Years ago, I was involved in planning a new school. We had a meeting where our launch team was seeking wisdom from a group of experts about who should be our target customer. Unfortunately, our launch team had our own agenda that significantly differed from the experts. Our team doubted their collective wisdom because of our personal biases. Months later, […]

Over the years, some people have asked if I’ve ever considered taking our Unconventional Business events into Oklahoma City. But it never seemed like the right time. Recently, however, we hired someone who previously lived in Oklahoma City. As she encouraged us to consider moving into Oklahoma City, we began praying. Since then, the Lord divinely introduced me to someone […]

We recently have been researching moving into a new market. So, I reached out to another faith at work ministry in that community to discuss collaborating rather than competing. One of their leaders began offering ideas on how they might partner with us. The true sign of his heart, however, was when he offered to introduce us to their biggest […]

Politics can be a vicious sport. When one party wins an important election, there’s traditionally an acceptance speech that declares and celebrates the victory. However, it’s not uncommon after the victory for some members of the winning party to begin to gloat publicly about their opponent’s defeat. Unfortunately, this happens in business at times as well. Some people are so […]

Early in my ministry, I became jealous of another ministry leader. While his ministry was growing and flourishing, I became critical of his work due to my jealousy. Eventually, I realized that God wanted my best, without being concerned about other people’s successes. I apologized to this leader and chose to focus on my stewardship, not others. Competition can become […]

Many of us were involved in team sports. Whether it’s basketball, football or soccer, two teams compete with the intent that one will win and the other will lose. This can easily foster the viewpoint that our business lives must also be about a win/lose proposition. It’s easy to convince ourselves that God wants us to win every deal. Joshua […]

With dozens of toys on the floor, my grandson, Joey, was content playing with the one he had selected. That’s when Addy, my granddaughter, decided that all the other toys were not as appealing as the one Joey had. Addy grabbed the toy away from him. If she could have talked, she would have proclaimed, “Mine!” Galatians 5 teaches, “Now the […]

As shepherds over the flock God has placed in our care, we need to realize that sometimes employees may experience a death in the family, medical emergencies or transportation challenges. These are times when an intentional and proactive approach may be a blessing to your staff. For example, one bank I worked for established a company benevolence fund. Both the […]

Many Christians have heard about the generosity of Hobby Lobby, but there’s another company in Oklahoma City that many locals point to when discussing generosity. The company’s name is Jasco. When I trolled Jasco’s website, I was impressed by not only their extreme generosity, but also by their strategy. Jasco remarkably gives away 50% of their profits to charitable causes, […]

Many business owners believe that the privately-held stock they own in their company has little value until they sell the business. Mark discovered otherwise. Mark leveraged his stock long before selling his business. Mark had his business appraised, then donated 20% of his company stock to a donor advised fund. (That’s basically a checking account specifically for giving.) This gave […]