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In celebration of 25 episodes of Catholic Founders, we’re looking back at the biggest lessons and takeaways from those 25 episodes.
Yesterday was part 1 (check it out here). Today, we’ve got part 2 for you.
If you’re a newer listener, please use this as a sort of directory of past episodes to explore where you think you should listen. The Holy Spirit may call you to some specific episode. Don’t ignore it. Follow that tug.
SHARE! Be sure to pass this around to other Catholic Business owners (current or aspiring). We need to get more people committed to this work so we can reinsert God into the world.
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Core Lessons:
If any of these pique your interest, we encourage you to check out the full episode by clicking on the headline with each one. Especially something we encourage new listeners to take advantage of.
* Episode 14: Will O'Brien, Ulysses — Pursuing Money & Ambition as a Catholic, Conversions in San Francisco, Catholics & Climate Change
* Catholicism is about moving forward and building towards heaven on earth, starting with our own hearts.
* When pursuing good things, the devil will work overtime; financial success requires staying extra close to God through prayer and spiritual direction.
* Episode 15: Andreas Widmer, CUA — Protecting The Pope, Sainthood Through Entrepreneurship, Following Good Desires to Come Closer to God
* God often uses our natural desires to guide us deeper into His calling.
* God brings us closer through trusting Him as we go deeper into our entrepreneurial journey.
* Your business or product must be something that is truly good and benefits others.
* Work is about more than just making money; it fulfills the soul and should fit into your plan of life.
* Episode 16: Mini Episode, Feast of the Ascension — Growth Through Space, Imitating the Energy of the Apostles
* We cannot fully grow unless we have the opportunity to fail, and we must allow employees to fail to increase their value.
* We have a responsibility to share the Gospel with excitement, like the apostles after the Ascension and Pentecost.
* Episode 17: Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Sherwood Fellows — Ethical Marketing, Long-Term Thinking, Scale Is Designed to Destroy the Human Element
* To market well, integrate your marketing team with the rest of your company to ensure honesty and focus on overall product integration.
* Short-term thinking drives bad marketing and hurts your brand; aim to build something enduring.
* The point of scale is to remove the human element, which as Catholics, we must be cautious of because humans are the focus of work.
* Episode 18: Daniel Francis, Able Police — Many Catholics are not Answering the Call to Build, Faith at a Secular Workplace, Taking Back the Culture
* We often forget that we are also called to build things and use our skills to address problems in the world.
* Loving your neighbor should focus more locally, on those immediately around you, rather than just people far away.
* Episode 19: Nathan Crankfield, Seeking Excellence — Poverty isn’t a Virtue, Side Hustles, Influence, Ambition
* Being poor is not a virtue. Choosing to live in poverty and forgo unnecessary things is a virtue. If you’re poor because you have not tried hard enough, that is not a virtue, especially for lay people. We must use our God-given potential and skills to increase income and support the Church.
* Men especially have a calling to provide for their family, and developing a side hustle is often a viable way to do so.
* We have a responsibility to do everything we do as well as we can, imitating Jesus.
* You can be busy and still achieve holiness; busyness is not an excuse to neglect prayer or spiritual growth.
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* Episode 20: Juan Acosta, Tabella — Building Strong Parishes, Trusting the Journey God Takes You Through, Investing in Catholic Ventures
* Catholic business owners need to lead in making stronger parishes by employing people and supporting priests.
* We need to be genuine neighbors to fellow parishioners to support each other through tough times.
* Money is an amplifier; if you have spiritual poverty, money will worsen you, but with ordered desires, it can make a huge impact.
* Be willing to bring your business and calling to God in prayer and adoration for guidance.
* Episode 21: Jennifer Baugh, YCP — Becoming a Vessel, Sharing Your Success bc it’s Actually not Yours, The Virtues Required to Start a Business
* We need to be willing to share our successes because God can touch others' lives through our sharing. And… all of that success comes from God.
* Become a total vessel of God so He can do much more through you.
* The challenges of work are highly conducive for growing in virtue if you are willing to embrace them.
* Recall often that your success is not yours, it’s God’s.
* Episode 22: Dominic Tarolli, DOMINUS Lab — Catholics and AI
* Things that have no soul will become automated; keep the human aspect, value, and special touches in your products and services.
* As AI changes everything, Catholics must keep people at the center of their focus to ensure morally good outcomes.
* Because AI will happen with or without us, Catholics need to be engaged on the front lines of its development.
* Episode 23: Tim Glemkowski, Amazing Parish — Missionary vs Entrepreneur, Following God’s Mission vs Ours, Trusting in God to Provide Financially
* Evangelize in the world but be present and engaged in your parishes to foster strong community support systems.
* God sometimes destroys things to prepare the way for something new.
* We are all called to be on mission, regardless if you’re a missionary or business owner.
* Busyness is not an excuse not to pray; if anything, we should pray more when busy.
* God wants to work in our own hearts as He works on the world through us.
* Learn to trust in the Lord for money, as He will provide.
* Episode 24: Dan Egan, St. Joseph Wall Project — How to Build Cultural Revival Projects in your City, Keep Walking Step, Become an Extension of Your Priest
* Use your skills to execute projects well; don't do things halfway.
* Work with your priest to help them realize their vision for the parish, community, and city.
* God expects us to keep actively moving and acting even when the next step is unclear.
* Set the example of building beautiful art because God touches people through art.
* Episode 25: Tim Connors, PivotNorth Capital — Love Your Customer, Solve Your Neighbors’ Problems, Use Systems Thinking, Double Your Parish Size
* Use all your ability to help solve the problems of your neighbors to the greatest extent possible, including welcoming people into the parish community.
* Founders often run in packs; having a community of ambitious, faith-driven builders is important. (psst. join the CF Guild)
* Loving your customers leads to high net promoter scores and provides free (or substantially lowered) customer acquisition.
* The startup methodology is virtuous because of how it aims to unblock issues and provide customer value.
* If we get people active in the parish and involved in community, we will keep them in the Church (implement this in your own parish).
Thanks for reading — please share around. This can serve as a directory. We’ll also be making a post covering the core themes of all of these episodes. No promises on the timeline for that one haha.
God Bless & Happy Building!
~Silas Mähner
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