When I started a consulting practice years ago, I sent a survey to business owners. The essence of the survey revolved around two questions: Do you believe business planning is important, and, do you currently have any kind of business plan? Over 90% who responded said they viewed business planning as important, but only 40% said they had any kind […]

2020 will be a year discussed and remembered in the history books. With the pandemic, the contentious election and racial tensions, 2020 was hard on most of us. Many of us have been looking forward to 2021 and hope for a better year. We finally have the opportunity to turn the page and start fresh. Yet, some of 2020’s challenges […]

2020 has been a strange and challenging year! Now, it is finally winding down. Today is a great day to pause and reflect on all that God has brought us through. We’ve experienced a pandemic, economic shutdowns, racial tensions, and a contentious election. Yet, we have survived. New Year’s Eve is a great time to not only celebrate the close […]

Harvard Business Review published a recent article that stated, “To inspire your staff to do good work for you, find a way to express the organization’s impact on the lives of customers, clients, students, patients — whomever you’re trying to serve. Make them feel it.” Serving people is the heart and soul of business. It is the who, not the […]

A recent article by Business News Daily stated, “Small businesses are hit especially hard during government shutdowns, since they have limited resources to rely on compared to corporations.” Small businesses are facing challenging days. These challenges are not too big for God. Challenges are opportunities to see God work miracles. In fact, Psalm 9:9-10 reminds us, “The Lord is a […]

One generous partner to this ministry mentioned that he supported many efforts, but that he had other passions higher on his priority list than ours. Although I heard him, I pushed him to increase his giving. This generous businessman was offended and chose to pause further support. Upon reflection, I realized I hadn’t reallylistened and honored his words. I offered […]

Born in Bethlehem, the first announcement of Jesus’ birth was to the shepherds while tending sheep. When the shepherds saw baby Jesus, and what the angels had said proved to be true, they couldn’t keep the news to themselves. The shepherds became ambassadors for baby Jesus. These shepherds had influence in their community and used it to spread the important […]

Christmas Eve is a day when the spirit of generosity pervades many organizations, leading bosses to give gifts, food and/or bonuses to their staff. Everyone loves to receive gifts and be on the receiving end of generosity, but sometimes it leaves confusion and unrealistic expectations in its wake. Christmas is so close to year end that sometimes employees view any […]

A friend shared with me that under previous administrations his industry was weighed down with lots of rules and regulations. But under President Trump, many regulations were eliminated, leading to robust business growth. He fears the pendulum is likely to swing back again to burdensome regulations. Bear with me. Businesses are often rules-oriented, but, they can be more values-based. Many […]

Fletcher’s friend was not accomplishing the job responsibilities he was hired to complete. Fletcher was considering firing his friend, but they went to the same church, making the situation even more complicated. I asked Fletcher, “If you fired this man today, would he be blindsided?” When Fletcher answered, “Yes,” it became obvious that Fletcher had some more work to do. […]