed overnight, but little by little, as the Scripture states. Take your time, dear Christian business leader, and don’t rush your plans for prosperity. If you are enjoying the little-by-little approach to earning your profits, if you are content in building deliberately and with faith, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
How do you develop your ideas? How does your company ensure success in decision-making? Have you done any really interesting inclusion lately with your employees? Inspire our readers. We would like to know.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Apr 4, 2013
Proverbs 12:14
14From the fruit of their lips people are filled with good things, and the work of their hands brings them reward.
When our words help and benefit our people, we honor God. People who experience kindness and encouragement will surely bear good fruit. Many leaders do not realize that what is in their hearts comes out of their mouths, In other words, “What is in a man comes out of the man.” If one’s heart is filled with evil, then he will speak evil.
If Jesus is in his heart, then Jesus is what will come out
This is why we should, as Christian Business Leaders, be constantly filling ourselves to the brim with goodness, not despair and disaster or things that are not wholesome. How do we do this? Here are a few suggestions:
- Spend time reading God’s Word
- Have a relationship with God by fellowshipping with other believers
- Volunteer in a Ministry in which you can impact the world
- Devote time with your family sharing your life with Christ
- Connect in a Bible study or start one yourself
- Help grow the Church that you attend
- Encourage and minister to our youth
All these opportunities are important; because they will help you become more like Christ. What you feed your spirit is what will come out. When a person’s life is filled with Jesus, then his works (the work of his hands) will be blessed. Be assured that you will be a blessing to others.
So, beloved Christian Leaders, if you are committed to being more Christ-like and you embrace partaking in several of these bulleted recommendations, you will be a light unto your people, and you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
What have you done to help fill yourself up with Christ? How do you ensure you never get near empty? How can you help others in your workplace to do the same?
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Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Mar 6, 2013
Nehemiah 6:9
9They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.”
Have you heard leaders exclaim that the workers of today are just plain lazy; that they are not motivated and have no idea how to put in a day’s work? It is a common complaint heard over and over; some training firms even offer seminars on the topic! We must disagree that all workers are this way. We live in a society that is devoid of leadership, that is incapable and oftentimes unwilling to lead employees to excellence. Rather than turning the work culture to the negative, we should ask ourselves: are we developing a high performing organization?
In high-performing organizations, in Christ-honoring organizations, leaders lead and dream big. They have a Vision, Mission, and Values in place for the company. When you have these in place and properly integrated, you:
- memorialize your standards
- provide guiding principles in all you do
- make your values easily understood by employees
- drive a values-based culture with your customers
Ask yourself whether you have a shared Vision with your people. Are you communicating that Vision of what your company wants to become? Are you creating a culture of inclusion, of truly being a Team? Or are you a company of workers and higher-ups? If you are following these principles to create a shared Vision, Mission and Values, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
How have you made your Vision, Mission and Values an integral part of doing business? How have you included your employees in the development of these important guiding lights? Do you know of a company who has excelled in this area whose story you can share?
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Feb 19, 2013
Exodus 35:35
35 He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers — all of them skilled workers and designers.
Most companies are packed to the hilt with talented people! Oftentimes the talents of the people are far greater than imagined because we, as leaders, have never tapped fully into them or have even asked what lies beneath. I once worked with a company that spent thousands of dollars paying a web design company to build them a website, when that could have been built by an employee who was on staff, but it was never discovered that they had the resources, the vision, and the talent to do so. The company chose to look elsewhere when what they needed was right under their nose!
Don’t spend thousands paying for something you already have!
Do you know your employees’ hidden talents? The talents above and beyond their daily job requirements? If you know your people’s talents and draw on them regularly, you will ignite your workplace! You will be building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
What have you witnessed that worked to advance and optimize the talents of the people in your organization? Have you experienced greatness within your teams without having to look outward? How did you discover those talents from within? Have you been an encouragement to your people, have you leverage their talents?
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Jan 21, 2013
Acts 17: 22–23
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.”
Christian business leaders should speak to their people where they are
In this verse, Paul brought himself to where the listener was. He spoke to where “they are.” This is important, because he did not rush into the conversation with judgment and condemnation; he actually praised them for being “very religious.” As the book continues, Paul brings to light what and how they needed to correct themselves. We learn a lot about Paul as a leader. How many times do you as a leader immediately jump to the negative with your people? Why not praise them first when it is appropriate on what it is they are doing right.
So, Christian business leaders, what say you? Do you compliment for effort, but guide your people back to the right direction with grace and peace? If you do, they will perform incredible acts of commitment for you and your organization. If you do, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
Tell us about a leader that you have admired in the past, what they did to help you develop in the areas that you were weak. What was their approach? Why did you respect them?
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Jan 2, 2013
1 Chronicles 28:20
David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the LORD is finished.
God is bigger than any of the problems you face today. When you accept this, embrace it, and demonstrate this to your employees, the world is your oyster. All too often leaders get bogged down by what they feel are insurmountable odds, but, when you have God on your side, anything is possible! God can make crooked roads straight; He can bring you that big contract in the nick of time, and, with God, all things are possible.
Ask God to support achievement of your plan
So, when you are down and out, look to God for help. Set up a meeting with your key decision makers and subject experts and strategize a plan for achievement to navigate through the tumultuous time you are facing. Most important, memorialize the plan, get buy-in from key stakeholders, and pray over it. Get two or more people to agree on the success of the plan and ask God to support achieving it — ask Him for His guidance, ask Him for patience in you and your Team for the right time for fulfillment. If you bring God into your businesses decisions, no weapon formed against you shall prosper. Include God today and build a “Kingdom Minded” Company.
Help our community of readers
What have you done to include God into your business plans? Have you experienced prosperity by ensuring His inclusion? Please share your abundance stories with us and help encourage our reader community.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration
Dec 4, 2012
Deuteronomy 15:10
10Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.
Generosity is oftentimes a word we steer clear of. We hate the thought of tithing — is that before or after tax? The awkwardness and evasiveness never seems to dissipate. But what would happen if your organization viewed all of its revenue after expenses and taxes as God’s and not that of the owners and top leadership? Could you do that? Could you convince yourself and the rest of the decision makers that you should consider it to be God’s first?
If you are a miser, your employees will act in miserly ways
If you are a miser and your employees can sense that you are, that attitude will be contagious and more will follow your lead. You see, in reality, employees who work for misers are more likely to act in miserly ways themselves, but employees who work for generous leaders will be generous themselves. Be generous today, Christian Leaders, for if you act ungrudgingly and with generosity, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Company.
Help our community of readers
In what ways does your company attempt to be a good steward to its community through its employees? Are there easy ways to do this that you can recommend to companies just starting to look outward in their commitment to generosity? How does your company view stewardship?
Mark A. Griffin | Inspiration
Oct 15, 2012
Leviticus 19:35
35Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity.
It goes with out saying that, as Christian Business Leaders, we should always manage using Christian principles. The sometimes subtle shaving or rounding of numbers can get out of hand. We all immediately get defensive and say we would not be involved in it, but I am sure that, statistically speaking, we have all been involved in matters that we are not proud of. One overlooked area of potential dishonesty is having goals and objectives or production quotas that are just simply unreachable by employees. Having witnessed this firsthand, the following is a likely scenario.
A new manager comes on board. The new manager does not like a certain subordinate. The subordinate, although a long-term employee and well liked, is now under increased scrutiny of the new manager. The new manager shows a negative bias as to the employee’s personal activities, education, and even their personal life activities. The new manager not only demands unreasonable objectives from the employee, but they also eliminate any support positions or staff that support the subordinate’s function. The employee begins a spiral downturn of poor performance, crying out for assistance until the new manager gets his twisted objective met and fires the employee. The manager then hires someone at two-thirds the pay and rationalizes his decision on a warped sense of “lack of performance”.
This, dear reader, is dishonest, but practiced in some organizations.
The best solution to setting unrealistic goals and standards that lead to termination is simply to never get there at all. But, if your organization has, now is the time to correct it, ask for forgiveness and move on. If you are honoring God by managing an organization beyond reproach, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Organization.
Help our community of readers
What dishonest practices have you met in your career? (Please do not include names of individuals, organizations or companies.) What God-honoring processes, as they relate to goals and objectives, have you witnessed?
Mark A. Griffin | Inspiration
Sep 28, 2012
Deuteronomy 24:19
19When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.
When we live our lives in a compassionate and giving way, God has a way of replenishing our supply of resources. Oftentimes what you will find is that, the more you give away, the more you gain. Sounds absurd perhaps, but I have experienced it several times, not only in personal lives but in many careers as well.
This is very important in the workplace. The more you coach and mentor your employees, the greater the reward they will reap, and you as well. Don’t let yourself be selfish with your time. Having met many selfish leaders who have never connected with their direct reports has led me to understand the grave consequences that are felt within the organization at the employee level.
Allow your employees to enjoy the company’s harvest.
Connect with your people daily, share objectives with them, and create excitement within your Team. Excited and passionate teams reap results. Most of all leave many sheaves behind for them. Let them enjoy the fruit of the company’s harvest. If you will do this, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” Company.
Help our community of readers
What does your organization do to make sure your employees are left some sheaves? How do you share in the success of the company? Do you know of a company that does this? What do they do that makes you smile?
Mark A. Griffin | Inspiration
Aug 21, 2012
1 Timothy 6–10
But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
In this passage we learn that, if we have food and clothing, we will be content. But many of us are not content. Christian Business Leaders must recognize this and take heed: we are to be the light to our employees, to be the beacon and the example.
Church should not be the only place you grow the kingdom for God.
How many times do we fail ourselves and our people when we don’t take the well being of all of our employees into consideration when making decisions? How often do we think only of growing the kingdom for God at our church, but not at our workplace? Where is our heart when it comes to making the hard decision in benefits design, and, rather than encouraging and developing healthy behaviors, we instead punish and increase premiums without appropriate consideration?
If you first love your brothers and sisters within your companies, if you truly care for them by engaging them in the decision making and future building of your company, if you partner with them for the good of themselves and their families, you are building a “Kingdom Minded” company.
Help our community of readers
How have you engaged your employees in the decision making and future building of your company? What advice would you give to those who have never done so? Thank you for your thoughts. Your contribution helps others.
Mark A. Griffin | Blog, Inspiration